Chapter 49: Take the Queen for a Stroll
On the morning of the third day, Ryū and Liz set off for Cherrygrove City with a group of people. Two Magikarp were also brought along. Meanwhile, Ryuuki could only watch them leave with teary eyes, as she was suppressed at home by her mother's iron hand.
Ryū was also quite helpless about this. He had originally wanted to bring Ryuuki along. After all, this trip to Cherrygrove City meant there was a high probability that the two Magikarp, whose levels were already quite high, would evolve into Gyarados. When they evolved, what would it mean if Ryuuki, as their Trainer, wasn't by their side? When Ryuuki saw the Gyarados, whose appearance and personality had drastically changed, would she be so scared she'd faint?
But there was nothing he could do. Ryuuki's mother simply wouldn't allow her to leave the Royal Capital. It was understandable, because it was the Pokémon Era now. Moreover, it was a time when the Royal Dragon Kingdom and the Earth Kingdom were constantly in conflict, and a major war could break out suddenly, making the risk very high. Ryuuki's mother naturally wasn't at ease letting her precious daughter stray too far from her.
The road to Cherrygrove City was very long. The distance between two towns in reality was completely unlike what was shown in the anime, where you could arrive in just a few days. Due to his size, Ryū couldn't fit into a standard carriage. Furthermore, because this was a sudden plan, a large carriage that could accommodate him hadn't been prepared in advance.
Ryū himself didn't mind much. After all, he was a Pokémon, and his stamina was much greater than that of ordinary horses. He might only have sweated a little when those horses needed to rest. But Liz didn't think that way. She stubbornly insisted on staying with Ryū. So, out of helplessness, Hestia had to quickly find a large flatbed cart used for transporting provisions and urgently modify it. It ultimately became a strange vehicle. It was similar to a large tricycle in the Human world, except its power source changed from electricity to 3 horses.
In a low-lying area, Ryū, lying bored on the soft flatbed, yawned and then looked at Liz, who was leaning against him and reading. "Liz, how much longer until we get there?"
"Don't worry, Aran, it's quite fast. It should only take about a week to arrive." Liz likely understood what Ryū meant and replied. Anyway, she cherished and enjoyed this leisurely time quite a bit. She had long been tired of the monotonous and busy days spent in the Royal Capital, dealing with official duties all day long. She even occasionally wondered if she should just hand over her position to someone else.
Adding to that, seeing Ryū and Ryuuki go out to play together every day, the comparison made her incredibly envious. She would occasionally worry if the relationship between the two little ones would become better than her relationship with him as they spent more time together. Now that she had the opportunity to slack off legitimately and had Ryū by her side, she was very happy.
"A week?! Oh my goodness, this is going to be so boring." Ryū's eyes widened, and his body became even more limp. He hadn't expected that the distance between the two towns in the anime, which seemed very short, with Ash and his group arriving on foot in just a few days. But reality wasn't like that.
3 days had passed since they left the Royal Capital, but Liz told him it was still a week's journey. This was by carriage, not on foot. This wasn't just a difference in speed, but also a difference in endurance. Yet, it still took 10 days to get from the Royal Capital to Cherrygrove City; the difference between the anime and reality was simply too great.
According to Ryū's impression of the Johto map, the location of the Royal Dragon Kingdom Royal Capital was roughly in the middle-right area of the entire Johto Region. It was near the future Violet City in the game, but on the plain further east of Violet City, closer to the Mt. Silver Range. And Cherrygrove City was on the coast directly south of the Royal Capital.
'Could it be that he was just going to have to slump and sleep through this week?' With that thought, Ryū closed his eyes and dozed off for a while. But as he dozed, evening arrived without him realizing it. Feeling the carriage stop, Ryū opened his eyes. They were currently in a forest. It wasn't a forest on a mountain, but a forest on a plain.
And this was also the type of forest that appeared more often in the anime; the surrounding trees weren't tall, only about 3 or 4 meters. The biggest difference between this forest and the one on Mt. Silver was probably that it wasn't as dangerous. The forest on Mt. Silver was full of dangers; the Pokémon were fierce, and the competition among them was intense. After all, with such a small area but so many Pokémon, the increased density naturally led to greater competition.
This forest, however, was the opposite. Although its size wasn't small, the number of Pokémon was very few. The number of Pokémon per square kilometer was more than 10 times lower than in the Mt. Silver forest. And they were basically all herbivorous Pokémon with low aggression and territorial instincts. This was also the reason the team chose to stop here.
At this time, the team was setting up camp. People were collecting firewood on the spot to start fires, while the Pokémon Trainers and their Pokémon were patrolling and scouting the outermost perimeter of the temporary camp. Ryū, who had been bored for several days, really couldn't just lie there anymore. He wasn't as dull-witted as a Magikarp, who could space out for days without feeling bored.
'Let's call Liz and go out to play together.' Ryū got up from the carriage bed and looked at Liz beside him.
"Hmm? Is Aran going for a walk with me?" Liz immediately understood what Ryū meant. One could only say that there truly was a mysterious thing like tacit understanding and a bond between a Trainer and a Pokémon. From not understanding Ryū's actions and behaviors at all initially, Liz now understood Ryū's intentions with just a single glance, as if they had a telepathic connection.
"Yes, let's go."
"Okay." Liz got up and said something to the guards stationed nearby. The latter immediately prepared to summon some Pokémon Trainers to protect Liz, but Liz refused. Only after Liz guaranteed that she wouldn't go too far and would make a big commotion immediately if she encountered danger did the guards reluctantly agree to her going for a walk alone with Ryū.
The main reason was that they were not unfamiliar with this road and had passed through this forest several times. If they were in the forest of Mt. Silver, Liz could talk until the sky broke, and they still wouldn't let her go. Even the Queen's command wouldn't work. In the Royal Dragon Kingdom, the Queen's personal safety was always more important than the Queen's command.
"Hehe, let's go~" Seeing Liz return, Ryū immediately wrapped his tail around Liz and rushed into the dark forest. His movements were so fast that many of the guards didn't even react. Someone who didn't know might have thought Ryū was in a hurry to elope with the Queen.
5 minutes later, Ryū and Liz were in a location where the Royal Dragon Kingdom's patrol personnel were completely out of sight. Under a certain tree, Liz and Ryū leaned against the tree trunk, quietly experiencing the tranquility of the forest at night.
The forests in the Pokémon world were different from the forests on Blue Star. In the Pokémon world, fireflies were everywhere, especially abundant in forests. Ryū swept his tail through the nearby bushes, and immediately a large swarm of fireflies flew out. Moonlight shone through the canopy into the forest, and these little insects also tried their best to emit their unique light. The dim yellow and pale light intertwining to illuminate the originally dark forest in a hazy glow.
The nearby tree canopy would occasionally rustle, likely due to little fellows hiding behind the leaves, curiously peeking at the movements outside. There was the sound of wings flapping above his head. Looking up, he saw a lively little Hoothoot standing on a branch at some point. And in the distance, there would occasionally be bursts of strange singing, which should be little Jigglypuff that had just been born practicing their tender voices.
"It's so beautiful." Liz tilted her head, resting it on Ryū's tail draped over her shoulder. Together, they quietly appreciated the beautiful scenery of the forest at night, unique to the Pokémon world.