"Come out, Chansey."
Aven released all five Chanseys at once.
"Chansey~ Chansey~"
The five little ones had only just emerged, and they immediately huddled together timidly in a tight ball.
Their eyes darted nervously around the unfamiliar environment, clearly uncomfortable with the strangeness of the place.
Fortunately, Aven had long been prepared for this. He released his own Chansey as well. With a familiar companion present, the five newcomers instantly seemed far more at ease.
"Lilligant, please use Aromatherapy to soothe these little ones."
Seeing that the Chanseys were slowly beginning to relax, Aven finally let out a breath of relief.
But after waiting for a moment, he suddenly froze. There was no response from Lilligant.
His gaze shifted over, only to find Lilligant standing before a wagon, eyes closed, as if sensing something intently.
"Lilligant, did you discover something?" Aven walked over, puzzled.
"Lilli…"
Lilligant jolted slightly. After a long moment, she nodded.
From inside one of the wooden crates, she could feel a wave of energy—both familiar and unfamiliar.
It resembled solar energy… yet there was something subtly different about it, something that stirred a faint instinctive guess within her.
"Could it be… a Sun Stone?" Aven's eyes lit up.
After reading Lilligant's thoughts through telepathy, he made no hesitation and opened the wooden crate at once.
Immediately, a dazzling brilliance burst from within the box—an entire crate filled to the brim with gemstones!
The surrounding knights also swallowed hard at the sight. They all knew of His Highness Aven's fondness for gems, so this scene didn't surprise them too much.
"Lilli~"
Once the crate was open, Lilligant hopped straight inside.
She rummaged quickly through the pile, and soon pulled out a brown, angular gemstone.
Lilligant's eyes sparkled the instant she saw it. She confirmed her instinct without a shred of doubt—the pull she felt in her very bloodline could only mean one thing:
It was a Sun Stone!
"It really is a Sun Stone!"
Aven's face bloomed with genuine delight.
He had searched all throughout Aspiration City for a Sun Stone, and finally, he had found one.
Although Lilligant had already evolved through her own power, there was still regret in never having absorbed an actual Sun Stone.
Now that he finally had one, Lilligant would be able to absorb it and deepen her understanding of Sun Stone energy.
As Lilligant continued sensing the energy within the stone, Aven's eyes drifted back to the crate—and a faint green glimmer suddenly caught his attention.
After pushing aside several ordinary gemstones, he saw it clearly: a Leaf Stone. And not just one—there were several Leaf Stones in the crate!
"A Leaf Stone!"
"So, it's true. There really are Leaf Stones in the Great Wetlands!"
Aven drew in a deep breath. With Leaf Stones, the Glooms would finally be able to evolve!
At present, the territory had many Glooms, but only one Vileplume. Now, with more Glooms capable of evolving into Vileplume, the strength of the Pokémon Domain would rise significantly.
Aside from the Leaf Stones, the crate also contained several Water Stones. Naturally, he planned to send all of them to Bibarel Lake to continue enriching the lake's water-type energy.
Unfortunately, after searching through the entire crate, he found no second Sun Stone. He could not tell where this lone Sun Stone had originally come from.
"Your Highness Aven, these gemstones are a gift from Marquis Salt," Link explained. "He knows you are very fond of gems."
"I see… Marquis Salt was thoughtful." Aven nodded in satisfaction.
Now that he knew the Great Wetlands might contain a Leaf Stone vein, he absolutely needed to strengthen ties with the western domains of Aspiration City.
More importantly, he was very curious where the marquis had obtained the Sun Stone and Leaf Stones, especially the Sun Stone. If they could locate more of them, they could cultivate countless Bellosoms.
Bellosom, like Chansey, was perfect for becoming a healing Pokémon. With more Bellosoms, they could establish many more Pokémon Centers.
Developing into the Great Wetlands was now imperative. Not only did it house numerous wild Pokémon and valuable Leaf Stone resources, but it also connected directly to Mirevale City.
And through Mirevale City, they could reach the deeper core regions of Sinnoh, linking to even more territories—bringing massive development potential to Aspiration City.
After briefly checking the other crates, Aven instructed the knights to transport all goods to town to be handled by the proper departments, while the items he personally needed would be sent directly to the castle.
"Lilli~"
Lilligant clutched the Sun Stone lovingly, unable to put it down.
The stone was truly precious. Lilligant did not immediately absorb it; instead, she intended to study it carefully first.
As for the five Chanseys, they had calmed down under the reassurance of their fellow Chansey, sticking close behind her.
"Chansey~ Chansey~"
Chansey led its companions to Aven's side, patiently explaining who Aven was.
A soft healing aura radiated from her body—techniques personally taught by His Highness Aven!
"Lilli~"
Lilligant put away the Sun Stone and moved beside the Chanseys, soothing them as well.
Gentle waves of fragrance flowed from her body, naturally easing their tension and helping them relax.
With the group settled, Aven headed toward the Pokémon Center.
Inside, numerous injured people and Pokémon were waiting for treatment.
Once inside, the Chanseys immediately began their work, helping heal the injured.
For Pokémon like Chansey, helping other beings was instinctive and winning their goodwill this way was the most effective.
Soft pink pulses of healing energy flashed around them, containing a rich vitality. Working at the Pokémon Center was an excellent form of training for the Chanseys.
Aven planned to leave the five Chanseys at the Pokémon Center so they could gain hands-on experience treating the wounded.
When the time was right, he would teach them the Healing Pulse move and arrange formal training for them—preparing them for future work at Pokémon Centers.
"Also, these five Chanseys are already adults."
"That means we also need to consider finding them partners. Only then can more Chanseys be bred."
Aven narrowed his eyes in thought. Five Chanseys alone were far from enough to meet the Pokémon League's future needs. He needed them to reproduce to support the expansion of Pokémon Centers.
In his previous life, nearly every cities and town and even many villages, had its own Pokémon Center. All of that was thanks to the Joy family's mastery of methods that enabled Chanseys to reproduce quickly.
(End of Chapter)
TN: I just realized that Happiny really only comes out when Chansey is breed with a Ditto or other fairy Pokémon as long as Chansey holds an Oval Stone. Sooo, the author was actually correct then.