Pokémon: Starting as a Farmer Instead of a Trainer

Chapter 47 Reencounter with Simocha (Please continue reading)

That afternoon, inside the manor.

"Hmm..."

Holding the ghost mask she had brought back, Ponpo squatted on the steps by the door, like a disobedient child who had made a mistake and was waiting for her parents to scold her.

But how could Mingyou possibly criticize it? He was too busy spoiling it. However, thinking about what happened in the North-Shanghai Center, he decided to have a good talk with it.

"You still really want to come with me, don't you?"

"Hmm..."

Ponpon nodded gently. It didn't want to be the one stuck at home playing while Mingyou went out to earn money to support the family, unable to help in any way. But...

Mingyou already knew what it was worried about. In the end, it was still the story of Beishang Township that made the people of Beishang Township hate and want to drive away the ghosts. But didn't Pengpeng also hate and fear them?

Everything has a cause. This happened hundreds of years ago, and those people from that time have all turned to dust, leaving only pudding.

Thinking of all this, he stroked Ponpo's head and asked softly, "So, what exactly happened hundreds of years ago, do you remember?"

"Hmm..."

Ponpo shook its head. Too much time had passed, and the mask that held the memories was lost, making it difficult for it to recall what had happened.

However, it seems that it did indeed... kill the three Pokémon with the Thorn Stick.

"I see... I understand..."

Mingyou didn't ask any further questions. With such a sensible personality, even if Munchlax secretly took away its snacks, it wouldn't try to take them back. It would just smile and say that it was sharing with the other person. It was almost never seen that it would get angry.

Would someone with such a personality kill Pokémon? There must have been something those three companions did to make Ponpo lose its mind and beat them all to death.

After all, Ponpo is his companion, and both emotionally and logically, he would only side with Ponpo; this is a form of trust.

"It seems that there is some unrevealed truth hidden in the history of Kitakami Township..."

Mingyou pondered these things in her heart. It seemed that in addition to finding the mask for Pengpeng, she would have to add another task: to help Pengpeng prove her innocence!

But now, back to the topic we were just discussing, Ponpo wants to go to the Taipei Center to play, and there's really no way to do that for now. She'll definitely be recognized, and it might cause a mess.

"Oh, right..."

Mingyou suddenly remembered something, immediately looked at Pengpeng, and said with a smile, "I heard that the Masked Festival starts in a week. Everyone will wear masks to the festival. You can wear the demon mask and come with me so we won't be discovered."

"Hmm?"

When Ponpo heard about the Covered Face Festival, it had quite a few memories. It seemed to have gone there with someone before... But most of the time, it stood alone on the edge of the cliff, looking down at the lively atmosphere of the festival.

"So? Are you going?"

"Mmm!"

I want to go out and have fun with Mingyou!

Seeing Ponpo jump up, Mingyou stroked its head and said with a smile, "Alright then, let's wait another week, and I'll prepare then too."

"Mmm~"

"Ugh!"

Suddenly, a sharp scream interrupted their conversation. Looking up, they saw Latias descending rapidly from above the villa, the shockwave almost blowing Mingyou away.

It's very angry now. Why didn't they call it when they went out to play? No wonder it wandered around the manor for half a day and didn't see anyone. It was abandoned again.

"I just went to set up a stall today..."

Mingyou scratched his head and continued, "Besides, it's not convenient for you to go directly. If Latias shows up there, it will definitely attract a lot of attention. I'm planning to wait until the Masked Festival, and then go together when you use your invisibility ability."

"Waaah..."

Latias then realized in a daze that the invisibility ability... it could indeed use Ai to wrap his body in glass-like feathers, causing light to refract and change his appearance, thus concealing his form.

But that's no fun, nobody can see you, and there's no atmosphere for playing...

No, we have to think of a way!

Latias then left, and Mingyou watched it fly away with her hands on her hips, wondering what this silly kid was planning to do next, as long as it wasn't too outrageous.

