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The scene wasn't chaotic, but it was incredibly shocking.
After punching Darkrai in the face, Marill swiftly grabbed the bag of chips, jumped aside, tore it open, and aggressively stuffed them into her mouth.
The other Pokémon were unfazed. During past outdoor camping trips, some wild Sentret had snatched Marill's cookies, only to get trounced by Marill riding on top of them.
Sharing was fine, but hoarding? Never!
After devouring her portion, Marill measured the remaining chips with her tiny hands, jumped up, and shoved the bag toward Darkrai, gesturing wildly to warn him not to eat too much.
Darkrai hadn't wanted any chips at first, but the fiery sensation on his cheeks made him feel like not eating would be a loss.
Having eaten a few chips, Darkrai retreated into the shadows to contemplate. He suddenly realized that some of the common sense he possessed wasn't particularly useful here.
This line of thought continued all through the night. Even by morning, when they set out toward Snowpoint City, Darkrai was still deep in contemplation.
The road from Duckweed Town to Snowpoint City passed through a vast snowy plain. The path was mostly covered in snow, stretching endlessly in monotonous white. Only the large patches of coniferous forest broke the dull landscape.
Trainers traveling through here rarely went alone. Before entering the snowfield, solo Trainers would raise signs asking for teammates. Rookie Trainers typically formed large groups to ensure safety.
To save time, Luther, like many Trainers, chose to cut through the coniferous forest instead of following the main road, avoiding the detour.
The downside: the path was incredibly difficult.
The uneven snowy ground forced Luther to send Pokémon ahead to scout.
Eevee followed Marill, watching as Marill plowed through the snow with her round body, playing recklessly and diving headfirst into snow half her height, charging forward. No amount of fur could protect her from her own recklessness. Soon, shivering from the cold, Espurr pulled her out of the snow and handed her to Mai.
Sneezing, she watched Marill eating chips while scouting ahead, utterly impressed.
Along the way, Luther passed a few other Trainers who had also cut through the forest, but eventually, it seemed he had left them behind; he didn't see anyone else for a long while.
After an unknown amount of time, the forest thinned. Luther thought he had exited the coniferous region. Marill suddenly stopped, munching on chips and patting her face with a puzzled expression.
When the vanguard halted, Luther stopped as well.
"Why aren't we moving? Is something ahead?"
Corsola, next to Mai, also sensed something and hopped to Marill, sniffing intently before jumping up excitedly.
"This reaction… water?" Mai knew how sensitive Corsola was to fresh water.
The problem was that at this time of year, Corsola wouldn't want to splash around in cold water. The closer they got, the more Luther and Mai were surprised. In the forest, they had only seen Pokémon like Swinub and Spinda.
But in the open space ahead, Swinub, Stantler, Glameow, Bibarel, and some cold-averse Pokémon rested near a steaming spring.
Luther had no doubt: even without aiming, he could toss a Poké Ball here and catch a Pokémon easily.
There was no snow here; spring seemed to have arrived early. Warm and pleasant, the Pokémon lounged lazily. When Luther approached, they only turned to glance at him before lying back down.
In Whitewind Town, Luther had enjoyed much larger hot springs, but he had always wondered how Pokémon would use an undeveloped geothermal spring.
Now he had the answer.
The numerous Ursaring didn't dominate the spring; they simply occupied a small area, lying on the ground and sleeping soundly.
The Pokémon near the lake seemed to set aside differences, sharing the only warm place amidst the snowy landscape. Some even huddled together to save space, leaving room for others who came later.
These unspoken rules obviously hadn't been established overnight. Winters in northern Sinnoh were long and harsh, and Pokémon living in the wild had their own survival techniques, flowing in their blood.
Here, setting aside grudges and disputes to share the geothermal springs the world had given them was one such skill.
Occasionally, Pokémon arriving later would bring frozen berries from afar, place them in the water to thaw, and then share them with others nearby.
Watching this, Luther suddenly recalled memories from his student days: one person guarding the spot while the roommates helped get the meals, an experience many would recognize.
Luther and Mai stopped Marill and Corsola from venturing into the springs. After all, this was clearly a place wild Pokémon relied on to survive the winter. They could enjoy the geothermal spring later; Luther didn't want to cause trouble for them.
As they were leaving, Luther noticed a sign near the spring.
Squinting and studying it carefully, a smile spread across his face. Following the direction the sign indicated, he walked away.
"Lost traveler, please pretend you saw nothing and continue your journey."
Signed, Duckweed Town Gym Leader, Yawen.
Below it, in small letters: "Some things are meant to be left for the Pokémon. Humans have taken too much; it's only fair to leave something for them."
The previous Duckweed Town Gym Leader Yawen had stepped down and passed the position to his son, something Luther hadn't understood at first. After all, Yawen was just over thirty, experienced, and strong.
Now it made sense.
This spring was still within Duckweed Town's territory, linking to Snowpoint City. Unlike Whitewind Town, Duckweed Town had no intention of developing this geothermal spring. Presumably, the person advocating for the preservation of the forest area was the former Gym Leader, Yawen.
Protecting the area while being unable to serve as Gym Leader is why Yawen had passed the position to his son.
"This Badge is a bit hot to handle," Luther muttered, carefully cleaning the Duckweed Badge he had received.
Luther scanned the surrounding hills but saw nothing. Darkrai, however, revealed half its body and pointed in a direction.
There was a slightly raised mound of earth; if not for careful observation, it would have blended into the snow. With Darkrai's gesture, Luther realized someone was lying on the ground, dressed in white.
The slightly reflective object was undoubtedly a camera lens.
Luther took out the DSLR Harold had given him, framed the shot, and photographed the Pokémon by the geothermal spring, capturing the only hint of spring in the vast white snow.
Before leaving, Luther held up the Duckweed Badge and waved toward that hill.
The glint from Yawen's camera lens made him smile.
"Useless brat… how many Pokémon Trainers have passed through here with a Duckweed Badge now?"
Saying this, Yawen stood, approached three Abomasnow camouflaged as conifers behind him, took out their frozen rations, and started eating.
"Since you saw it and didn't say anything, I'll let your beating my son slide this time."
(End of chapter)