Elf: Start your slow-paced life after becoming a farmer.

Just then, a cheerful barking came from behind them. Carl looked and, sure enough, it was his three dogs that he kept on the farm.

Upon seeing Karl, the three paparazzi wagged their tails and came to Karl's feet, affectionately rubbing against his trouser leg.

"Good afternoon, paparazzi." Karl crouched down and reached out to stroke the heads of the three little guys one by one.

"Are these cute little guys called puppies?" Zhu Lan squatted down next to Karl and curiously reached out to touch the puppies' soft fur.

“That’s right, Cynthia, you can guess what type of Pokémon they are,” Carl said to Cynthia while interacting with the three puppies.

"Normal type?" Cynthia looked at the three Pokémon in front of her, which looked like they were pieced together from several pieces of bread, and said uncertainly, "No, could they be Fairy type Pokémon?"

“That’s right, correct answer!” Karl rubbed the chubby body of the dog-like creature. “The dog-like creature secretes a special yeast that helps food ferment, and its evolved form, the Twisted Dog, can emit a special aroma that helps wheat grow. It is a Pokémon that is very beneficial to farms.”

"I see," Zhu Lan said with a hint of realization. "So, you're planning to plant wheat on a large scale this summer?"

“That’s right. After all, whether you turn wheat into flour or sell it, it’s a very good option.” Karl nodded in reply. “It’s said that with the help of the Teddy Dog, you can brew a very unique ale that is very popular in the market.”

"It's a pity I probably won't be able to taste it," Zhu Lan said with a hint of regret.

Carl glanced at Cynthia with some surprise upon hearing this. After all, according to the laws of the Sinnoh region, those under the age of twenty are prohibited from drinking alcohol, but judging from Cynthia's tone, she seemed to have already been drinking.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Zhu Lan was taken aback at first, then realized what she meant and winked at Karl: "Did I just say something?"

“…He didn’t say anything,” Karl replied cooperatively.

Next, Carl showed Orchid the vine house where the Salt Stones were staying, and then took her to Lake Little Pot.

After seeing what the Upo brothers (in the form of Padia) looked like living in Little Pot Lake, Zhulan was about to touch them, but Karl stopped her from doing so in time.

“The Upo of Padia are poisonous and have ground-based attributes. The mucus on their bodies is much more toxic than that of ordinary Upo,” Karl explained to Zhulan earnestly.

Seeing this, Zhu Lan had no choice but to give up the opportunity to get close to the two cute little guys. Then she turned around and saw the three mini dragon brothers living in Little Pot Lake.

"Dragonite?" Cynthia was genuinely surprised. After all, the Pokémon she had just seen at the farm were all fairly common types, but Dratini was a rare Dragon-type Pokémon, and Carl not only had it, but three of them.

After listening to Carl's explanation of the origins of the three mini-dragons, Cynthia couldn't help but marvel at Carl's incredible luck.

After Carl had shown Zhu Lan all over the farm, he took her back to the farmhouse and asked, "Let's rest for a bit, then we'll start fighting?"

"No, I'm not playing anymore."

Chapter 125 Departure and the Promise

"Not fighting anymore?" Carl wondered if he had misheard. He remembered that Cynthia's main purpose in coming to Padia was to have a Pokémon battle with him.

"Well, to be precise, we won't be fighting this time," Zhu Lan said with a slight smile.

In fact, the reason why Chiklan made the agreement with Karl to fight was not only because of Granny Kikuno's "encouragement", but also because of a kind of misplaced expectation that arose in Chiklan's heart after she learned that Karl had become a farmer.

Originally, Cynthia thought that Carl would return to the Sinnoh region after his travels and compete with her for the Sinnoh Champion title.

But who would have thought that Karl would come to the Padiya region without a word, take over the farm left by his grandfather, and become a farmer.

Now, more than a month after Cynthia became the Sinnoh Champion, she realizes just how right Carl's decision was.

