Pokemon: Farm Story-Chapter 147: Gimmighoul’s Evolution and the Sealed Forest

As the warehouse doors swung open, Natsume's eyes landed on a group of Ghost-type Pokémon hard at work training, along with the two Charcadet.

There weren't many Ghost-types on the farm—Gimmighoul, Duskull, Misdreavus, and Hisuian Zorua.

All four of them were gathered here.

According to Mew, these Ghost Pokémon tended to stick together, likely because of their shared typing. This time, while training the two Charcadet, Mew had figured it might as well bring along its little bro.

But when it went looking, it found that its little bro had already made some new friends.

Well, if you're going to herd one sheep, might as well herd the whole flock.

Without hesitation, Mew roped the whole group of mostly inconspicuous Ghost-types into its special training squad.

As for whether they actually wanted to be here?

Mew was convinced they were eager to get stronger. Yep, definitely.

Except for the mischievous Hisuian Zorua, the rest of the Ghost-types were practically invisible on the farm most days.

Gimmighoul spent its days clinging to the coins Natsume had given it, huddled in its treasure chest, polishing them over and over.

A monotonous life, perhaps, but to Gimmighoul, it was fulfilling.

Why waste time running around making a ruckus?

Gimmighoul didn't understand, nor did it care.

Duskull's activities were exactly what you'd expect from its appearance.

A little old man with hands behind his back, wandering aimlessly.

Life on the farm suited it just fine.

Sure, it wasn't growing stronger quickly.

But it had food, water, and shelter. No harsh winters, no blistering summers.

What's the point of striving for power?

What a meaningless pursuit.

And so, Duskull swiftly evolved into a professional slacker.

Its closest companion was Gallade.

The two loved spending afternoons basking in the sun by the lake, lost in thought.

Wasting time?

Dragging yourself through a job you hate, forcing yourself into dull routines—

That's wasting time. That's squandering your life.

This? This was leisure.

Lastly, there was Misdreavus.

It had thought about getting stronger or blending in more with the others.

But only thought about it.

Misdreavus found itself in a constant paradox.

It hated being alone but disliked crowds.

Loneliness ate at it, but too much noise made it wish for the world to just end already.

It yearned for friendship but avoided maintaining relationships.

It admired bonds yet remained passive, waiting for others to make the first move.

It wanted to talk but feared being misunderstood.

It often thought about dying—

—only to decide it would be kind of a waste.

So contradictory. So frustrating.

Misdreavus figured it would probably always be like this.

If no one reached out to pull it from the shadows, it would stay there forever, lurking at the edges of lively crowds, silently drawing from their energy just to keep itself afloat.

In short, the textbook definition of a depressed little gremlin.

Then, Mew showed up.

And completely ignored its reluctance, dragging it straight into this so-called special training squad.

This was, without a doubt, the most exhausting time in Misdreavus's entire existence.

I never wanted to get stronger!

I just wanted to hide in my dark little corner!

I have absolutely no interest in this!

Too bad—Mew didn't care.

The world's most stubborn pink cat simply declared: You're just being tsundere!

No worries! Your beautiful and kind big sis Mew will help you!

And in a way, Mew really did help.

At the very least, thanks to their shared suffering, Misdreavus had bonded with the other Ghost-types and the two Charcadet.

Their favorite pastime?

Gossiping about Mew behind its back.

Because really, the fastest way to make friends was to talk smack about the same person.

Unethical? Maybe. Effective? Absolutely.

"Mew~"

Floating in midair, Mew tilted its head up, placing its paws on its hips, puffing out its chest with pride.

It was practically demanding praise.

It had worked so hard training these little guys!

Whether it was battle techniques or daily drills, Mew had meticulously supervised them all.

It had even tailored specific regimens based on their individual traits.

Sure, it was a Pokémon itself, but training rookies was no big deal.

Under Mew's watchful eye, both Duskull and Misdreavus were on the verge of evolution.

