After returning home, Cole found a container and soaked the seed Kiara had given him, planning to germinate it in water first.
Before soaking it, he used his Special Ability as usual to sort through its energy. The seed from the S-class Berry tree contained far more energy than any seeds he had cultivated before. No wonder Kiara said it would grow into at least a B-class Berry tree — its potential already surpassed the nursery trees he usually worked with.
He wondered what this seed would become with his Special Ability enhancing it.
After soaking the seed, Cole entrusted the container to Buneary, asking it to watch over it so the other Pokémon wouldn't mistake it for trash.
The little bunny happily placed the container in a bright, well-ventilated spot.
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In the afternoon, Cole took the Time Flower specimen and rode his Captain Talonflame to the Coumarine Gym.
Upon seeing him, Ramos put on a stern face and feigned anger, "So you still remember this old man exists?"
Cole quickly apologized with a smile, "How could I forget about you? You're dearer to me than my own grandfather. I've just been busy lately, but I'll visit more often from now on."
Ramos snorted, "Those are all excuses. If you really cared, you'd make time. It's not like you live thousands of miles away!"
"Yes, yes, yes, it's all my fault." This time Cole didn't make excuses — he knew he had been neglectful lately.
Ramos wasn't truly angry. After some good-natured teasing, he asked about Cole's achievements in Lumiose. When he learned that the League had given the boy an A-class Berry tree, he was both surprised and delighted.
"Since the League gave it to you, cultivate it well. Who knows? Maybe someday you'll nurture it into an S-class Berry tree!"
An eight-hundred-year-old Berry tree had strong foundations, and with Cole's exceptional talent, perhaps he would succeed.
"Yes, I'll cultivate it well and put your teachings to good use."
Ramos looked at Cole with kindly eyes, clearly satisfied with this response.
After chatting a while longer, Cole finally revealed why he'd come.
"Master Ra, I need your help with something."
Hearing this, Ramos reacted exactly as he had expected.
"Ah, I knew you wouldn't visit unless you needed something! Here I thought you came just to see me, but you're only after another favor!"
Seeing the old man's huffing appearance, Cole quickly took out the Time Flower and said, "Oh come on, of course I came specially to see you! Asking for help is just secondary — look, I even brought you a special gift!"
Ramos gave him a "do you think I'll believe that" look, but his attention was drawn to the Time Flower in Cole's hand.
"This... this is..." Unlike the boy who lacked discerning eyes, Ramos immediately recognized that this crystal lotus flower wasn't real crystal, but rather a plant with special characteristics.
"This is a special plant specimen called the Time Flower..." Cole began explaining its origins as the old man stared intently at it.
Despite his vast knowledge, this was Ramos's first encounter with a Time Flower, as few had ever been brought out from the Tree of Beginning.
He gave Cole a penetrating look and said, "It must have been difficult for you to obtain this."
Cole just chuckled without saying anything.
Ramos fell silent too, carefully circling the Time Flower, afraid of damaging it — clearly showing how much he valued the gift.
Following Cole's guidance, he watched the footage recorded in the Time Flower and was amazed by the mere dozen seconds of battle. The two Pokémon that appeared were clearly extraordinary.
"To think this Time Flower is connected to Mew and the Tree of Beginning — how remarkable." Ramos marveled, clearly satisfied with the gift. After admiring it further, he said to Cole, "Getting you the Fairy Flower isn't impossible."
"Really?" Cole asked excitedly.
"But you'll have to help me with something." Ramos added.
"What is it? Just tell me directly, no need to be polite with me."
Ramos replied irritably, "Of course I won't be polite with you, you opportunistic kid!"
Then he explained his request.
His son ran a Gogoat ranch where, recently, Skiddo or Gogoat had been mysteriously disappearing every few days. They couldn't figure out why, so his son had asked for help.
Ramos wasn't a lonely old man — he had his own family. Besides his deceased wife, his son, daughter-in-law, granddaughter, and grandson all lived in Coumarine.
His son wasn't a trainer, though, so he rarely visited the Coumarine Gym, spending most of his time with his family at the ranch he'd inherited from Ramos.
When the ranch developed this problem, Ramos had initially planned to send some gym apprentices. But since Cole had shown up, he might as well send him instead — he knew this kid wasn't weak.
This kid was really irritating — did he think a mere gift could make up for neglecting this old man?
After hearing the explanation, Cole patted his chest and said, "So that's what it is. Don't worry, I'll definitely do my best to find out the cause."
Ramos nodded, "Mm, but be careful. If you encounter any problems you can't solve, contact me immediately!"
Though the ranch shouldn't have any major issues, one could never be too careful.
Ramos's son's ranch was also in the East District, but compared to the Coumarine Gym, its location was almost opposite to Mt. Ascendant — while Mt. Ascendant lay northwest of the gym, the ranch sat to the northeast.
After getting a general understanding of the situation from Ramos, Cole rode Captain Talonflame out that same afternoon.
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At the ranch, Ramos's son and daughter-in-law welcomed him at the entrance — the old man had called them in advance.
The son was named Roman, now almost in his forties. Unlike the thin Ramos, he was somewhat chubby, with a prominent beer belly.
