"Thank you for your hard work over the past few days!"
Rex patted Machoke and Heracross on the shoulders as he spoke.
Since today's matches ended earlier than expected, Rex and his team returned to Rex Farm before it got dark.
At this moment, Heracross and Machoke were engaged in combat training. However, upon seeing their return, they immediately embraced each other with great excitement, as if something wonderful had happened.
Actually, the past few days had exhausted the two of them, mainly mentally, though not physically. They had been overwhelmed with tasks, distributing energy cubes to the Pokémon on the farm and patrolling to resolve conflicts among them.
These responsibilities took up most of their time, leaving them little time for their own training. Fortunately, Rex and his team had finally returned, allowing them to focus on their own activities again. Heracross longed for the delicious tree sap in the woods, and Machoke wanted to double his training to make up for the lost time.
Without a backward glance, Heracross and Machoke headed towards the woods. They had taken good care of Rex Farm during the team's absence, and now it was up to their trainer to handle things.
"Yuli, you all should go rest. I'll have Swellow take me around the farm for a bit."
After speaking to Yuli and the others, Rex mounted Swellow and headed towards the Gracidea flower field.
Soon, Rex arrived at the terraced garden and found that the Gracidea flowers were in good condition, albeit with more weeds growing around them. They would just need to clear these weeds tomorrow.
Next, he checked the rare fruit tree area, which had been well-maintained by Poliwhirl. The fruit tree saplings were thriving without a single weed in sight. Rex praised Poliwhirl before heading to the orchard, the place he was most confident about due to Swellow's protection. Unless there was an invasion by another group, it was unlikely any issues would arise.
After a brief aerial inspection of the orchard, Rex had Swellow take him to inspect the residences of Mareep and Miltank. Here, he found that the Mareep needed shearing and the Miltank shed needed cleaning.
The last place to check was the area where Revive Herbs and Energy Roots were grown. Swellow dropped Rex off in the backyard, and he signaled for it to return to its group.
The backyard's condition was similar to the Gracidea flower field. Due to repeated use of the Grassy Terrain move, the life energy was too abundant, causing excessive weed growth that would need clearing.
The weeds were affecting the growth rate of the Revive Herbs and Energy Roots. If left unchecked, they could potentially starve these plants of nutrients, causing them to wither.
"Boss, how's the farm looking?"
Yuli asked as soon as Rex returned to the hall.
"The situation is just as we expected. We just need to weed the areas tomorrow. Additionally, we need to organize the Miltank shed and shear the Mareep."
Rex detailed the issues he observed and assigned tasks accordingly.
Early the next morning, everyone got busy with their designated tasks. Rex decided to start by clearing the weeds in the backyard, then move on to help Yuli with the Gracidea flower field, which was quite large.
Yui was tasked with shearing the Mareep and cleaning their shed, while Karen would clean the Miltank shed and manage the delivery of fresh milk to the farm's collection box.
Possibly due to their enjoyable days in Slateport City, everyone worked with great enthusiasm, finishing their tasks by noon.
In the afternoon, Rex took a deck chair to the lakeside to rest and supervise Lapras's training. He soon fell asleep, only to be awakened by something tugging at his pant leg.
"Oh, it's you guys. What's up?"
Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Rex saw that it was Teddiursa and the rest of Combusken's gang. Teddiursa had something in its hand, which it presented to him.
Taking the item, Rex examined it closely and realized it was a King's Rock, an item that could evolve Poliwhirl into Politoed or Slowpoke into Slowking.
"Teddiursa, did you find this?"
Teddiursa nodded, wagging its tail happily.
Since arriving at Rex Farm, Teddiursa and its friends felt like they were in paradise. They had no worries about food or being bullied by other Pokémon. Grateful for Rex's provision, Teddiursa wanted to repay him.
With sheer luck, Teddiursa notice a treasures nearby, having already gifted Rex with Charcoal earlier. It had now found the King's Rock in Petalburg Woods within a Raticate's territory, only possible due to Combusken defeating the Raticate.
Rex was surprised by this lucky find. This item could evolve Poliwhirl into Politoed, which is often the leader of Poliwag and Poliwhirl groups.
Though Rex had planned to evolve Poliwhirl into Poliwrath, he decided to let Poliwhirl choose its own evolutionary path.
(End of Chapter)