My Pokémon Story of Seasons

Chapter 207 Only Overtime

"call----"

After salvaging a pot of failed desserts, Tong Hua breathed a sigh of relief.

This was the first time he had ever made such a mess in the kitchen since he became a chef.

"This can't go on. No matter how much energy I have, there are only 24 hours in a day."

The work at the dessert shop can be left to the Pokémon, but the production of the products will have to be done by me personally.

The dessert shop sells its daily offerings, and with the additional deliveries from Wind-Swept Town Base, Beautiful Life Construction Company, and other channels, most of the day is spent constantly making desserts.

We have to find a way to squeeze out time to study alchemy.

Tong Hua scratched his head, thought for a while, and finally came up with the skill of "Craftsman's Skill".

You can make a D-grade dish in an instant, but you won't gain experience, and the quality will be limited to D grade.

"Hmm—using this skill would save a lot of time, but the quality would drop, which might affect the shop's reputation, right?"

"Huh?"

Just as Tong Hua was feeling troubled, Tian Wu Ni suddenly poked her head out from outside the kitchen door.

It turned out that it was already dusk, and the little ones from the fairy tale adventure team had all returned home tired from playing outside.

"Welcome home," Tong Hua said with a smile to Tian Wuni and the others.

"Fufu~"

Orinho also came in and threw herself into Tong Hua's arms.

Tong Hua caught the little guy, Orion, who was lunging at her. The olive leaf on his head was still covered in dirt, and he looked like he was having a lot of fun.

"Oh no, it's already this late. You must all be hungry. I'll cook right away."

A dozen minutes later, a sumptuous dinner was ready, and everyone on the ranch gathered together to eat in the open-air restaurant outside the cabin.

"I really can't fool the customers with D-grade dishes. Everyone came here specifically to taste my desserts."

At the dinner table, Tong Hua watched the Pokémon enjoying the dinner she had prepared herself, and she made a decision.

"Speaking of which, an alchemist who's really good at cooking? I feel like I've heard of that kind of person somewhere before—"

Tong Hua shook her head, dispelling the strange thoughts in her mind.

"But seriously, is there any potential in combining alchemy and cooking?"

I remember that basically all materials and finished products could be used for alchemy?

What would happen if you used pre-cooked food to alchemy?

Tong Hua pondered for a moment and found the answer in his mind from the basic knowledge of alchemy.

If you want to use alchemy on an already completed item, there are generally two scenarios.

Alternatively, one could treat the item as raw material, discarding its original form and refining it into the most basic elements and substances for use.

Alternatively, one could preserve the shape and properties of the item and directly implement enchantment effects such as enhancement or amplification based on it.

However, the latter scenario is beyond Tong Hua's current level. He must continue to increase his Alchemist class level and unlock a crucial skill to master enchanting.

After dinner, Foam Squirrel was washing dishes in the kitchen, while Tong Hua and the other Pokémon were busy tidying up the shop's decor.

Since she had decided to squeeze out time, and didn't want to disappoint customers by mass-producing D-grade dishes using her "artisan skills," Tong Hua had no choice but to work even harder and produce more items after the shop closed at night.

With proper use of preservation equipment and storage methods, many desserts can be prepared in advance.

Tong Hua tied on her apron and began planning her work process for the evening.

"Hmm—"

After turning the last batch of baked cookies into a refrigerator-like container, Tong Hua finally took off her apron.

Finally, Tong Hua, who had worked overtime until midnight, returned to his new home under the stars and moon, accompanied by the streetlights in the ranch.

All the Pokémon in the ranch were already fast asleep. In order to take care of them, Tong Hua deliberately let them go back to the new house and go to sleep early, instead of keeping them with her.

Tong Hua gently pushed open the door to his new home, where the warm light was still on for him.

There was also a pair of slippers neatly placed in the entryway, which were obviously prepared by Foam Squirrel.

Tong Hua felt a warmth in his heart, and his previous fatigue vanished. He changed into slippers and walked into the living room, only to find that the TV was still on.

