Inside the castle's study, Aven sat at his desk, writing without pause.
The quill in his hand glided continuously across the notebook, leaving behind lines of characters that did not belong to this world.
But this time, he was not drafting new training plans for his Pokémon. Instead, he was writing out the framework for the Pokémon League's system.
Now that the Pokémon League of this world had been formally established, it naturally needed a complete set of laws and regulations that aligned with the League's interests.
"If the nobles of this world were to see the League system used in the future world, they would definitely brand me a heretic."
Turning to a brand new page, Aven glanced at the thick stack of rules and regulations he had written and couldn't help grinning.
In the Pokémon world of the future, kingdoms and nobles had already become things of the past. The Pokémon League was the single most powerful organization overseeing the entire world.
For this ancient Pokémon era, the Pokémon League could, in essence, also be regarded as a massive kingdom.
But within it, there were no nobles, no hereditary fiefdoms; the entire League operated under one unified system of laws, all managed by centralized departments.
And this League system he was writing would undoubtedly put him in direct opposition to the noble class, for the establishment of the Pokémon League would inevitably involve overturning the current aristocratic order.
In fact, the Pokémon Domain itself was already moving along the path of unified laws and centralized administration. Ever since Aven became a noble, he had never once granted titles or lands to subordinate nobles.
By comparison, Earl Ruize of the Northeastern Domains had long ago divided his lands among his vassals, forming a standard feudal hierarchy.
Moreover, in the matter of knighthood, the Pokémon Domain used an entirely different approach: it bound the role of knight to the identity of a Trainer, with most knights being composed of retired soldiers and common civilians.
This further weakened the presence and influence of nobles within the Pokémon Domain. And the upcoming new administrative-officer selection system would even allow ordinary civilians to compete for governmental positions, completely shattering the entrenched aristocratic order.
However, this was the Pokémon Domain, his own territory, so his system had not yet attracted much attention from other nobles. After all, in present-day Aspiration City, every noble territory already had its own different rules; each lord possessed the right to govern their land as they wished.
But if he attempted to spread this system to other territories, he would undoubtedly face massive resistance. Even if he became the Lord of Aspiration City, nothing would change, he would still become an enemy to the entire noble class.
Of course, the Pokémon League was still only in its infancy. Compared to the centralized power of the future world, the current Pokémon League was nothing more than a commercial alliance built around Pokémon-related industries, with very little real authority.
But Aven believed that as the League's influence continued to expand, its status would inevitably shift in subtle ways, especially since the League's foundation was backed by the Pokémon Domain.
"First perfect the system, then slowly promote it."
"Now that the Pokémon Domain's development has stabilized, it's time to focus on building the League."
Aven took a deep breath. Nearly every lord in Aspiration City had joined the League, marking an incredibly solid first step forward.
Stretching lazily, he stood and walked to the window. Without realizing it, dawn was already approaching.
His gaze drifted to the bed, where Lilligant, Kirlia, and Poipole were snuggled together, each wearing a peaceful and contented smile.
At that moment, Froslass slowly revealed herself in the room, having sensed Aven rise. As a Ghost-type Pokémon, she hardly needed sleep.
"Froslass, I'm done," Aven greeted her with a smile.
He walked over to her side. After an entire winter of training, Froslass's strength had increased significantly.
During this time, not only had she been absorbing the energy of ice and snow, she had also been constantly drawing in the power contained within the yellow crystal.
After the yellow crystal successfully absorbed the grey mist, the Ghost-type energy inside had been purified. Through its connection with the crystal, Froslass could freely absorb its ghostly power.
And aside from absorbing energy from ice, snow, and the yellow crystal, Froslass had already mastered all the moves she needed to learn. From here on, all she needed was consolidation.
In truth, the fastest way for Froslass to grow was still the yellow crystal. Until she had completely absorbed its energy, she did not need much other training.
Moreover, what exactly the yellow crystal was remained a question Aven intended to continue researching. Currently, he had two clues: the Abyssal Cavern and the stone tower at the Ironblood Fortress.
Somewhere within him, Aven felt that this yellow crystal would become a turning point for Froslass, an opportunity for her to gain even greater power.
Froslass let out a happy cry.
Now that all her hidden dangers had been resolved, her mood had brightened considerably.
To be able to feel her strength grow every moment — nothing excited her more.
Of course, the only downside was that winter was about to end, which made the Ice-type Pokémon a little unhappy.