If it weren't for that prophecy related to the Sinnoh Grandmaster, Cynthia probably wouldn't have chosen to become the Sinnoh Champion, but would have continued to be her Mythology Scholar.

For Cynthia, the title of Sinnoh champion not only means responsibility, but also represents countless tasks.

After touring Carl's farm, Zhu Lan expressed great envy for Carl's current lifestyle, and she was well aware that she had already "lost".

The "gap" between her and Carl is not only reflected in their abilities, but also in the lifestyles they choose.

Although Carl didn't quite understand why Zhu Lan suddenly chose not to fight, he still chose to respect her decision.

At Carl's warm invitation, Zhu Lan stayed at Carl's farm for dinner.

Okay, Zhu Lan admits that she really craved Master Xiong's cooking, after all, Master Xiong's food was just too delicious.

After dinner, Zhu Lan was about to say goodbye to Karl and leave, but she suddenly seemed to remember something and stopped after walking out the door.

"What's wrong? Did you forget something?" Karl asked, sounding puzzled.

“No, I’ve already packed everything.” Zhulan turned around, put her hands behind her back, and looked at Karl with a smile. “I just wanted to ask, are you planning to go back to Sinnoh for the New Year this year?”

Carl was taken aback. He didn't understand why Zhu Lan would suddenly ask him this question, but without thinking, he gave an affirmative answer: "Of course, if I don't go back, Dr. Yamanashi probably won't give me a friendly look anymore, right?"

After hearing Carl's answer, Cynthia laughed and then extended an invitation to Carl: "When you return to the Sinnoh region, remember to let me know. I'll treat you to a meal as compensation for the good hospitality you've given me these past few days."

“It would be my honor to host Miss Champion.” Carl joked a little, then agreed. “Okay, I’ll let you know when I get back to Sinnoh, if I still remember this promise.”

"Okay, see you next time then." Cynthia, sitting on Garchomp's back, waved to Carl, while Garchomp beneath her glanced reluctantly in Carl's direction, or more accurately, reluctantly glanced at the kitchen.

"See you next time." Carl waved, and Garchomp immediately flew into the sky, turning into a small black dot and disappearing into the night sky.

With Cynthia gone, Carlton felt the farm become quiet. He stood there in silence for a moment, then turned and went back inside, saying to Metagross, "Metagross, remember to remind me when I go back to Sinnoh at the end of the year."

"Geng metal? (What does this mean?)"

"Remind me to tell Zhulan."

The Metagross looked at Carl with a puzzled expression and stored the information in its brain's memo.

……

The following day, at Nagako International Airport.

While Cynthia was waiting to board her flight in the terminal, she received a phone call from the Sinnoh region.

"Hello, Grandma Kikuno, what's wrong?" Takeran asked as soon as the call connected.

"Little Lan, you should have booked a flight back to Sinnoh today, right?" Grandma Kikuno's voice came from the other end of the phone.

Although Granny Kikuno's tone seemed normal, Takeran, who had worked with her for some time, sensed an eagerness in her voice.

“That’s right, I’m already in the airport terminal waiting to board,” Zhu Lan replied calmly. “You don’t need to worry that I’ll run away without a word like someone else.”

"Haha, that's good, that's good." Grandma Kikuno's tone visibly relaxed upon hearing this. "Do you need me to arrange for someone to pick you up from the airport?"

"No need, I've already made plans to have a meal with Cattleya. After we finish eating, I'll ride Garchomp back to the League headquarters," Cynthia replied truthfully.

In fact, Cattleya was extremely displeased that Orchid had secretly run off to Padia without saying a word, and she wouldn't be satisfied until she treated her to a meal.

As a well-known wealthy woman in the Pokémon world, Caitalia doesn't lack Cynthia's meal; what she really wants is Cynthia's "attention".

As a superpowered individual, Gadriya was born with extremely terrifying superpowers, but to this day, she still cannot control these superpowers.

