Chapter 106: Delicious Mushroom Soup Hotpot

Leaving the riverbank, Andrew brought Munchlax, Drizzile, Diancie, Metagross, and Pawmi to the fishery.

He wanted to check up on the Veluzas.

As they walked, Munchlax clung tightly to Andrew's hand, refusing to let go, afraid that he might suddenly disappear.

Its small, grubby hands—dirty from all the work earlier—held on firmly. But Andrew didn't mind and let it continue holding his hand.

Drizzile, meanwhile, chattered away excitedly, recounting all the recent events and boasting about its exceptional performance around Munchlax's House.

Andrew listened quietly, occasionally responding seriously, and every time he did, Drizzile's happiness soared like a bird, skipping around joyfully.

When it spotted wildflowers blooming by the road, it quickly picked one and gave it to Andrew.

Soon, they arrived at the fishery.

With the Politoed, Poliwhirls, and Poliwags out planting trees, the fishery was unusually quiet.

Andrew walked up to the water's edge and noticed several purple-red fins cutting swiftly through the surface. One after another, they glided towards the shore.

The fish in the water scattered in panic, leaping wildly out of the water as if to avoid something.

In a flash, several Veluzas surfaced, racing towards Andrew, having sensed his arrival.

Andrew looked at the leader of the Veluzas and asked, "Have you been watching over the fishery while the Poliwags are away?"

"Veluu~"

The leader nodded.

Whenever the Poliwags were off helping plant trees, the Veluzas temporarily took over the responsibility of guarding the fishery. Normally, they roamed freely through the vast Nebel Lake, competing and honing their skills while strengthening their minds.

"Thanks for the hard work," Andrew said, patting Veluza gently on its head.

"Veluu~ Veluu~"

The Veluza leader shook its head, indicating that it didn't mind.

Andrew glanced over the group of Veluzas, hesitated for a moment, and then asked, "Have you all... put on weight?"

The Veluzas froze, looking at one another in shock. They really did seem... a bit fatter!

Realizing this, they started to panic.

How could this have happened? They trained daily, pushing their minds and bodies. Just days ago, they had shed all their excess flesh under Diancie's supervision. How did they get fat again?

No way! Impossible!

At this point, Diancie stepped in with a scolding tone, "You've all been eating too much, and your usual training routine isn't enough anymore."

The Veluzas looked puzzled. Was that really the case? But ever since arriving at Nebel Plateau, they'd been eating heartily every day—the food was just too delicious!

"Of course, that's the case!" Diancie said sternly, crossing her arms. "Starting tomorrow, I'll design a new training regimen for you. You'll need to work even harder!"

Andrew caught a glimpse of Diancie's authoritative "trainer" persona, which usually only showed up during culinary training duty.

"Veluu~ Veluu~"

The Veluzas, trusting Diancie completely, agreed without hesitation.

"Good. Now, let's get rid of all that excess flesh," Diancie added.

The Veluzas shook their bodies, and small chunks of white fish flesh began dropping onto the shore.

Diancie calmly gathered the chunks with an air of professionalism.

Andrew stood speechless.

"Diancie, I'm starting to feel like you're turning into some sort of business tycoon."

Diancie shot Andrew a sharp look and playfully slapped him. "Stop talking nonsense! I'm doing this all for their benefit."

Andrew thought about it for a moment and agreed. Whether it was increasing their exercise or shedding extra flesh, it was all beneficial to the Veluzas in the end.

Yet, something still felt a little off to him.

Pushing the thought aside, Andrew turned his attention to the rest of the group of Veluzas, where he noticed Magikarp, Feebas, Goldeens, and Seaking among them.

Smiling, Andrew asked, "Why are you all hanging out with the Veluzas?"

Magikarp and Feebas didn't reply, merely continuing to blow bubbles.

At that moment, a Seaking swam forward to explain: "Seaking~ king~" Training! We're training with them!

Andrew immediately understood and gave them a nod of approval. "That's great! Keep up the good work."

The Goldeen and Seaking swam joyfully in circles, clearly energized by Andrew's encouragement. Even Magikarp and Feebas showed slight signs of excitement.

Meanwhile, the Veluzas looked at the newcomers with a hint of disdain.

Their leader sighed, "Veluu~ Veluu~" They're too weak!

