I opened a restaurant in the Pokémon world.

Chapter 896 A Few Things About Beverages

“Mr. Heath, your Nightmare Wine tastes quite good.” It was Jin Cancan who spoke. He had already finished his food and was about to leave, but when he turned around, he inadvertently saw the wine floating in front of him. So Mr. Jin Cancan had become interested in the wine. He looked at the wine in front of him curiously and then asked Heath for a bottle.

"It's alright." Heath smiled. The taste of Nightmare Wine goes without saying; it was one of the best drinks Heath had ever tasted. As a restaurant owner, Heath was very strict about his evaluation of drinks. Moreover, Heath had some unique requirements. What kind of drinks were displayed in his restaurant had nothing to do with anything else. Heath didn't care about the reviews or the prices of the drinks, nor did he care about such so-called status. Whether he stocked a bottle depended on whether Heath thought it tasted good. Only drinks that tasted good would Heath put on his counter.

After all, as the owner of a restaurant, one should naturally have some knowledge of the drinks in their establishment, right? They can't just be ignorant and provide guests with drinks of unknown quality. Of course, things are very convenient for Heath now. He doesn't need to test the drinks he makes anymore; he only needs to use an ingredient analyzer to check them.

So although Heath doesn't drink much, he has actually drunk quite a lot of alcohol. For Heath, ordinary alcohol is just barely acceptable. As long as it's not a bad alcoholic beverage, Heath rarely gives it a bad review. Nightmare Wine is one of the best types of alcohol that Heath has drunk. It tastes good, has a good texture, and is not easy to get drunk on. The only problem is that it has a strong aftereffect, and it is easy to get drunk and fall asleep after drinking it.

But in some ways, this is probably an advantage?

Of course, this is absolutely not to say that Heath would recommend it to those with ill intentions. You know, besides making some people become beastly, alcohol can also degenerate some people from humans, which can be called highly intelligent animals, into ordinary animals—here referring to any 'animal' who makes wild pronouncements after drinking a little bit of cat urine, or simply lays hands on their own family members.

Heath's cousin and aunt suffered greatly from this, especially when the children were still young. His uncle, when drunk, liked to physically assault people, and was extremely rude. It was from that time that Heath developed a deep-seated aversion to drinking. He didn't want to become such a monster after drinking. So Heath felt that his Nightmare Wine, which allowed him to sleep soundly for a day after drinking one bottle and wake up the next day without a headache or dizziness, was truly an essential drink for these alcoholics. It could also help these idiots try to be human, rather than wild animals.

This can probably be considered accumulating good karma.

"Wow, this taste... it's really getting more and more intoxicating." Jin Cancan smacked his lips and couldn't help but take another sip. Although at first it tasted spicy, like typical alcohol, it quickly became smooth on the palate, and then a comfortable feeling welled up in his stomach, making him feel more energetic.

“Mr. Jin Cancan, this wine has a strong aftereffect. I suggest you go out and find a hotel to rest properly later.” Heath wiped his wine glass. There were fewer guests now, after all, it was already past ten o'clock, and most people had eaten their fill, so Heath figured no one else would come in. Zoroark had already gone back to his room and shut himself away. Heath wanted to laugh a little. That little guy Zoroark, he was quite happy before, but he didn't expect him to become so withdrawn so quickly.

That makes sense, Kirlia performed so well that even Farfetch'd felt some pressure.

Just as Heath and Mr. Gold were chatting, the wind chimes at the entrance of the food truck rang, indicating that a guest had opened the door. Heath looked up and saw a girl wearing a yellow raincoat and yellow rain boots walk in. This wasn't unusual, since it had been raining a lot in Hualan City lately, so everyone dressed like that. However, what surprised Heath was the girl's appearance; Heath had seen this girl before.

"Oh dear, I was wondering if I was seeing things, but when I came over, it really is Mr. Heath! It's been so long, Mr. Heath." The girl saw Heath and walked over happily, then looked at him with a smile, her eyes holding a hint of something unfathomable.