For this reason, Cattleya has almost no friends except for Orchid, so she cherishes Orchid as a friend very much.

When Gadriya learned that Jaden had gone to the Padiya region alone, she planned to immediately take her private plane to the Padiya region to accompany her and help her relax, but Jaden stopped her from doing so.

In return, Cynthia agreed to have a meal with Cattleya after returning to the Sinnoh region.

After learning about the arrangements for Zhulan's arrival, Grandma Kikuno finally hung up the phone with relief.

"It's good that she wasn't kidnapped by that kid." Grandma Kikuno looked at the desk piled high with documents and breathed a long sigh of relief before throwing herself back into her busy work.

……

Tabletop City, headquarters of the Padiya League.

After seeing his subordinate's report, Ye Ci's brows, which had been furrowed due to official duties, relaxed slightly.

"That champion lady is finally gone? That's really good news." Ye Ci rubbed his throbbing temples, put the documents in his hand aside, and then pulled out another document from the mountain of files.

"Hmm... an application?" Ye Ci sat up slightly. "An application to enter the Padia Abyss? At this time?"

Ye Ci glanced briefly at the application in her hand, then casually flipped to the last page: "Let me see who the applicant is... um, Karl..."

"Huh?! Karl?"

Upon seeing the applicant's name, Ye Ci was stunned for a moment, then her expression turned serious.

After confirming through the applicant's trainer ID that this Karl was indeed the Karl she knew, Ye Ci immediately pondered Karl's purpose in applying to enter the Padia Pit.

"Could it be that he's planning to catch another Paradox Pokémon?"

Ye Ci was unaware that Carl's farm now had another Paradox Pokémon, but that didn't stop her from considering whether to approve Carl's application.

"Let's ask Aoki's opinion first..." After thinking for a moment, Yeji called Aoki, "Hey, Aoki, come to my office."

"Yes, Chairman."

Chapter 126 New Leaf Cat: Master was right after all... (1/5)

After Cynthia returned to the Sinnoh region, Carl's life returned to normal.

Aside from training Gengar, Majestic Fang, and other Pokémon, he spends most of his time supervising.

In fact, Carl was quite confident in the construction team sent by the building company, Holly Engineering, since the fence they had built was very sturdy.

However, as a farmer, Carl felt it was necessary for him to know some maintenance skills; he couldn't just call the engineering team every time something happened, could he?

The foreman of Haoli Construction Team didn't care that Karl wanted to learn repairs; in fact, he welcomed it.

After all, customers like Carl, who pay so readily and even deliver water to them from time to time, are rare in Little Key Town. They are happy to teach Carl some simple repair skills as a small perk for him.

On Friday, the third day after Cynthia returned to Sinnoh, Carl received good news as soon as he got back to the farm from Tabletop City—the buildings he had commissioned Machamp Construction had all been completed.

Although Carl did not doubt the professionalism of Machamp's engineering team, he still took a cautious approach and led Metagross to conduct a simple inspection of the new buildings on the farm.

After confirming that there were no problems with the Garchomp's burrow, the Great Fang's cave, Miltank's shed, and the Lamb's kennel, Carl promptly transferred the final payment for the project to Hawley Engineering's account.

After watching the Machamp construction team leave in a flurry of activity, Carl led his Pokémon to their new home.

All the Pokémon that got shelter in this round of infrastructure construction were very happy with their new homes, especially the Miltank Pokémon that had lived in shacks before. As soon as they entered the shacks, they started rolling around in the soft hay.

To celebrate the Pokémon officially settling in on the farm, Carl held a bonfire party after sunset.

At the party, Carl could clearly feel that the cohesion among the Pokémon had increased a lot. It was from this moment that the Pokémon that got their new homes truly became part of the farm.

The next day, Karl was dragged out of bed early in the morning by Martial Arts Bear and pushed into the bathroom to wash up.