Andrew clasped his hands together, saying, "I'll leave their training to you, Veluza. Make sure to help them improve!" Andrew didn't want to let down Magikarp and Feebas, who were clearly trying their best.

Although the Veluza leader was reluctant, it finally agreed. "Veluu~" Alright, fine.

After chatting a bit more about their training and activities, Andrew finally said, "Alright then, continue your practice!"

The Veluzas nodded and swiftly dove back into the water, with Magikarp, Feebas, Goldeen, and Seaking trailing behind.

Once the Veluzas were gone, Andrew turned to Diancie and the others, saying, "Let's head home. The sooner we return, the sooner we can get tonight's feast ready."

"Munch~~"

"Metaa~"

"Pawmi~"

Upon hearing this, Munchlax, Drizzile, and Pawmi were the first to rush back home.

Andrew, meanwhile, strolled leisurely with Diancie and Metagross as they made their way home.

The setting sun painted the sky with a brilliant array of colors, and Andrew and Diancie walked through the grassy fields, the warm glow of the twilight gently illuminating their faces. This peaceful moment wrapped them in a sense of calm, and they couldn't help but savor it.

Halfway home, they noticed two Charcadets, each riding an Oinkologne, laughing as they chased each other, seemingly playing a game. Their joyful voices echoed across the plains.

"Charcadets! Oinkolognes!" Andrew waved at the four Pokémon from a distance.

Upon hearing Andrew's call, the two Oinkologne, carrying the Charcadets, dashed toward him excitedly.

"Oink oink~"

"Oink oink~"

As the four Pokémon approached, Andrew noticed that both Charcadets were carrying enormous packs, larger than their own bodies, strapped to their backs.

Moreover, all four Pokémon were covered in dirt, as if they had been rolling around in garbage.

"Where have you all been?" Andrew asked, puzzled. "Diancie mentioned that you've been going out early and coming back late recently. What have you been up to?"

At Andrew's inquiry, the two Oinkologne puffed out their chests with pride, clearly pleased with themselves.

However, when the female Oinkologne did so, the Crybaby Charcadet on its back lost its balance and tumbled off, along with the large pack it was carrying, which spilled open.

Tears immediately welled up in the Crybaby Charcadet's eyes as it began to sniffle.

Seeing this, the Goodboy Charcadet hurriedly dismounted from the male Oinkologne, still carrying its own bundle, and rushed over to comfort the Crybaby.

"Charca~ Charca~"

The Goodboy Charcadet hugged the Crybaby and gently patted its back. Slowly, the Crybaby managed to hold back its tears.

Andrew, however, was taken aback by what had spilled out of the Crybaby's pack — it was full of various mushrooms.

"Did you gather all of these?" Andrew crouched down, picking up one of the mushrooms, and asked.

"Oink oink~"

"Oink oink~"

Both Oinkologne nodded enthusiastically.

Oinkologne had a keen sense of smell, which allowed them to easily distinguish between edible and inedible ingredients, so Andrew knew the mushrooms they gathered would be safe to eat without concern.

"Is this what you've been doing on all those trips?" Andrew asked, astonished.

"Oink oink~"

"Oink oink~"

"Charca~"

"Charca~"

All four Pokémon nodded in unison.

Since arriving at the Nebel Plateau, the four Pokémon had noticed that everyone around had a role, contributing to help Andrew in different ways, but they felt as though they weren't helping much.

Back in Area Zero, the Charcadets used to assist Andrew with cooking, but now, with all the advanced kitchen equipment at the Nebel Plateau, their help wasn't needed.

So, the four of them decided to gather ingredients for Andrew.

As a chef, Andrew always needed unique and special ingredients.

Through their excited chatter, Andrew learned that they had explored the mountains to the northwest and the forests to the east over the past few days.

Until today, they had only scouted the areas, but today they officially started gathering ingredients.

Gathering in the wild wasn't easy.

While exploring the northwestern mountains, they were chased by a swarm of Beedrill and ambushed by a group of Spearow. In the eastern forest, they accidentally provoked an Ursaring and were chased for two miles. They even got into trouble with a Seedot and Shiftry after mistakenly gathering berries that didn't belong to them, ending up with bruises from the encounter.

In short, their daily adventures were anything but ordinary.

After hearing the four Pokémon's stories, Diancie finally understood why they had returned home injured so many times. When it had asked them about it earlier, they had kept quiet, not wanting to reveal their secret.