Heath subconsciously took out his phone and glanced at it. It was 10:28 a.m., just two minutes before 10:30 a.m.

"Miss Karenya, is there anything I can do for you?" Heath's expression turned quite cold. He really hadn't expected to see Karenya here. After all, Heath had almost forgotten about Karenya's existence. But there was nothing he could do; Karenya had haunted him like a ghost, making Heath wonder if she was being targeted by him.

“The school organized an internship, so I came here.” Miss Karenya seemed completely unconcerned about Heath’s hostile gaze. She pulled out a chair and sat opposite Heath, one seat away from Mr. Jin Cancan. She didn’t rashly intrude into Mr. Jin Cancan’s comfort zone. Mr. Jin Cancan glanced at Karenya and then stopped looking. This girl was of average appearance, not particularly pretty, but not ugly either. However, she wasn’t Mr. Jin Cancan’s type.

Heath paused for a moment. To be honest, he didn't have a very good opinion of Karenia, after all, she had tricked him. So now, Heath was a little wary of Karenia. However, Heath knew that Karenia had indeed gone to school. The question was, what kind of school would arrange internships? This question wasn't hard to guess, because among the schools Heath knew, the only ones that would arrange internships for students were usually medical schools.

"Miss Karenia, you're a Pokémon medic?" Heath asked curiously. He felt that this didn't quite suit Karenia. In his mind, Karenia was more suited to be a high-IQ villain. After all, she had gotten herself into trouble. If Officer Jenny hadn't come to him later, Heath wouldn't have known he'd been tricked.

“Of course not,” Miss Karenia said with a smile.

Chapter 897 Reunion with Karenia

"I'm actually doing regular medical work!" Karenia added with a smile. Heath instantly understood what she meant. Karenia meant that she wasn't doing regular Pokémon medical work, but rather human Pokémon medical work, which was similar to the doctors in the hospital in his previous life. For a moment, although Heath felt that this didn't seem very good, he still thought of adjectives such as "crocodile tears" and "crocodile tears."

Forgive Heath's idea, although he knew it wasn't a good one, especially since Karenya was engaged in such a noble job—any normal medical worker could be described as noble, since doctors and nurses, to some extent, are people who can decide life and death, and because the work involved is so important, these workers are also extremely prone to dangerous situations.

Back in Viridian City, Heath had seen many cases of people attacking and retaliating against medical staff because they couldn't accept the death of their family members and Pokémon. However, the fact that this sacred job was associated with Ms. Karenia made Heath feel that something was amiss.

After all, even though Heath had no evidence of what Karenia had done before, and Officer Jenny hadn't found anything out either—it was just an ordinary fire—Heath still felt that it had something to do with Karenia. The evidence was that he had been tricked by Karenia. If Karenia wasn't feeling guilty or needed his testimony to help her with something, why would she have tricked him?

She gave herself a false timeframe, allowing herself to give false testimony for her, a trap that Heath would remember for a lifetime.

"Ah... that's still pretty good." Heath smiled awkwardly. His surprised look just now was very direct. Although Heath quickly recovered and changed to a normal look, Karenia had been watching him the whole time, so she must have seen it too.

“Mr. Heath is still the same as always.” Miss Karenia’s smile faded slightly. She smiled at Heath, then took out some money from her pocket and placed it on the table.

"Could you please make me a bowl of beef ball rice noodles, Mr. Heath?" Karenia pointed her slender, white fingers to the menu on the table, which contained some of the recipes Heath had recently updated. Heath nodded. Heath had made beef ball rice noodles quite a few times himself; they tasted very good, but…

Heath glanced at the top of Karenia's head.

Favorite flavors: spicy, sweet

[Disliked taste: Sour]

Requirements for food: convenient, quick, filling, and time-saving.

Heath raised an eyebrow. It's said that people's tastes change. Some people might not be able to eat anything without sweetness when they're young, and they especially hate spicy and bitter foods. But as they grow up, they might not like sweet foods as much and start to like spicy foods. Miss Karenia's tastes have changed, and Heath noticed it, but he didn't delve into it. After all, it's not that strange for people's tastes to change sometimes.

