It would probably take a lot of time for Pidove to reach Eindoak.
Even if there's an intelligence network among Pokémon, if it's not on its way and Pidove gets the direction wrong, it might take a long time to arrive.
But for Draconis, this was the only option.
The Unova region is vast, and even Draconis, as a transmigrator, couldn't determine his approximate location based on the surrounding terrain.
They couldn't put all their hopes on Pidove.
Therefore, Draconis decided to send Evan to search for human settlements nearby.
That afternoon, Evan, carrying ample food, bid farewell to everyone in the territory and embarked on his mission.
Finding a village where humans lived was not difficult for Evan.
As a messenger with rich experience in wilderness travel, Evan knew that many villages and towns were built near rivers.
After leaving the territory, Evan continuously advanced downstream along the river.
Along the way, Evan occasionally encountered some wild beasts drinking by the river.
But fortunately, his rich wilderness survival experience taught him how to avoid these dangerous presences.
During the day, Evan cautiously moved forward along the river, using the sunrise and sunset to determine his direction, thereby avoiding getting lost.
At night, Evan would find a secluded cave or climb a large tree to rest.
The sun rose and set, and the food in his satchel decreased daily... After Evan's continuous journey day and night, he finally found traces of a human village on the fifteenth day after leaving the territory.
From afar, Evan saw several farm women in old clothes fetching water by the river.
He ran forward, his face full of excitement, and vigorously waved at them: "Hey!"
The farm women, who had just stood up upon hearing the commotion, saw a man who looked like a savage running towards them.
The women immediately gasped and fearfully tried to turn and flee.
But when one of the women, who was about thirty years old, clearly saw the "savage's" face, she froze on the spot.
The wooden basin she was using to wash clothes clattered to the ground.
"Evan?!" the woman exclaimed in disbelief.
"Huh? You know me?" Seeing the woman's reaction, Evan was stunned. He carefully looked at the woman's face, and a familiar name instantly appeared in his mind: "Martha!"
"Yes, it's me!"
An unprecedented joy filled Evan's heart. He quickly went forward to check on Martha's condition: "You're not dead? No, no, no, how did you survive?"
Martha, like them, was a Commoner sent to accompany His Highness Draconis to the fief.
Evan often delivered letters to her in the royal city, and over time, they got to know each other.
At this moment, seeing Evan safe, Martha felt relieved for her friend and also had many questions she wanted to ask.
The two hit it off immediately. Led by Martha, they entered the village. After passing a country road lined with blooming flowers, a camp with many tents appeared ahead.
Everyone in the camp was busy.
Among the crowd, Evan saw many familiar figures.
"Hey! Everyone, come and see, who is this?!" Martha shouted excitedly to the crowd.
Everyone who heard the shout turned their heads in unison, and when they clearly saw the figure, their faces also showed expressions of disbelief.
"You are... Evan?!"
"Oh my gosh! Where did you come from?"
"Where are the others? Why are you here alone?!"
A group of people gathered around, surrounding Evan.
Evan grinned, then detailed to everyone what happened after the Blizzard that caused them to scatter from the main group.
"...His Highness Draconis led us to set up camp in a mountain valley plain. We cut trees together, built wooden houses together, and now we are stable. This time, I came to search for nearby villages on His Highness Draconis's orders."
"Oh, by the way, what about you all? How did you survive?" Evan quickly asked.
"Us?" Everyone exchanged glances.
Martha in the crowd smiled and said, "It's all thanks to Lord Gerolt. He led us through the Blizzard and found this village. The people here took us in and allowed us to stay."
At that time, they were separated from the main force, and just when everyone thought they were doomed, Lord Gerolt appeared.
"Lord Gerolt is also fine?!" Evan was somewhat surprised.
"Yes!" Martha nodded.
Evan quickly looked around but didn't see the Lord: "Where is Lord Gerolt?"
Martha hesitated for a moment and replied, "Lord Gerolt is very worried about His Highness Draconis... During this time, he has been searching everywhere for His Highness Draconis and everyone. Just yesterday, Lord Gerolt left the camp and went out again to search for His Highness Draconis. He should be back in a few days."
"Phew... It's good that he's fine, it's good that Lord Gerolt is fine!" Evan breathed a sigh of relief and added, "His Highness Draconis will be very happy to hear that Lord Gerolt is still alive!"
"Yes!" The surrounding people also nodded.
Evan turned to look around and then realized that this camp was larger than he had imagined.
The scene of the last Blizzard flashed through his mind, and Evan couldn't help but ask:
"How many people are left here?"
Martha: "Only two hundred and twenty-one."
Her face was a bit grim, clearly recalling some unpleasant memories.
Hearing this, everyone also fell silent.
There were five or six hundred of them when they left the royal city.
And now, only they were still alive...
In a deep forest, a tall, well-built, handsome man with long silver hair leaned against a large tree, looking up at the sky above his head.
Beside the man, a Pokémon covered in hard armor with a pair of large axe-shaped teeth on its face was sharpening its teeth with a large stone.
"Creak, creak—"
The man's thoughts were interrupted by the grating sound. He turned to look, then threw a whetstone towards the Haxorus.
"Use this!"
The Haxorus accurately caught the whetstone. It held it in its hand and observed it for a while, then, without instruction, used it to sharpen its teeth.
Seeing this, Gerolt retracted his gaze. He looked into the distance with deep eyes.
Three months had passed since he separated from His Highness Draconis.
Based on Gerolt's reconnaissance of the surrounding terrain during this time, with the condition of the team at that time, it would have been impossible to cross that Blizzard.
Therefore, His Highness Draconis and his group must have stayed somewhere, just like them.
The scene from that time couldn't help but appear in Gerolt's mind.
At that time, they encountered a group of terrifying wild beasts in a forest.
The wild beasts launched a fierce attack on them, and to protect His Highness Draconis, he ultimately chose to lure the beasts away alone.
At that time, he was forced to a cliff, and in desperation, Gerolt had no choice but to draw his sword and fight them.
But just then, something unexpected happened to Gerolt.
When the wild beasts saw him, they did not attack en masse but chose to send one member of their tribe after another to fight him.
He defeated several wild beasts with just one man and one sword. In the end, when fighting the leader of that tribe, his sword struck the opponent's blade-like teeth.
His sword broke, and the opponent's teeth were also broken.
At that time, just when Gerolt thought he was doomed, the wild beasts chose not to attack again.
It seemed to be a mutual appreciation between strong individuals. They just looked at him deeply, as if to remember him forever.
One of the wild beasts he defeated even chose to leave its tribe and follow him.
"…"
After resting, Gerolt stood up and looked at the wild beast that fought alongside him, speaking in a hoarse voice:
"Let's go, it's time to find His Highness Draconis!"