Pokemon Paldea [396-397] (Patreon)

Chapter 396: The Twin Eevee Who Walked Right Into the Trap — The Farm Defense War!

"Hm?"

Lucas and Oranguru both showed surprised expressions.

Thanks to Luxray and Arcanine's daily patrols, and the Corviknight squad led by Three Scar circling the farm skies on daytime watch, wild Pokémon almost never settled within about a one-kilometer radius of the farm's perimeter anymore.

In fact, from the moment the Herba Mystica fully ripened to the moment its aroma began riding the night breeze outward, less than ten minutes had passed.

And yet a wild Pokémon had already infiltrated the farm.

Had they been lurking nearby all along?

Lucas asked, "Can you tell what Pokémon it is?"

Calyrex pondered for a moment and said, "The same kind as your student's sick Pokémon. But… it should be the pre-evolution."

Oranguru said decisively, "That means Eevee."

"Then Calyrex and I will go take a look. Oranguru, the defense is in your hands."

Lucas looked at Oranguru with trust.

Oranguru fanned its leaf fan, confidence written all over its face. "Please rest assured, young master. As for troop deployment and formation, I know a thing or two myself."

After Lucas and Calyrex left the house, Oranguru covered half its face with the fan, a determined glint flashing in its eyes.

Since the young master had entrusted it with such a heavy responsibility, it would deliver the most perfect results.

After a brief silence, Oranguru peered into the fully visualized map of the farm in its mind. With great care, it placed one by one the pieces that represented each Pokémon into different sectors, issuing different orders.

Its powerful psychic force condensed into beams of light—each carrying instructions—and shot precisely toward coordinates all across the farm.

…

Guided by Calyrex, Lucas headed toward the direction where two Eevee had been detected.

On the way, Calyrex asked with some envy, "Just what kind of place is this Pokémon Butler Academy? To produce a butler like Oranguru—capable in ten different ways."

Calyrex thought: if it had had someone like Oranguru in the past—someone who could devise strategies and also excel in everything else—that would have been wonderful.

Lucas briefly told Calyrex about his time at the Pokémon Butler Academy back when he traveled to Kalos.

Calyrex sighed with feeling. "Kalos… I remember that region is quite close to Galar. Sometime before the Darkest Day erupted—before I fell into slumber—there seemed to be a war there as well. The commotion was enormous. Even I, in the Crown Tundra, heard about it."

"Looks like it's returned to peace now."

Listening to Calyrex's recollection, Lucas's eyes flickered thoughtfully.

A major war in Kalos that shook the world… could it have been the era of King AZ—the one who created the Ultimate Weapon?

Legendary Pokémon really were living history books. Being able to talk with them and learn about events from centuries—or even a millennium—ago was genuinely fascinating.

Under Calyrex's lead, Lucas soon found himself back in the farming zone.

Calyrex suddenly said, "That should be Oranguru's work. It stationed Serperior and the other Grass-types near the Herba Mystica fields and the surrounding crops. Those two Eevee seem to have been discovered."

Lucas quickened his pace. About two minutes later, he arrived near the Herba Mystica farmland.

Serperior fixed its cold, snake-like eyes on two trembling Eevee. Around them, green vines sprouted from the ground and swayed like serpents. The slightest movement, and the Eevee would be bound and captured.

On the other side stood Tropius and Applin—brought over by Serperior—each blocking an escape route, as if waiting for something.

Lucas's footsteps drew Serperior's attention.

It raised its head, withdrew its tongue, and didn't seem surprised by Lucas's arrival.

"Serpe—."

Serperior pointed at the two Eevee with a vine, as if asking Lucas what he intended to do.

Lucas followed the vine—and froze.

A shiny?

One Eevee with brown fur had puffed itself up, baring sharp little fangs, putting on a brave front toward Serperior.

Behind it, a smaller Eevee with completely different coloration—an alternate-color (shiny) Eevee—hid in panic behind the first Eevee, eyes full of helplessness.

But the normally colored Eevee looked strangely familiar, like he had seen it somewhere before.