In most cases, the Martial Arts Bear Master will not wake Karl up himself, since it still needs to prepare breakfast for Karl.

But today is a special day, because it's the day Carl plans to travel to Glassbottle City.

In the bathroom, Carl scooped up a handful of cold water and rubbed his face with it. The icy touch cleared his somewhat muddled mind.

"Martial Arts Bear Master, it's rare for you to come and wake me up in person." Karl teased, looking at Martial Arts Bear Master standing with his arms crossed at the bathroom door through the mirror.

"Hmph. (That's because I usually prepare breakfast for you.)" Martial Arts Bear Master rolled his eyes at Karl, giving him a look that said, "How dare you say such a thing?"

"Okay, okay." Karl pulled out a face towel to dry his face, then turned and patted the martial arts master on the shoulder. "Is Espeon making breakfast today?"

“Hoo-hoo. (That’s right.)” Martial Arts Bear Master followed Karl out of the bedroom and onto the first floor of the farmhouse.

As soon as Carl entered the restaurant, he saw Espeon using its telekinesis to control various kitchen utensils to prepare breakfast.

"Uh, are you sure it can do it?" Karl glanced at the kitchen with some skepticism, then turned to Martial Arts Master Xiong and asked.

The martial arts master sniffed, then nodded seriously: "Hoo-hoo. (I taught Espeon how to cook, so there's absolutely no problem.)"

While busy in the kitchen, Espeon heard the commotion in the dining room and immediately used its telekinesis to bring out a glass of freshly heated milk from the kitchen and place it in front of Carl.

Carl picked up the milk, took a sip, and nodded in satisfaction: "The temperature is just right."

No sooner had Carl finished speaking than Espeon floated out of the kitchen.

Around Seibou’s body, four or five plates of various dishes floated, including freshly fried Iberian ham, a perfectly shaped soft-boiled egg, a plate of lettuce, and two slices of freshly toasted bread.

"Hmm? Espeon, are you trying to assemble a sandwich in front of me?" Karl watched this scene with great interest and said, "Where did you learn this? Master Ursa never does this kind of nonsense."

"Eevee. (I happened to see this while scrolling through videos last night.)" Espeon called out softly, and all the food it had prepared floated out of the plate, then piled up together, and finally landed in front of Carl.

Carl reached out and took the freshly made sandwich in front of him, then took a bite and chewed it heartily.

"Hmm...it tastes good." Carl picked up the milk and took a sip, then added, "If you replaced the salad dressing with ketchup, it would suit my taste even better."

Espeon nodded immediately upon hearing this: "Eevee~ (I got it~)"

By the time Carl finished the lovingly prepared breakfast by Espeon, it was already eight o'clock in the morning.

Carl walked out of the farmhouse with his bag on his back and saw Zapdos waiting nearby.

Since Corviknight is currently busy becoming the "King of Corviknight," Zapdos will be Karl's flying Pokémon for his trip to Glass Bottle City today, as Karl had already agreed upon.

"Eevee, you're staying home today. You need to keep an eye on all the little guys on the farm." Karl reached out and patted Espeon's head, saying earnestly, "If you run into any problems, go find that washing machine and have it call me."

"Booey! (Leave them to me!)" Espeon puffed out its chest and said earnestly, "Booey! (I'll keep an eye on them!)"

Just then, Serperior returned to the vicinity of the farmhouse with Newleaf Meow. After seeing Espeon, it snorted and then came to Carl's side triumphantly.

'Hmph, Karl took me with him on this trip, what makes you, a purple-haired wretch, stand against me?' Monarch Serpent thought to himself.

"Poof? (I shouldn't be late, right?)" Hakuryu hurriedly landed from the sky, followed by Dratini and Wooppo, the five little guys.

"No, you've come at just the right time, Hakuryu." Karl reassured Hakuryu first, then turned to the five little guys behind it: "I won't be at the farm today, so you five have to behave and listen to Espeon, understand?"