Meanwhile, at the farm.
Early in the morning, Sailor climbed out of bed and lay on the specially made porthole window for him, looking out at the farm through the window.
Heavy snow had fallen, and at this moment the entire farm was white.
Before long, his breath hit the window, leaving a layer of white fog, so he stretched out his claw and pressed a paw print on it, then turned and walked toward the washroom.
At this hour, he was the only one awake among the Rattatas. After washing up, Sailor put his hat on his head, climbed into the refrigerator nearby, found a piece of bread, then climbed onto the stove and heated it in the electric oven before taking it out and stuffing it into his mouth.
Because the farm had no plans to expand the cabin during this period, mining and woodcutting work had also been temporarily suspended.
Only Sailor still needed to go to the crab pots every day to collect seafood, plus secretly checking the trash cans when no one was paying attention.
But for Sailor, it didn't really matter. He even somewhat enjoyed the thrill of finding treasures from those trash cans.
Besides that, he had made an appointment with Sandy in the distant Desert. Once winter began, he would go to the Desert with Nacli, and he would bring crocuses picked along the way to give to her.
In return, after some time, Sandy would make him a captain's uniform!
Thinking this, he straightened the hat on his head, rubbed his claws, and went out the door.
When Ron sat up from bed, he saw Sailor's back as he went out to work in the wind and snow, taking the unwilling Geodude with him.
He paused, turned to add a bit more firewood to the fireplace, then threw in a few yams, waiting to send them to the bus stop once they were roasted.
Sailor's trip to the Desert—Sandy had told him about this. They had made this arrangement some time ago, probably the day Sandy came to the farm to borrow Bellossom to catch a Pokémon.
Ron didn't ask specifically what she had caught. In any case, afterward Sandy said to let Sailor go to the Desert with Nacli in winter.
Because it didn't take up much space, Pam didn't charge a fee.
Ron made breakfast while thinking about what he needed to do today.
It felt somewhat unfamiliar to suddenly have free time.
It was worth mentioning that yesterday he had taken time to go to the Community Center and officially unlocked the greenhouse. Last night, after the Junimos finished repairing the greenhouse, he had conveniently planted the ancient fruit seed inside.
Additionally, he had casually scattered some vegetable seeds, basically enough to ensure his own supply plus what the Pokémon Center needed.
Thinking of this, breakfast was also ready.
The Rattatas climbed out of bed one after another, currently lined up in the washroom to wash up.
Froakie had already squatted at the dining table early, sitting in a corner waiting to eat.
After the meal, Ron took the roasted yams from the stove, wrapped them in several pieces of paper, and walked to the door, just in time to see the calendar on the bulletin board.
Today's icon had a small black shadow below it, meaning today was its birthday.
Only then did Ron remember—this was Krobus, of the same race as the Shadow People in the Mines, but possessing intelligence and able to communicate, running a small stall in the sewers.
Thinking about it, Ron found a pumpkin and tucked it into his pocket.
He walked all the way to the bus stop.
At this time in winter, Pam had changed into a cotton-padded garment, looking extremely bulky. She stood by the platform rubbing her hands. Seeing Ron, she couldn't help but greet him.
"Morning." Ron returned the greeting, then handed the yams he brought to Pam: "I roasted some yams today. These are for you. Please help me pass the rest to Sailor."
"Oh, alright." Pam nodded. The yams were just out of the oven, warm in her hands. She then thanked Ron.
Ron waved his hand and walked straight toward the sewers.
Some time ago, Gunther had conveniently given him the key to the sewers. He had been busy with farm matters before, and only now had time to visit the sewers.
Thinking this, he arrived at the sewers, inserted the key into the lock above, and with a click, the sewer cover opened.
Lifting the cover, Ron grabbed the iron bar nearby and slowly climbed down.
The sewers were filled with a foul stench. Ron frowned, walking slowly in this somewhat cramped sewer.
Several green lamps hung on the nearby walls, barely illuminating the way forward.
"Who?!" A trembling voice came from the distance. The owner of the voice was currently talking to himself: "Could it be that I was discovered bringing the town's jack-o'-lanterns into the sewers?"
Saying this, a pitch-black head poked out from the distant turning.
Those eyes stared straight at Ron, but didn't seem hostile. In fact, it looked like he was the one who was actually fearful.
"Don't come over! I just wanted to hang a lamp in the sewer. It's already rotting! Take it if you want it!"
Saying this, a hand extended from there, pointing at a pile of mud not far away.
"——" Ron looked at that foul-smelling thing, fell silent for a moment, then took out a pumpkin: "My name is Ron. I live on the farm to the west. I saw on the calendar that today seems to be your birthday."
"?"
Krobus stared straight at Ron.
Slightly different from other Shadow People, he had a curl on his head resembling hair.
At this moment, it seemed to be slowly curling into a question mark because his owner was in a state of confusion.
Before Ron could say anything else, a flash of light appeared, and the Wizard appeared in a corner of the sewer.
"Same as usual, two Void Essences! One Sun Essence!" the Wizard said, walking forward, then noticed Ron standing nearby: "Ah, Ron, you're here too."
He quickly noticed the wary Krobus nearby, then reacted: "Ah, the calendar. You saw the calendar and came to celebrate his birthday?"
"I think you both count as members of Pelican Town," the Wizard said, signaling Ron to follow him, then said to Krobus: "So I specially added it to the farm's calendar. Don't worry, only Ron knows."
Saying this, he winked at Krobus: "Don't worry, he's one of us."
At these words, Krobus's wariness decreased considerably. He nodded and shrank back.
Walking to the corner, Ron saw what could be called Krobus's shop.
It had some simple decorations, plus a chest placed to store goods.
Krobus was rummaging through the chest with his bottom in the air. After a while, he suddenly reacted, straightened up, and looked at the Wizard: "When you said 'you both'——besides me, who else is there?"
The Wizard paused upon hearing this, somewhat awkwardly averted his gaze.
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