The sky gradually darkened.
Ron sat quietly in the Saloon, drinking his beer.
Meowth, who had held up the rose all day without finding the next trading target, pushed open the door to the Saloon.
"Gus! The usual, meow!" Meowth shouted, holding the rose as he began looking for a place to sit in the room: "One plate of spaghetti, one Piña Colada, meow."
"Is that for me, Meowth?" Robin asked, looking at Meowth passing by holding the rose.
"Then you have to trade something with Meowth, meow." Meowth walked past Robin and finally sat down with the flower in the empty seat next to Ron. "Honestly, Jessie, if you don't want to do it, don't agree to this kind of thing, meow. There's absolutely no one in all of Pelican Town who needs this flower, meow."
It then looked up and saw Gus busy in the kitchen.
"Who says so." Gus looked up at Meowth and said, "This is a rose unique to Stardew Valley! Last time Sandy came to the Saloon and asked me for it, I didn't even give it to her!"
"—" Meowth fell silent for a moment. "Then why didn't you say so earlier, meow?"
"Then do you want to give it to Sandy?" Emily asked.
"I want to trade," Meowth said. "The target is a pirate's relic!"
"A pirate's relic?" Emily paused. "Sandy definitely doesn't have that."
"I knew it, meow!" Meowth only then noticed Ron drinking next to him, so he turned his head to look at Ron. "Do you have any clues, meow?"
Ron glanced at the rose, vaguely digging up content related to this thing from his memory. He paused, about to spill the guide, but after thinking about it, he said, "You've already traded this far, why don't you slowly look for it in Pelican Town yourself?"
"You don't know either, meow." Meowth turned his head back. "Then Meowth will go ask Willy."
Speaking of pirate relics, the first person to think of is indeed Willy the fisherman!
That made sense, so Ron didn't interrupt to say anything more.
Anyway, if you didn't look up the guide, you just had to figure it out bit by bit. However, Ron vaguely remembered that this quest came with a reward of five Golden Walnuts.
But he clearly remembered that he had already found all of his Golden Walnuts.
It was self-evident what had happened on Ginger Island that day.
Ron rubbed his head and asked Emily for another beer.
"Why does it look like you're drinking to drown your sorrows? Did you get your heart broken?" Emily leaned in, looking full of gossip. She rested her chin in her hands, looking like she was all ears.
"No—" Ron paused and then said, "Everyone has moments of confusion, no matter who they are."
"Confusion, huh." Emily looked a bit disappointed. "I thought you had finally seen the light."
"Seen the light?"
Emily blinked. "Yeah, maybe one day you'll meet someone just like you, or of course, maybe someone completely different. Anyway, it's about time you experienced—oh, no, never mind. So what are you confused about, owner of the largest farm in all of Pelican Town, largest food supplier to Gus's Saloon, and person whose future is incredibly bright?"
"—" Ron took the beer from Emily's hand, ignoring her teasing.
So Emily added, "If I had to say what you're lacking—I think it might be the courage to actively pursue something." Ron looked up at her again.
"Because the things you want are always obtained in a straight line." Emily made a gesture. "So you wouldn't know the kind of happiness that people who have to twist and turn to chase after something get to experience."
"Exactly, meow!" Meowth interrupted. "That day when meowth and the others finally managed to snag Pikachu, that feeling of happiness was like tears— I mean, Meowth didn't say anything."
Emily felt like Meowth had just said something weird.
But the good news was that because of her lack of knowledge about Pokémon, plus the fact that there were no Pikachu in Pelican Town, she didn't know what Meowth was talking about, assuming it was just some kind of fish or other prey.
"What are you all chatting about? Reigniting your passion for life?" Gus brought the finished spaghetti to Meowth. "Actually, I think there's nothing wrong with just letting nature take its course. Look, just like the Saloon, moving straight forward along a path, you can still harvest things along the way that make people feel happy."
"Like what?"
"Like the smiles on everyone's faces when they eat delicious food," Gus said. "Or when Clint is drowning his sorrows over a broken heart, and then the next day he goes to work full of energy—"
"Hey!"
"You've had times like that? Unbelievable." Emily looked at Clint. "You never told me you had a crush on a girl in our town. I feel like we're drifting apart. You've never considered me a good friend."
Ron, meanwhile, was pondering their conversation.
Emily teased Clint a bit, then held back when he became embarrassed and indignant. She then turned to look at Dawn nearby. "What about you? Is there anything you're chasing in life?"
"I used to want to be a Pokémon Coordinator. Um, I went through a lot of hardship when I participated in Pokémon Contests."
"And then?"
"And then I became a well-known Coordinator." Dawn laughed. "But compared to ribbons and medals, the memories of traveling with everyone are the most precious treasures collected on this journey."
"Because, memories are pearls, and friendship is a diamond." Dawn took a glass, finished wiping it, held it up to the light to examine it, and added.
Ron finished the beer in his glass and stood up.
"What's wrong, tired of being lectured?"
"No, I just want to get some air." Ron touched his face and realized it was a bit hot.
'I didn't really drink that much, did I?' Ron pondered. Emily called out from over there, "Are you sure you can make it home by yourself? Last time Clint had a hangover, I remember he hugged a bush by the river and slept there all night."
Clint vaguely remembered, and couldn't help but feel a bit of lingering fear. "That was because two ghosts suddenly popped out from behind the bush, scared me half to death, and then I don't remember anything else."
"Ghosts?" Dawn's eyes widened. "Are there ghosts here too?"
"Maybe it was some kind of animal, or a wild person," Emily said. "It seems like those kinds of things pop up from the woods sometimes, but I've never run into them."
The topic quickly derailed. Because Gus refused to take his money, Ron had to eat this meal for free, then walked out the door of the Saloon.