As for Hisuian Zorua—Mew hadn't focused too much on its battle strength lately. Instead, it had been drilling it specifically in illusion techniques.

You're supposed to be a master of illusions!

And yet, you only know a handful of cheap prank tricks—unacceptable!

Having spent a long time disguised as a Zorua itself, Mew was deeply disappointed.

It was determined to mold this kid into an illusionary genius.

If its training didn't meet the standard?

Well, guess I'll be having your midnight snacks instead!

Mew had declared this with a self-satisfied grin.

Meanwhile, Hisuian Zorua had long since given up on resisting.

Why, though?

It had made new friends. Its boss had even come back to find it.

It should have been twice as happy.

And yet—

Why do I feel so dead inside?

Hisuian Zorua had no answer.

Maybe this was just... life.

"Alright, alright, you did great."

Seeing Mew's smug little expression, Natsume chuckled and patted its head.

As he continued rubbing, though, his smile gradually faded.

Wait...

Why did it feel like Mew's head had gotten bigger?

No, not just bigger—

This thing had gained weight.

Natsume gave Mew a closer look.

Yeah, no doubt about it.

This pink menace had definitely gotten chubbier.

Mew's body used to be described as small and slender.

Now, it could only be called small.

It wasn't exactly fat, but "slender" was definitely out of the question.

Who would use "slender" to describe such a chubby body?!

After confirming the tragic truth that Mew had gained weight, Natsume chose not to comment. Instead, he smoothly changed the subject.

After all, Mew was now a leader with underlings.

If he were to say it outright, it might ruin Mew's image as a reliable big sister figure.

Gaining weight... That was something to be addressed privately later.

"By the way, Gimmighoul, this is for you."

After scanning the area, Natsume suddenly waved at Gimmighoul.

Previously, under Mew's tyrannical rule, Gimmighoul had been forced to diligently train its skill proficiency. Now, upon hearing Natsume's call, it eagerly scampered over to him.

The coins inside its treasure chest clinked melodiously with each movement.

"Gim?"

Its tiny hands wrapped protectively around the coins in its chest, ensuring they wouldn't fly out due to sudden movements. Gimmighoul curiously looked up at Natsume.

As if realizing something, its golden, coin-like eyes immediately sparkled with excitement, filled with anticipation.

"This is for you."

Natsume rummaged in his pocket before pulling out two Gimmighoul Coins.

Unlike most Pokémon, Gimmighoul had an extremely unique evolution requirement.

It needed a total of 999 Gimmighoul Coins—combined with the single one it possessed—to evolve.

For some time now, Natsume had been collecting Gimmighoul Coins, and finally, just two days ago, he had acquired the last two needed.

"Gim!"

Under Gimmighoul's burning gaze, Natsume handed over the two coins.

The moment it received them, Gimmighoul eagerly stuffed them into its treasure chest.

In the next second, the light of evolution burst forth.

A white radiance shone through the gaps between the overlapping coins, rapidly expanding to envelop both Gimmighoul and its chest.

Excited cries echoed from within the glowing sphere.

Perhaps due to overwhelming excitement, its voice sounded somewhat distorted—different from its usual clarity.

As the light intensified, Gimmighoul's body began to elongate and morph within the glow.

Its once-treasured coins transformed into pure energy, merging seamlessly into its evolving form.

Like an engine injected with fuel, the slow evolution process suddenly accelerated.

Gimmighoul, now bathed in light, had become a second sun.

As the radiance reached its peak, it gradually began to contract.

When the light finally dissipated, a golden, dazzling Pokémon stood before Natsume.

"Wohoo!"

The newly evolved Pokémon shimmered with the glow of wealth.

Its silhouette reminded Natsume somewhat of Sudowoodo.

Four braid-like structures adorned its head, and a belt was slung diagonally across its waist.

The treasure chest that had once contained its entire body and coins had now transformed into a small ornament, hanging at its lower back.

Looking down at its new form, Gholdengo clenched its fists and let out a joyous cheer.

It had finally evolved!

