"Besides that," Elif continued, "there's one more thing I need to report to you."
Lucien looked up from his papers.
"Oh? What is it?"
"Recently, influenced by you and Lady Megan, the commoners in the territory have begun actively engaging with magical beasts."
Elif's voice carried a faint note of surprise even as he spoke.
"Apart from Lady Megan's Gyarados ranch, several new farms dedicated to raising magical beasts have already opened on the outskirts of town. Many residents have asked Lady Anna for help locating suitable species to domesticate.
Their choices tend to be gentle ones, magical beasts like Combee, Mareep, Lilligant, Sawsbuck, Petilil, Cottonee, and Applin. Some farmers have even managed to hire Diglett and Dugtrio to help plow their fields in exchange for food."
Lucien listened quietly, nodding as he absorbed the report.
He wasn't surprised.
Mareep's wool, Lilligant's leaves, Sawsbuck's seasonal tea, Cottonee's cotton, Applin's syrup, and Combee's honey, all of them were immensely valuable to human life.
The people had learned quickly. Once they saw how magical beasts could enrich their livelihoods, they had begun seeking them out on their own.
And that, Lucien thought, was exactly what he had hoped would happen.
These partnerships were the foundation of his vision, a self-sustaining territory where humans and Pokémon lived, worked, and thrived together.
Elif continued,
"Some clever townsfolk have even invested their savings into small shops, selling goods produced with the help of magical beasts. Others have opened inns, restaurants, and barbershops. Trade is beginning to blossom."
Lucien smiled faintly.
"Good. Then it's time we start formalizing things."
He began listing the measures in his calm, deliberate tone:
"Establish a fair tax system for the commoners, distribute farmland to the workers, and encourage magical beasts breeding and trade. That will stimulate the economy and strengthen the town's prosperity."
Elif nodded, taking careful notes as Lucien continued.
"Also," Lucien added, "I want you to gather some unhatched magical beasts eggs, gentle, easy-to-raise species. We'll give them to the children under ten in our territory. Let them grow up with magical beasts partners from an early age."
He looked out the window, his eyes softening.
'They might not make a difference now, but ten years from today, they'll be our first generation of true trainers, and the backbone of this land's future.'
"Understood, Your Highness," Elif replied firmly, committing the order to memory.
Just then, a familiar voice called out from the hallway.
"Is Prince Lucien here?"
Lucien's brows rose.
"Ivan?"
It was indeed Ivan, freshly returned from Lacunosa Village.
He entered the study looking travel-worn, his cloak dusty, his boots caked in mud, but his eyes gleamed with excitement.
"Your Highness," he said breathlessly, "I've completed my mission!"
Lucien gestured for him to continue.
"Tell me everything."
Ivan took a deep breath.
"I found information about Kyurem, from the locals themselves."
At the mention of that name, Lucien's expression sharpened.
"Go on."
Ivan began recounting the tale.
After leaving the territory, he had spent nearly a week traveling through the wilderness before reaching Lacunosa Village, a remote settlement of barely a dozen households. The villagers, though wary at first, had treated him kindly, offering shelter and food once they realized he was a traveler.
And there, Ivan had heard the legend.
"They say that decades ago, a massive meteorite fell from the heavens into the mountains nearby," he said. "Inside it… something was living."
A chill rippled through the room.
"At night, that creature would emerge, bringing howling winds and freezing cold. People, and magical beasts began disappearing. The villagers said it devoured them."
To protect themselves, the villagers had built a wall around the village and forbade anyone from leaving their homes after dark. They named the monster Kyurem, the devourer of life.
"Kyurem lives in a place they call the Giant's Chasm," Ivan went on, his voice trembling slightly. "They say the cave was formed where the meteorite struck. No one dares to go near it. A few years ago, one man tried, and he never came back."
Lucien fell silent, his mind racing.
Could it be? Kyurem really eats people?
But that didn't make sense.
If Kyurem truly wanted to devour humans, it could easily storm into the village and destroy everything in its path. With its power, no ordinary wall or house could possibly stop it. So why only attack at night? Why only take those who wandered outside?
It didn't add up.
Lucien frowned slightly. Perhaps the story had been distorted by fear over the years. Rumors spread easily when people lived in the shadow of something they didn't understand.
Still, whether the tale was exaggerated or not, one fact remained certain: they had found Kyurem's location.
Now all that was left was to make contact.
"You've done well, Ivan," Lucien said at last. "You should rest for now."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Ivan bowed deeply, but as he turned to leave, an uneasy thought flickered through his mind.
Was His Highness planning to approach that monster himself?
To tame Kyurem the same way he had once befriended the proud Servine?
The very idea sent a chill down Ivan's spine.
At the same time, in Lucien City, the caravan led by Zack rolled through the southern gate, and the merchants immediately froze in stunned silence.
The streets ahead were wide and spotless, paved with clean red bricks that gleamed under the sun. Rows of new houses lined both sides, their shutters painted in warm colors. It was unlike anything they'd seen in the frontier lands.
But what truly made them gape were the creatures running freely in the streets.
"Wait… are those, magical beasts?!" one merchant exclaimed.
"Multiple of them!" another stammered.
Down the road, snow-furred Pokémon with little caps of frost, Snover, by the look of them, were laughing and chasing after a group of children, who squealed with delight.
The merchants blinked, convinced their eyes were deceiving them.
"Are we… sure this is the right place?" one of Zack's men whispered.
Zack didn't answer. He was staring too, staring as a squad of armored knights marched past on patrol. That part wasn't unusual. What was unusual were the magical beasts walking beside them, Aron, Swablu, and even a Machoke, all moving in perfect step with the knights.
The merchants' jaws dropped.
"Boss, th-those are wild monsters!"
"Then why aren't they attacking?!"
Zack's heart was pounding. He had seen tamed magical beasts before, of course, but those were always shackled, restrained with iron collars and chains, just in case they lost control.
These, though… were smiling.
Laughing.
Content.
The air of fear that usually surrounded powerful magical beasts was entirely absent.
"Boss, look over there!" one of his men hissed.
Zack turned, and his breath caught.
Across the street, a young woman, Anna, was wiping the sweat from her brow as a Zoroark stood beside her, gently holding a handkerchief in its claws.
After finishing, the Zoroark returned the cloth, and Anna smiled, handing it a Sitrus Berry in thanks. The Pokémon accepted it with a pleased growl and wagged its mane like a proud companion.
The scene was so natural, so human, that it shook Zack and his men to their core.
Could that girl be… a noble beastmaster?
But then, what about the others? The knights? The children playing with Snover?
No matter where they looked, every person here seemed to live in harmony with magical beasts.
The sight defied everything they knew about the world.
Zack swallowed hard, his voice trembling as he muttered,
'This town… is strange.'
...
Stones PLzz
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