The group of Pokemon also noticed them and turned their heads one after another.
They didn't seem to be afraid of strangers.
Seeing this, Naoki stepped forward to check on the Meowth's condition. Seeing that it was very weak, he took out a bottle of Berry Milk from his backpack to restore its strength.
This was originally prepared for Cyclizar, fearing that the journey was too long and Cyclizar would get thirsty, so Naoki brought several bottles.
Unexpectedly, they came in handy here.
The Meowth drank the entire bottle of Berry Milk in one go, and its wounds began to heal at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The surrounding Pokemon looked on in wonder, casting curious glances at this human.
Meowth stood up: "Meow~"
Seeing its energetic appearance, Naoki smiled and said, "Alright, be more careful next time."
"Meow~"
A group of Pokemon then hopped and skipped away, running into the garden maze to start a game of hide and seek.
Watching this scene, Allen once again felt the grandeur of the mansion's owner:
"Could it be that the purpose of building this garden maze was to let the Pokemon play hide and seek?"
Naoki: "It seems that way at the moment."
He pondered whether to build a small maze for hide and seek at the ranch later.
Allen muttered, "Truly extravagant!"
Naoki chuckled and looked up at the building ahead: "Let's go! That should be the destination."
Passing the garden fountain, they finally saw the third person besides themselves.
It was a maid wearing an apron, holding a broom and cleaning.
Naoki walked up and politely introduced himself and his purpose for coming.
After listening, the maid smiled and nodded, turned around with her broom: "Please follow me! The master has been waiting for you for a long time."
Hearing this, Naoki felt something was not quite right.
He looked at Allen, who seemed to have noticed nothing.
The two followed the maid into the large villa.
Pushing open the door, Naoki saw an elderly man dressed in a blue kimono, with white hair, a face full of wrinkles, and a slightly tired expression, sitting on the sofa in the villa's hall.
And on his left and right sides were two similar-looking Pokemon.
They both had horns on their heads, except one had upward horns and the other had downward horns.
The one with upward horns had half-open, half-closed eyes and a blank expression, while the one with downward horns wore a gentle expression, with upturned mouth corners, displaying a pleasant smile.
Indeedee...
Information about the two Pokemon surfaced in Naoki's mind; one was male, and the other was female.
They stood respectfully beside the old man, watching the few people who had pushed open the door and entered.
"Is it them?" Naoki thought to himself.
They followed the maid to the old man.
At this point, the old man spoke, "You've finally arrived, please sit down."
The two nodded, then sat on the sofa opposite the old man.
"Hello," Naoki greeted politely, "I'm Naoki, currently running a ranch in Porto Marinada Town, and this is my partner and assistant, Cyclizar."
The old man nodded slightly, murmuring softly, "A rancher..."
After a moment, he continued: "You can just call me Sato, what do you think? Is that okay?"
Saying this, the old man turned his head and inquired of the two Indeeedees beside him.
The male Indeedee on the left nodded calmly.
The female Indeedee on the right looked at Naoki, giving him a gentle smile, "Indeedee~"
Seeing their reactions, the old man laughed, "That's good, I see he's a great choice to take care of those two kids."
"Hmm?" Hearing this, Naoki was somewhat taken aback, "Excuse me, Mr. Sato, what does that mean?"
Seeing his expression, the old man guessed what he was thinking—probably thought it was the two Indeeedees.
He laughed heartily and shook his head, "They've been with me for over twenty years, I can't bear to let anyone else take care of them. I'm looking to have their children adopted."
"I'll be frank, Naoki, when you came over earlier, I witnessed your actions; you passed a small test I set for you."
Naoki was slightly taken aback, with the image of the injured Meowth by the fountain flashing through his mind.
The old man smiled and said, "Being able to rescue an unfamiliar Pokemon shows you're a very compassionate person."
"Moreover, the ghost story you told in the garden was marvelous... the ghosts you fear are people others long to see but can never meet again, indeed!"
At this point, it seemed as if the old man thought of something, but he quickly recovered, continuing:
"Of course, that's not important, what's important is that when Cyclizar got scared, you comforted it in time and held its hand, showing you're very patient with Pokemon."
Upon hearing all this, Naoki felt a bit embarrassed.
Seeing his expression, the old man couldn't help but laugh, "Please forgive me, it wasn't my intention to eavesdrop on your conversation. I heard from the servant that you got lost in that garden maze."
"Because a lot of Pokemon usually play there, for their safety, I have many surveillance cameras installed in that area."