When Meowstic awoke from its afternoon nap, it noticed that everything around was very quiet.
Where had everyone gone?
"Buneary~ Buneary~"
Brother Meowstic!
At that moment, Buneary appeared at the entrance of Meowstic's home, poking its head through the doorway and waving.
"Meowstic~~"
Buneary, what's up? Are you hungry?
Meowstic began to reach for the jar containing Pokeblock to give one to Buneary. Today, it had received two jars and hadn't finished distributing them.
"Buneary~ Buneary~"
Buneary shook its head, then quickly dashed into the grassy hut and stuffed a steamed bun into Meowstic's paws. Before Meowstic could react, Buneary had already disappeared without a trace.
Staring at the still-warm bun in its paws, Meowstic was momentarily stunned. Buneary had run off so quickly, it hadn't even had the chance to ask anything.
Where did this bun come from? Meowstic remembered that, under normal circumstances, food from Diancie's Grand Dining Hall was not allowed to be taken out.
Just as Buneary left, Meowstic suddenly noticed a large bundle being tossed into the hut from outside. Then, an excited yet mischievous voice echoed, fading into the distance as a shadow flitted past the doorway.
"Pancham~ Pancham~~"
it's delivered! it's delivered!
Who else could it be but Pancham?
Meowstic glanced at the object on the ground, a mysterious bundle tightly wrapped in layers of leaves. Carefully peeling back one leaf after another, it found... one, two, three... a total of eleven steamed buns inside.
Meowstic grew even more puzzled and went to the doorway to look around, but Pancham was nowhere to be seen.
It figured Pancham had run off quickly, probably worried Meowstic wouldn't accept the buns.
But what was going on with everyone? Why were there suddenly so many buns?
Just as it was about to turn back inside, it spotted Floette flying over from afar, struggling under the weight of something. Meowstic hurried over to help.
"Floette~ Floette~"
I'm so exhausted!
Floette said, wiping the sweat off its forehead.
Meowstic eyed the item Floette was carrying and asked, puzzled.
"Meowstic~ Meowstic~ Meowstic~~"
What are you carrying? Is it… another bun?
The object Floette brought was also tightly wrapped in layers of leaves.
Floette looked confused. Another? What do you mean, "another"? It had only just arrived!
Floette quickly shoved the item into Meowstic's paws and was about to fly away, but Meowstic, quick-eyed and quick-pawed, grabbed it by the scruff of the neck.
"Meowstic~ Meowstic~"
You're not leaving until you explain.
Using its psychic powers, Meowstic unwrapped the leaves, revealing... indeed, another steamed bun.
"Floette~ Floette~~"
Floette struggled, but couldn't break free from Meowstic's grip.
"Meowstic~~"
Hurry up and tell me, where did the buns come from?
Floette froze at the question.
"Floette?"
You don't know?
This time, it was Meowstic's turn to be puzzled.
"Meowstic?"
Know what?
"Floette~ Floette~ Floette~"
So, Floette told Meowstic about how Angie had hired Pokémon on the nebel plateau to plant fruit trees and distribute food to them.
Meowstic was stunned. This was going on? Why hadn't it known about this?
It turned out that everyone thought since Meowstic was already Angie's employee and didn't need to worry about food and drink, so they don't think Meowstic need go out to work hard to plant fruit trees. That's why it hadn't been specifically informed.
Angie, on the other hand, assumed that Pokémon like the Delphox would notify everyone, so there was no need to mention it to Meowstic.
The reason that the Gardevoir couple, who were also Angie's employee, knew about it was that they were neighbors and good friends with the Delphox trio.
"Meowstic~~"
This too...
After hearing Floette's story, Meowstic felt a little dazed. It hadn't expected that the problem that had been bothering it for so long would be solved so easily by its boss.
With this in mind, it felt a deep sense of admiration and gratitude for its boss.
Similarly, realizing that everyone had brought it buns as a way of showing gratitude, Meowstic was filled with endless emotion.
It patted Floette and said.
"Meowstic~ Meowstic~ Meowstic~~"
You should keep them for yourselves. I'm not short of food.
As it spoke, it taught Floette how to store the food. As long as the buns were torn apart and dried out, they could be turned into bun chips and preserved for a long time.
