Cole and Keith went downstairs together and saw a distinguished middle-aged man and an elegant, beautiful woman sitting in the living room.
Without a doubt, these two were his parents.
"So this must be Keith's classmate. Welcome to our home. I am his father, and this is his mother. It's nice to meet you." The distinguished man greeted the newcomer warmly.
Cole found it hard to reconcile this polite and gentle man with the one Keith had described as having such serious conflicts with his son.
"Hello." The mother said with a kind smile.
"Hello, uncle and auntie. My name is Cole. I'm sorry for dropping by unannounced today."
Lacking social confidence, he wasn't sure how to interact with the parents, so he simply tried to be as polite as possible.
The father laughed heartily, "Ha ha ha... No need to apologize! If anyone's at fault, it's Keith — he didn't even tell us a classmate was coming over today."
Hearing this, Keith's already clenched fist tightened further.
Ah, Cole understood now — the father's politeness and gentleness were reserved for outsiders; he was actually quite harsh with his own son.
Cole could only say awkwardly, "My visit was a last-minute decision — you can't blame him..."
Sensing the tension in the air, the mother quickly changed the subject, "Oh, it's getting late. Why don't you stay for dinner, Cole? It's rare for Keith to bring a classmate home."
Cole quickly shook his head, "No, I couldn't trouble you. I should head home now — my family is waiting for me for dinner."
Yeah right — as if anyone could eat in this family atmosphere. It would probably cause indigestion. Besides, he and Keith hadn't come back because they were close friends; he was just doing someone a small favor.
So, after saying goodbye to the parents, he quickly left.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
The next day at school, Cole noticed Keith looking gloomy and asked, "Did you fight with your father again?"
Keith nodded slightly without saying a word, clearly showing that things had gotten worse between them.
A day later during class, he passed Cole a note, saying he wanted to talk after class.
Daniel, sitting nearby, caught sight of the note and whispered, "Since when did you get so close to that ice king?"
"Don't get so close to me!" Cole shoved him away in disgust.
Daniel's lips quivered as he said pitifully, "But I knew you first..."
Cole thought to himself, 'Because perversion is contagious.'
When class ended, Cole headed straight to the hallway where he'd agreed to meet Keith, ignoring the "resentful" gaze Daniel cast his way.
"Cole, I need to ask you for a favor." Keith said, looking a bit awkward.
"Go ahead." Cole replied.
"I've secretly brought back my grandfather's Pokémon." Keith admitted after taking a deep breath, "But I don't know where to keep them."
If he kept them at home, his father would never agree — and might even explode in anger. But finding another place was nearly impossible, as Keith had only recently moved to Coumarine City with his father and barely knew anyone.
Later, he inquired about boarding services at the Day Care, but they required a parent's presence — children under sixteen couldn't arrange it themselves.
He obviously couldn't ask his parents. With no other options, he had to turn to Cole, the only person he could loosely call an acquaintance.
"So you want those Pokémon to stay with me temporarily?" Cole asked.
Keith nodded, visibly embarrassed. It was a bit much to ask since they weren't close, but he had no other choice.
"How many Pokémon are there, and what types?" Cole asked instead of refusing outright.
"Five!" Keith blurted out, worried he might refuse if he hesitated, "There are five in total: a Machamp, a Nidoking, a Nidoqueen, a Vaporeon, and a Leavanny."
"Those five, huh..." Cole frowned in thought, then looked up and said, "How about this — I can take them in, and you won't even need to pay for their food."
"How could that be possible?" Keith exclaimed, anxious.
"Don't worry, let me finish." Cole interrupted, "I have an orchard that's short on help. If they can work for me, I can provide free room and board."
Since buying Mt. Olympus, Cole had been overwhelmed with work, and bringing on new help was becoming a necessity.
Keith's eyes lit up at the suggestion, but after a moment's thought, he hesitated, "Although I don't see any problems with it, I should still ask the Pokémon what they think."
"Of course." Cole nodded. Then, as if struck by an idea, he added, "Why don't we visit my orchard after school? Do you have those Pokémon with you? If so, let them come along — it's better to decide after seeing it in person."
"Yes, I do." Keith quickly nodded. He had nowhere else to keep them, anyway.
So the two agreed to head to Mt. Ascendant together after school.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
After classes ended that afternoon, Cole informed Alfred before taking Keith to Mt. Ascendant.
Walking along the mountain path, he gestured to the Berry trees covering the slopes and said to Keith, "Look, this is my orchard!"
The boy stared blankly at the beautiful Berry trees in full bloom and unconsciously asked, "Is all this yours?"
Cole replied with a touch of pride, "That's right. Why don't we let those five Pokémon out now so they can get familiar with the place?"
