"How does it taste, Serena?"
"It's delicious." With a spoon still in her mouth, Serena nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling as she spoke, a puff of warm breath escaping. "The soup is so fresh, and the mushrooms are super tasty."
"If you like it, then eat more." It was rare to see Serena eating so enthusiastically, so Silas smiled and filled her bowl again.
The moment he finished speaking, several empty bowls were suddenly handed toward him.
"All of you want more? Can you even still eat?"
Silas used his fingers to poke at Cinccino and Jigglypuff's round, bulging little bellies. The two of them had already eaten two large bowls today.
"Cinno!?"
Cinccino hugged Silas's hand and gently shook it, clearly wanting more. The mushroom soup was just too good.
"Jiggly!"
Jigglypuff nodded in agreement, its round little body swaying adorably. It could still eat more.
"Just half a bowl each. No matter how delicious something is, you cannot eat too much."
"Cin~"
"Jiggly!"
He scooped half a bowl for them, adding extra tofu and mushrooms.
Cinccino immediately held the bowl and began drinking in small sips, its tail swaying happily, clearly satisfied.
Jigglypuff followed suit, as it also loved the mushrooms very much.
Of course, it was not just the two of them. Silas also served bowls to Morpeko, Alcremie, Dragonite, Cyclizar, and the others.
There was not a single Pokémon in the ranch that did not like it, and the reason for that lay in the cooking effect of the mushroom three delicacies soup.
It looked ordinary, but it was actually incredibly powerful, especially when paired with other dishes.
Dish Effect: Perfect Affinity. An absolutely balanced dish. Its unique flavor is irresistible to all Pokémon. When consumed together with other dishes, it enhances their effects by 1.1 to 3 times.
Whether it was Tyranitar, which could eat stones, or Vaporeon, which could dissolve into water, none of them could resist the charm of this mushroom soup.
If paired with Poffins or a fruit platter, the effect would be unimaginable.
It should also have an effect on humans. Silas's gaze fell on Serena and Korrina, who were eating voraciously.
Clank.
Serena put down her bowl, and beside her, Cinccino used its tail to wipe her mouth in slight disgust.
"Big brother, I finished again."
"Me too, Big brother Silas."
Helplessly, Silas pointed at the empty pot, where only a few bits of mushroom residue clung to the bottom. "There's no more, the pot is completely empty."
"Mm… Serena still wants more."
"If you want more, you will have to wait for the next batch of mushrooms to grow." He rubbed her head. "Do you want to eat something else?"
"I'm full, big brother. I'm going to watch TV first."
Alright then.
It was now certain that the mushroom soup had no special effect on humans. Serena simply liked it, while Korrina would eat anything.
After lunch, Silas lay on the sofa holding the little Kangaskhan for a short rest, then went to the yard to train his Pokémon.
The main focus was on Greininja, Clawitzer, Torracat, and the two Charcadet, while the other Pokémon simply gathered to watch the fun.
This training was in preparation for the Champion challenge three weeks later. Dragonite, Cyclizar, Kangaskhan, and Diancie also joined in.
After giving some guidance and letting the Pokémon warm up, Silas picked up the materials delivered that morning by Delibird. They were collected by Diantha and contained basic information about the current Kalos Elite Four and Champion.
The Kalos League was building hype for Silas, and he had no intention of embarrassing himself in public.
Knowing both yourself and your opponent ensures victory in every battle, so studying in advance was necessary.
First was Siebold, a standard Water type specialist. Dragonite alone could eliminate half his team with Thunder Punch.
His Barbaracle, with its Rock and Water typing, might last a few more turns. As for others like Starmie and Gyarados, one Thunder Punch would be enough to finish them.
In summary, Siebold was not much of a threat and could be defeated in a single round.
Skipping past Siebold, Silas looked at the next one, Wikstrom, the Steel type Elite Four member who had taken the position just two years ago.
Steel types had extremely high resistances, as many as ten, making them excellent defensively, with only three weaknesses.
This alone was enough for Silas to take him seriously.
When paired with almost any offensive type, Steel created explosive combinations, except perhaps Bug type.
This self proclaimed "man of steel" knight piqued Silas's interest greatly.
The third was the previous generation Ground type Elite Four member. His ace was a true ground dragon, Excadrill.
Despite his age, his battle experience was rich, making him a formidable opponent.
The final Elite Four member was Drasna, who was at her peak. Her dragon team would be the most troublesome opponent.
Given that Silas also needed to preserve strength for the Champion battle, the number of Pokémon he could use was limited. His first choice would naturally be Diancie, the fairy princess, perfectly suited to deal with a dragon army.
Finally, there was the current Champion of Kalos, a man who had traveled through multiple regions and whose main profession was a ranger, Champion Falric.
He also had another nickname, "Ancient Terror," earned by completely breaking the mentality of many opponents at his level.
Even though he was older now, his reputation remained strong.
On the surface, his main Pokémon used to be Scrafty, but that was years ago.
He had not participated in public battles for a long time, so no one knew whether his team had changed.
Diantha had mentioned that last year, while capturing poachers, he used an unknown Pokémon that instantly put dozens of Pokémon to sleep.
It was worth noting that Kalos had the lowest number of poaching incidents among all regions, largely due to the presence of this ranger Champion.
He had beaten poachers so thoroughly that only a few reckless, desperate ones still dared to operate in Kalos.
There were even rumors among the public that he had some kind of unclear connection with a legendary guardian of order.
"Phew."
After finishing the materials, Silas had a general understanding.
The ones he needed to be cautious about were Drasna and Champion Falric. As for Siebold and Wikstrom, their strength was a step lower and only required some attention.
Time always passed quickly when fully focused on training.
When the Pokémon became exhausted and lay down, Silas went around giving each of them a massage to relieve their fatigue.
By the time he finished, the sky had completely darkened, just in time for dinner.
After dinner, Silas sat on the sofa holding the warm, shiny Charcadet like a hot water bottle while watching TV, waiting for Diantha's call.
The ringtone had only just sounded once when Silas quickly answered.
"Silas, I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"
On the other end of the screen, Diantha spoke sweetly.
"Let me hear the good news first."
"The good news is that the Elite Four lineup has changed. The one you will face is the Fire type Elite Four member Malva. She is very beautiful."
"Fire type? What are her main Pokémon?"
Silas completely ignored the last part and focused on the important details.
"Her ace is a Mega Houndoom, and her key Pokémon include Pyroar, Chandelure…"
"As expected, that is good news. Kangaskhan alone can handle her."
Her team composition was not as strong as that of the previous Ground type Elite Four member. Silas even suspected that the latter had stepped down early to avoid being beaten by the younger generation.
Shaking off his thoughts, Silas continued, "So what is the bad news?"
(End of Chapter)