Capítulo 26: The Gift and Special Training
Angie was pulled all the way to the door of the room by Munchlax.
"Munch~ Munch~~"
It gestured for Angie to wait outside, then mysteriously slipped into the room.
After a short while, the door creaked open again. Munchlax peeked its head out and, upon seeing Angie obediently waiting at the door, a goofy smile spread across its face.
"Munch~~"
Fully opening the door, Munchlax came out, holding two identical pillows.
"Munch~~"
Shyly, it stuffed one of the pillows into Angie's arms.
The pillow was a soft gray color with a cute Munchlax printed on it. When Angie touched it, it felt like he was touching a cloud from the sky.
They definitely didn't have such pillows in the house before.
"Munch~ Munch~~"
Master, do you like it?
Munchlax asked shyly.
"Munchlax, is this for me?" Angie asked, both surprised and delighted.
"Munch~~"
Mhm, look, I have one too, just like yours.
Munchlax nodded and held its own identical pillow, bashfully hiding half of its body behind it, leaving only its head visible.
Angie squeezed the pillow, feeling its softness. "Are these filled with Swablu and Altaria feathers?"
"Munch~ Munch~~"
Yup, yup, Master is so smart!
Munchlax nodded enthusiastically.
It turned out that after Angie paid it, Munchlax had secretly started preparing this gift.
It had sought out Swablu's family, collecting the feathers they shed every day, carefully cleaning them, drying them, boiling them for disinfection, and drying them again...
Finally, it used its wages to carefully select the pillow inserts and covers from the system store.
To make sure the feathers were extra clean, Munchlax even consulted some other Pokémon and gathered special plants from outside to boil the feathers with.
As Angie hugged the pillow, he could smell a faint, pleasant fragrance from it—refreshing and soothing.
In short, Munchlax had gone through a lot of effort to make the pillows.
If Swablu and its parents hadn't learned about Munchlax's plan and voluntarily plucked some feathers for it, Munchlax would have taken ages to gather enough shed feathers on its own.
Angie felt warmth spreading through his heart. He had only casually mentioned once that sleeping on Swablu and Altaria's soft wings would feel like heaven, and yet Munchlax had remembered that and made it happen.
"You must have worked really hard to collect all these feathers, right?" Angie crouched down and gently held Munchlax's hand.
"Munch~~"
No, no.
Munchlax shyly shook its head.
Angie gave it a gentle hug. "I love this gift. It's one of the most precious presents I've ever received. Thank you, Munchlax."
"Munch~~"
Munchlax softly returned the hug.
After letting go of Munchlax, Angie said joyfully, "I'm going to put it on my bed and sleep with it every night."
Seeing how much Angie loved the gift, little Munchlax's eyes curved into crescent moons as it proudly held up its own pillow and said.
"Munch~~"
I have one too, the same as yours.
Angie nodded and said, "These are our master-disciple pillows."
"Munch~~"
Overjoyed, Munchlax spun in circles, hugging its pillow.
Angie took Munchlax's hand and said as they walked towards her room, "Come on, let's see if it looks good on my bed."
"Munch~"
Munchlax nodded eagerly, its steps light as it followed behind Angie.
Once inside the room, Angie placed the pillow at the head of her bed and, with a dreamy expression, said, "I can't even imagine how amazing it'll feel to sleep with this every night!"
"Munch~~"
Hearing this, Munchlax mimicked Angie's dreamy look, which made him burst into laughter.
"Munch~~"
Snapping out of its fantasy, Munchlax grabbed Angie's hand and dashed off to its own room. It carefully placed its own pillow in the exact same spot as Angie's.
"Gaa~ Gaa~"
Pointing at its pillow, Munchlax looked at Angie expectantly.
Angie gave it a thumbs up and said, "We really are master and disciple. We even thought of putting the pillows in the same spot!"
"Munch~ Munch~~"
Upon hearing this, Munchlax pounced into Angie's arms, showering him with affection, so much so that Angie could hardly keep up with its enthusiasm.
Because Angie was so pleased with the carefully prepared gift, Munchlax's mood stayed sky-high for the next several days. It greeted everyone with a smile, even when some of the Pokémon who came to the restaurant caused trouble. It dealt with them with a grin, never getting upset.