He looked away from the Gible, who was peeking from behind the sofa in the living room, and asked with a smile, "Want to come play together?"

"shark……"

The gible hesitated for a moment, but still turned and ran away. Although it had developed a sense of belonging to the manor, it still distrusted humans.

Mingyou smiled helplessly, naturally she wouldn't force the other person, as long as they liked living here.

"Let's go eat first, then we'll continue setting up our stall tomorrow!"

"Mmm~"

……

Over the next few days, Mingyou stayed relatively stable, going to the North Center with the Deer and Munchlax to set up a stall. She would go home at noon to cook for Ponpo and the others, and then go out again in the afternoon, busy until evening.

However, business wasn't particularly good. Although there were noticeably more tourists, the stall's location was still too remote. Even with Dr. Kukui helping to defeat GG, they only had a few moves, so sales were slow.

Of course... I also encountered many troublesome tourists who, upon seeing what he wrote on his GG profile, would immediately accuse him of overcharging without even asking any questions, and even take videos and photos to post online.

Mingyou could only laugh it off. After all, they were in business; how could they argue with the other party? But if the other party wanted to take action, it would be a different story; he wouldn't be afraid of them.

And finally, the day before the start of the Covered Face Festival arrived, that afternoon...

"Let's go, pack up and go home for dinner."

Mingyou packed up the goods she brought. Today she did sell some apple-based snacks. After all, they were only a few yuan a serving, tasted better than those from other stalls, and were cheaper.

The horned deer stood up and used its mental power to secure the goods to the bags it carried, so that it wouldn't fall off along the way.

The little Snorlax yawned. It had been running around a lot these past few days, and everyone knew it was Mingyou's Pokémon. No one associated it with the Pokémon that stole its companion's offerings two months ago.

Mingyou put it back into its Poké Ball, then rode on the Deerclops and was about to go down the mountain to go home when she suddenly felt a gaze on her and instinctively looked over.

Beneath an ice cream stall, a familiar tea canister was quietly watching him. It was the Smoothie tea that he hadn't seen for almost a month since leaving the manor.

"Wait a moment..."

Mingyou stopped the horned deer, then got off its back and walked towards the stall across the street.

The stall owner was a middle-aged man, a resident of Emerald Town. He wasn't familiar with Mingyou, but they had seen each other frequently these past few days, so they were acquainted.

"Hey sir, wanna buy some ice cream?"

"Uh... then..."

Mingyou was thinking of buying one for Ponpon to take home, but the stall owner noticed that his gaze wasn't on his stall, but below.

So he subconsciously looked down... After a moment of blank expression, he suddenly let out a terrified scream.

"...Yuri-macha!!!"

In Beishang Township, Smocha is a childhood nightmare for almost all residents. If someone was not frightened by the story of their parents sprinkling matcha with Smocha when they were a child, then their childhood must be incomplete.

Of course... those without parents are an exception.

The stall owner was startled by the "Smoothie" and exclaimed that it was bad luck. In Beishang Township, the use of matcha flavoring is prohibited because people are worried that the "Smoothie" might be mixed with their own matcha powder, which would then drain the person's energy or even kill them!

Upon realizing they had been discovered, the tea leaves floated out from under the stall, but the stall owner's voice still attracted some tourists and students.

"Smocha? Is it wild?"

"It seems like it should be..."

"It really is a tea caddy, just like in the picture book!"

"It's nothing like Lai Bei Cha, and it's not as cute as Lai Bei Cha either."

"You guys continue your conversation, first come, first served!"

"..."

Smoker is currently only found in Kitakami Township and is very rare. Many people have only seen it in the Pokédex. Now that they have encountered it, it is natural that some people would want to catch it.

Seeing this, Mingyou stopped in her tracks, especially after seeing the angry expression on Simocha's tea canister. She realized that she seemed to have done something wrong and ruined the other party's plan.

"It's my fault, I completely forgot about the people of Kitakami Township who fear the magic tea..."

(End of this chapter)