"Oh, oh... okay." Keith, still dazed, fumbled to take out five Poké Balls, releasing the five Pokémon before them.
The Pokémon, unfamiliar with their surroundings, gave him questioning looks. Keith explained the offer to employ them.
Cole stepped in, saying, "If you work here, you'll earn your keep through your own abilities. You won't have to feel guilty or worry about being sent away."
His words struck a chord with the five Pokémon. During their stays at others' homes, they had always felt guilty and had to be mindful of everyone's moods. Those days had been truly difficult.
Even now that Keith had taken them back, they worried daily about being a burden to him.
"Eie~ Eie~" — We really won't be sent away? And food and lodging are included?
Vaporeon asked cautiously.
"Of course!" Cole answered.
Just then, a flock of Talonflame flew overhead, and he pointed at them.
"Look, those Talonflame work here too. Their job is to patrol and guard. They've been here for several years, never worrying about food or lodging — they just need to work hard!"
Hearing this, Vaporeon finally believed him. Envying the Talonflame's lifestyle, it jumped up happily and immediately accepted the offer.
Seeing Vaporeon agree, the other four Pokémon also expressed their willingness.
When Keith saw that all five Pokémon had found a place to belong, he became emotional, tears welling up in his eyes.
"This is wonderful! Now Grandfather and I won't have to worry about where you'll go anymore!" He turned to Cole and said, "Cole, thank you for your help, I really..."
Cole raised his hand to stop him, explaining, "I'm not just doing this to help you. As you can see, this orchard is too big for me to manage alone — hiring help is necessary."
Keith nodded silently, then turned to the five Pokémon and said, "Work hard here from now on. I'll visit you often."
Seeing the atmosphere turn sentimental, Cole quickly said, "Let me show you around and explain your regular duties."
He then took Keith and the five Pokémon on a tour of the mountain, describing what each Pokémon would be doing.
Managing an orchard was complex — every Berry tree needed careful attention. Cole spent most of his time organizing the trees' status charts and monitoring their root conditions, leaving many other tasks neglected.
Although the Diggersby family helped regularly, there were only three of them. With Mt. Olympus added, the workload would be too heavy for them alone.
The five Pokémon listened attentively to his explanation. From their perspective, the workload he described seemed manageable — it would be no problem for them.
During this time, they met the Diggersby family at work. The three large bunnies kindly demonstrated how to tend to and care for the Berry trees, helping the five Pokémon get acquainted with their new duties.
When they reached the mountaintop, Cole pointed to the half-constructed staff dormitory, "This will be your dormitory once it's finished. Until then, you'll need to stay in the wooden cabin."
The five Pokémon didn't mind — though simple, the wooden cabin felt cozy and welcoming.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
In the following days, the five Pokémon settled into life on Mt. Ascendant as Cole assigned their duties.
The strong and robust Machamp, Nidoking, and Nidoqueen handled physical tasks — transporting harvested berries to the warehouse at the mountain's base and clearing land on Mt. Olympus.
Vaporeon, with its Water-type abilities, took charge of watering the Berry trees daily.
Neither mountain had rivers, with the only water source lying in the valley between them, making irrigation challenging. The Berry trees required manual watering.
Cole had looked into building irrigation facilities but abandoned the idea due to excessive costs. Employing Water-type Pokémon proved more practical — plus, they could hone their skills while working.
Leavanny joined the Diggersby family in caring for the Berry trees, excelling at tasks like fruit picking and tree pruning.
As for Cole, his routine was set: attending school during the day, taking meals at the orphanage, and spending evenings cultivating Berry trees on both mountains before returning to the orphanage to sleep around eleven or twelve.
Though these days were busy and tiring, he maintained his enthusiasm without slacking off.
Keith frequently visited Mt. Olympus to check on Vaporeon and the others, often helping Cole with various tasks.
As time passed, their relationship grew closer, and Keith would sometimes stay with Cole on Mt. Olympus until late before heading home.
Compared to his oppressive home environment, he preferred staying here, where he could casually read books, train Pokémon, or do farm work — it was much more relaxing.
Initially, Keith's parents constantly scolded him for coming home late, but he would let their words roll off his back, only engaging in serious arguments with his father when pushed to his limit.
Later, after his father learned that Keith was spending time at Cole's orchard, he gradually became less controlling.
As long as Keith wasn't causing trouble, his father decided everything else was fine — if he didn't want to come home, so be it. After all, they only argued when he was there anyway.
Through their interactions, Keith's admiration for Cole grew steadily. He admired how Cole could persistently perform complex and tedious work day after day to cultivate Berry trees, and how he managed his own business at such a young age.
If he had Cole's abilities, would he still cower from accommodating his grandfather's Pokémon due to fear of his father? Certainly not — he would have stood up to his father long ago.