Not long after Angie and Munchlax came downstairs, Angie noticed that Komala had returned. It was curled up in its little hut, hugging its log and snoring away, a faint smell of alcohol drifting from its body, while the bottle of liquor was nowhere to be seen.
"Little drunkard," Angie muttered, shaking her head.
After dinner that evening, the four members of Angie's household gathered as usual in the culinary training room. Angie and Munchlax trained their cooking skills, while Diancie acted as the coach and overseer. Komala... well, maybe... probably... contributed as a decorative prop.
Standing at the lectern, Diancie said, "Today we'll officially start practicing how to make a variety of steamed buns. Do our two master chefs have any opinions?"
"Munch~"
None.
"None!"
Angie and Munchlax responded in all seriousness.
"Very well." Diancie flicked her hand, holding a pointer, and somehow pulled out a pair of black-rimmed glasses, which she dramatically pushed up her nose. "Today, as always, I will be strictly guiding you."
Here comes the strict teacher!
Angie screamed internally.
"Now then, let the training begin!" Diancie shouted, startling both Angie and Munchlax, their hearts skipping a beat. Even Komala, who was swaying on the table, paused for a moment at the command.
"We'll focus on filling preparation today," Diancie said.
"Munch~~"
"Mhm~~"
Angie and Munchlax nodded obediently.
"The first filling we're preparing is cabbage."
As soon as Diancie finished speaking, all the necessary ingredients and seasonings for the cabbage filling appeared in front of Angie and Munchlax.
"Let's begin. First step, chop the cabbage into fine pieces."
Hearing this, Angie and Munchlax quickly picked up their knives and began to show off their cutting skills. But before they could even get started, the sound of Diancie's pointer striking the lectern echoed through the room.
"Munchlax, you're chopping it too fine! That will ruin the texture. Start over!"
Munchlax froze for a moment, hurriedly discarding the finely chopped cabbage and starting again.
*Thud thud thud!* The steady rhythm of knives hitting the cutting board filled the room, occasionally interrupted by Diancie's sharp reprimands.
"Munchlax, it's still too fine!"
"Angie, focus! Stop daydreaming!"
"Munchlax, I asked you to chop, not to vent your frustrations. Less force!"
"Angie, are you even trying? Put more strength into it!"
...
Time passed, and Angie and Munchlax chopped basket after basket of cabbage. While Angie, being more experienced, fared better, poor Munchlax, a beginner, was thoroughly scolded by Diancie.
The recipe provided by the system was extremely strict, requiring absolute precision at every step.
Next came salting the cabbage and adding the seasonings. This part was even more demanding, and now even Angie found herself frequently scolded.
The requirements were meticulous—how much cabbage, how much seasoning, everything had to be measured to the exact amount. Even if the cabbage retained the slightest bit of excess water during the salting process, Diancie would furiously berate Angie and Munchlax.
"You're supposed to prepare the filling, not flood the place!"
"Munch~"
Bossy…
"She look like female lion~"
Angie and Munchlax couldn't help but grumble under their breath.
"(¬_¬)" Diancie's voice suddenly came from behind, "What are you two whispering about?"
"Munch~~"
I didn't say anything!
"Nothing! Nothing at all!"
Angie and Munchlax quickly shook their heads.
"Then why aren't you working faster?! Your hands are slowing down!" Diancie roared.
"Munch~"
Yes, ma'am!
"Yes, ma'am!"
Angie and Munchlax had never felt a ten-hour training session drag on so long.
By the time they finally left the training room, they both felt utterly drained, mentally and physically.
Seeing their worn-out state, Diancie said, "Honestly, I'm a fine lady from a noble family, and you two are driving me to madness!"
Diancie hailed from the Azoth royal family and prided herself on being a true noblewoman.
(The Azoth royal family is known for using Fairy-type Pokémon. Angie's first Pokémon was Carbink, a Rock- and Fairy-type. His twin sister, Anna, received the Steel- and Fairy-type Magearna from Nikola, and now, Princess Kimia's starter Pokémon is the Psychic- and Fairy-type Ralts, while Prince Raleigh's is the pure Fairy-type Swirlix.)
