"My apologies for being late."
The unfamiliar voice caused Kalia to pause momentarily. She set down her chopsticks just as she was about to pick up more food and turned to face the speaker.
His hair stood upright like a hedgehog's, neatly trimmed at the edges. Bright eyes met Kalia's gaze, accompanied by a warm, sunlit smile—a handsome young man indeed.
At first glance, Kalia recognized him as her fellow partner for this mission: William, a mid-level Trainer specializing in Fire-type Pokémon.
Given that the mission required expertise with Fire-types, it was likely that William had several such Pokémon under his command.
"No problem, I arrived not too long ago myself," Kalia replied with a smile and a nod. Since they needed to work together on the task, expressing goodwill upfront was essential.
"Are you hungry? Would you like to sit down and order something?" Kalia asked.
"No, if possible, I'd prefer to depart right away. You can call me William." William shook his head and responded.
"Well, let's wait until my Pokémon finish eating then." Kalia herself had already eaten, but Sceptile and Charizard were still enjoying their meal, so waiting was necessary.
Soon, Lian patted his full stomach, knowing he couldn't eat any more without risking difficulty flying later, especially since he still had to carry Kalia.
Sceptile, Ninetales, and Combusken had also finished their meals and were now resting. Among them, Lian consumed the most, typically double the amount of other Pokemon per meal.
"Let's get going then." Seeing that Charizard had finished eating, Kalia didn't waste any time, noting William' apparent urgency to complete the mission.
A short while later,
In the sky above:
Lian carried Kalia on one side, while William stood atop a Talonflame. Normally, Talonflame's size isn't suitable for riding, but this particular Talonflame seemed slightly larger than average. Moreover, instead of sitting, William confidently stood on Talonflame, showing no fear of falling off.
"That's quite dangerous."
Kalia warned William multiple times, genuinely concerned they might lose balance at such great height amidst strong gusts of wind.
However, William just smiled and replied, "This is part of my regular training regimen. Don't worry about me; I'm perfectly fine."
Feeling helpless but respecting William' confidence, Kalia refrained from further persuasion.
However, her curiosity piqued, she initiated a conversation with him, "Do you practice martial arts?"
Such exceptional balance clearly indicated dedicated training; William did not seem like an ordinary individual.
"It's a martial art passed down through my family," William corrected, shaking his head slightly. A hint of pride appeared on his face as he mentioned his clan.
Kalia, unfamiliar with such traditions, still sensed their significance and asked curiously, "What does your family specialize in?"
With Sebas still far to the north, Kalia's question prompted William to reminisce, and he slowly responded, "Originally, my family was known for martial arts. Now, we run several dojos. Our ancestor once served as the commander of a king's guard, achieving countless feats throughout his life, eventually founding the Takan Clan."
"A commander of the king's guard sounds incredibly impressive," Kalia marveled, recalling her knowledge from history books.
In ancient times, being the commander of a royal guard held immense prestige, considering armies were composed of both humans and Pokemon.
As the highest commander of an army, his status and power must have been incredibly formidable. Without such authority, it would be impossible to lead a strong military force, especially as the king's personal guard.
William suddenly shook his head, sounding somber, "Unfortunately, that is all in the past now. The current Takan Clan holds little significance."
Kalia responded, "Indeed, it has been two thousand years." Two millennia is a long time; even the Pokemon League itself is only about two centuries old.
The fact that the Takan Clan still exists after two thousand years is remarkable, at least indicating they haven't completely perished.
"Let's not dwell on this anymore. Instead, let's share any information we have about the north," William shifted the topic, feeling it unnecessary to delve deeper into clan matters with Kalia. They were merely partners for this mission by chance.
"All right," Kalia agreed, though she found the history of the Takan Clan fascinating. However, if William wasn't interested in discussing further, there was little she could do.
Lian felt slightly disappointed when their conversation ended. Sometimes, he secretly borrowed books from Kalia's backpack to read. The written language in this world closely resembled Earth's, allowing him to comprehend them with some effort.
Lian, on the other hand, was deeply intrigued by the history of this world, particularly the legends surrounding various mythical Pokemon. Additionally, he had a keen interest in understanding the development of ancient human societies.
In ancient times, due to environmental constraints and limited population growth, most territories were dominated by Pokemon. Consequently, human settlements occupied only small areas. However, humans adapted swiftly and reproduced rapidly, leading to overcrowding. This resulted in intense territorial disputes among humans, ultimately triggering wars.
As powerful Pokemon became tools of war, prolonged conflicts eventually gave rise to a formidable king who united humanity, establishing the Bakks Kingdom.
With the aid of a vast Pokemon army, humans gained deeper knowledge about these creatures. As their ambitions grew, they began encroaching on Pokemon territories.
Despite their intelligence, Pokemon could not match that of humans and lacked unity. Consequently, human territories expanded continuously, while wild Pokemon either faced capture or extermination.
It wasn't until several Legendary Pokemon emerged, joining forces to halt human advancement, that a temporary era of peace settled over the continent.
Following the collapse of the Bakks Kingdom, with sufficient human territories established, wars became less frequent. About two hundred years ago, as technology advanced and Poké Balls were invented, the initial formation of the Pokémon League marked the beginning of the Trainer era.
This is a broad overview of human history as Lian understood it, though not in great detail. Essentially, for a long period, humanity was plagued by constant warfare until eventual unification occurred.
Meanwhile, Kalia and William had finished exchanging information. The primary reason for this mission was the sudden appearance of numerous unknown Ice-type Pokémon in the northern region.
Their emergence disrupted the ecological balance of the northern forests, causing significant temperature drops across vast areas and leading to the death of many local Pokémon.
Initial assessments suggested these Pokémon originated from the ocean but inexplicably ventured onto land in the Sebas Region.
Kalia and William' task was to investigate the origins of these Pokémon and determine why they left their natural habitat to enter terrestrial areas.
Pokémon typically have territorial instincts; invading another's territory without cause goes against their nature, making this situation highly unusual.