Seeing Lucas, Tropius and Applin instinctively wanted to pounce into his arms—but before their bodies could move, they remembered what they were doing and could only stiffen in place.

The surrounded Eevee also saw Lucas. Its eyes lit up. It lifted a small paw with pink pads, trying to run to Lucas, but Serperior's vines blocked the way—and it also had to protect its younger sister. For all those reasons, it couldn't move. It could only stare at Lucas, hoping he would remember it.

That gaze was impossible to ignore. Lucas couldn't not notice.

At that moment, Calyrex quietly reminded him via psychic message: "I sense trust toward you from it. Does it know you?"

The reminder was perfectly timed. Lucas's mind blanked for only an instant before his memory snapped back.

Because Serperior wasn't attacking—and Tropius and Applin were only blocking lightly—under the lamplight, that beautiful coat and those big eyes overlapped rapidly with a figure in Lucas's memory.

The Eevee from the Pokémon Center—the one that had been treated!?

Realizing this, Lucas stepped up beside Serperior and said softly, "Withdraw the vines."

Serperior dipped its head slightly. Without asking why, it removed the vines that had ringed the two Eevee.

Seeing that, Applin and Tropius assumed it was over and immediately rushed past the Eevee, excitedly throwing themselves at Lucas.

Applin was one thing. Tropius, nearly fully grown, weighed close to 100 kilograms—he almost sent Lucas straight to the afterlife.

Fortunately, Serperior—face stern—controlled Grass energy and made thicker, longer vines rise from the ground to hoist Tropius up, giving Lucas room to breathe.

Even so, Tropius used his natural advantage, craning his long neck to nuzzle Lucas.

Seeing that scene, Eevee restrained the faint, barely visible envy and yearning in its eyes, and became even more convinced Lucas was a good person.

Otherwise, these Pokémon wouldn't like him so much.

With Serperior no longer blocking them, Eevee turned around and licked its sister's fur, signaling her to stay close. Then it carefully walked up to Lucas and called out:

"Vee!"

Compared to Lucas's confusion, both Serperior and Calyrex looked at Eevee in surprise.

A moment later, with Calyrex translating, Lucas finally understood what Eevee meant.

It had come to warn him: wild Pokémon would likely attack the farm soon, trying to break in and seize the Herba Mystica that Lucas had already harvested.

Honestly, Lucas was stunned.

Eevee wasn't coveting the Herba Mystica at all—instead it chose to warn him. For a wild Pokémon, that meant suppressing instinctual desire.

As for the possibility that Eevee was lying—forced to make something up because Serperior caught it—trying to deceive Lucas…

Not to mention Calyrex, who could serve as a high-precision lie detector if it wished—even Lucas could tell Eevee was completely sincere.

After a brief thought, Lucas simply crouched down and reached a hand toward Eevee.

Eevee stiffened, suppressing the urge to dodge, and let Lucas's warm palm pat its head.

Lucas softened his voice. "Then thank you for the warning. Don't worry— they won't break through our defenses."

Eevee blinked, then remembered the overwhelmingly powerful Serperior at Lucas's side—and the huge Pokémon patrolling the farm—and felt it made perfect sense.

After thanking Eevee, Lucas shifted his gaze to the shiny Eevee behind it—the one that hadn't made a sound, only timidly hiding behind the older one and cautiously watching everything. Lucas frowned slightly.

Having studied the psychology books Nurse Joy lent him—and having practiced a few times—Lucas formed a judgment:

That smaller body—whether due to age difference or malnutrition—and that timid gaze… it seemed less like simple fright and more like an innate temperament.

Likely some experience had made it distrust any life other than Eevee.

Compared to the healthy, beautiful normal-colored Eevee, this shiny Eevee had serious issues.

Sensing Lucas's attention, the shiny Eevee curled up tighter and retreated further behind its sister.

Lucas: "…"

Alright. Confirmed.

Another Pokémon showing signs of psychological issues due to some kind of acquired trauma.