However, since she had already mastered the move Hail, she could simply summon hail to create her own snowfall. That feeling was not bad at all.
"Froslass, come here. I'll meditate with you," Aven said with a small smile.
He then sat cross-legged on a chair, quickly entering a meditative state. His mental power began circulating through his mind.
A multicolored radiance belonging to Azelf constantly nurtured his spiritual power, strengthening it and sweeping away all mental fatigue.
Froslass nodded happily and floated beside Aven, entering meditation with him.
Through meditation, one could directly replace sleep and the effect was far better. It was also a form of training.
Even when he actually slept, Aven would sink his consciousness into meditation, just like Kirlia at that moment, who still emitted gentle psychic fluctuations even in her half-dreaming state.
Gradually, the sun rose from the east. A new day had begun.
The one most sensitive to sunlight, Lilligant woke first. The golden flower on her head twitched as she hurried to the window.
She pulled the curtains open, letting sunlight pour into the room and shine upon her golden blossom, making a milky-white glow appear on her body.
She chirped happily. The sun was her favorite thing in the world.
Then she poked her head outside, spotting all the blooming flowers in the back garden.
Spring had already arrived. Every flower was blossoming vibrantly, just like her current mood.
"Good morning, Lilligant," Aven greeted as he opened his eyes, looking at her bathed in sunlight.
She waved excitedly and ran to the desk.
Somehow, she produced two petals from somewhere and placed them into a cup of water, gently offering it to Aven.
"Thanks, Lilligant."
Aven took the flower tea and drank a large sip.
A refreshing coolness flowed down his throat, clearing his mind instantly. He stood — a new day had arrived.
Lilligant nodded happily, then returned to bask under the sun, stretching comfortably.
Because she had evolved through the power of sunlight, her affinity for solar energy was extremely high. She could even use sunlight to accelerate her own growth.
As for moves powered by sunlight, she mastered them effortlessly. Among them, Growth was especially terrifying — even more powerful than Vileplume's.
Lilligant had now become the undisputed ruler of all Grass-type Pokémon in the territory. Whether it was Sunny Day, Grassy Terrain, or Growth, she could rapidly help Grass-types develop.
At this rate, the Grass-type population of the Pokémon Domain would soon become one of its strongest factions, providing immense protection. Grass-types could be seen scattered throughout the territory.
In addition, the Pokémon Breeding House had received countless orders for Oddish. After witnessing Oddish's strength and how easy it was to nurture, no territory would reject the chance to raise a batch of their own.
These Oddish possessed solid combat potential, required far less cost than training knights, and were extremely reliable. Once they recognized their Trainer, their loyalty far surpassed that of humans.
Lilligant's body glowed faintly under the sunlight as natural energy surged around her, merging her seamlessly with nature and allowing her to absorb sunlight even more easily.
She could even sense all life energy around her. In this state, she could use Absorb at a distance, pulling life energy across space.
Sunlight energy, Grass energy, and life energy — these were the three powerful forces Lilligant had mastered. These would form her three main paths of future training.
Once a Pokémon reached the King level, its growth path was more or less decided. Lilligant had already chosen her three directions; all that remained was strengthening them.
If possible, Aven even wanted to merge all three energies into one. If she succeeded, she might carve a completely unprecedented path and possibly break through to the Champion level in the future.
From the bed, Kirlia also ended her half-sleep, half-meditation state.
When she opened her eyes, Aven met her gaze, and they exchanged a knowing smile.
Kirlia had spent a great deal of time meditating with Aven lately, and their synchronization had become very high.
With a single Teleport, she appeared on the desk in front of him and greeted him cheerfully. Her Teleportation skills were becoming more and more refined.
For Kirlia, her focus had always been on emotional energy and spatial energy. Emotional energy currently didn't contribute much to her strength, and her spatial energy had only just begun.
Compared to Lilligant and Froslass, she was indeed far behind in terms of raw power — but her potential was undeniable. Stepping into king-level was only a matter of time.
Finally, Aven looked at the last Pokémon still lazing in bed — Poipole.
If one spoke of potential, this Ultra Beast had the greatest of them all.
Poipole had already been born for some time. Aven had designed several training methods specifically for it, but due to its characteristics, for now, it could only begin with Poison-type development.
Thus, Aven had prepared toxic concoctions for Poipole — a mixture crafted from various poisonous berries and venoms. Though incredibly potent, for Poipole, it was nothing more than a snack.
(End of Chapter)