Gholdengo was extremely satisfied with its flashy, golden appearance—though it did carry a bit of a nouveau riche vibe.

"Congratulations."

Natsume approached with a rare smile.

He, too, was pleased with Gholdengo's evolution.

Gholdengo was one of the few Pokémon whose Shiny form barely differed from its regular appearance.

The standard Gholdengo had intricate, faint circular patterns across its body.

These barely noticeable patterns were orange.

Meanwhile, the Shiny Gholdengo retained its golden hue, but the circular patterns turned green.

To be honest, the Shiny version wasn't particularly attractive.

Those green circles stood out a bit too much.

With a wide grin, the newly evolved Gholdengo gave Natsume a grateful nod before eagerly dashing off to test its newfound power.

Pre-evolution, Gimmighoul wasn't particularly suited for battle.

Its base stat distribution was decent, but the heavy, coin-filled chest was a hindrance in combat.

However, post-evolution, Gholdengo no longer had this issue.

Moreover, its base stats skyrocketed to 550.

Its highest stat was Special Attack, reaching 133, with Defense and Special Defense at 95 and 91, respectively.

In simple terms, it had transformed into a tanky cannon.

Furthermore, its Steel/Ghost typing provided excellent resistance against most unfavorable conditions.

Against opponents, it could now bulldoze through them with sheer firepower.

The difference between Gimmighoul and Gholdengo was like night and day—one was weak in combat, and the other could demolish opponents without hesitation.

"Mew~"

Oh, wow, so shiny!

Mew swam through the air like a fish, playfully floating around Gholdengo.

It was quite curious about Gholdengo's gleaming body.

It looked... expensive.

"Hoho~"

Being admired, Gholdengo proudly displayed itself.

It thoroughly enjoyed the attention.

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Before evolving, Gimmighoul had been a timid, reclusive Pokémon, always hiding in the shadows, avoiding notice.

But now, Gholdengo basked in the spotlight, relishing the admiration.

"Sou."

Following Gholdengo's display, Hisuian Zorua, Duskull, and Misdreavus also showcased their recent progress.

Their improvements were almost visible to the naked eye.

If nothing unexpected happened, Duskull and Misdreavus were just one step away from evolving.

It could happen at any time in the near future.

As for the two Charcadet, since their future evolution paths hadn't been decided yet, Mew hadn't given them any targeted training.

Instead, it simply helped them learn more moves to expand their movepools.

Learning additional moves was always beneficial.

Many trainers online believed that Pokémon didn't need to learn too many moves. They argued that it was inefficient and a waste of effort.

As long as a Pokémon mastered a few key moves that fit its battle style, honing them to perfection would be enough.

But Mew disagreed.

It believed that learning a variety of moves was essential for adapting to different combat scenarios.

Having specialized moves was fine, but limiting oneself to only a handful was unwise.

In short—you might not need them, but you should still know them.

Following this philosophy, the Pokémon that were close to Mew had all learned a variety of moves.

After all, knowledge never hurt.

If someone was willing to teach, why not learn?

"Char!"

The elder Charcadet dashed up to Natsume, waving its tiny arms excitedly, eager to show off its progress.

It had worked hard to learn many moves!

In just a short time, it had already mastered Fire Spin, Heat Wave, and Flamethrower.

It seemed to have a particular talent for Fire-type moves.

And by "mastered," it didn't mean barely managing to use them with unstable power.

It meant being able to execute them flawlessly, with full power, and even incorporating some personal techniques.

Each Pokémon had its own battle instincts and preferences, which subtly influenced how they executed their moves.

Trailing behind, the younger Charcadet timidly looked up at Natsume, seemingly worried about disappointing him.

Unlike its talented older sibling, it had only learned Confuse Ray over the past few days.

It had also reviewed and refined its previous moves.

But compared to its sister, its progress felt... lacking.

A bit disheartened, but not too much.

Noticing her sibling's mood, the elder Charcadet gently patted her shoulder, murmuring words of encouragement.