Angie and Munchlax: A fine lady? More like a demon instructor!
Exhausted, Angie and Munchlax barely managed to wash up before collapsing into bed, instantly falling asleep.
Before going to bed, Angie collected the rewards for completing two daily tasks. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on his side this time. He only received two ordinary ingredients—two fresh cucumbers and two green onions.
Sigh... I'll just save them for tomorrow's dinner.
Let's turned the lights off. Time to sleep!
Because of the exhausting training in the culinary training room the previous day, and with the added comfort of the pillow Munchlax gave him, Angie had a good night's sleep.
Munchlax, on the other hand, had a completely different experience. It spent the entire night dreaming of chopping vegetables, mixing fillings, and making buns… mountains of ingredients piled up before it, and no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't finish them. It even talked in its sleep throughout the night.
"Munch~!"
I don't want to~~
In the dream, Munchlax found itself unable to complete the task and saw Diancie slowly closing in on it.
The next morning, Angie woke up feeling refreshed, while Munchlax looked utterly exhausted.
"Munchlax, what's wrong with you?" Angie asked, puzzled.
Munchlax glanced at Diancie and silently shook its head, indicating that everything was fine.
In reality, Munchlax hadn't been able to deal with all the ingredients in its dream. The second half of the night, it kept dreaming of Diancie angrily scolding it, wielding her pointer.
Too terrifying! There's no such thing as a noble lady!
Seeing Munchlax's strange behavior, Diancie asked, confused, "What's wrong? Is something off with me?"
"Munch~~~~"
No, no! You look especially beautiful today. Your diamonds are sparkling!
Munchlax quickly flattered her.
"Really?" Diancie gazed at her reflection in the water basin, admiring herself. "Maybe it's because I slept well last night. I do feel in good condition today."
Munchlax: ...
Today, Angie had to set up his stall in Azoth Kingdom again, so after getting up and washing, he and Munchlax immediately got to work.
Kneading dough, chopping vegetables, mixing fillings… They prepared everything in advance so that when Angie arrived at Azoth Kingdom, he wouldn't be scrambling.
Yesterday was the first day setting up the stall, and because he lacked experience, everything was done on-site, which nearly exhausted him.
Once all the preparations were complete, Angie was ready to set off.
Diancie walked him to the door and hesitantly asked, "How about I come with you today?" She had felt heartbroken seeing Angie return with sore muscles and back pain yesterday.
Angie shook his head. "You should stay home and help Munchlax. Cooking is no problem for it, but if no one's there to watch, it won't be able to handle everything at the shop."
"Alright, then come back as soon as you can," Diancie said, resigned.
"Star~~"
Just then, a distant cry echoed. Angie glanced toward the sound and said, "It's getting late. I need to get going before Staraptor gets impatient."
Today, the one ferrying Angie to Azoth Kingdom was Fletchling's mother, Staraptor.
Unlike Fletchling's stubborn father, Talonflame. Staraptor had developed quite a fondness for Angie and was happy to help him out.
Since Swablu's father had already helped before, there was no reason why Fletchling's parents, who also ate meals at Angie's house, wouldn't lend a hand.
Angie held Komala in his arms and approached Staraptor. "Staraptor, I'll be counting on you today."
"Star~~"
Staraptor nodded and lowered its body to allow Angie to easily climb onto its back.
"Thanks." After expressing his gratitude, Angie deftly mounted Staraptor.
"Star~~~"
With a mighty flap of its wings, Staraptor soared into the sky, flying toward the rising sun.
"Ahhh~~~" Angie yawned, letting the cool morning breeze brush against his face. He wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and sighed, "Survival's tough. Even a prince has to work hard to survive!"
Staraptor was even faster than Swablu's father, and before long, Angie had arrived outside Azoth Kingdom.
Before departing, Angie took out a bunch of buns and stuffed them into Staraptor's beak. "Staraptor, eat these for now, and we'll meet here again at noon."
"Star~~"
Staraptor nodded and disappeared into the nearby woods with the buns in its beak.
Angie hurried into the city, found a quiet spot, and retrieved his food cart, making his way toward Nikola Park.
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