Chapter 397: Twin Eevee, Brown and Silver!

A strange scent spread outward from the farming district as the center, carried by the summer night's gentle breeze to ever more distant places.

The Pokémon within the farm were the first to react.

In the pasture district.

Five Miltank sleeping together opened their eyes, looked toward the farming district, and twitched their noses slightly.

They found it very strange.

Clearly, this scent was not even as captivating as the fresh fragrance of pasture grass, yet their bodies' instincts were sending them signals, speaking of an unprecedented longing.

Under the puzzled gazes of two Skiddo, two Deerling stood up, their expressions Solemn.

As Pokémon that had once survived in the wild, even though they had grown accustomed to the farm's comfortable, safe life without worry of predators, those experiences remained well-preserved in their minds.

When a longing rose from their bodily instincts and the depths of their hearts, the moment Deerling and the others perceived this feeling, they knew something was terribly wrong.

They were aware that over there, the Herba Mystica were being ripened.

For this sensation to have already radiated to the pasture district so quickly, at this rate of spread, reaching the wilds or even farther was likely only a matter of time.

"Yo-ah."

Looking at the two Skiddo who were still somewhat dazed, their eyes flashing with longing, the two Deerling nudged them with their antlers, sounding a warning.

They needed to quickly link up with the Miltank on the other hillside who were enjoying the natural breeze, using the sky as a blanket and the earth as a mat, and they had to call the Mudsdale as well.

They could not let those wild Pokémon, drawn by the scent, break through the fences, burst into the farm, and destroy their home!

At the same time, similar events were unfolding in several other areas within the farm.

In the lake district, Thunder Cry Lake.

As another area relatively close to the wilds, the Politoed stepped forward, methodically directing everyone to begin setting up defenses to withstand the inevitable onslaught of wild Pokémon groups that was about to arrive.

The Corviknight and the others had already clocked off; Luo Mu was not the type of person who would exploit the Corviknight and the others for night patrols, so the defense regarding flying-type Pokémon could only be left to the Dragonite and the Hakamo-o and the others.

Before they took flight, the Politoed specifically had the Dragonite notify the Moltres at the birdhouse, asking it to patrol the skies together.

There were also the Luxray and the others in the home, the Garganacl residing in the salt house, the Applin and the Tropius in the orchard... excluding the ice cellar and the ice fairy cottage where the scent was temporarily difficult to reach, most of the Pokémon on the farm had entered a state of alert due to the scent.

Beside the Herba Mystica, looking at the three fully ripened Herba Mystica plants, Luo Mu's expression showed a hint of regret.

This first planting and ripening of Herba Mystica, due to a lack of experience, had completely failed to anticipate that the speed of its scent eruption would be so rapid.

He should have had the Dragonite come over to seal off the surrounding area with air currents to prevent the scent from leaking out.

However, now was not the time for regret; when the wild Pokémon arrived drawn by the scent, preparations had to be made in advance.

Thinking of this, Luo Mu exchanged a glance with Lei Guan Wang and gave a slight nod toward him.

"Mimikyu."

"Spectrier."

The next instant.

Dense shadow power surged up from underground, and the figures of Mimikyu and Spectrier appeared silently.

Lei Guan Wang stepped forward and instructed Mimikyu and Spectrier: "The warehouse and ice cellar areas are open ground; they will likely be the zones where the wild Pokémon assault is fiercest."

Luo Mu continued following Lei Guan Wang's words: "Call Regice and Calyrex-Ice Rider; they are the Pokémon most suited to guarding that area."

"Your task is to look after them; preferably deter and repel them. Absolutely do not let Calyrex-Ice Rider get carried away in the heat of the moment, and make sure to tell Regice in advance to remember to exercise restraint."

"Q!"

"Spirit—ssshhh-wuu!"

Mimikyu and Spectrier nodded, then sank back into the shadows, heading toward the ice cellar.

After doing all this, Luo Mu looked at Peony nearby, who appeared somewhat bewildered; without letting Peony feel this extra pressure, he instead took out a note he had prepared long ago and said to her.

"In a moment, I'll have Luxray and Feng Su Gou take you to the Pokémon Center in town; just hand the Herba Mystica and this note to Nurse Joy, and she will know what to do."

The note Luo Mu had prepared clearly stated the methods for distinguishing the three types of Herba Mystica as well as their detailed effects; Nurse Joy would certainly make proper use of them.

Peony took the note, staring blankly as Luo Mu had Lei Guan Wang use psychic power to uproot the Herba Mystica without damaging them, then split the three Herba Mystica plants in half, placing each half into one of six prepared boxes.

A moment later.