"Miss Karenia, that beef ball rice noodles, strictly speaking, is sour beef rice noodles. Are you sure you can accept it?" Heath asked seriously. The beef ball rice noodles that Heath made were actually a kind of breakfast that Heath had eaten when he went to the city where the Songkran Festival was held. The taste was very good, but the most important and most memorable thing was that it was best to squeeze a lemon into the rice noodles, which would make the taste even better.

However, this also leads to a problem: the rice noodles are sour. It's not that Heath didn't want to make them non-sour, but the taste would be much worse if they weren't sour. If you're looking for the right flavor, it's better to keep it as is.

"Huh? It's sour? Then forget it... Could you make it braised? The kind with lots of chili?" Karenia paused for a moment, then asked with a smile. Heath nodded. If that was the case, it wouldn't be a problem. After all, it wasn't particularly difficult to make. Braised rice noodles were something she'd made before. She could just add some beef balls, and it would taste pretty good. Heath thought Karenia had a good eye for food.

In the restaurant business, a casual question can often save you a lot of trouble. For example, asking a customer if they have any dietary restrictions can save you a lot of trouble. Sometimes customers forget to mention their dietary restrictions, and if the food is cooked and served, at best the customer will be dissatisfied but still eat it anyway, or the customer will insist on having it redone and be extremely rude. This is why many restaurant servers don't last long.

After all, everyone has their own temper, and it's rare to be able to laugh it off after being scolded.

The biggest difference between braised rice noodles and regular rice noodles is that there's no broth. Besides that, more sauces and other seasonings are added to make the braised rice noodles more flavorful and delicious. As for the beef balls, Heath didn't put them in; if she had, they would have become hot and sour beef balls.

Although it's called beef balls, Heath's beef balls are quite different from ordinary beef balls. Most people think of those big, juicy beef balls when they think of beef balls, but Heath makes small, Dai-style beef balls. These beef balls are chewier, more bouncy, and delicious. You can easily eat one in one bite. They're best cooked in beef broth, with just a little cilantro or something.

Jin Cancan glanced thoughtfully at Karenya beside her. Karenya had already unbuttoned her raincoat, revealing her beautiful figure. However, Jin Cancan was more interested in Karenya's profession. Jin Cancan didn't know why, even though she hadn't found this girl particularly attractive before, she suddenly found her attractive after learning that Karenya was a medical worker.

Karenia ignored it, but something was wriggling in the shadows behind her.

Heath noticed this scene. Although he didn't know why Mr. Jin Cancan had such an expression, he didn't want anything to happen to Mr. Jin Cancan. So Heath quickly brought two bowls to Karenia, one large bowl containing braised rice noodles and the other a small bowl containing beef balls in clear broth.

“Miss Karenia, your lunch… Mr. Jin Cancan, I suggest you find a hotel quickly, otherwise you’ll fall asleep soon,” Heath said with a smile.

Chapter 898 A Pitiful Tissue

To be honest, Heath isn't one to meddle in other people's business. After all, meddling isn't always useful, and even if it is, it doesn't guarantee gratitude. In fact, it might just bring trouble. So, Heath usually doesn't get involved in other people's affairs. But there's no way around it. Mr. Jin Cancan is, after all, his guest, and Karenya is in some danger. It would be best to give her a heads-up if possible.

After joining Officer Jenny's family, Heath inquired about Karenia's file. Normally, this information wouldn't be disclosed to Heath, but since Heath was a witness to the events, he was allowed to learn some details. Among these details were some of Officer Jenny's speculations about Karenia, one of which was that Karenia possessed a certain Pokémon, and a very powerful one at that, otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to prevent two adults from escaping.

