"—That's how things are."
Inside the Lord's Hall, Gerolt silently reported the situation to Draconis.
Draconis: "—"
As expected, was it too difficult for novices to raise Aron?
Draconis began to doubt if he had chosen the wrong people.
Although these knights possessed considerable strength, they were helpless against Aron, whose body was composed of steel.
Iron swords couldn't penetrate Aron's armor, and punching it would cause their fists to ache from the impact of its steel armor.
After a moment of contemplation, Draconis asked, "How many Aron have been captured in total?"
"Ten," Gerolt replied.
"Oh? That's not bad. How did someone manage to defeat Aron later?" Draconis was a little surprised.
Gerolt nodded: "Later, the knights came up with a good idea. Since iron swords couldn't pierce Aron's armor, perhaps using blunt weapons like hammers could stun Aron."
"We borrowed blacksmithing hammers from the blacksmith, and then challenged Aron again. The results were quite good; some Aron were quickly knocked out, and when they woke up, they agreed to follow us."
—"As expected of ancient people," Draconis couldn't help but twitch his lips.
"But there's one more thing, Your Highness," Gerolt added.
"What?"
"We have seventy knights in total, but there are only twenty Aron inhabiting the Mine nearby—" Gerolt explained.
"In that case, we can only form other Pokémon legions," Draconis fell into deep thought.
What other Pokémon near the territory would be suitable for forming an army?
Gyarados? No, Magikarp is useless, and it's difficult for ordinary people to raise.
A Golduck legion? That's a good choice. This Pokémon can attack with powerful Hydro Pump and also control enemies with Psychic moves like Confusion.
Although Psychic's performance in games is unremarkable, in reality, Psychic is almost invincible against attributes it isn't weak against. Ash's encounter with Sabrina in the anime perfectly illustrated this point.
Hmm, perhaps a Magnemite legion could also be formed.
Magnezone, evolved from Magnemite, can unleash terrifying Zap Cannon for long-range attacks and also use Discharge, a wide-area AoE move.
More importantly, it can fly.
However, Magnemite are also somewhat scarce.
If absolutely necessary, Ampharos, evolved from Mareep, could serve as its subordinate.
Artificially bred Mareep are docile, and Mareep hatched from eggs are more likely to bond with humans, making them easy to handle.
Then there's the Altaria legion.
Many Swablu inhabit the vicinity of their territory, and Altaria, evolved from Swablu, possesses many wide-range destructive moves.
For example, Perish Song, which causes Pokémon who hear it to faint after a few minutes.
Or the classic Dragon-type ultimate move, Draco Meteor.
Altaria can even learn moves like Hurricane.
Thinking of this, Draconis quickly had an idea.
"In that case, everyone else will get different Pokémon partners!" he declared.
Gerolt was slightly stunned.
Draconis then took out a drawing of Swablu that Christina had recorded.
Gerolt looked down and saw a bird Pokémon with a sky-blue body, wings as white and fluffy as flowing clouds, and two long blue feathers on its head.
"This is?"
"It's called Swablu. I believe you've already seen it," Draconis said. Recently, with the arrival of spring, wild Swablu often fly to the territory, landing on rooftops to observe humans.
"This is a very docile Pokémon. It's not afraid of people and is much easier to approach than Aron."
Upon hearing this, Gerolt was a little worried.
A legion with two different Pokémon would probably not be able to train together.
Draconis saw Gerolt's thoughts and said with a smile:
"No one ever stipulated that a human can only have one Pokémon."
They are all his wings.
Gerolt was slightly taken aback, then quickly reacted.
"More importantly, Pokémon, like humans, also reproduce. If Pokémon lay eggs, they can be given to knights who raise other Pokémon, allowing for cross-breeding and mutual exchange of training experiences, reducing time," Draconis explained.
Gerolt suddenly understood: "Your Highness is brilliant!"
Afterward, they would gradually expand the army, recruit soldiers, distribute the prepared Pokémon eggs to them, and repeat the process to quickly build a powerful army.
"Alright, you go back for now. Take people to approach the Swablu, and I will write down the information and breeding methods for Swablu for you."
Gerolt nodded: "Yes!"
*
It turned out that Swablu was much easier to capture than Aron.
In just three days, Draconis received a report from Gerolt saying that they had successfully captured Swablu through food enticement and other methods.
So, led by Gerolt, Draconis set off for the knights' usual training ground.
It was a large clearing in the forest.
When Draconis arrived, the sixty-nine knights, excluding Gerolt, stood in neat rows. They were clad in armor, with swords at their waists, looking very formal.
This group of knights was divided into two parts.
One part had Aron standing beside them.
The other part of the knights had Swablu perched on their heads, those Swablu stood lightly on their heads, looking like hats.
Watching this scene, Draconis could almost imagine what it would be like when these Pokémon evolved.
By then, the Aron would transform into mighty, strong, and massive Aggron.
And the small Swablu would become elegant and beautiful Altaria.
Just thinking about that scene made one excited.
It truly was something to look forward to!
Although these knights were all over twenty years old, they were as excited as children who had received new toys.
Pokémon—they had really captured Pokémon!
Just like the noble and powerful Pokémon Trainers who had once visited the royal city!
The crowd looked at Draconis, eagerly waiting for him to speak.
Draconis scanned the crowd, then slowly began:
"In this world, whether in the sky, the ocean, the forest, or the desert, the figures of Pokémon can be seen. Humans and Pokémon are all part of life on this land."
"I believe that after this period of interaction, you can all feel that Pokémon, like us humans, possess intelligence and emotions."
"People and Pokémon play, fight, help each other, and live together in this place."
Everyone listened quietly.
Every word Draconis said immediately brought corresponding images to their minds.
Snover playing with children, Dugtrio helping to Rototiller, Machoke helping to cut wood and build houses, Darmanitan helping to start fires, Shuckle brewing Berry Juice, Combee collecting nectar, Simisear helping to fire clay bricks...
Humans and Pokémon were gradually building their home together in this territory.
Unbeknownst to them, they had already lived with these Pokémon for so long—.
At this moment, thinking of this, the knights couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion as they looked at their Pokémon partners beside them.
۞۞۞۞
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