"Do you really want to play this? Why don't we try something more suitable for kids, like the carousel."
"Cyc!"
Cyclizar shook its head vigorously and pulled Silas toward the drop tower nearby, its eyes shining with excitement.
"Alright… fine."
Jumping down from a cliff over a hundred meters high could scare someone to death.
Even with Silas's strong physique, there was no way he could survive a free fall from that height.
And besides, was his luck not supposed to be a six today?
Why was the very first activity something this extreme? A huge question mark practically appeared above Silas's head.
But when he met Cyclizar's expectant gaze, he gave in.
"Only once."
"Cyc~" (Okay, okay, let's go line up.)
More than ten minutes later, Silas stood on the ground, one hand pressed against his chest as his heart pounded violently.
That had been a bit too stimulating.
He turned his head to look at Cyclizar behind him. The Pokémon looked thrilled, its tail swaying happily.
"Cyc!"
"No, we are not doing that again. Let's go to the next activity."
Refusing Cyclizar's request for another round, Silas dragged it away.
However, what followed made him begin to doubt himself.
The high speed roller coaster, the giant swinging hammer… each ride was more intense than the last.
If not for the fact that Cyclizar enjoyed them so much, he would never have tried any of them.
By the time they finished the final ride, Silas collapsed weakly into a chair.
Cyclizar happily approached, looking extremely satisfied. It nudged Silas with its head, clearly wanting to go again.
With what little strength he had left, Silas raised a hand and placed it on Cyclizar's head. "Please spare me. Once is enough."
"Cyc!"
"Let me rest for a bit. After that, we can go pick out gifts for Kangaskhan, Cinccino, and the others. How about you choose?"
Cyclizar nodded in agreement, its attention successfully diverted, and Silas quietly let out a sigh of relief.
The next moment, Cyclizar suddenly pounced into Silas's arms, pressing down on him.
"Hiss…" Silas sucked in a breath of cold air and slapped Cyclizar. "Get up, get up. Do you have no sense of your own weight? You are going to crush me to death."
Rubbing his reddened chest, Silas took Cyclizar into a gift shop.
The latter darted around like a fish in water while Silas chased after it, calling out.
By the time the evening glow of the setting sun appeared, Silas was carrying large and small bags as he and Cyclizar began their journey home.
Along the way, Cyclizar was extremely happy, its smile never fading.
Today had been the happiest day for it.
Silas had spent the entire day playing with it alone.
They had enjoyed many rides together and created countless wonderful memories.
Although they had not gone for a second round, Cyclizar was already satisfied.
Riding on Cyclizar's back, Silas could roughly sense its current mood.
If the Indeedee siblings saw it now, they would absolutely love it.
The positive emotions radiating from Cyclizar at this moment were like a grand feast to them.
Before long, they returned to the ranch just before nightfall.
Kangaskhan, Dragonite, and the others were waiting at the entrance.
The moment Silas stopped, he was immediately surrounded by Pokémon.
"Kang~"
"Draa~!"
"Phion~"
"I felt it too." Silas gently pinched little Kangaskhan and Phione in turn, then patted Kangaskhan's brown armor. "Cyclizar and I brought gifts for everyone."
"Draa?"
"Morpe…"
Dragonite and Morpeko moved closer, the latter sneaking glances around.
"Let's go inside first. I will give them to you there. It is getting dark, do not stay outside."
After autumn arrived, it became especially cold once the sun set.
Silas called everyone and headed toward the ranch cabin.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Cyclizar being surrounded by the Indeedee siblings, and he signaled them to follow quickly.
Once inside, there were even more little ones waiting.
Placing Cinccino, who had been clinging to him, down, Silas told Cyclizar to distribute the gifts.
Everyone was delighted to receive presents from Cyclizar and thanked it one by one.
As a result, the positive emotions it radiated became even stronger, to the point that the Indeedee siblings were almost overwhelmed with delight.
Shaking his head with a smile, Silas grabbed Cyclizar's hand and guided it to touch the feelers on the Indeedee siblings' heads.
A soft pink glow lit up around them, and as if tasting the sweetest nectar in the world, the siblings revealed blissful expressions.
"Hic."
Younger sister Indeedee accidentally let out a satisfied hiccup and quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment.
…
The next day, after returning from feeding the fish fry at the back mountain, Silas found himself with nothing much to do.
He called over Alcremie and Arboliva and began trying to make new dishes based on a Paldea recipe.
"Let's start by making the ice cream sold at the Sweet shop. What do you think?"
"Crem~"
"Bolii!"
The two Pokémon had no objections.
Making ice cream was relatively simple, and not difficult for Silas.
With Alcremie's help, a chocolate mint ice cream was quickly completed.
Unfortunately, its effect was quite average.
Alcremie pointed at another type of ice cream in the recipe.
"Crem?" (Silas, is this ice cream made using a Pokémon?)
"Oh, that one is rock salt ice cream made with Nacli salt. The cream used is not real ice cream."
Silas's gaze fell on Alcremie as he observed it. "I will make an Alcremie shaped ice cream. You will be my model."
As soon as he said it, he got to work. He asked Alcremie for more caramel cream, shaped chocolate into small hearts, and coated the surface with pink cream as decoration.
"Alcremie, put your hand near your mouth and tilt your head slightly to the right." Silas guided it into a cute pose. The little Pokémon obediently followed, secretly full of anticipation.
"Very good. Keep that pose and do not move."
"Crem~!"
Alcremie smiled, happily narrowing its eyes.
Soon it tried to suppress its smile, but the faint curve on its face remained.
With one hand squeezing the cream bag and the other holding the base, Silas outlined Alcremie's shape from bottom to top.
He then refined it carefully with a small scraper. Finally, he placed the pink heart shaped chocolate, completing the Alcremie caramel ice cream.
At the same time, a panel appeared before Silas, showing the dish's effect.
[Alcremie Caramel Ice Cream (B)
Dish Effect: After consumption, slightly increases the smoothness of Fairy type moves for sixty minutes, with a small chance of doubling the effect.
Alcremie Exclusive: Due to the emotions infused by the creator, when an Alcremie consumes it, it can unlock a second ability that it does not currently possess.
Note: Both abilities cannot exist simultaneously]
An unexpected bonus.
Silas quickly understood the effect.
Taking his own Alcremie as an example, its current ability was its hidden ability, Aroma Veil.
After eating the ice cream, it would unlock the standard ability, Sweet Veil.
Moreover, it could freely switch between the two abilities, with the only limitation being that both could not exist at the same time.
Hmm?
Silas tried to recall the effect of Sweet Veil, and his eyes suddenly widened.
If he remembered correctly, Sweet Veil prevented itself and its allies from falling asleep.
With that ability, he would no longer fall asleep when listening to Jigglypuff sing.
(End of Chapter)