To Aven's surprise, the journey went far more smoothly than expected. Within a short while, they had already left the Aspiration Mountains behind and emerged onto the open plains.
Meanwhile, at the border knights' patrol camp, Kevin was overseeing the distribution of food supplies, waiting for Aven's return.
"Captain Kevin!" a knight suddenly shouted, face pale. "Magical beast —there are large numbers of magical beast emerging from the forest!"
"Large numbers…?" Kevin's eyes widened. He immediately stepped outside the camp, gazing toward the distant treeline.
Behind him, the knights lined up swiftly, ready for battle. Their Rhyhorns stood in formation, stomping the ground in anticipation.
Kevin already had his suspicions—but Earl Aven had only been gone for a short time. Could it really be him? He couldn't take chances; the knights had to be prepared to fight.
Then—
"GOOON!"
A mighty dragon's cry split the skies.
Flygon soared through the air, wings gleaming emerald as it looked down at the knights below, its sharp eyes catching sight of their battle formation.
"Flygon!" Kevin muttered, his expression hardening. "And it's strong—incredibly strong!"
His gaze turned toward the distant horizon. By now, he could already faintly see the silhouettes of countless magical beast appearing one after another in the distance.
Just then, one particular figure suddenly broke away from the massive horde and began running swiftly toward the encampment.
At the sight of this, the knights immediately raised their bows in unison. They only awaited a single command before unleashing a volley of arrows that would rain down mercilessly upon the approaching magical beasts.
"Wait! Everyone, hold your fire!"
Just as the knights were about to release their arrows, Kevin's voice rang out sharply, halting them.
His gaze remained fixed on that rapidly approaching figure, his expression tense yet focused. Only when the figure drew closer did he finally make out the outline of a person mounted upon its back.
"It's Earl Aven! Earl Aven has returned!" a knight cried out in surprise.
The rest of the knights quickly echoed the exclamation, their earlier tension giving way to relief.
Kevin too exhaled softly, his expression easing. Since those magical beast were following behind Aven, it was clear they weren't enemies.
"Captain Kevin," Aven called as he approached, "I've brought the Pokémon tribe back."
"Their leader is my Garchomp—so you don't need to worry. They won't invade human territory."
After arriving at the camp, Aven briefly explained the entire situation. Upon hearing the full scale of this magical beast tribe, Kevin's mouth hung open in disbelief.
By his own assessment, if such a powerful tribe had truly chosen to attack, there would have been no way for their border patrol outpost to withstand the assault. Their only hope of survival would have been to retreat behind the walls of Ironblood Fortress.
At the same time, Kevin felt an immense wave of relief wash over him. Thankfully, Earl Aven had entered the Aspiration Mountains in time to prevent the planned assault on the fortress—otherwise, the consequences would have been disastrous.
"Have the food supplies been prepared?" Aven asked calmly.
"Our first task now is to earn these Pokémon's trust."
"Once we establish a basic foundation of trust, we can begin handing over this stretch of wasteland for them to live in."
"Most of them are Ground-type Pokémon. They're perfectly suited to this kind of environment—which will save us a great deal of work."
Aven continued giving instructions. The construction of the Pokémon Breeding Zone would not happen overnight, but with Garchomp as the tribe's leader, everything would proceed far more smoothly.
Once mutual trust was established, the next step would be setting proper regulations—rules that both humans and Pokémon had to follow.
In the future, the human domain would provide sufficient food supplies for the Pokémon, and in return, the Pokémon would protect and manage the territory, ensuring that other wild Pokémon who entered the zone also obeyed the established laws.
"Don't worry, my lord. Everything's ready," Kevin replied, nodding as he led Aven into the camp.
On the open ground outside, piles of food were stacked high—part of the massive stockpile that Ironblood Fortress had accumulated over time. What lay before them now was merely a fraction of it.
When they had first opened the granary, the knights hadn't emptied it completely. Most of the grain had been left behind to sustain the fortress and support the future construction of the Breeding Zone.