{T/N: I know this growing admiration might seem a bit strange, but remember that they are just two children, and the MC is one or two years older, making him an admiration figure in Keith's eyes.}
With Cole as his role model, Keith began studying seriously. Beyond learning professional cultivation knowledge at school, he started attending battle specialization courses.
Though his father had forced him into the cultivation program, Keith hadn't given up. He was determined to become a strong trainer through his own efforts and prove his father wrong!
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
A month passed quickly, and both the staff dormitory and Cole's new home were completed. During a school break, he moved in and invited Meili, the orphanage children, and Keith to visit his new home.
Keith had actually come on his own — he'd arrived at Mt. Ascendant for his usual visit to Vaporeon and the others, and happened upon Cole's housewarming party, so Cole included him in the celebration.
The Pokémon had all moved into their new dormitory. To celebrate, Cole not only treated them to extra food but also gave them money, all deposited with Alfred. If the Pokémon wanted to buy anything, they could ask him to make purchases on their behalf.
The new home was especially large, featuring a huge garden and numerous rooms. Two main buildings stood close together, nearly identical in location and structure, differing only in interior decoration — these were the living quarters for Cole and his mother Daisy.
Popplio and Helioptile also had their own rooms, but they didn't want to stay alone in separate spaces and insisted on living with Cole. Having no choice, he agreed to their wishes.
Daisy moved into the new home carrying her dark green Pokémon egg.
That evening, everyone from the orphanage stayed overnight in the new house to help bring life to their new home.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
Late at night, Cole tossed and turned, unable to sleep. After glancing at Popplio and Helioptile drooling beside him, he carefully got out of bed without disturbing them.
The house had fallen silent. After such an exciting afternoon, everyone was exhausted and fast asleep. The courtyard was eerily quiet.
Bright moonlight streamed down, casting a cold glow that made him shiver.
It really was chilly up here! Even though Mt. Ascendant wasn't particularly high, the mountaintop temperature was always cooler than at its base.
"Gardevoir~" — My dear!
Cole heard Daisy's voice suddenly.
Looking over, he saw lights still on in her room. She stood by the window, holding the dark green Pokémon egg.
He walked to the window and asked, "Mom, why aren't you asleep yet? Are you too excited to sleep, like me?"
After years of struggle since leaving the island, they finally had a home of their own. The thought filled him with excitement and emotion, leaving him restless enough to take a walk.
"Garde~" — Yes, indeed.
Daisy nodded.
Cole joked, "Well, looks like we're quite in sync, mother and son!"
"Gardevoir~" — Of course we are!
She lifted her chin proudly, as if stating the obvious.
"Hahaha..." Cole laughed softly, careful not to wake the others. Then he looked at her thoughtfully and asked, "Mom, do you like our current life?"
"Gard~ Garde~" — I love it, I really love it!
Daisy answered without hesitation, expressing how she enjoyed gardening, training, eating and playing as she pleased — everything was interesting, far better than their monotonous life on the island.
Life on the island had been austere — no TV, internet, endless supply of berries and Poké Blocks, or warm, comfortable house. They had only trees, rocks, beaches, and sea. When bad weather struck, they endured fierce winds and rain, with typhoons being a regular occurrence. Life had been difficult indeed.
Daisy's simple mind and modest needs made it easier for her to find contentment in life.
"That's good!" Cole breathed a sigh of relief, "Well, it's getting late — we should head to bed. I'm going too."
"Gardevoir~" — Go to sleep, or you won't grow tall!
After their chat, mother and son's restlessness melted away. They fell asleep quickly and slept soundly until morning.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
The next morning, while the children were still asleep, Meili and Alfred were already busy in the kitchen. Cole hurried to help when he heard them.
After breakfast was ready, he was about to wake the children when he spotted Daisy working on something in the courtyard.
"Mom, breakfast is ready. What are you doing?" Cole asked, walking over curiously.
Daisy turned at his voice. She held a mud-covered small shovel in one hand and a wilted green plant in the other.
"Gardevoir~ Gardevoir~" — I'm planting flowers! It would be a shame not to fill such a big garden with flowers and plants!
She answered with a grin.
"You don't need to busy yourself so early — it could wait until after breakfast. Look how muddy you've gotten. How will you eat like this?"
As he spoke, Cole fetched water from the nearby pool in a basin and used a towel to clean the mud from her face and chest.
Daisy pouted.
"Garde~ Gar!" — I woke up early and had nothing else to do!
✲✲✲
T/N: If you want more chapters like this, check out my Patreon! Take a look at my other translations too, you might like them!
For just $1.50 you can access all the extra content, and descriptive images, costs only $2!
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)
https://www.patreon.com/collection/1305384