At this rate, Lucas felt that sooner or later he'd have to switch careers and become a therapist for Pokémon.

"Vee, vee!"

Noticing Lucas looking at her sister, Eevee remembered the real reason she came and looked at him pleadingly, calling out twice.

With Calyrex's simultaneous translation, Lucas finally understood why Eevee had risked coming to warn him.

Turns out: ever since Lucas and Nurse Joy saved her last time, she'd been wanting to bring her naturally frail twin sister to find him.

This incident merely became the fuel that pushed her to take the step.

Everything became clear.

And Lucas… did not feel relieved.

He stared at the Eevee sisters as if his worldview were collapsing, voice trembling. "Twins—how are you twins?"

From one Pokémon Egg, shouldn't only one Pokémon hatch?

Can you hatch a double yolk?

Serperior's tail tip swayed slightly, thinking Lucas was making a fuss over nothing. But—

Serperior's sharp, icy gaze snapped toward somewhere. Its tail tip plunged into the soil. Dense vines erupted outward—careful not to harm the crops—growing violently. In the blink of an eye, the area became a world of plants, layered upon layered, sealing the farming zone tight.

Before Eevee or Calyrex could explain anything, a piercing cry rang from the sky—and blazing flames lit up half the heavens.

The first to reach the farm were… Flying-type Pokémon!

Charging in first and declaring its presence was Moltres. Its attacks couldn't hit with perfect accuracy. Some flames missed their targets, and sustained by Fire energy, continued burning as they fell.

The flames landed on Serperior's vines and roared—only to be smothered by additional vines that arrived immediately after. This was one of Serperior's usual techniques for dealing with Fire-type moves:

Extinguish it in one go while the blaze is still small.

Having protected the most flammable farming zone, Serperior shot the sky a look full of disdain.

That idiot still hadn't learned anything—casting moves sloppily, and making Serperior clean up the mess.

Moltres's cry was like the trumpet declaring the start of battle. Outside the farm, fighting ignited everywhere.

In the sky.

Moltres stared proudly at the Murkrow whose feathers blended into the night, and their leader Honchkrow. The aura of a legendary bird pressed down on them like a mountain.

Elsewhere, under Dragonite's command, the Dragonite leader and three Dragonair each fought a separate flock of Flying Pokémon.

Outside the pasture.

Two Sawsbuck stood their ground before a team of several Houndoom and a huge pack of Houndour. Green light poured into the earth nonstop, keeping the area under Grassy Terrain.

Two Gogoat lowered their long wooden horns, leading five Miltank—Rollout stacks fully built—charging ferociously toward the Houndoom pack.

Anyone watching would have to shout: the world has flipped upside down.

When Mudsdale followed up and stamped the ground, a swath of Houndour were launched into the air.

At the lakeside.

Heavy rain blanketed the area. The sight of Swampert filled the scattered wild Pokémon with immense pressure.

At Politoed's call, the Poliwrath circled Swampert, fists brimming with righteous spirit.

Near the warehouse and ice cellar clearing.

White mist drifted through the air. The ground froze solid. A massive ice wall formed under the combined effort of Regice and Glastrier, making the incoming wild Pokémon hesitate and retreat without fighting.

Mimikyu and Spectrier looked at the Vulpix who came up with the idea, amazed at the kid's cleverness.

In other scattered parts of the farm, a huge, oppressive presence simply stood there. Many wild Pokémon that had snuck in were intimidated into not acting rashly.

At times like this, an armored shadow swordsman would emerge from the darkness, swinging a pale-blue flaming greatsword to drive them back.

In the farming zone.

Cosmog, Tropius, and Applin—under Serperior's command—drove off Ground-types tunneling up from below.

Victini and Comfey flitted through the farm, continuously empowering, assisting, and healing the defenders.

Beyond that, Naclstack, Dachsbun, Arboliva, Shuckle, and many others all defended their home in their own ways.

Inside the house.

"Alcremie…"

Still making desserts, Alcremie seemed distracted, repeatedly looking outside.