Before long, Kevin had counted out a portion of the food and ordered it to be transported toward the edge of the forest at the base of the Aspiration Mountains.
Since complete trust hadn't yet been established between the two sides, Garchomp had only led the tribe to settle near the outer edge of the forest, choosing to camp there temporarily.
"Gar~ Chomp!"
Among the tribe, Garchomp was busy calming its restless companions.
At that moment, Flygon descended from the sky, its wings creating a soft gust of wind as it landed. It had already spotted the knights in the distance, bringing food carts along with them.
Following Aven's lead, the knights approached the magical beast tribe. Yet as they entered the clearing, many of them felt their hearts tighten.
Even though they were trained warriors, standing amidst so many powerful magical beast especially the massive Onix made them nervous. If not for Aven standing calmly at the front, several of them might have already turned tail and fled—after all, these creatures had always been seen as terrifying magical beast in their eyes.
"Everyone, help distribute the food," Aven said with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry—they won't attack you."
Still, the knights hesitated. Instead, several of the food transporters—who happened to be the rangers from the Pokémon Domain—quickly stepped forward, moving efficiently to unload and distribute the food among the Pokémon.
These rangers were already well-acquainted with Pokémon, and a few of them even lit up with excitement as they spotted some particularly strong-looking ones.
Carrying baskets of food, they approached different Pokémon, using this as an opportunity to strike up friendly contact. Their plan was simple: to build an initial bond of trust—once a relationship formed, they could eventually invite those Pokémon to become their partners.
They had done this countless times before. In fact, every Pokémon beside them now had been captured through this very method. As long as one showed genuine sincerity, Pokémon would always respond in kind.
With the rangers leading the way, the knights gradually followed their example and began distributing food as well. Bit by bit, the once-tense atmosphere softened, replaced by warmth and mutual curiosity.
"Roaarr~!"
The Pokémon could all smell the delicious aroma of food in the air.
Normally, they would have already lunged forward by now—but today, they waited patiently.
Their leader was watching, and Garchomp had already given them clear orders: if they waited quietly, food would come to everyone.
Crunch, crunch, crunch—
Soon, the sound of chewing filled the clearing.
It was clear these Pokémon had never eaten anything this delicious before—they devoured the food ravenously, eyes gleaming with delight.
Watching this, the knights finally relaxed, their earlier fear replaced with surprise. These magical beasts… didn't seem so terrifying after all.
"What are you all standing around for?" one of the rangers laughed. "Now's the best time to build a bond!"
He explained that as long as they earned a magical beast's recognition, they could form a partnership directly.
The knights blinked in surprise—they still weren't quite used to the ways of the Safari Breeding Zone.
But soon, their eyes began to brighten. If they could win the favor of these magical beast, their own strength would increase tremendously.
Encouraged by the rangers, they began approaching the Pokémon one after another, offering food, exchanging glances, and slowly forming connections.
A gentle, harmonious atmosphere spread throughout the clearing.
"They really can coexist peacefully…" Kevin murmured in disbelief, scanning the crowd.
"Of course they can," Aven said with a soft smile.
"While there will always be some aggressive Pokémon, most can live peacefully with us."
"As long as they no longer suffer from hunger or the struggle to survive, why would any Pokémon wish to invade human lands?"
"The real issue is that humans and magical beast have long lacked a bridge for communication. If both sides can learn to understand one another and speak sincerely, we can become partners."
Aven smiled faintly at the scene before him. He spoke as if it were simple—but in truth, building such a bridge was a long and arduous task.
If not for Garchomp's position as their leader, none of this communication would have been possible. Had the knights simply approached with food, the Pokémon's first instinct would likely have been to snatch it.
But sincerity had a way of being recognized. Given enough time and patience, trust could grow—creating a bridge between the two species.
And so, in the days that followed, the knights began delivering food to the forest every day.
Meanwhile, Garchomp and its tribe stood guard faithfully around the forest's edge. During this entire period, the border patrol knights were stunned to discover something incredible—not a single Pokémon had crossed into human territory.