Early autumn already had a bit of a chill. Plus, because he had been drinking, his face was a bit hot, so the cold wind blowing against it was surprisingly comfortable.
Ron squinted. As he turned his head, he ran into Penny, who was coming out of the house.
Penny froze for a moment before jogging over to Ron. "What's wrong? Are you alright, Ron?"
"Me?" Ron nodded slowly. "I'm fine."
Because of the alcohol, his head was a bit congested right now, and his response time was much slower than usual. Penny normally really minded it when others drank. Plus, she always felt that people who drank would go crazy from the alcohol, so she was somewhat timid in her heart.
But thinking of Pam, who used to sleep wherever she lay down, she still mustered her courage and said, "Then do you want me to walk you home?"
"I can walk back," Ron answered.
"Are you sure?"
"Really."
Penny looked at Ron with some suspicion. The smell of alcohol on him right now really didn't make her feel very comfortable, but she still walked to his side. "Then I just so happen to want to, uh, go pick Pam up from work, so I'll walk you to the bus stop?"
"Okay."
The reason was sufficient, so Ron agreed.
The two walked side-by-side toward the farm.
Ron's footsteps were noticeably heavier than usual. He wasn't a talkative person to begin with, but probably due to the effects of the alcohol, right now he would respond extremely slowly to whatever was asked.
Penny looked at Ron with a bit of novelty.
"So which day are you planning to go to Kalos?"
"The day after tomorrow, I suppose." Ron wasn't entirely sure. He frowned, struggling to perform simple arithmetic with his heavy head. "If that first batch of foraged seeds I planted matures."
Penny actually kind of wanted to ask what Ron's plans were for tomorrow.
'Probably at a time like this, even if I asked, he might not remember tomorrow.'
But Penny held back.
She couldn't help but size Ron up repeatedly.
She originally thought that alcohol would definitely make a person rude and rough.
She didn't expect that Ron, after drinking, would become even more grounded.
'Or maybe his brain just can't keep up. Plus, he holds no resentment towards this world, so the alcohol wouldn't infinitely amplify that resentment.'
'Even though I would be really happy if I could actually receive a gift from Ron tomorrow, or just see him, I suppose it's better to leave this kind of surprise for tomorrow.'
It was probably due to her nature; she couldn't help but always think of the worst-case scenario, so she dared not give herself unnecessary expectations. Anyway, she should cherish this moment. At least right now, he was standing right in front of her.
But no matter how much she cherished it, from Gus's Saloon to the bus stop, it was a walk of less than ten minutes at most.
Arriving at the bus stop, Penny glanced at Ron.
Ron seemed to realize something too, so he stopped and turned to look at her, as if waiting for her to say goodbye.
"—" Penny paused. Under his gaze, she suddenly felt her heart start to pound wildly.
This might be a good opportunity—
A good opportunity for what?
The blood pumping from her heart made Penny tremble slightly. She gathered all her courage, lifted her head, and locked eyes with Ron.
Under the golden leaves and the streetlamp that Ron had installed himself, the light shone on his hair, emitting a warm glow.
The surroundings were extremely quiet, as if even the usually noisy cicadas had stopped chirping. All Penny could hear in her ears was a ringing.
Then, she stood on her tiptoes.
"—" Ron's eyes widened. Before he could figure out what exactly had happened, Penny fled and stood by the bus stop.
"Alright, y-you should go back quickly!"
The command took priority over his thinking, so Ron turned his head and walked forward with heavy steps, still pondering.
***
The kids had been sent home one by one by Magearna a short while ago. Inside the house, Bellossom was staring intently at Giovanni.
Because Magearna said he might not be a good person, Bellossom took on the role of security, responsible for keeping an eye on Giovanni in the house.
Although Bellossom felt it was quite friendly, because it had been fighting monsters in the mines all year round, its murderous aura still made Giovanni somewhat terrified.
It feels like this thing has killed before.
Even if it is a beautiful, cute Bellossom.
That's only the height of two fists.
Giovanni sat in front of Bellossom with a fake smile. Somewhat awkwardly, he picked up the teacup next to him, drinking water while scanning the room and thinking of a countermeasure.
'I was still too careless.'
'I should have thrown something in or sent someone in to test it out, rather than breaking in myself.'
Giovanni thought, taking another sip of water.
Just then, footsteps came from outside the house.
Ron was still deep in thought. He walked all the way to the cabin, reached out, and opened the door. Before he could even recall what exactly had happened in that flash of lightning, the door pushed open, and a familiar yet unfamiliar face appeared in front of him.
Ron sobered up.
Why does Pelican Town keep spawning people who don't belong to Pelican Town or Kalos recently?
Ron stared at Giovanni in front of him, silent for a moment.
"Bellossom!" Bellossom happily bounced onto Ron's shoulder and began introducing Giovanni to him.
"Hello, my name is— Giovanni." Giovanni stood up and said to Ron, "Due to a little accident, I accidentally ended up here. I might need to bother you for a few days, I'm sorry."
"—Ron." Ron pondered what kind of accident could bring Giovanni here, eliminating the possibilities in his head one by one, finally leaving only the Farm Totem he had given to Abigail and the others.
"Ron! We're here to get our wages!" Jessie's carefree voice came from outside the house. "Tomorrow Gus is coming to the Fern Islands to set up his stall, so we want to get an advance on this week's pay while we're at it!"
James was following behind Jessie, and then Jessie suddenly pushed the door open with a bang.
"Hey, why are you standing at the door— Boss Giovanni?!" Jessie was so startled she immediately stood at attention. She looked at Giovanni in terror, then at Ron, and finally reached out and pinched James hard.
"Ah! Why are you pinching me— Boss Giovanni?!!" James grimaced in pain, but still snapped to attention when Giovanni looked over.
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