Chapter 20

The firewood in the hearth crackled as it burned; though the weather was cool, it wasn’t cold enough to require the hearth for warmth.

All of this was for the sake of this still faintly alive Pokémon egg.

The hearth in this small villa hadn’t been used in a long time, filled entirely with blackened stains and layers of plant ash that had likely sat there for years.

To make use of the hearth, Luo Mu had Dragonite first use air currents to sweep the ash out onto the outdoor soil—excellent fertilizer.

Then, he had Swampert clean the hearth with a minimal-power Water Gun, after which Flareon swiftly evaporated the remaining moisture with its Flame Sword, restoring the old but still functional hearth.

After placing the firewood gathered by Eevee, Mimikyu, and Sceptile into the hearth and lighting it, the room’s temperature rose instantly.

Then, surrounding the Pokémon egg, Luo Mu and his six Pokémon held a discussion.

The topic: how to successfully bring the Pokémon inside the egg into this world.

Luo Mu told the Pokémon everything about the egg’s past, and each one reacted differently.

Sceptile’s faint, lingering jealousy toward the egg vanished entirely; now, it simply felt pity for the unborn Pokémon.

Mimikyu and Flareon silently moved farther away from the egg—they knew well that as Ghost-type Pokémon, especially ones as powerful as themselves, their mere presence could unconsciously disrupt the egg, hinder its hatching, or even turn it into a dead egg.

Swampert felt nothing, but it was willing to lend a hand for the egg’s hatching.

If there was anything it needed to do, it would act without hesitation!

On Dragonite’s simple, endearing face appeared a trace of sympathy—and even more empathy.

Not long ago, it too had been born from a Pokémon egg; it still remembered the space inside, where safety mingled with occasional feelings of confinement, darkness, and oppression.

It had successfully hatched on time—but how long had this egg’s occupant been trapped inside its shell, in utter darkness?

“Miaow.”

Eevee’s low voice spoke up, telling Luo Mu that if there was anything it needed them to do, he should just ask.

Luo Mu paused for a moment, then said: “On the way back, I also considered how to hatch this egg.”

“This is an egg that hasn’t hatched in countless years; the fact that the Pokémon inside is still alive is already a miracle, so we must do everything we can to help it hatch as soon as possible.”

“First, Dragonite.” Luo Mu looked at Dragonite, who instantly stiffened, eyes wide open, as if to show his determination. Luo Mu requested: “Do you remember the nutrients you were given when you first hatched? While ordinary Pokémon eggs don’t need nutrients, this egg is different—it’s been trapped too long, and severe nutrient deficiency is likely one reason it can’t break free.”

“Good-quality nutrients aren’t available in Pallet Town. I want you to fly quickly to Naranja City—there’s the largest mall in the Paldea region. I’ll contact my friend; she’ll take you to buy the nutrients.”

“Bop!”

Dragonite stood at attention, saluting as it expressed its resolve.

Luo Mu turned to the other Pokémon, outlining his plan for each one.

Flareon, Mimikyu, and Eevee would head into the wild to find wild Pokémon with the Flame Body ability and invite them to the farm.

If possible, try to find especially powerful ones.

Pokémon with Flame Body naturally maintain an ideal body temperature, which can accelerate egg hatching.

Such Pokémon include Talonflame, Magcargo, Magmar, Volcarona, and even Ho-Oh and Kyurem.

As for Sceptile and Swampert, they would stay at the farm with me to guard the egg and keep farming.

With Luo Mu’s knowledge, these were the only solutions he could think of—and Joys probably had already considered and tried them.

His only advantage was his own strength—he could have Eevee and the others seek out stronger Flame Body Pokémon than the ones Joys might have found, perhaps just newly evolved.

The nutrients were expensive, but with his current savings, he could still afford them.

He had arranged everything he could. Now, it was up to the little one inside the egg.

If none of these methods could bring it into the world, only Legendary Pokémon might have the power to save this egg.

Early the next morning, Dragonite flew off slowly, carrying the large box Luo Mu had prepared, heading toward Naranja City guided by memory.

After warning Sceptile and Swampert to guard the house, Eevee led Flareon—and the still-overlooked Mimikyu—into the wild to search for Pokémon with Flame Body.

As for Luo Mu, he armed himself early, wearing the same straw hat as Peter, and under the rare clear sky, led Sceptile, Swampert, and the egg now placed in the temperature-controlled incubator, to the farmland.

The weeds uprooted the day before had been swept away by Dragonite’s Hurricane and neatly piled nearby.

The slightly loose, fluffy soil, after consulting Peter on basic knowledge, clearly showed Luo Mu that planting seeds now would pose no problem.

He took out six bags of seeds, glanced at the pile of aged plant ash collected by Dragonite, thought for a moment, and decided to first try planting potatoes—crops that could grow even in Siberia.

Ordinary potato seeds have a very low germination rate; most people use tubers for propagation. But in the Pokémon world, it’s different.

Ordinary crops grow with far less difficulty and yield higher output—and besides... today, he had Sceptile and Swampert beside him.

Planting methods for crops are largely similar: dig holes, bury seeds, fertilize, water—minor variations exist between crops.

Though simple, Luo Mu bent over with the hoe all morning, and only with Sceptile and Swampert’s help did he barely manage to plant one small bag of seeds, spread the collected aged plant ash as fertilizer, and have Swampert, looking thoroughly annoyed, water them with the weakest possible Water Gun.

After finishing, Luo Mu, sore and drenched in sweat, looked hopefully at Sceptile.

Sceptile sighed as if resigned, extended a single emerald vine into the hole, and faintly transferred its Grass-type energy and nutrients to the newly planted potato seeds.

Sceptile retracted the vine. Luo Mu stared into the hole, waiting—but nothing happened.

Luo Mu’s expression turned strange. That shouldn’t be right.

Peter had told him that Jones Farm often had Grass-type Pokémon transfer their Grass energy and some nutrients to crops, resulting in larger, tastier vegetables and fruits.

So why, with Sceptile and Swampert, were the seeds showing no reaction at all?