This was new knowledge it had learned while working at Munchlax's House.
While Meowstic was talking to Floette, Drilbur, Bunnelby, Pachirisu, Deerling... all began arriving one after another, each carrying the buns they had saved up for the day.
"Meowstic…"
You all...
Looking at everyone, Meowstic felt a lump in its throat. It wanted everyone to take the buns back, but none of the Pokémon were willing to listen. They just stuffed the buns into the house and ran off.
Looking at the room full of buns, Meowstic felt a sense of fullness in its chest. It sat on a pile of grass, tearing the buns into strips, then stringing them together with grassroots to hang them from the ceiling to dry.
Since no one was willing to take them back, it might as well store them.
As it worked, it suddenly smiled.
This is so nice. Everyone doesn't have to go hungry. It's great that Angie is here on the Nebel Plateau.
In the evening, Angie and his family of four followed their usual routine—chatting and watching TV shows after dinner. Angie even taught Munchlax and Diancie to play mobile games.
For this, he specially bought Munchlax and Diancie each a phone and set them up with Angie's phone plan, so they could contact him anytime.
As for Komala … it only knew how to sleep. Apart from snoring, it didn't make a sound, so Angie didn't buy one for it.
Afterward, they went to the training room to train.
Finally, everyone went to their respective rooms to sleep.
The Nebel Plateau was very quiet at night, but at that moment, two uninvited guests silently arrived.
"This is the Nebel Plateau?" Levi surveyed the surroundings. Both he and Cherie had special devices on their eyes that allowed them to see clearly in the dark.
"I don't understand why this Prince Angie would leave the grand palace and choose to live in such a remote place. What's the point?" Cherie said, confused.
"The climate here is indeed comfortable. It's definitely much more pleasant than being outside," Levi replied. "Maybe he wants to recover, after all, his health was poor before."
As winter was approaching, the temperature outside had started to drop quickly. If one didn't bundle up, they would absolutely be shivering from the cold. But on the Nebel Plateau, there was none of that sensation.
"Moreover, isn't it more convenient for us to act here? If he were in the palace, we wouldn't have the chance to make a move," Levi continued.
"That's true, what a foolish nobles," Cherie chuckled lightly.
"Let's get moving quickly and not waste any more time," Levi urged.
With that, the two of them sped toward Angie's residence.
However, what they didn't know was that every move they made had already been observed by a Pokémon that was blending into the night sky above them.
It was Honchkrow!
"Honchkrow~"
The shrill, abrupt birdcall echoed through the night sky, but Levi and Cherie paid it no mind. When they arrived at Angie's doorstep, Politoed, Delphox, Greninja, and Chesnaught appeared at the same time.
"Chesnaught~ Chesnaught~"
As expected, someone was plotting against Angie.
With those words, Chesnaught stepped forward, but it was stopped by Politoed.
"Politoed~ Politoed~ Politoed~"
Maybe we don't need to intervene.
Politoed gestured for Delphox and the others to continue watching.
They looked over at the Pokémon, and it wasn't clear when, but Komala had already appeared in front of Levi and Cherie.
It tightly closed its eyes, clutching its tree stump and swaying back and forth, showing no sign of any threat.
"That's Komala from Prince Angie's shop, the one in charge of collecting money?" Levi said, surprised.
Cherie impatiently said, "Don't waste time on such a small creature! Get rid of it quickly!"
She then commanded the Houndoom beside her, "Houndoom, use Flamethrower!"
"Houndoom~"
Houndoom leaped in front of Komala, growling and launching a pillar of fire toward it. However, to their surprise, Komala dodged the fire with a very subtle movement.
"That's impossible!"
Cherie, startled, was about to command Houndoom to attack again when she realized that Komala had somehow already appeared beside Houndoom.
"Watch out!" Levi's face changed suddenly. As he was about to warn, he saw Houndoom being thrown into the air, followed by the sound of it crashing to the ground and its cries of pain.
Komala had simply extended one hand, gently gripping Houndoom's tail, and then hurled Houndoom away with force.
Komala had used a Normal-type move, Body Slam! With just one move, Houndoom lost its fighting ability.
Levi finally said, "Be careful, this Komala is no ordinary Pokémon! Everyone, attack together!"
