After seeing everyone off, Draconis sat alone in the Lord's Hall, contemplating the next steps.
Time was tight, and the task was heavy.
Although war had not yet broken out, the north-south conflict in the Unova region was gradually unfolding.
Before the flames of war engulfed this territory, they had to develop and grow as quickly as possible.
The Knights Order, led by Gerolt, currently had nearly seventy members, each skilled in martial arts.
Draconis planned to implement reforms here, transforming the Knights Order into an army capable of adapting to war.
In addition to a ground army primarily composed of Aggron, they also needed to find some Flying-type Pokémon to establish their own air force.
For example, the regional bird of Unova, Pidove.
Or Braviary, known as the "Warrior of the Sky."
Besides these, Altaria and Skarmory were also options.
These Flying-type Pokémon could both launch high-altitude attacks on enemies and act as reconnaissance units to survey battle conditions and observe enemy movements.
Near this territory, Pidove, the initial form of Pidove, and Swablu, the earliest stage of Altaria, were both very common Pokémon.
Moreover, their capture difficulty was not high; as long as the right method was found, it was easy to build a good relationship with them.
The only problem was that raising such Pokémon required a large amount of resources.
Taking Aggron as an example, the iron ore it needed to eat every day alone was a resource with very high consumption.
"It seems everything still depends on the development of the territory," Draconis murmured.
Currently, he could only place his hopes on the merchant caravan led by Zach, hoping they could bring over the poultry, livestock, and Machoke as soon as possible.
Aside from these, he himself could not be complacent.
It was not an easy task to go to Lacunosa Village to find Kyurem.
What's more, Kyurem's strength was probably far greater than what was shown in the games.
In the game, its move, Icy World, was just a normal move with 65 power.
But in reality, this move could directly freeze half of Unova, a terrifying ultimate move.
The strength of Legendary Pokémon should not be underestimated, and Kyurem was by no means as benevolent and kind as Xerneas.
Facing Kyurem, their probability of death was definitely not zero.
Therefore, before that, he had to improve his strength as much as possible.
"The special training for Dratini and Servine also needs to gradually increase in intensity."
While contemplating, Draconis stood up, ready to begin today's special training.
However, as soon as he stepped outside, he saw Anna's sneaking figure.
As their eyes met, Anna swallowed, unable to resist asking, "Prince Draconis... is war about to break out again?"
"Huh?" Draconis was stunned.
Anna quickly explained, "I didn't mean to overhear! I originally came here to report on Zorua's special training! I just accidentally heard some things..."
Draconis rubbed his temples, sighing, "This isn't something a child like you should be concerned about."
Anna had just turned ten. Although she had Zorua, Draconis simply couldn't bring himself to send a child to fight on a battlefield.
After all, war was not a game, and it wouldn't be like in anime where you lose a battle and are unharmed; people could really die here.
"That's not true!" Anna shook her head repeatedly. "Zorua and I can fight too! Teacher, Anna also wants to protect this home we all built together!"
Draconis was slightly taken aback.
Anna continued, "Your Highness is the best king in the world. Although I don't understand those things very well, I know that you are the one who fed us, you shared your herbs with us to cure our illnesses, and you guided us to use the power of the Pokémon to build our home..."
The girl's tone grew more resolute, and Zorua, sensing its Trainer's conviction, also had its eyes filled with unwavering determination.
"So, let's battle, Teacher! If Zorua and I can defeat you, you must let Zorua and me join the Knights Order! Even if it means sacrificing my life, I will protect you and everyone!"
"Wooo!" Zorua also let out a determined Growl.
Listening to these words, Draconis fell silent.
"Does your mother know about this?" he asked.
Anna, however, said, "Mom will definitely support Zorua and me too!"
"In that case, I'll give you a chance," Draconis took a deep breath.
Anna's eyes immediately lit up.
The two ultimately chose the large river where Dratini usually trained as their battleground.
Behind them were the developing territory and the thriving, vibrant farmlands.
Since Larvesta had just hatched, Draconis's available combat power consisted only of Dratini and Servine, but facing a normal Zorua, it should be enough.
For the first battle, Draconis chose to send out Dratini.
"Anna, prove your strength to us!" Draconis said.
Pokémon battles in this era had no rules, so as soon as Draconis finished speaking, Anna unhesitatingly gave Zorua its first command.
"Zorua, use Extrasensory!"
"Wooo!"
Accompanied by a crisp cry, a strange power condensed from Zorua's mouth, eventually forming a nearly transparent Psychic orb that flew towards Dratini.
But as Anna's teacher, Draconis was familiar with Anna's battle style, even knowing exactly what commands she would give.
Facing this move, Draconis calmly said, "Dratini, evade."
Dratini, having completed three shed skins, was already vastly different from before. It quickly crawled forward and slightly sidestepped, perfectly dodging the Extrasensory.
"How can this be?" Anna was surprised and momentarily forgot to continue commanding.
"Focus! The battlefield won't give you time to space out!" Draconis reminded her while ordering Dratini, "Thunder Wave followed by Dragon Tail!"
Anna finally reacted, but it was already too late.
A faint yellow current shot out from Dratini, precisely hitting Zorua.
"Zzzzt!"
The yellow current instantly enveloped Zorua's entire body; it was paralyzed!
"Zorua!" Anna was a bit flustered.
At the same time, a dense Dragon energy surged from Dratini's tail. It used this to Bounce into the air, swung its Dragon Tail, and fiercely struck Zorua.
Zorua's small body was sent flying on the spot.
"You lost," Draconis said in a deep voice.
However, the next second, he saw a foxy, cunning smile appear on Little Anna's face.
"Hehe, Teacher, our battle style has been Detected by us!"
The surrounding scenery changed like a fleeting dream.
The "Zorua" that was knocked down by Dragon Tail gradually disappeared, and another perfectly unharmed Zorua slowly emerged from the shadows, its eyes flickering with a seductive, dark purple light.
Draconis was slightly taken aback, then understood everything.
It was Zorua's ability, Illusion!
A helpless smile appeared on his face: "I didn't expect you two to actually trick me."
"However, the Illusion is over, and Zorua can no longer create Illusions for a short period. So, how will you two handle the next battle?"
After all, Draconis knew very well that the ability Illusion consumed an extremely terrifying amount of Zorua's Psychic power, and with its current strength, it couldn't use it twice in a short period.
"Then let Teacher see our true strength!" Anna said without a care. "Zorua, go!"
As her words fell, Zorua's figure began to flicker continuously. Immediately after, countless Zorua split off from it, eventually forming a circle that surrounded Dratini.
That was... Double Team!
The real battle had just begun!
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