"Minccino…"
Hearing this, the Minccino froze where they stood.
They lifted their little heads to look at the human before them, tears still glistening in their eyes.
"My name is Raven," Raven introduced himself, doing his best to show kindness toward the group of Minccino.
"Minccino…"
The Minccino didn't answer right away.
They turned their heads toward their companions, exchanging glances with one another.
"Minccino?"
"Minccino…"
"Minccino!"
They whispered and chattered among themselves, holding a noisy little council.
Raven crouched nearby, patiently waiting for their reply.
Minccino—the adorable Pokémon of Unova, often compared to Clefairy.
Cute in appearance, obsessed with cleanliness, and even plagued with compulsive tidiness.
In the anime, they could often be seen using their tails as brooms to sweep away every speck of dust until their homes sparkled.
"Interesting," Raven thought to himself.
After a long while, the Minccino finished their discussion.
They all looked up at Raven together and answered firmly: "Minccino!"
"You agree?" Raven raised an eyebrow and asked.
"Minccino!" The Minccino nodded their little heads.
At this point, they had no other choice but to trust this human.
And besides, he didn't seem like someone who would lie.
More importantly, if everything Raven said was true…
Then by next spring, they would have a berry grove full of fruit!
They could make their home there, sleep each night with the sweet fragrance of berries in the air, and wake in the morning to find delicious berries right within reach.
Just imagining such a life filled the little mice with happiness.
The Minccino couldn't help but start dreaming.
Seeing this, Raven slowly let out a breath of relief.
He stood and called for the territory's healer, Lila, asking her to treat the injured Pokémon. At the same time, he signaled to the others that they could resume their work.
Only then did the residents cautiously step forward, glancing hesitantly at the adorable creatures.
"They won't attack us anymore," Raven reassured them. "Until spring comes, these Pokémon will live here with us."
Everyone had heard Raven's conversation with them.
They had no objections—after all, it was they who had destroyed the Pokémon's home in the first place.
Now that they saw the creatures were no longer hostile, they finally picked up their axes again.
Trees continued to fall, and the forest slowly gave way to an open clearing…
The Minccino watched. Though they had agreed with Raven, seeing their home vanish before their eyes still filled them with sorrow.
Raven expected them to stay sad for a long time.
But that grief lasted less than half an hour before it vanished like smoke.
Charcoal crackled in the brazier, and inside the warm tent, five Minccino sat at the table munching on dried almonds. Beside each of them sat a cup of steaming sweet tea.
"Minccino~"
"Minccino!"
"Minccino…"
In the food-scarce, freezing season, to enjoy such delicious treats and rest in a warm, clean home—this was something they never could've dreamed of before.
Blissful smiles spread across their faces, as if they'd just been handed a fortune in relocation compensation.
Their earlier sorrow was nowhere to be found.
Raven: "…"
Dratini: "…"
At that moment, Raven wanted to shout: Hey! Where are your principles?!
But as he looked at the little Minccino in front of him, another thought struck him.
The forest was vast and rich with resources.
Surely Minccino weren't the only Pokémon living here.
And for now, the logging couldn't stop.
They needed lumber for houses, and plenty of firewood to endure the winter.
Where resources were abundant, so too would Pokémon be abundant.
It was likely they would face similar situations again.
After some thought, Raven stood up, instructed Dratini to stay and watch the Minccino, and headed for the logging site.
There, the settlers and Snover were hard at work, axes swinging as massive trees crashed to the ground.
The heavy, booming sound carried far into the distance.
"Lord Raven!" A knight spotted him and came forward, saluting.
Raven nodded, his gaze sweeping the quiet forest as he asked, "While cutting trees these days, have you encountered any wild beasts?"
"Wild beasts?" The knight blinked, then thought carefully before replying, "Yes, we have, Your Highness."
"Oh?" Raven was intrigued. "What kind of beasts?"
The knight frowned in thought. "Ones like pigeons that can fly, rodent-like ones that seemed very cautious—they bolted the moment they saw us. And there was another, like a small deer, with brown fur."
Hmm. The local Pokémon ecology was richer than he'd expected.
Birds like pigeons—those must be Pidove.
The cautious rodent-like ones—likely Patrat.
And the small brown deer—Winter Form Deerling.
"How did they react when they saw you?" Raven asked again.
The knight scratched his head. "Probably because there were so many of us… those creatures just turned tail and ran the instant they spotted us."
"I see…"
So the Minccino were actually the braver ones.
Or perhaps, with their trees being cut down, they had no choice but to confront the settlers.
"I understand. Get back to work," Raven said.
"Yes, Your Highness!" The knight saluted again and returned to his task.
Raven stood in the snow, scanning the vast forest with thoughtful eyes.
Then suddenly, he felt it—a presence watching him, something hidden in the shadows.
Huh?
He turned instinctively.
And there, on the branch of a nearby tree, he saw a small green figure.
Their eyes met across the air.
It was a petite, serpentine Pokémon with a green body, cream-colored belly and feet, and a yellow stripe running down its back to its tail.
Though serpentine, it had cute little limbs, standing upright like a human.
That Pokémon was… Snivy, the Grass-type starter from Unova!
Raven's pupils contracted as he froze in shock.
Here—of all places—there was actually a Snivy?!
He stared at it, and it stared right back at him.
Man and Pokémon stood across the snowy clearing, locked in each other's gaze.
(End of Chapter)