Chapter 71:
Ever since absorbing the divine feather of Moltres, it had made remarkable progress. Add to that the barbecue feast from a while ago, which had further ignited its inner energy, and the power level—already close to evolution—had climbed even higher.
Now, its evolution…
was perfectly timed.
And it wasn't just Pidgeotto that had feasted that day. Torchic had eaten just as much, and Kaede believed it wouldn't be long before it evolved as well.
The white light in the sky gradually faded. What had once been a hawk-like Pidgeotto expanded again in size; the crest feathers atop its head grew longer, its gaze sharper.
The brown wing feathers typical of a newly evolved Pidgeot were instead a brilliant crimson, gleaming with a metallic sheen, faint embers flickering along the edges. From afar, it looked like a blazing flame soaring through the heavens—majestic beyond compare.
What a magnificent bird.
"Pidgeot~!"
Its long, resonant cry echoed through the sky. After circling once to leave its mark upon the air, the fiery form descended slowly toward Hayashi Kaede.
When it landed, Kaede realized with surprise that the newly evolved Pidgeot now stood eye-to-eye with him—no, perhaps even a little taller.
This was almost twice the size of an ordinary freshly evolved Pidgeot.
It seemed that after training for a while, his Pokémon always ended up… bigger than normal.
Was he feeding them too well?
Pokémon: Pidgeot
Gender: Male
Ability: Keen Eye
Aptitude: Red
IVs: HP (25), Attack (31), Sp. Atk (29), Defense (20), Sp. Def (21), Speed (28)
Level: 33–36
Moves: Gust, Tackle, Quick Attack, Steel Wing, Hurricane, Twister, Defog, Wing Attack, Heat Wave, …
Friendship: 99 (Unconditionally trusts you!)
Happiness: 70 (Such strength… incredible strength…)
Kaede happily examined Pidgeot's status screen, but one number made him pause.
Friendship at 99—was this the last step before reclaiming its lost territory?
In that case, helping it reclaim its land was the right thing to do.
Thinking of friendship levels made Kaede recall Servine.
It had been with him almost as long as Milotic, yet its friendship was also stuck at 99. He couldn't tell what was holding back that last single point.
"Forget it, let's deal with Pidgeotto's—no, Pidgeot's—matter first…"
But before that…
Kaede rubbed Pidgeot's large wing, feeling the warm currents beneath the feathers, and couldn't help but smile at its majestic figure.
Finally, he wouldn't need to grab onto its talons when flying—he could ride it directly now!
Just as he was about to try, a slightly dejected voice by the reservoir pulled him back.
"Brii… onne…"
He looked down.
Brionne, who had been happily nibbling on Pokéblocks, now wore a downcast expression.
Its Happiness had dropped from 65 to 20.
Kaede immediately understood.
The three little ones who had come here together had all made noticeable progress recently.
Torchic's progress was, of course, the most dramatic, but Bounsweet had also improved a lot, even learning Sweet Scent.
Only Brionne's energy level had crawled upward at a snail's pace, still stuck in its juvenile stage—even after Kaede had fed it a Rare Candy.
"Brionne?"
When Kaede walked over, Brionne lowered its head, looking a little embarrassed and avoiding his gaze.
It had been quite a while since he last gave it a Rare Candy. Now seemed like the perfect time for another.
Kaede took one out. "Don't worry, don't get anxious. I'll help you evolve."
He held the Rare Candy up to Brionne's mouth.
Seeing the candy, Brionne's Happiness rose again. "Brionne~"
It remembered that the last time it ate one, its energy had surged noticeably.
For a Pokémon with its aptitude, the effect had been significant—proof that this candy was something truly precious.
Yet its Trainer had no hesitation in giving it one… again.
He's so kind…
Brionne thought as it ate the Rare Candy, little pearls of tears falling from its eyes.
Not wanting Kaede to see, it quickly turned and slipped into the water, peeking at him from beneath the surface.
"Ha… this kid…"
Seeing the Friendship on Brionne's status screen spike upward, Kaede chuckled, then turned to the newly evolved Pidgeot. "Come on, let's go take back your territory!"
Now was the best time—its fighting spirit was blazing.
Strike while the iron's hot; let the moment pass, and the excitement would fade.
"Pidgeot!"
Its piercing cry rang through the Plantation, crimson fire-feathers blazing brighter, eyes flashing with fierce determination.
"Servine~?" (Are we going into battle?)
Servine, who had been maintaining a Grassy Terrain nearby, perked up and slithered over.
Its energy level was still stuck between 28–29—evolution was still a way off—but it had been a long time since its last real battle.
"Chick?"
In the cattle shed, Torchic was happily munching Pokéblocks—until it saw Pidgeot in the sky. The Pokéblock hanging from its beak dropped in shock.
That was Pidgeotto's evolution?
Why was its fire even stronger than Torchic's own?
Torchic spat out a small ember experimentally. The orange-yellow flame looked nice enough, but compared to the blazing Pidgeot above, it felt lacking.
Unfortunately, the ember landed right on the wooden cattle shed wall.
"Miltank!!"
The ember caught instantly.
(What are you doing, you big dumb chick?!)
Startled by Miltank's cry, Torchic quickly stomped the ember out. Although it acted in time, the wall was left with a charred patch. Looking sheepishly at the Miltank herd, it dashed toward Kaede.
"Chick! Chick!" (I want to go too!)
With all the food it had been eating lately—and its natural fiery nature—it was brimming with energy.
Reclaiming territory? That sounded awesome!
"Alright, alright… everyone's coming."
Kaede sighed at the excitable little ones, then looked toward Milotic by the reservoir. "Milotic, you coming too? You can follow along the irrigation channel."
"Milotic?"
Milotic blinked, then rose from the water and nodded happily.
As for the Plantation's safety…
With Gardevoir here, there was nothing to worry about.