Rex and his friends chatted with Officer Jenny about the recent changes at the farm. Officer Jenny was pleased to hear that the farm was doing increasingly well, which reassured her that she had made the right decision in helping Rex purchase the farm.
When Officer Jenny heard that Rex had already obtained eight gym badges, she was astonished. She knew when Rex had started his journey and was amazed that he had managed to collect all the badges and secure a spot in the Ever Grande Conference in such a short time. In her impression, only the direct descendants of the Hoenn League and the elite disciples trained by various gyms could achieve such a feat.
Thinking this, Officer Jenny reevaluated the boy with a somewhat tragic background, wondering if he might become an extraordinary person in the future.
After staying with Officer Jenny for nearly an hour, Rex and his friends bid her farewell.
Next, they went to the Pokémon Center to deliver a gift to Nurse Joy. However, due to Nurse Joy's busy schedule, they didn't take up much of her time.
The following itinerary was a bit different. Yuli and Yui planned to visit the orphanage, and Karen was curious about the orphanage, so she decided to join them.
Thus, Rex had to return to the Rex Farm with Akiko, who had managed to sneak out, fearing that the orphanage's matron would make her stay to do homework.
After this round of visits, they returned to the farm around 4 p.m. Rex had initially planned to cook dinner for everyone.
However, this suggestion was firmly rejected by Yuli and Yui, leaving him feeling a bit helpless and doubting his culinary skills. He was actually quite confident in his cooking, but compared to the skills of the two girls, it was a bit lacking.
As Rex pondered how to spend the rest of the time, two familiar figures returned—Torchic and Carbink.
Torchic was delighted to see Rex and ran over, ignoring its best friend, and started circling around Rex. Akiko found this amusing and joined Torchic in circling.
Carbink didn't understand why they circled the trainer, but not wanting to be left out, it followed Akiko and started circling as well.
Seeing this, Rex could only cover his face and sigh deeply, wondering what else he could do.
Once the little ones were tired of circling, Rex had time to observe Torchic and Carbink's growth.
First, Torchic had grown significantly larger and was much more energetic than before, indicating that it hadn't been just playing around but had been training diligently.
Carbink was similar. Although Rex hadn't infused it with life energy recently, the pink spots in the diamond on its forehead had increased, suggesting it had been absorbing life energy from the Grassy Terrain move used by Skiploom.
Knowing that the little ones hadn't been slacking off, Rex praised them. However, he realized he needed to adjust his initial plan to discipline them.
Unaware of their narrow escape from punishment, Torchic and Carbink basked in the praise, feeling delighted.
However, outward appearance alone couldn't accurately reflect their current strength. So, Rex decided to have Torchic and Carbink battle to see their true capabilities.
Both were familiar with battling, having done so frequently. Usually, Torchic would attack while Carbink defended. Given the disparity in their base stats, with Carbink's defensive stats being exceptionally high, Torchic's attacks were often ineffective.
Once the battle started, Torchic launched a Flamethrower at Carbink, who responded with a Light Screen, blocking the flames. Torchic intensified its attack, eventually breaking through the Light Screen and hitting Carbink.
Despite the direct hit, Carbink seemed unfazed and retaliated with an Ancient Power, which Torchic dodged by using Flame Charge, increasing its speed and ramming into Carbink. Although the attack made Carbink stagger, the damage was minimal due to its high defense and resistance to fire-type moves.
Torchic didn't give up, alternating between Ember and Peck, and occasionally using Flamethrower. Carbink, on the other hand, mostly defended and used Ancient Power sporadically.
"Go, Torchic!"
"Carbink, fight back!"
Akiko cheered, engrossed in the battle.
Seeing Torchic becoming exhausted, its feathers dulling, Rex knew it had done well despite the disparity in strength. He was about to call off the battle when Torchic, desperate not to disappoint its trainer, was suddenly enveloped in white light and began evolving.
"Is Torchic evolving?"
Rex watched in surprise as Torchic evolved into Combusken, now over a meter tall, with muscular legs and sharp claws.
Combusken, surprised by its own evolution, inspected its new claws, no longer the little chick it once was.
"Combusken, do you want to continue the battle with Carbink?"
Rex asked, patting its shoulder.
Combusken, eager to continue, nodded and attacked Carbink with Double Kick. This time, Carbink couldn't remain unscathed, indicating that Combusken's attacks were now a threat.
Satisfied with the progress, Rex called off the battle and praised Combusken.
*End of Chapter*