Peony, holding three boxes and the note, mounted the back of the Feng Su Gou that Lei Guan Wang had notified the Oranguru of via psychic power, which the Oranguru then summoned, and under the escort of Luxray, galloped toward the Pokémon Center.

The reason Luo Mu chose to have Luxray escort Peony was none other than that Luxray was Luo Mu's most trusted partner.

That was all.

Watching the figures of Luxray and the others gradually fade into the distance, Luo Mu took a deep breath and looked at the farm, brightly lit against the night sky.

"Next comes a war of attrition testing the perseverance of both sides."

Except for the area near the farm gate leading toward Pingdie Town, almost every other region faced the risk of wild Pokémon attacking from the sky, the ground, or underground.

No wonder the Iron Treads and Great Tusk that he had submitted to the Paldea League regarded that cave as their exclusive domain, even fighting fiercely over it, while tacitly cooperating to drive away all wild Pokémon living near there.

Because their Shen Qi De Gong and the powerful attraction stemming from instinct were enough to drive many wild Pokémon mad.

Still in the bushes slightly farther away from the farm district.

The owners of two pairs of rabbit-like ears poked their heads out, their small black noses sniffing the air, while their fluffy tails, tipped with cream or white, swayed slightly with the fluctuation of their emotions.

"Ee-vee~"

Two soft, sticky calls rang out, as if discussing something.

One voice was full of energy, while the other sounded somewhat lacking in confidence and weak.

The bushes rustled, emitting a rustling sound, and immediately after, two small, cute, large heads with fluffy fur around their necks matching the tips of their tails cautiously poked out with quite a "sneaky" air.

Those were two Eevee.

However, besides the brown-furred Eevee that matched ordinary people's impressions, beside it was another Eevee slightly smaller in size, with silver-gray fur.

A shiny Pokémon.

It was merely that their body color had been different from others since birth; they possessed no special power, yet because of their different appearance, they were more easily ostracized by their own kind.

Perhaps they would inevitably walk toward death due to weakness, or perhaps they would survive tenaciously, gaining power even greater than that of their kin. Precisely because only strong shiny Pokémon survived, many people would consequently develop the mistaken belief that shiny Pokémon are inherently powerful.

Yet the way the two Eevees interacted completely contradicted common perception.

The ordinary Eevee licked the Shiny Eevee's fur with its small pink tongue, its cry filled with worry: "Eevee?" (How about you wait here for me?) The Shiny Eevee shook its head: "Vee." (No, I'm worried about Big Sister.) The Eevee looked troubled, trying to persuade the Shiny Eevee: "Vee Eevee!" (Your body is very weak, don't take risks!) Then, the Eevee added: "Vee." (Moreover, the owner of this place once saved me; perhaps by reminding him, we can get him to share some of that thing with us.) The Shiny Eevee shook its head, tears welling in the corners of its eyes: "Eevee!" (But I don't want Big Sister to get hurt protecting me!) Looking at its sister, the Shiny Eevee's eyes were full of heartache.

Despite possessing beautiful fur that transcended its own kind, and an appearance and charm that made it popular with the opposite sex, Big Sister fought daily against other wild Pokémon to care for and protect it, scrambling for food and water sources in the wild.

Now that the Eevee still wanted to enter the farm, which the Shiny Eevee viewed as extremely dangerous, the Shiny Eevee would rather its body remained this way forever than have Big Sister fail to return for a long time like she did that night.

As twin sisters, the Shiny Eevee, possessing an ability akin to telepathy, knew just how dangerous Big Sister's situation had been that night.

The Eevee fell silent, speechless.

It had been wandering outside this farm with its younger sister for some time now.

It and its younger sister were twins hatched from a single Pokémon Egg; this miraculous phenomenon should have been a good thing, but their other companions seemed filled with hostility toward the younger sister, whose fur color differed from theirs.

Ever since it could remember, the Eevee had carefully protected its younger sister and endured.

Only after gaining the ability to survive in the wild did the Eevee, without hesitation, lead its younger sister away from the pack, starting a life alone in the wilderness.

Living alone in the wild inevitably led to conflicts with other wild Pokémon, yet their strength was insufficient to claim a territory of their own.

To protect its younger sister, getting injured or becoming exhausted was a common occurrence for the Eevee.

However, on one occasion, while venturing out to find food for its younger sister who was hiding in a cave, the Eevee encountered a pack of Houndour and was besieged by them.

After a bitter fight, the Eevee barely managed to drive off the pack of Houndour, but it too collapsed on the ground from exhaustion.

Subsequently, it was found by a resident of Pingdie Town passing by and sent to the Pokémon Center where Young Lady Joy was stationed to receive treatment; its injuries were addressed, and its depleted stamina was restored by a medicinal liquid made from the sour ingredient, a secret seasoning brought by Luo Mu.

