Kale stood there, utterly dumbfounded, staring blankly at the golden stalks of wheat before him. Even though he had already made some guesses in his heart, now that he had truly received confirmation, he still found it hard to accept the reality.
Not only had the wheat matured in just a short span of two months, but even the yield per acre far surpassed the harvests of previous years. This was nothing short of a great bumper harvest!
"Is it difficult to accept?" someone beside him asked.
"In fact, it is not only hard for you to believe—even for us ourselves, it still feels utterly unbelievable."
"But for us serfs, this is without doubt a blessing. We thought we needed two years, or even three, before we could gather enough merit points to be promoted to the rank of free citizens."
"But now, with the autumn harvest alone, I will already have accumulated enough merit. Praise be to Lord Aven!"
"I think that by this winter, there will not be a single serf left in the entire Pokémon Domain, and this is precisely what Lord Aven has always hoped for."
The serfs lifted their heads and gazed up at the blazing sun in the sky. By now, they had also come to understand that the so-called 'merit points' were not shackles binding them, but merely a small trial, a test for them to pass.
"To make one's domain completely free of serfs…"
"Lord Aven, he truly is a good lord. Under his rule, the Pokémon Domain will undoubtedly grow ever more prosperous."
Kale, slightly dazed in spirit, nodded absentmindedly. In the blink of an eye, countless thoughts surged through his mind.
Uncontrollably, the idea he had once entertained—handing over the governance of Marina City to Aven—once again rose to the surface of his heart. Yet, this time, he chose to remain silent.
If Aven truly could teach them the technique of cultivating this miraculous wheat, able to ripen in just two months and bring such abundant harvests, then without question, it would allow the people of Marina City to live far happier lives.
Furthermore, since Aven was willing to treat the serfs within his territory with kindness, even going so far as to let them shed the status of serfdom entirely, then he would surely treat the citizens of Marina City kindly as well, would he not?
"If I myself cannot achieve all this… then handing Marina City to Aven might not be such a bad thing." He muttered this quietly in his heart.
"Bii Bii?"
Seeing Kale's unfocused and unsettled state, the Bibarel at his side called out in concern.
"Bibarel, I'm fine. I'm just… feeling a little muddled inside." Kale shook his head.
His gaze shifted back toward the farmland, where he saw that the serfs had already returned to their fields and begun plowing once more.
Retracting his eyes from them, he set off again with Bibarel toward Fruitvale Village. Along the way, he encountered many other serfs as well.
Without exception, every one of them bore smiles upon their faces. That sight left Kale wordless, and he simply pressed on in silence, his figure moving quickly until he finally arrived outside Fruitvale Village.
As soon as he approached, the first thing that came into view was a vast expanse of fruit orchards. The entire village radiated with the joy of harvest.
He knew that before Aven had become a lord, he had been nothing more than an ordinary berry farmer in Fruitvale Village. Perhaps that was also the very reason why Aven was able to treat serfs with such compassion.
Kale did not prepare to enter the village itself. Instead, he walked to its southern outskirts, the very place where Marina City's forces had once launched their assault against Fruitvale Village.
The final outcome had been Marina City's crushing defeat. More than half of its knights had perished upon this soil, including even their captain, Paul.
"Bii Bii Bii~"
Bibarel, gazing upon the ground before them, also revealed a trace of emotion.
At the same time, it felt somewhat grateful too—for it was here, upon this very land, that Lord Aven had rescued its companions.
That was how they had gained their present home. Because of this, it harbored no resentment at all toward its earlier defeat by Aven.
After all, the battle itself had been provoked entirely by Marina City. They had all merely been victims. To Bibarel, its life now was good enough.
"Bibarel, take me for a walk." Kale spoke softly to the creature beside him.
His eyes drifted southward toward the direction of the Black Coast. It was along this route that the knights had once fled desperately, escaping back to the Black Coast.
Continuing in that direction, they soon reached the Black Coast Forest, where Kale saw the wide swaths of trees that had been chopped down. After so much time of reclamation, half the forest was already gone.
Even the deepest heartland of the Black Forest—once thought the most impregnable—had now been cleared. From here onward, the remaining work would simply follow routine steps, without much difficulty.
"Aven actually intends to cut down the entire forest?" Kale murmured in astonishment.
"If he succeeds, then the territory of Aspiration City will extend directly to the Black Coast itself…"
Staring at the deforested Black Forest before him, Kale's eyes grew sharp, his heart filled with shock.
If Aven truly succeeded in felling the forest and moving his domain to the Black Coast, then the only barrier between them and Marina City would be the Coastal Mountains!
For Marina City, the Black Forest had always been its greatest shield. The mountain range alone could never hope to halt the advance of Aspiration City's knights.
Perhaps once the Black Coast Forest was entirely cut down, the knights of Aspiration City would be able to charge straight into Marina City without resistance!
"So… Marina City is already standing on the edge of danger?"
"Maybe… even without obtaining information from me, Aspiration City has long since prepared to attack Marina City!"
Kale thought to himself in silence. If the knights of Aspiration City truly launched their assault, could Marina City hope to withstand it?
In his heart, the answer emerged quickly—it was impossible. They could never resist the charge of Aspiration City's knights. When that time came, Marina City would inevitably become a battlefield!
"So it was only a matter of time…" he whispered under his breath.
"Bii Bii…"
The Bibarel leader continued to guide him onward.
It could never forget that desperate escape. It remembered clearly how its companions had been abandoned back then.