At his command, several red lights flashed, and the likes of Heracross, Swampert, Glalie, Banette, Sableye and Manectric appeared one by one and immediately launched an attack on Komala.
At this point, Komala had curled up, clutching its tree stump, and used the move Defense Curl.
In the next moment, its body rolled rapidly and charged toward the incoming Swampert, using the move Rollout.
Boom!!
In just one collision, Swampert was sent flying. Komala then bounced high into the air and slammed hard into Heracross. Heracross cried out in pain as its lower half was driven into the ground.
Banette and Sableye charged in, but Komala had already bounced high again. They collided with Heracross instead, and the already unconscious Heracross went limp, its eyes rolling back as it foamed at the mouth.
In anger, Glalue fired an Ice beam, aiming to strike Komala in midair, but Komala's body curved in an arc, easily dodging the attack.
After landing, the Komala smashed the ground, creating a deep pit, yet it continued to roll quickly, plowing the earth and leaving a trail of trenches behind.
Glalie fired another ice beam, but still couldn't hit Komala, who was rolling at high speed.
Bang!
With a muffled sound, Komala bounced off the ground and slammed into Glalie's face. Glalie howled in pain as it fell to the ground, unconscious.
Komala turned, aiming at Sableye and Banette. The two Pokémon instinctively retreated, trembling in fear.
It was terrifying! This was not a foe they could handle!
Equally trembling were Cherie and Levi, their minds already screaming in panic.
What was going on? No one had told them that Komala, the one responsible for collecting money at Prince Angie's shop, was this terrifying!
"Let's go… quickly! It's too dangerous!" Levi growled, his voice low as he spoke to Cherie.
Cherie nodded, signaling Sableye and Banette to take them away.
However, just as the two Pokémon moved, Komala suddenly flashed and appeared between them. It raised its tree pillow high, the pillow glowing faintly with a greenish light.
Bang!
Bang!
With two muffled thuds, Sableye and Banette were struck by Komala's wooden mallet, flying through the air before falling to the ground, unconscious.
As Levi and Cherie tried to flee, they were intercepted by Politoed, Delphox, Greninja, and Chesnaugh, who had been watching from the shadows.
Swish, swish!
With the appearance of two vine whips, Levi and Cherie were tightly bound, their bodies uncontrollably crashing to the ground.
In that moment of capture, the only thought left in their minds was one of despair.
It was over! Completely over!
At the same time, Delphox and the others looked at Komala with new eyes. Who would have thought that the least noticeable Komala at Angie's shop could be this strong?
It was definitely stronger than any of them!
Seeing Delphox and the others arrive, Komala patted the grass off its body, then rolled back to its little house, covered itself with its beloved blanket, and soon, faint snoring could be heard.
The four Pokémon exchanged glances, then, resigned, began cleaning up the battlefield.
Using vine whips, they tied up Levi, Cherie, and their Pokémon, then piled them at the foot of Angie's doorstep.
After completing this task, Politoed, Delphox, and Greninja went to rest, leaving Chesnaught to guard the prisoners.
In the morning, as the first rays of sunlight hit the earth, Angie got up.
It was another early day for work; after all, it was only the second day since the new store had opened, and he couldn't afford to slack off.
After freshening up, Angie stepped out of his room, just as Diancie yawned and emerged as well.
"Angie, there's a new task. Want to take it?" Diancie asked.
"A new task already? Let me see."
Saying that, Angie leaned his head toward Diancie.
...
[ (Recruitment Task) Recruit a new assistant chef. Do you accept? ]
[ Yes ] or [ No ]
Looking at the task prompt, Angie was taken aback. He hadn't expected the system to read his mind. He had been planning to take on a new apprentice, otherwise, the new shop would be far too busy!
However, finding a Pokémon with culinary talent wasn't easy. He decided to take his time.
After accepting the task, Angie said, "Let's head downstairs. Meowstic might already be here."
Meowstic always come early.
Upon descending, Angie seemed to hear some noise outside the door. He opened it, and was stunned by the scene before him.
At the foot of the stairs, a pile of people and Pokémon lay in disarray. On the stairs, Meowstic and Chesnaught were sitting, chatting casually.