"Remember this," Aven reminded the knights during one of their deliveries. "From now on, the magical beast living within the Pokémon Breeding Zone are to be referred to as Pokémon."
The term "Pokémon" had already begun to spread widely throughout Aspiration City, and the townsfolk had readily accepted it.
"We'll remember that, Lord Aven," the knights replied in unison.
Yet as they glanced toward the distant forest, a look of anticipation flickered in their eyes.
After several days of interaction, they had already grown attached to those Pokémon—and were eager to see them again.
When the knights arrived at the forest's edge, the Pokémon too became visibly excited. They already knew what the knights' arrival meant: food.
Over time, they had grown accustomed to this peaceful rhythm of life—something they had never dared to dream of before. They loved it deeply.
And to ensure they could continue living such a life, they worked diligently to fulfill their duties, guarding the territory faithfully.
From high above, Flygon swooped down gracefully, clutching a small Rattata in its claws.
That little Rattata had tried sneaking out of the forest toward human lands, only to be caught by the ever-vigilant Flygon.
Upon returning, Flygon tossed the disobedient youngster to a larger Raticate within the tribe—leaving it to discipline the troublemaker appropriately.
'Hmm, looks like feeding time's coming soon,' Flygon mused, glancing toward the approaching knights. 'That little fellow sure got lucky.'
"Almost here now," one of the knights said, squinting ahead. "But… have you noticed? We've been bringing more and more food lately."
The others nodded. Indeed, it seemed that the number of Pokémon within the tribe was increasing every day. Each trip now required at least two extra carts of grain.
"Earl Aven," Kevin said with a frown, "at this rate, the population of the Breeding Zone will keep growing. I'm afraid our supplies won't last through the winter."
"Don't worry," Aven said calmly, smiling. "I already have a plan."
Before him stood a small cluster of Oddish.
"If we run short on food," he said, planting a thorny sprig into the soil, "then we'll just grow more."
Petilil gracefully stepped forward and released a wave of green energy—Grassy Terrain. The soil glowed softly, and the thorn took root, sprouting rapidly and growing into a dense, bramble-like plant.
This thorny vine was a fast-growing species Aven had discovered in the Black Forest. With sufficient energy, it could grow almost endlessly.
Even better, it was highly resilient—able to thrive even in barren soil or during winter, so long as it received minimal nutrients.
"Earl Aven, are you planning to feed the Pokémon this?" Kevin asked doubtfully.
He had seen such thorns before—they were common in the Black Forest. But aside from a few specific species, most Pokémon found them inedible.
Even Rattata, which could eat almost anything, disliked them, and would only chew on them when absolutely starving.
He couldn't believe that Pokémon in the Breeding Zone would willingly eat such food. And without a stable food source, the fragile balance of the Breeding Zone could collapse—undoing all of their efforts.
"I never said they'd eat the thorns directly," Aven replied with a faint smile.
"In fact, these thorns will serve as one of the ingredients for Pokémon food."
"I believe the Aspiration Mountains already contain large amounts of this plant."
"What I need from you is to collect as much of it as possible and transport it to my Pokémon Domain."
"There, we'll buy them in bulk—and in return, send you equivalent amounts of processed Pokémon food."
Kevin blinked, utterly stunned. Those delicious Pokémon feeds that the creatures loved so much… were made from thorns?
"Of course, pure thorns alone wouldn't work," Aven chuckled, shaking his head. "Other materials need to be added as well."
Kevin fell silent for a long moment. Even so, the idea seemed almost unbelievable.
But thinking it through, he realized the potential. These thorn plants grew everywhere, and cultivating them was child's play. As long as they had enough supplementary ingredients, the supply of Pokémon food could be endless.
That meant—perhaps for the first time—the Pokémon Breeding Zone could truly sustain itself.
And suddenly, Kevin understood why Aven had been so confident all along.
(End of Chapter)