But upon waking, the Eevee only had time to thank Luo Mu and Young Lady Joy before hastily departing, anxious to see its younger sister who had waited all night without its return.

It came here to find Luo Mu, who had saved it last time, hoping to seek his help and see if there was any way to make its congenitally weak younger sister a bit healthier.

However, huge black birds were always circling in the sky above this place, and massive, powerful creatures frequently patrolled; not daring to risk bringing its younger sister along, the Eevee could only linger outside the farm, waiting for an opportunity.

They had even witnessed Lei Guan Wang's performance, which, if taken to a Contest, would absolutely earn unanimous perfect scores of ten from all the judges.

Until that strange scent spread out, triggering an instinctive throbbing in the bodies of the Eevee sisters, at which point the two clever little ones immediately knew something was terribly wrong.

Wild Pokémon, who would fight fiercely over wild berries and water sources in the outdoors, would absolutely be unable to suppress their bodily cravings and the temptation of the scent, launching an assault on this farm! Under normal circumstances, at a time like this, the two Eevees should have chosen to avoid the brunt of the attack and temporarily hide.

But Big Sister felt that this was undoubtedly an opportunity, wanting to use this incident to alert that male owner and then request his help in treating its younger sister.

This then led to the "argument" that had just occurred.

The Eevee was momentarily speechless; looking at its younger sister's persistence and worry, as well as the look of gain-and-loss fear hidden deep in Emperor Yan Di's eyes, it ultimately softened its heart.

"Vee!" (Then it's a deal, you must stay close to me, and if you encounter danger, you must hide!) The Shiny Eevee nodded happily, rubbed against its sister's body, and let out a soft, sticky cry: "Eevee Vee!" (It's a promise!) A moment later.

The two little creatures carefully crossed the fence, hurrying in the direction of Luo Mu and Lei Guan Wang.

But they failed to notice that the figures of Luo Mu and Lei Guan Wang had long since vanished.

After seeing Mu Dan off, Luo Mu had asked Lei Guan Wang to use Teleport to take him back home first.

As soon as he arrived home, Oranguru brought good news.

The Pokémon living in the Ranch Area and the Lake Area had spontaneously formed a defensive line, preparing to defend against the impact from wild Pokémon.

Hearing this news, Luo Mu's eyes brightened slightly, feeling genuine relief from the bottom of his heart.

They've all grown up! Looking at Lei Guan Wang, Luo Mu asked, "Lei Guan Wang, can you use your psychic power to scan the entire farm and see which areas have gaps in their defense?"

"I plan to arrange our defenses!"

"No problem."

Lei Guan Wang nodded slightly, closed its eyes, and began spreading its psychic power.

Both parties tacitly avoided mentioning Lei Guan Wang's combat power, which was sufficient to flip the table.

In a certain sense, this impending event of wild Pokémon assaulting the farm counted as an opportunity for the farm's Pokémon to demonstrate the results of their daily training.

How could they be so insensitive to the situation?

Seeing Lei Guan Wang begin to probe the farm's defenses with its mental power, Luo Mu discussed the issue of deploying defenses with Oranguru.

"Young Master, I believe the farmland near the secret seasonings must be heavily defended; Ground-type Pokémon can dig tunnels from underground all the way there, making them hard to guard against."

Through telepathy, Oranguru expressed its viewpoint.

The fan in its hand fluttered slightly, giving it an air of strategic mastery that suddenly reminded Luo Mu of an old acquaintance.

However, Oranguru's concern truly hit the nail on the head.

Leaving aside just how large the scale of the wild Pokémon charging from the front might be.

No matter how many came, Luo Mu was confident that relying on the farm's Pokémon and his own main forces, he could firmly block them.

The only difficulty lay in defending against wild Pokémon coming from underground.

Their tunneling behavior itself would cause irreversible damage to many crops in the farming area, and furthermore, among the farm's Pokémon, there were only two Ground-types.

Swampert and Mudsdale.

Although they were Ground-type Pokémon, they were not particularly skilled at moving underground; Swampert's mastery of Dig was merely passable, having never actually trained it.

As for Mudsdale, if it really engaged in underground combat, it would likely end everything with a single move, Land's Wrath, burying the wild Pokémon along with the entire farming area.

How to defend the farming area was indeed a difficult point.

Surely it would be more appropriate to arrange Serperior, which can control plants, and Grass-type Pokémon to go there? Before Luo Mu could make a decision, Lei Guan Wang suddenly let out a light sound of doubt from the side.

"Eh?"

Luo Mu and Oranguru quickly turned their puzzled gazes toward Lei Guan Wang.

Lei Guan Wang spoke again: "It seems two little creatures have already sneaked in ahead of time."

(End of Chapter)