"All right, from now on, everyone can only have half a bottle of rice wine no more than that, got it?"

The moment Lin Feng stepped out of the breeding house, that was the first thing he said.

"Hmm…" He glanced up at Gardevoir hovering in the air and added, "Except for Gardevoir."

She was a Psychic-type Pokémon. As long as she didn't want to get drunk, she wouldn't. Simple as that.

The other Pokémon, having recovered from the earlier chaos, all nodded seriously.

"Moo moo~"

(Got it~)

"Frooo..."

(So scary... She turned into something else after drinking.)

"Waaah..."

(My image... it's ruined... Why...)

"Chaa!"

(Delicious, delicious! I love it!)

"Swiiirl..."

(Sniff sniff...)

"Pidgey?"

Pidgeotto, standing on the ground, looked at Lin Feng walking back out and then at the rice wine on the table. It was… tempted.

They were technically staff here at the plantation, and their treatment wasn't much different from Lin Feng's own team of Pokémon. Barbecue, Pokéblocks, drinks everything was provided in abundance.

But as far as Lin Feng had observed, most Pidgeys and Spearows didn't care much for the drinks. They were more interested in grilled meats and high-quality Pokéblocks.

That made Pidgeotto hesitate.

Still, curiosity was killing it.

It glanced at its fellow birds, who were all busy working the grill.

Would it be inappropriate to nod?

...But if it didn't have a sip, the curiosity would drive it crazy.

Just one sip...

Having made up its mind, Pidgeotto nodded slightly.

"Sure," Lin Feng chuckled, bringing the cup of rice wine closer. "You want to try a bit?"

"Pidgey?"

Pidgeotto looked around again.

No one else was slacking. They were all hard at work.

But... just one sip wouldn't hurt, right?

It nodded again.

Lin Feng handed the cup over with a smile. At the same time, a new thought struck him.

Mewtwo… Mew. Technically, both of them were feline Pokémon.

And what do cats love?

Catnip.

If he really wanted to win them over, food might not even be the top priority.

Hmm…

Next time, he'd try mixing a bit of catnip into their food. See how Mew reacted.

If she liked it, he'd plant an entire patch of catnip right here in the garden.

Brilliant.

Absolutely brilliant.

Just imagining plucking a tuft of Mew's "cat" fur had Lin Feng buzzing with excitement.

That would definitely be enough to get a top-tier Rare Candy. Even Gardevoir would benefit from something that rare!

"Pidgey~"

(Tasty~)

After taking a sip, Pidgeotto gave its verdict without hesitation.

But then... it started to feel conflicted.

It had left the Tree of Life with a mission to find the Pokémon that shared its genetic lineage.

But now? This place had completely won over its heart.

Maybe… just one more day?

Yeah.

Just one more day.

It'd leave after tomorrow's meal.

...

Dinner ended smoothly. Aside from Snivy's minor accident, nothing else unexpected happened.

Pidgeot returned to its tree with its flock of Pidgeottos and Pidgeys.

All the Pokémon had settled in for the night.

Once Lin Feng finished cleaning up, he looked over at Gardevoir.

She'd drunk several bottles of rice wine, yet remained perfectly composed. Not even slightly tipsy.

"Gardevoir?"

"You can go now."

It was late. Lin Feng didn't try to keep her. After she left, he returned to the breeding house.

The Alcremies were already asleep. Snivy hadn't woken up from her drunken nap. Only Alolan Vulpix was still blinking her sleepy eyes, waiting for Lin Feng.

Even she looked exhausted after a bit of rice wine.

"If you're sleepy, go to bed. You don't need to wait up for me."

He gently patted her soft fur. Vulpix yawned, nodded, and curled up, quickly slipping into a deep sleep.

"Phew..."

After washing up, Lin Feng walked into the wooden cabin. Seeing Snivy fast asleep, he activated Insight Eye.

Pokémon: Snivy

Gender: Female

Ability: Contrary (+)

Potential: Gold-tier

IVs:

HP (27+2), Attack (22+1), Special Attack (28+2), Defense (27+1), Special Defense (24+2), Speed (31+3)

Level: 34–37

Moves: Vine Whip, Leech Seed, Glare...

Friendship: 100 (You are her emotional anchor.)

Joy: 80 (Extremely happy)

Seeing her Friendship stat maxed out, Lin Feng chuckled and shook his head.

He'd been wondering what emotional burden she was hiding.

Turns out… she was just too prideful to admit how she really felt.

The rice wine he made tonight accidentally had a "truth serum" effect, and it ended up working in his favor.

"So the '+' in Contrary… means it's an enhanced version?" he muttered, looking at the ability.

He remembered how Combusken's Speed Boost ability allowed its speed to skyrocket after each Quick Attack. He'd even looked it up it was about 1.8 to 2 times faster than a normal Speed Boost.

Previously, the effects of the Drakon Berry Pokéblock were described as a 50% boost on first use, and gradual trait development afterward.

So right now, when Snivy uses Leaf Storm, her Special Attack gets a 1.5x boost?

"Mmm… I'll need to test this."

He remembered the plantation master in Grapeport Town had said there'd be a battle tournament on August 28th, with lots of skilled Trainers invited.

As he mulled over these thoughts, he suddenly felt excited to see Snivy's reaction when she woke up tomorrow if she could recall what happened tonight.

Just thinking about it made him chuckle.

He shook his head, pushed away the excitement, and lay down in bed, pulling up his system rewards for the day.

August 25 Rewards:

SSS-tier Leaf Stone (x1)

Top-tier Rare Candy (x2)

Premium Miracle Fertilizer (x5)

Drakon Berries (x18)

Mid-tier Drakon Berries (x5)

…

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