His daughter-in-law Bianca was a beautiful woman with slightly dark skin, appearing somewhat younger than her husband and possessing a cheerful, open personality.
"Hahaha... So you're the little Cole that Dad keeps talking about! We've heard him mention you so many times — he practically wishes you were his real grandson!" Bianca said warmly as soon as she saw him.
Cole politely greeted the couple, "Hello, Uncle Roman, Aunt Bianca."
Roman, less outgoing than his wife and seemingly awkward with social interaction, said stiffly, "Hello, hello, thank you for coming all this way."
Cole quickly waved his hands, "No trouble at all, no trouble at all. Master Ra has taken good care of me, so I'm happy to help him."
"Alright, enough with all the pleasantries. Let's go inside and talk, no need to stand around here." Bianca interrupted their formal exchange.
"Yes, yes, let's go inside." Roman immediately agreed with a sheepish smile.
Following the couple's lead, Cole walked along a long path through the center of the ranch until they reached their front door.
The ranch that the couple inherited from Ramos was truly enormous. He couldn't even see its boundaries as they walked, and everywhere Gogoat and Skiddo grazed leisurely on the pasture.
According to Roman, all the grass in the ranch was specially cultivated by his father. It was perfect for Gogoat and Skiddo, not only promoting their growth and boosting their immunity but also enhancing milk production and giving the milk a unique flavor.
In Coumarine, this ranch was quite famous, partnering with many restaurants and dairy product factories. Even the Pokémon Center occasionally ordered milk from them.
The ranch primarily focused on selling milk, while also training riding Pokémon for various competitions.
"Come in, come in!" Bianca warmly invited Cole inside.
Their home was like Cole's — modest on the outside, but spacious and practical within.
As soon as he entered, he spotted two little heads peeking out from behind the living room sofa.
Bianca noticed the little ones too and waved to them, "Cora, Carl, come here."
Two identical little figures emerged from behind the sofa, their round eyes wide with curiosity as they stared at him.
Cole knew these were their twins, just four years old — about the same age as little Claire. Cora was the girl, the older sister, and Carl was the boy, the younger brother.
Roman and Bianca had their children quite late, which explained the twins' young age. Ramos adored these twin grandchildren and mainly visited the ranch to see them.
"This is Brother Cole, say hello to him." Bianca told the twins.
"Hello, Brother Cole!" The twins greeted softly from behind their mother, their shy personalities clearly taking after Roman.
After introducing the twins, Bianca invited him to sit down and began explaining the details of the recent Gogoat and Skiddo disappearances.
"The first Gogoat disappeared five days ago. At first, neither Roman nor I thought much of it — the ranch is huge, after all, and it's normal for one or two Gogoat to hide somewhere we can't spot them. It's happened before.
But then the next day, another Gogoat and a Skiddo went missing. We realized something was wrong, so we searched the ranch for the missing Pokémon but couldn't find them.
We also discovered a damaged section in the fence at the edge of the ranch. Initially, we thought the Gogoat had broken through and escaped, so we searched in that direction. But we found nothing, though we did spot blood traces in the woods outside the ranch."
At this point, her expression darkened, and she took a deep breath.
"Roman and I suspect the missing Gogoat and Skiddo have been killed."
Just then, Roman brought over some freshly brewed tea and continued, "That's right. Since that day, we've been closely monitoring the ranch, even taking turns keeping watch at night, but another Gogoat still disappeared the next day, and we haven't caught even a glimpse of the culprit."
Bianca nodded, clearly distressed. All the Gogoat and Skiddo on the ranch were raised with their hard work and care — losing any of them broke her heart.
Five days had passed, and despite the couple's vigilance, they still hadn't discovered any trace of the culprit. Even worse, several more Gogoat and Skiddo had gone missing from the ranch, leaving them no choice but to seek help from Ramos.
They worried that if they let the culprit continue unchecked, the next victims might not be just Gogoat and Skiddo — it could be the couple and their twins.
After hearing all the details, Cole asked the couple, "Could you show me where the damaged fence is?"
The culprit must have entered through there — there might be hidden clues.
Bianca replied, "Of course, let Roman take you."
"I'll take you there." Roman nodded.
After leaving the house, he called over two Gogoat for transportation — the ranch was simply too large to cover on foot.
The Gogoat he summoned were specially trained riding Pokémon that had competed in riding competitions. They carried their passengers swiftly and smoothly, bringing Roman and Cole to their destination in no time.
The damaged section of the fence had already been repaired by Roman, though the new portion stood out distinctly from the rest.
Cole dismounted and approached the fence to examine it carefully.
After a while, he turned to Roman and said, "From these marks, it looks like this section was violently broken through. Didn't you and Aunt Bianca hear anything?"
Roman shook his head with a troubled expression, "Nothing at all. That's why we haven't even caught a glimpse of the culprit."
After thinking for a moment, Cole said, "Uncle Roman, why don't you head back first? I'll look around the area to see if I can find any clues."
Roman nodded, "Be careful then."
"Don't worry, I will."
With that, he departed with a worried expression, leaving the Gogoat for Cole's use.
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