This shows that Karenia is not as weak and innocent as she appears. Karenia is quite dangerous. After all, in the Pokémon world, even a cripple can easily defeat a strong and healthy person if his Pokémon are well-trained. This is even more true for Karenia, who has a criminal record. Although Officer Jenny, who gave Heath the information, said that they only suspect Karenia's actions and there are no clues to confirm that Karenia is the culprit, Heath believes that Karenia is the most likely to be responsible.

Therefore, under these circumstances, if Mr. Jin Cancan were to continue flirting with Karenia or say anything offensive to her, it would be very likely that Karenia would target him. Heath did not want his guest to be in any danger.

"Don't say that, I'm... actually a little drunk right now. Well then, I'll be going now, Mr. Heath. I'll be back tomorrow." Mr. Jin Cancan was stunned for a moment, and then he was about to say what all drunks say, but the next second he felt a little dizzy, so he chose to listen to Heath and go back to a hotel to get a good night's sleep. It seems that this Nightmare Wine is not something you can drink casually. Although it tastes very good, the fact that it makes you sleepy is indeed a bit of a headache.

Mr. Jin Cancan strolled away leisurely. Heath wasn't too worried. The effects of the Nightmare Wine were rather slow to take hold, and Mr. Jin Cancan had plenty of time to go to the hotel. Besides, there was a hotel not far from where Heath was.

Karenia remained silent throughout, quietly and smiling as she ate her braised rice noodles and beef balls. It must be said that Heath's cooking skills were quite good, but what surprised Karenia the most was the contents of the braised rice noodles.

"Mr. Heath, what is this?" Jin Cancan had already left, but Karenya was still there. While cooking for the other guests, Heath glanced at what Karenya was holding. Then he saw that Karenya was holding a pair of chopsticks with some white, slightly crumbly things between them.

This is definitely not something strange; Heath doesn't have that kind of fetish.

"This is tofu pudding." Heath explained calmly. This time, Heath wasn't making ordinary braised rice noodles, but tofu pudding rice noodles. The method for making this dish is basically the same as that for braised rice noodles, but the biggest difference is that a layer of tender tofu pudding is placed on top. It's a type of tofu that's very tender and juicy. If you touch it lightly, the tofu pudding will wobble. Moreover, tofu pudding rice noodles require the tofu pudding to be as tender as possible. If the tofu pudding is too old, the taste will be inferior.

Douhua rice noodles have a unique flavor, but they are also very delicious. Douhua and rice noodles, two seemingly unrelated things, create a wonderful chemical reaction when mixed together. The delicate rice noodles and the slightly rough texture of the tofu create a very unique and delicious taste. Unlike the douzhi (fermented mung bean juice) in some places, douhua is the kind of food that even people who have never tried it before will not feel awkward when they eat it for the first time. Not to mention, there are actually many ways to eat douhua. The simplest way is to add white sugar to douhua.

"Tofu pudding?" Karenia blinked. She had never eaten such food before, but now that she was eating it, it seemed to taste quite good. Karenia's mood improved a lot, and even her shadow became quiet, as if it hadn't moved at all before.

The tender rice noodles, the tofu pudding with its unique tofu aroma, and the beef balls with their sweet and savory flavor made Karenia very satisfied with her meal. The only regret was that Heath wouldn't stay here for long. It was a pity, if only Heath could stay here forever. But Karenia knew that Heath was a traveling chef who would eventually go to other places.

"Mr. Heath, do you offer delivery service?" Karenia made a new request. Heath glanced at her; this girl had quite a few questions.

“I don’t offer delivery service here, but if you’d like, I can call a delivery guy. However, you’ll need to pay an extra delivery fee then,” Heath explained calmly. Although he had some issues with Karenia, this simple explanation was acceptable, and Heath didn’t deliberately avoid the customer’s questions.

Heath had considered delivery before, but later found it to be troublesome. The biggest problem was that Heath didn't stay in the same city for long periods of time, and registering in different cities was too much trouble, so Heath simply gave up on it. If a customer insisted on delivery, it wouldn't be impossible, but the delivery fee would then be paid by the customer and the rider.