Gimmighoul hauled berries one by one beside it, occasionally sneaking one to eat when Alcremie wasn't paying attention.

Taking it all in, Oranguru smiled gently at Alcremie. "Trust everyone. What we must do now is prepare delicious food to wash away the fatigue after battle."

The defense lasted until morning. With Dragonite deliberately manipulating airflow to disperse the scent, the Herba Mystica aroma finally faded. Only then did the wild Pokémon—coming in wave after wave in a frenzy—gradually calm down.

…

Chapter 397: Selling Yourself to Save Your Sister

On the wrecked ground scarred by battle, the first morning sunlight pierced thin clouds and fell gently.

The Eevee sisters stared in shock at the farm's wooden fence—completely unscathed—then at the cratered, battle-torn earth beyond. The contrast was painfully sharp.

They followed Lucas around for a look. Those wooden fences—meant at most to mark boundaries, and only truly effective against the likes of Caterpie—had not suffered the slightest damage.

And farther away, they even saw an enormous wall of ice.

Was that really something a Pokémon could make?

Limited by the younger sister's stamina, Eevee couldn't walk to see the full farm. But even thinking about it, the other sectors were probably similar.

That meant the farm's Pokémon—by their own power—had held off wave after wave of wild Pokémon and kept the farm secure, not letting a single intruder cross the line?

From Lucas and Calyrex's conversation, even sneaky wild Pokémon—those good at hiding or burrowing underground—had all been driven out by a swordsman wielding twin pale-blue flame blades.

Eevee had tried to rate this farm highly, but it was far more ridiculous than she imagined.

Eevee glanced at her younger sister, who was panting beside her, determination filling her eyes.

She'd decided: even if it was for her sister, she had to grab onto Lucas's thigh and never let go.

Just as Eevee made up her mind, Lucas—standing outside the fence and surveying the post-battle wreckage—said sincerely to Calyrex beside him:

"These next few days, we need to do some landscaping and re-greening outside the farm."

Calyrex nodded strongly. "I agree."

Look at this mess.

It wasn't just torn-up turf—within a hundred meters, the ground looked like it had been plowed. All vegetation was wiped out, as if erased by moves of every attribute.

Not even roots remained.

Chaotic residual elemental energy lingered in the soil, including types naturally hostile to plants. To regrow lush greenery, they'd need to till everything again and remove the excess energy residue.

Lucas sighed. "This is a huge project. Mudsdale and Swampert will probably have to work overtime."

Among all the farm Pokémon, only Swampert and Mudsdale could manipulate large areas of soil like that. At times like this, he could only rely on them.

Hopefully, once the extracurricular treasure-hunt began and Nemona cleared all eight gyms, he'd have an excuse to hand over the Peat Block.

After clearing all eight gyms, Nemona probably wouldn't immediately challenge the Elite Four and Champion. Even with her love of battling, she knew she wasn't fully ready; rushing it would just waste an attempt and force her to start over.

She'd definitely choose a training journey to other regions first. Once confident, she'd return to Paldea League and take the Champion Assessment in one go.

Then Lucas could say, "I'm helping Nemona train Ursaluna," and requisition it to help dig and loosen soil on the farm.

Better yet—once the other students also meet his requirements and obtain Ursaluna—he'd suddenly have no shortage of Ground-types to boss around.

Calyrex had no idea Lucas was contemplating something evil. With keen senses, it noticed that the normal-colored Eevee behind the fence was staring at Lucas with burning intensity.

Calyrex looked back thoughtfully, moving very subtly. Eevee—too focused on Lucas—didn't notice at all.

Looking at Eevee, then at the shiny Eevee smaller by several sizes and clearly underdeveloped, Calyrex understood.

Risking entry into the farm to warn about the wild Pokémon riot… was likely for this.

After thinking, Calyrex decided to help things along and said to Lucas, "Eevee seems to be waiting for you—like it has something to ask."

"Hm?"

Lucas turned back toward Eevee, now only a wooden fence away.

Sure, as a warning it had basically been a wasted trip and didn't change much.