Eventually, they arrived at the shores of the Black Coast. Already, stationed upon the coastline, were the knights keeping guard.
After learning of Marina City's potential attack, Aspiration City had long made its preparations here, to prevent the Seaside knights from launching another strike.
Moreover, the entire Black Coast was destined to become part of the Pokémon Domain. Their presence here now was simply to begin early development of the land.
"Bii Bii Bii~"
Bibarel reminded him quietly—this was the very place where they had parted ways.
"You've worked hard, Bibarel."
Kale crouched down, gently stroking the creature's smooth fur.
"Who are you people?"
At that moment, a patrol of knights discovered Kale.
Leading them was a knight with only one arm—Mado. He sat astride a Rhyhorn, staring at Bibarel with suspicion.
"Bii Bii Biii!"
Before Kale could explain, Bibarel itself quickly did so.
"Indeed, it is Lord Aven's Bibarel," Mado acknowledged.
"Even so, though you are accompanied by his Bibarel, this is still the Black Coast. I must ask you to leave."
Mado's tone was stern, and behind him, the knights fanned out in a solid line, blocking Kale's advance.
"You are knights from Fruitvale Village, are you not? Then you should know about the battle between Marina City and Fruitvale Village." Kale's eyes flickered.
He had never dared to ask Aven about the details—after all, it had been he himself who started that war. But now, he wanted to know.
Hearing this, even Bibarel shuddered slightly. It too was curious about what had happened after it had left.
It wanted to ask about Paul's fate, but having already left the knights, it did not know how to broach the subject.
"The battle between Marina City and Fruitvale Village?"
Mado's eyes lingered on Kale and Bibarel, uncertain why they asked.
"If you truly wish to know, I can tell you."
A sudden voice cut in.
Kale turned and saw a knight clad in armor, a fearsome Rhydon by his side.
"Captain Sutter!" Mad immediately stepped forward to salute.
Sutter waved a hand to dismiss the formality, then looked toward Kale. "A pleasure to meet you at last, Lord Kale."
Hearing his own name spoken, Kale was not surprised. He only nodded. "Then I hope you can tell me the details of that battle."
"Come with me."
Sutter spoke and led Kale and Bibarel toward the seashore.
As they walked, he recounted what had happened. "It was here—Paul and another knight tried to hold us back."
"That other knight… it should have been Hill."
Kale nodded. Back then, Hill had indeed been swift in winning the trust of the knights.
"The main opponents to Paul and Hill were Lord Aven himself," Sutter continued. "I pursued the other knights to the sea. It seemed they had already prepared, escaping upon driftwood and a water Pokémon."
His voice carried regret—he had failed to capture a single knight.
"You caught none of them?" Kale's eyes flickered again.
"None. Every last one escaped."
"Including Paul and Hill—they all fled."
Sutter shook his head. His words made Kale's face turn pale in an instant.
He knew about the Marina City knights' escape plan—it had been devised precisely to deal with such danger. According to the plan, they should have safely returned.
But in reality, fewer than half had made it back to Marina City.
Even Paul had not returned, and Hill claimed that Paul had been slain by Fruitvale's knights!
Suddenly, Hill's shadow loomed ever larger in Kale's mind. His face grew ashen, a terrifying suspicion rising within him.
Could it be… that Hill had killed Paul himself, along with those knights who resisted him, in order to seize command of the knights?
As the thought surfaced, Kale's heart plummeted into despair. If Hill now dared even to kill his own lord, then what would he not dare to do?
Pain seized him, and he closed his eyes. Paul had not been only his vassal—he had been his closest friend.
Even before Kale had become lord of Marina City, Paul had always followed faithfully by his side. One could say that half the lordship belonged to Paul!
In the end, Kale had become city lord, while Paul had become the chief knight, captain of the entire knight order.
When Kale first heard news of Paul's death, he had fallen into long silence, drowning in regret for the decisions he had made. His ambitions had been utterly crushed at that moment.
Just as the rebels had said, he grew fearful—his courage shattered by Paul's death. He lost not only his last friend, but also his will to press forward.
Without Paul, he was like a tiger that had lost its claws, once a king, now aged and frail.
And all of this—it had all been Hill's conspiracy! Perhaps from the very start, when the knights set out, the outcome had already been doomed.
Hill's goal had never been Paul. From the beginning, it had been the city lordship itself. And behind it all lay the will of the sorcerers!
Closing his eyes, more details surfaced in his mind. Hill had been rescued by the sorcerers… he should have realized it then. Hill had already betrayed them!
"Bii…."
Beside him, Bibarel trembled upon hearing Paul's death.
Although it had eventually left Paul, its tribe had once chosen to escort the Marina City knights safely through the Black Forest. Clearly, they had wanted to ensure the knights' survival.
Now, upon learning that its former master had died, Bibarel's face grew pale. Disbelief shone in its eyes—it could not accept what it had heard.
"The captain of Marina City's knights is dead?" Even Sutter froze. Quickly he said, "I swear—Paul was not killed by us!"
"I know. Paul was indeed not slain by you."
"This was all Hill's scheme. Even his choice to stay behind and hold you off—that too was part of his plan."
"In this way, he won the trust of the knights, and at the same time gained the chance to kill Paul. Then he could conveniently blame it all on you."
"If not for hearing your explanation today, and seeing the final cards Hill has revealed, I might never have believed it. But now… I know it is the truth."
Kale's voice was heavy with age, his eyes filled with torment. The truth was unbearably cruel, yet also inescapably real. He had been played like a fool, and in the end, lost everything.
(End of Chapter)