"Ugh... I wish delivery was free, but I think I'd still choose delivery. After all, the place where I work is super busy. I have to work like crazy every day, it's so tiring." Karenia stuck out her little tongue, looking exhausted. Heath looked at her and wanted to laugh. It seems that medical staff everywhere have a very tough job.

Heath calmly washed the dishes. There were quite a few customers in Cerulean City, but fortunately, the flow of people wasn't too heavy at the moment.

You treated Karenia to a meal, and in return, you received a pitiful amount of tissues.

"?" Heath was stunned for a moment. Goodness, giving a reward was within Heath's expectations, but what was this tissue? And a pitiful tissue at that? Thinking of this, Heath glanced at Karenia. What was wrong with this girl? Why would she give her this?

Chapter 899 Xiaoxia and Sakaki

[A tissue that evokes sympathy: When you've experienced something truly terrible, even if you've made a mistake, those around you with a conscience will often help cover it up. Using this tissue can greatly garner sympathy and pity from others.]

A notification popped up, and Heath put the cup in his hand into the sterilizer. This thing was really unique. Heath admitted that he hadn't thought of this. However, since this thing came from Karenia, it meant that this thing might have some kind of relationship with Karenia. If that was the case, then it was something related to Karenia. Heath looked at the annotation, and then looked at Karenia. Karenia was eating and didn't notice his gaze.

Heath frowned, pondering a question about Karenia's situation. He'd heard from Officer Jenny that Karenia's neighbors' testimonies all proved her innocence. But what if they had done it intentionally? After all, the investigation revealed that Karenia had indeed suffered extreme abuse in her home; the two victims were utter scum. So, if that were true, it was entirely possible that they had concealed the crimes from Karenia.

After all, this tissue is almost a clear indication that this matter is related to Karenia. When entertaining Miss Musashi before, she had given him a portion of "Snow that can fill your stomach in my memory". However, because Heath has the Chef's Eye, the use of this thing has become much smaller.

Heath sighed. He stopped paying attention to Karenia. This girl was a very complicated person. Heath hated that she used him to achieve her own goals, but he also found it hard not to sympathize with her plight. It has to be said that humans are such complicated creatures. Sometimes they want to kill others, but other times they find it hard to decide what they should do.

Karenia looked up at Heath with a strange expression. She felt that Heath's gaze had been odd, as if it carried some pity and sympathy. Was it just her imagination? Karenia wasn't sure.

"Mr. Heath, I'll come to eat here again next time~" Karenia said with a smile. Heath looked at her expressionlessly. Although this girl was very sympathetic, she was indeed a very troublesome person. Heath felt that it was better for an honest person like himself to stay away from her, otherwise he wouldn't even know when he would be tricked by her, which would be a really embarrassing thing.

After all, you can do it once or twice, but not a third time.

After seeing off the happy Karenia, Heath continued to entertain his guests. Before long, another guest arrived, who was also an acquaintance. Or rather, there were two guests, as a timid girl followed the reassuring-looking middle-aged man into the room.

"Good morning, Mr. Giovanni and Xiaoxia." Heath greeted them gently. The two people in front of him were Mr. Giovanni and Xiaoxia, who were old acquaintances of Heath's. However, seeing Xiaoxia's timid appearance, Heath wanted to laugh a little. Mr. Giovanni had come to Cerulean City to guide Xiaoxia in her work as a Gym Leader, as required by the League. In a way, Mr. Giovanni could now be considered Xiaoxia's half-teacher.

"Good morning, Heath. I brought Misty for breakfast." Giovanni had a warm smile on his face, and no one would associate the Giovanni in front of them with the future leader of Team Rocket.

"Xiaoxia doesn't seem to be in good spirits?" Heath glanced at Xiaoxia. This poor kid, could she have been driven to the brink of collapse by Giovanni's training? Is Giovanni's training Spartan-like?

When Xiaoxia heard Heath's question, she secretly looked up at Sakaki. After realizing that Sakaki wasn't looking at her, she hurriedly nodded frantically at Heath, looking worried. Heath's lips twitched. Could it be that he had really guessed right?