To be honest, she wasn't very good at comforting others.

She didn't know how to give long speeches or crack jokes.

But still, as the older sister, she had to try.

Seeing this, the younger Charcadet reached out and lightly patted her sister's hand.

She was actually fine—not sad, just a little down.

Rather than her sister comforting her, it was more like helping ease her own mental burden.

"You both did great."

"Don't rush it. Take your time."

"As long as you put in the effort, you'll see the rewards."

Natsume crouched down and gently patted the heads of the two Charcadet.

Just like the older Charcadet sister, Natsume wasn't exactly good at comforting others.

In every sense of the word.

Rather than saying Natsume wasn't good at comforting people, it would be more accurate to say that when it came to human interaction, he was better at being sarcastic.

Some people preferred silence. Some people had a knack for being passive-aggressive.

And Natsume? He was the type to stay silent most of the time, but when he did speak, it was laced with sarcasm.

That was one of the reasons why he preferred talking to Pokémon rather than people.

"Char!"

Nodding vigorously, the older Charcadet clenched her fist, psyching herself up.

She clearly agreed with Natsume's words.

The younger Charcadet, who was half-hiding behind her sister, glanced at Natsume, then at her fired-up sibling.

In the end, she, too, quietly raised her tiny fist in solidarity.

Seeing the two like this, Natsume smiled.

Without waiting for their reaction, he extended his own fist and bumped it against theirs in quick succession.

Standing up, he patted his knees—despite there being no dust—and said with a grin,

"Alright, keep working hard."

"That goes for you too, Hisuian Zorua."

"Marshtomp arrived at the farm around the same time as you, and now it's about to reach its final evolution."

"You better not fall behind."

"Suo..."

Off in the corner, Hisuian Zorua, who had been trying to make himself as unnoticeable as possible, winced.

Damn it, why am I getting called out again?!

Do I look like I have control over my evolution?!

Damn it!

When I evolve, I swear I'm going to give that overachieving dog a good beating.

The singled-out Hisuian Zorua made a silent vow in his heart.

From now on, he would make sure to fairly punish every single Pokémon that tried to push the competition.

Why couldn't everyone just take it easy?!

Why all this pointless struggle?!

Damn it all!!!

Seething with frustration, Hisuian Zorua unconsciously increased the speed at which he was casting his illusions.

In the blink of an eye, a small section of the scenery around him shifted into an illusionary landscape.

"Mew?"

Watching as Hisuian Zorua's illusionary constructs grew faster in his indignation, Mew stroked its smooth chin thoughtfully.

Hisuian Zorua was classified as the "Grudge Fox Pokémon."

It was said that a Zorua's lingering soul, fueled by resentment toward humans and Pokémon, had transformed into this form.

In other words, for Hisuian Zorua, resentment worked the same way fire did for Fire-type Pokémon—it made him stronger.

Mew seemed to have stumbled upon an effective training method for Hisuian Zorua.

Hmm, might as well test it out tomorrow.

Unknowingly, a hint of amusement flickered in Mew's gaze as it looked at the little fox.

After a quick glance around, Natsume left the warehouse with Mew.

There was still plenty to do on the farm these days.

Natsume wasn't sure what daily life was like on other farms.

But for his farm, it was a cycle of busy periods followed by stretches of downtime.

Right now just happened to be one of those busy times.

The Gym was nearly complete. Over the next few days, Natsume would need to inspect and approve the construction, as well as take care of the interior setup.

After that, he had to prepare for the Gym evaluation.

At the same time, he needed to select a few Pokémon who were willing to stay on the farm and—well—beat up little kids.

Thinking about it like this, there really was a lot to do.

"Grrr..."

At the farm's edge, Ting-Lu—who had been overseeing the training of Okidogi, Munkidori, Fezandipiti, and Pecharunt—suddenly lifted its head.

Just now, it had sensed a very familiar presence approaching.

Deep within the forest, an abandoned shrine pulsed with an eerie, crimson glow.

Something... was about to descend.

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