The TV, with the volume turned down to the minimum, now showed only static because there were no programs playing.

"La beep—" "Trembling—" "Meow—"

Two Celebi, a foam squirrel, and a pickpocket cat—these little guys are curled up on the sofa, sleeping and talking in their sleep. They look incredibly cute.

"You'll catch a cold sleeping in a place like this, really, even the pickpocket cat is asleep here————"

Tong Hua smiled helplessly and tiptoed to the sofa.

He carefully picked up the foam squirrel, and the little guy smacked its lips in its sleep, its fluffy tail unconsciously wrapping around his arm.

Next up is the pickpocket cat, which maintains an elegant posture even in its sleep, only purring contentedly from its throat.

"Whoosh—?" Before the last two Celebi could be picked up, they suddenly woke up groggily.

"Oh, sorry. Did I wake you up?"

The two Celebi rubbed their eyes and floated onto Tong Hua's shoulder, acting all cute towards him.

"Thank you for your hard work," Tong Hua said softly, then turned off the TV and carried each Pokémon back to their bedroom on the second floor.

It's worth noting that there's more than one bedroom on the second floor. Back when the design drawings were being prepared, Tong Hua had the construction company create a little home for each Pokémon.

Even so, Tong Hua knew that when he woke up the next morning, everyone would definitely crowd onto his big bed to settle all the Pokémon. After that, Tong Hua tiptoed back to his bedroom. Moonlight streamed through the skylight onto the soft carpet, casting a silvery glow over the room.

"Let's go to the village to buy some things tomorrow morning."

You need to prepare a crucible and some tools needed for alchemy.

As for tanning leather and copper dust, you should be able to buy them at the charcoal shop. As for the blood of a hundred beasts, you'll have to go to Sunshine Ranch and ask Grandpa Yang for help.

Tong Hua lay in bed, closing his eyes to plan for tomorrow. He always did this, making plans in advance, even though sometimes plans often couldn't keep up with changes.

As she pondered, Tong Hua's breathing gradually became steady and long.

The next morning, Tong Hua was awakened by her internal biological clock.

Looking up, he saw the clock on the wall pointing to five o'clock. A ray of morning sunlight streamed through the skylight overhead, filling him with energy.

"Sure enough, it's crawled in again—"

Tong Hua looked helplessly at the pickpocket cat curled up in a ball beside her pillow, the two Celebi huddled together, and the foam squirrel that had rolled to the foot of the bed.

After a typical morning, Tong Hua rode her bicycle alone and headed straight for Chicory Village.

The owner of the charcoal shop was still the same as always; he was a strong man, but he gave off a very awkward vibe.

Tong Hua bought a crucible, some miscellaneous gold refining equipment, and of course, the most important tanning agents and mineral sands from the shop owner.

"By the way, you don't need to give me a discount. I know that the low price I got when I bought the oven was because the village chief took care of me, but you should also know now that our Happiness Dessert Shop is already profitable."

"So you really don't need to give me any more discounts," Tong Hua said earnestly to the shop owner.

The owner of the charcoal shop rubbed his hands together and smiled憨厚ly, "Oh, what are you saying? What discount? There's no such thing!"

Finally, after Tong Hua's repeated insistence, the boss agreed to sell to Tong Hua at the normal price, but still gave him some leather, copper ore and fuel that he needed for free, and planned to help deliver them to Fairy Tale Ranch.

And most importantly, the boss personally told Tong Hua where he could find the mineral sand himself.

"The beaches are popular, and there are coastal caves near our village. Actually, these things aren't that rare; they just require some special mining techniques."

Tong Hua carefully noted down the location of the mineral vein, thinking that he could take Tuotuo and the others to conduct an on-site investigation another day.

"Perfect, maybe I can unlock the last gathering profession, the miner."

With a bountiful harvest, Tong Hua hopped on her bicycle and set off again for Sunshine Ranch.