Andrew, moved by their effort, said, "You don't have to go through so much trouble. I can find easier work for you."

Andrew wasn't one to casually say, "I'll take care of you," even though he could. He preferred to help each of his Pokémon find roles that suited them and made them happy.

However, the two Oinkologne and the two Charcadet all shook their heads in unison.

Even though their adventures were tough and sometimes dangerous, they enjoyed the challenge and felt fulfilled each day.

After an exciting day of adventure, there was still one place waiting for them, a place where delicious food awaited, and nothing could make them happier.

Even the usually timid Charcadet had a determined look on its face as it expressed its resolve to Andrew.

Seeing the four Pokémon so resolute, Andrew could only agree.

"Just make sure to stay safe when you go out, alright? Don't provoke any strong Pokémon, and don't mess with anything that belongs to someone else."

"Oink, Oink~~"

"Charca, Charcadet~~"

The four Pokémon squinted their eyes and nodded in agreement.

Andrew reached down, picking up the bundles carried by the two Charcadet, and waved his hand. "Let's go home. Since you collected so many mushrooms, we'll have mushroom hotpot for dinner tonight."

Hearing this, Oinkologne and the Charcadet couldn't wait and darted off toward home.

Once they arrived home, Andrew first bathed the dirty Munchlax and Drizzile before getting to work on dinner. Since this wasn't their first time making hotpot, they were much quicker this time, and soon the rich aroma wafted from the kitchen.

Oinkolognes and the Charcadets lay at the door, drooling, while Diancie took Metagross and Pawmi to sort out the sleeping arrangements.

Andrew's third floor had plenty of rooms, so there was no worry about space. Diancie assigned Pawmi to the room next to Drizzile, and Metagross was placed in the room beside Andrew's.

Now, Andrew's room was surrounded: Munchlax to the right, Metagross to the left, Drizzile across the hall, and Diancie and Pawmi diagonally across.

When the hotpot broth was almost done, and the ingredients were nearly ready, the Pokémon gathered in pairs, sitting around the table in the plaza, eagerly awaiting the feast Andrew had promised.

When Diancie came downstairs with Pawmi and Metagross, Andrew called out, "Diancie, bring out the food. It's time to eat!"

"Okay!" Diancie replied, taking the ingredients from Munchlax and setting them out dish by dish.

Seeing this, Metagross used its control over Robert 2 to help, as its large size made it impossible to fit into the kitchen.

"Paw"

Pawmi, excited, tried to rush into the kitchen but was promptly grabbed by the scruff of its neck and tossed out by Drizzile.

"Drizz" (Just wait patiently. No need to make a mess.)

Pawmi: (`^)

Once Diancie returned to the kitchen, Gardevoir, Gallade, Ralts, Espurr, and Meowstic followed to assist.

Tonight, Andrew had prepared an abundance of hotpot ingredients, including the freshly harvested Veluza meat and various ingredients he had bought from Mesagoza.

With fresh vegetables from his own garden, tonight's dinner was exceptionally bountiful. Even Andrew himself couldn't wait to dig in.

On top of that, while preparing the food, Andrew had followed the guidance of the "Aura Culinary Training Manual" and used aura to enhance the ingredients.

He wasn't sure what effect it would have, though.

Thanks to the help of Gardevoir and the others, the tables were soon filled with various ingredients, and the hotpot in the center bubbled away, releasing a rich fragrance that made the Pokémon's mouths water.

But they didn't quite know how to begin since the food was all raw.

That's when Pawmi, with its experience, started jumping around, trying to explain how to eat, but its excited babbling left the others confused.

Fortunately, Charcadets, Metagross, and the others stepped in to help explain, with Diancie, Munchlax, and Drizzile offering guidance. Soon enough, everyone was enjoying the feast.

The moment they tasted the food, the Pokémon realized there was something special about this meal. It was an indescribable feeling.

The flavors blended harmoniously, and they could sense the balance between the ingredients and the perfect texture—something they had never experienced before.

Andrew also noticed the difference.

The ingredients were the same, and the cooking method hadn't changed, yet the taste was on a whole new level.

Was this the result of using aura on the food?

Andrew could hardly believe the delicious meal before him had been prepared by his own hands.

It was incredible!

Andrew was now certain that his culinary skills had surpassed even his grandfather's (from his previous life)!

(End of Chapter)