But Eevee's intent and action deserved encouragement and reward.

Without hesitation, Lucas climbed over the fence and landed beside Eevee. He glanced at the shiny Eevee, who refused to meet his eyes, and crouched so he wouldn't look towering and oppressive. Then he asked:

"Did you come to warn me because of what happened at the Pokémon Center that day?"

"Vee vee."

Eevee nodded, then shook her head.

Yes—but not entirely.

The reason she brought her sister near here really was because Lucas and Nurse Joy saved her when she was injured and exhausted.

But her warning also had another purpose.

Eevee was smart. She didn't want to lie.

Calyrex translated Eevee's thoughts to Lucas.

After a moment of silence, Lucas looked at the shiny Eevee panting behind her.

"You came for her?"

Lucas remembered that Nurse Joy's checkup said Eevee herself was perfectly healthy.

So the reason she'd risk entering the farm likely was this shiny Eevee that never left her side.

"Vee." (Yes. She's my younger sister.)

Eevee nodded and shifted aside, presenting her sister fully.

The shiny Eevee wanted to keep hiding—but her sister's encouraging gaze held her in place. After receiving her sister's grooming, she gathered courage and didn't retreat behind her.

That gave Lucas a chance to observe.

Under the shiny Eevee's nervous little expression, Lucas studied her for about a minute. Comparing her to Eevee beside her, he reached a conclusion:

Her height was probably only around twenty centimeters. Next to her sister, she looked like a newborn infant.

Shiny coloration itself might correlate—or it might not—but congenital weakness, developmental deficiency, or chronic malnutrition could all cause this.

Lucas asked firmly, "So—you want me to treat your sister?"

"Vee!"

Eevee nodded hard, eyes full of pleading.

She didn't know whether Lucas could treat her, or how powerful human medicine was.

She only believed this: if Lucas and Nurse Joy could save her when she was injured and collapsed, they must be even better than the Chansey known in the wild for healing Pokémon selflessly.

Once, she had brought her sister to seek out the famed healer Chansey and received a gifted egg—but even that nutrient-rich egg only improved her sister a little. Full recovery still seemed impossibly far.

Maybe Lucas had a way.

With Calyrex's help, Eevee explained everything: how she and her sister were twins; how her sister was frail from birth; how she was bullied and excluded by their kind because of her fur color; how malnutrition worsened it; how they eventually left the group.

After hearing it all, Lucas and Calyrex exchanged a look, unusually quiet.

Putting aside the question of how one Pokémon Egg produced twin Eevee—

It was obvious the shiny Eevee had been unconsciously deprived of what little nutrition there was in the egg by her stronger sister, leading to congenital deficiency. Then being rejected by the group and suffering long-term malnutrition made it worse.

That Eevee had managed to keep them alive in the dangerous wild at all was, frankly, incredible.

After hearing the request, Calyrex said nothing and left the decision to Lucas.

He was the owner of the farm.

Under one pleading gaze and one timid gaze, Lucas—feeling immense pressure—sighed.

"I can probably treat her… but we can't do it for free, right?"

"Vee?"

Eevee's ears twitched. She blinked her big eyes, tail swaying in confusion.

Lucas glanced at her and chuckled. "Come with me somewhere."

…

A little later.

Farming zone.

The shiny Eevee's stamina was too low to walk that far. Lucas carried her for most of the way.

At first, she resisted and feared him. But after Eevee soothed her—and perhaps because Lucas's arms were warm—her eyelids drooped. She couldn't fight the overwhelming sleep and soon fell deeply asleep.

Even sleeping, the shiny Eevee curled up. Her tiny body could fit in two palms, and to Lucas—who had been doing farm work for months—she felt frighteningly light.

Eevee kept walking ahead, but frequently turned back to check on her sister. It was easy to imagine the two had lived dependent on each other for a long time.

Standing by the Herba Mystica field that Serperior had guarded so tightly last night, Lucas freed one hand and pointed at the three empty spots, saying to Eevee:

"Among last night's ripe crops, those would have a clear effect on your sister's congenital weakness and malnutrition."