What enabled Giovanni to become the leader of Team Rocket? Was it because of his parents? Of course, that played a part, but the main reason he was able to maintain his position and keep his subordinates in line was because he was a powerful trainer. Giovanni's strength was very important; otherwise, it would have been difficult for others to obey him, since villains are more or less disobedient.

Therefore, Giovanni's strength is beyond doubt, but Heath is not very clear about his methods of training others.

"She practiced until 2 a.m. last night. This child's basic skills are too poor, and her mentality isn't very good either." Sakaki sighed. It was clear that he was really worried about Xia's grades. Heath had a strange feeling. Why did he sound like an old father worrying about his daughter's studies?

"Haha, he's still just a child after all." Heath chuckled, trying to comfort him. Heath himself didn't know how to handle this situation, so he could only offer this perfunctory consolation.

"Heath, could you please bring me something more nutritious?" Giovanni made his request, and Heath nodded in agreement. Heath thought Giovanni's request was quite reasonable; after all, Xiaoxia was still a child, so it would be good for her to get more nutrition.

Just nutritious food? A normal person might think of chicken soup, but actually, chicken soup isn't that nutritious. It doesn't contain any magical nutrients; it's just a bowl of soup. But this time, Heath still plans to make something related to chicken. Of course, it won't be a chicken that has been used for two and a half years, but steamed chicken in a clay pot.

Steamed chicken in a clay pot is a very good dish. The chicken is tender and flavorful. However, this time, Heath added some Panax notoginseng powder, which can have a medicinal effect. It may taste slightly bitter, but it's all worth it. Xia doesn't seem to be in very good spirits right now. However, Heath didn't add too much Panax notoginseng. After all, he's not a professional TCM doctor and doesn't have a full grasp of these things. Adding a little bit is fine.

"Mr. Heath, may I have a fried chicken leg?" Xiaoxia couldn't help but raise her hand and ask. Sakaki didn't refuse. After all, he was only training Xiaoxia to be a gym leader, not actually being Xiaoxia's father.

“Sure.” Heath nodded. Fried chicken legs aren’t that difficult to make, and Heath could make them in different ways.

Chapter 900: The Uses of Honey?

Heath knew about fried chicken legs; they were easy to make. The simplest way was to use the fried chicken legs from fast food restaurants. They were quick to make and tasted alright. The biggest problem was that they were high in calories, and eating too much would make you fat. However, eating them occasionally wouldn't be a problem. Besides, fried chicken legs could actually be made very delicious, such as crispy ones or honey-glazed ones, which were also great choices. But when it came to fried chicken, Heath thought of a very famous meme from his previous life: Crazy Thursday.

Crazy Thursdays offer great deals on some products, making them a great option. However, the company in my previous life wasn't very good at capturing that traffic. If it were Heath, he would definitely seize that traffic and find ways to expand it, increasing brand awareness—a very effective form of advertising. Heath could certainly learn from that advertising approach, but the problem is that Heath won't stay in one city for long, and he can't possibly open chain stores in every city. So, creating a Pokémon World version of Crazy Thursdays would be quite difficult.

"But maybe we could try making it for Sister Feng and the others?" Heath stroked his chin, he had some ideas of his own. Although Heath didn't plan to do that, he could make it for others. Didn't Heath teach the Alliance's welfare home a business of making milk tea before? Now Heath can see the milk tea shops set up by the Alliance on the map of Cerulean City, which can help some people to some extent.

Officer Jenny also needs help, but her situation is rather unique. The Officer Jenny family has its own ways of helping family members who are unable to live independently for various reasons, but some Officer Jennys still live in difficult circumstances, and some would rather suffer on their own than trouble the family. Therefore, Heath's target is actually these Officer Jennys.

"Fried chicken?" Heath stroked his chin, but now was not the time to think about such things. It would be better to prepare lunch for Mr. Sakaki and Xiaoxia first.