After the harvest celebration, the people of the territory, hearts filled with hope for the future, slowly dispersed and returned to their homes.
Among them was Cliff.
Due to the growing population and the lack of sufficient housing, Cliff currently shared a small cabin with a man named Frick.
Both of them were once slaves of the kingdom. Back in the Royal City, they had eaten dry, rock-hard black bread and thin porridge barely fit for humans, day after day of endless labor without rest.
Back then, Cliff and Frick had believed their lives were over, trapped in darkness, with no hope for the future.
But now, everything had changed.
His Highness Lucien had not only abolished their slavery but had granted them citizenship, giving them the right to live freely within his territory.
He had even provided homes, where they could finally rest on soft beds instead of cold stone floors.
And now, His Highness was even distributing seeds, allowing them to cultivate their own plots of land.
That meant that, for the first time, they could grow their own food, and never again fear hunger.
Neither Cliff nor Frick ever wanted to return to their old lives.
They cherished this new freedom with all their hearts.
Upon returning to their small cabin, they knelt on the floor with reverent expressions and murmured their gratitude to His Highness Lucien.
To them, he was like the sun itself, radiant, warm, and life-giving, illuminating what had once been an endless night.
For the first time, life felt truly hopeful.
That night, lying in their separate beds and gazing into the darkness, Cliff suddenly spoke:
"Frick… we can't let His Highness Lucien down."
They had decided, they would work even harder to repay His Highness's kindness.
Frick chuckled softly in the dark. "Do you even need to say that?"
Cliff smiled, then turned thoughtful.
"The power of magical beasts… it's incredible," he murmured.
Indeed, neither of them had ever imagined that monsters, those mysterious magical creatures, could possess such wondrous abilities.
"I wonder…" Frick said wistfully, "if one day, I'll meet a magical beast willing to follow me."
He was thinking of Lucien's Snivy, and of Peppa and George's three Snover, the way those monsters worked alongside their partners in harmony.
If he could someday meet such a creature, it could help him tend the land and sow the seeds for his new life.
After spending time among the Pokémon in the territory, the two former slaves had lost much of their fear.
In fact, Frick found many of them not only powerful, but also adorable.
He wasn't alone. Cliff felt the same.
Watching the Pokémon run freely through the settlement each day filled him with an emotion he couldn't quite name, a strange warmth, a sense of connection.
That night, as the cries of wild Pokémon echoed faintly from the forests beyond the walls, Cliff and Frick lay in bed, feeling a deep, quiet peace settle over them.
Dreaming of the lives that awaited them, they slowly drifted into sleep.
Across the territory, similar scenes played out, homes filled with laughter, gratitude, and dreams of a better tomorrow.
At Lucien's residence, the young lord sat quietly by the fireplace, gently massaging Dratini's body as soft flames flickered across the room.
Before him, lines of glowing notifications began to flash across the panel of his Territory System:
[Satisfaction +10!]
[Satisfaction +25!]
[Satisfaction +20!]
He glanced at the numbers updating in real time.
There were now 299 human residents and 28 Pokémon living within the territory.
The day's harvest had secured their food supply, at last, no one had to fear starvation. And with their basic needs finally met, the hearts of his people brimmed with gratitude.
As their joy flowed into him through the System, notifications continued to cascade across the screen, like golden rain.
After three full minutes, the stream finally ceased.
Total Satisfaction: 2,500.
Lucien exhaled slowly, his lips curving upward. This means new technology can be unlocked.
Furthermore, Lucien noticed something new.
The loyalty of many civilians in the territory had risen significantly.
A quick glance across the Territory System revealed that most people now maintained loyalty levels between 85 and 95.Only a handful had reached the maximum of 100 individuals such as Elif, the loyal old butler; Geralt, the steadfast knight; Anna and Ryan.
But what caught Lucien's attention most was an unexpected name;
[Citizen Name: Cliff]
[Age: 22]
[Occupation: None]
[Special Ability: None]
[Loyalty: 100 (Max)]
[Life Record:]
In the 127th year of the Royal Calendar, Cliff was born in a small village in the Kingdom of Kassiak.
In the 135th year, the Kingdom of Kassiak was destroyed, and Cliff was captured by the Kingdom of Eindok.
In the 145th year, Cliff lived as a slave in the Royal City of Eindhok.
In the 148th year, he was brought to His Highness Lucien's fiefdom.
In the 149th year, after Lucien abolished slavery, Cliff was freed. He has since regarded His Highness as the sun that illuminated his life and vowed to work tirelessly in gratitude for this mercy.
Lucien: "So that's how it is."
Though momentarily at a loss for words, a faint smile curved across his lips.
The man's sincerity was unmistakable.
Not bad, Lucien thought. I could rely on him in the future.
However, one detail in Cliff's record caught his attention: the Kingdom of Kassiak.
Lucien's expression grew thoughtful.
In this world, the Pokémon continents were far larger than what the old legends or the "games" of the ancients had described.Even now, Unova, known locally as Eindok, was not a unified nation but a patchwork of kingdoms and duchies.
Eindok was the most powerful among them, yet scattered along its borders were many small, unstable realms like Kassiak, long since erased by war or absorbed by their stronger neighbors.
Lucien leaned back, lost in thought.
It was a reminder that his own territory, however peaceful now, still rested on the edge of a fragmented world.
At that moment, a brilliant white light suddenly burst forth beside him.
"Snivy!"
Lucien's head snapped around instantly.
It was coming from his Snivy.
The serpentine Pokémon's entire body glowed, energy swirling around it like liquid sunlight.
Lucien's eyes widened. Is it… evolving again?
But Serpini's face twisted with resistance.
Rather than embrace the change, it clenched its small fists and fought against the surge, its willpower visibly straining against the flow of evolution.
After a long, tense moment, the brilliant light dimmed and finally faded away.
Snivy collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, its green scales slick with sweat.
"Snivy …" Lucien murmured softly.
Nearby, Dratini watched, head tilted in confusion.
"Woo?" it trilled.
It couldn't understand, why would a Pokémon refuse to evolve?
If it were in Snivy's place, it would have embraced evolution without hesitation.
To grow stronger meant being able to protect Lucien, and itself.
But Serpini offered no explanation.
Instead, it straightened slowly, its amber eyes firm and unwavering as it met Lucien's gaze.
"Snivy."
Lucien studied it in silence.
'This won't do,' he thought grimly. 'If Snivy is truly resisting evolution, I should find a way to support that choice.'
He recalled something from his memories.
Everstone: A mysterious stone infused with stabilizing energy. Pokémon that carry it will retain their form and never evolve.
Lucien exhaled quietly. "Maybe, there's something like that hidden in the mines."
...
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