Herba Mystica: Bitter — greatly boosts immunity.

Herba Mystica: Salty — promotes overall health.

On the way, Calyrex had also said it could use Life energy rich in vitality to nourish the shiny Eevee's body.

And finally:

Herba Mystica: Spicy — speeds up metabolism, helping the shiny Eevee absorb energy better.

With this combination, both congenital deficiency and acquired malnutrition should improve.

Conveniently, one of Lucas's students was also a Joy now. He could exploit the "job connection" to get a few Chansey eggs, and pair them with Moomoo Milk from Miltank.

Lucas refused to believe he had all these cards in hand and still couldn't treat one shiny Eevee.

But—as he'd said—treatment was possible. Free-riding was not.

Under Eevee's innocent stare, Lucas pointed at the half-piece of Herba Mystica Calyrex had just helped him retrieve from the warehouse and said:

"Do you know how much effort and cost I spent to force-ripen even one of these?"

"Forget its priceless rarity—just converting the resources I put in, it'd be enough to buy you two sisters Pokémon food for years!"

Eevee, utterly confused.

She didn't understand, but it sounded incredible.

Calyrex had already turned away, unwilling to watch this shameless scene.

Lucas continued, "And if we're treating your sister, we can't fix her in one go. Congenital weakness plus malnutrition—if we hit her with too strong a dose at once, it'll backfire. Slow nourishment is the best approach."

"I'm saying all this so you understand how precious these things are. So let's not dance around it."

"If your sister stays for treatment, she'll have to stay here a long time. You won't be comfortable leaving her here alone, right?"

"Vee!" (Right!)

Eevee nodded. She truly couldn't leave her sister.

"Exactly!"

Lucas wanted to clap, but with a sleeping Eevee in his arms, he kept it to words.

Then he revealed his real goal.

"How about this: both of you join the farm—become part of it. The farm will provide food and lodging, and if you get sick, treatment is free. That way you don't have to worry about the value of these things. Free treatment!"

"…Vee?"

Eevee tilted her head. Her clever little brain sensed something slightly off—but it also sounded reasonable.

They had already saved her once for free. To ask for more without giving anything back would be greedy.

Self-reliant Eevee despised that.

Perhaps because she finally saw hope for her sister's recovery, Eevee—who could normally contend evenly with cunning wild Pokémon—chose without hesitation to sell herself to save her sister.

"Vee!" (Deal. No take-backs!)

Smiling like his plan had succeeded, Lucas nodded. "Deal."

Lucas brought the farm's two new members back home.

Oranguru, Alcremie, and the others had just finished hosting the Pokémon who'd fought through the night, sending them back to their nests to rest.

Aside from the Corviknight who arrived as usual, and a few Pokémon who still had tasks to handle, Lucas had Oranguru notify everyone that daytime farm work was paused today—everyone should sleep and recover.

One day off wouldn't cause serious problems.

There was still no news from Penny's side. Lucas guessed Nurse Joy was still researching how to combine the three Herba Mystica properly, and how to maximize the effect.

Flareon's underdeveloped flame sac was similar in principle to the shiny Eevee's condition. Once Joy produced a plan, Lucas figured he could borrow it and adjust it for the shiny Eevee—saving time and effort.

Because he still had afternoon classes and urgently needed sleep, Lucas temporarily settled the two Eevee in his room. He asked Oranguru to fetch two new small nests from the warehouse so they could sleep—

Those nests had originally been bought for Growlithe, but Growlithe evolved quickly. Even with Dachsbun around, several unused nests remained. After all, Dachsbun didn't destroy the house like Arcanine did.

That afternoon, the Mesagoza Joy should also report to school. Two Joys was manageable, but now there would be a third. To avoid confusion, Lucas decided to do what he did with Joy Yumi from the town of Hulbury:

Ask the names of the Joy from Los Platos and the Mesagoza Joy—now a Naranja Academy freshman—so he could tell them apart.