Pokemon: A New Path

The "Toucanon" carrying Teddiursa finally disappeared into the blue sky. Naoki stood in the pasture, looking in the direction they left, feeling a little melancholy.

'I really didn't expect that after traveling to the Pokémon world, I wouldn't be the one to travel, but instead, I'd send my Pokémon on their own journey.'

`This feeling… is weird.`

Teddiursa had left, but life had to go on.

Naoki took a deep breath, returned home, and started cleaning the kitchen utensils he had just used.

Before he knew it, it was already the end of February. The crops in the fields were almost ready to be harvested.

`It's time to get busy again!`

The next morning, Naoki planned to harvest the crops. As soon as he arrived at the farmland, he was pleasantly surprised to find that the flowers he had planted earlier were now in full bloom.

Several types of flowers were mixed together, creating a colorful and bright display, filling the entire ranch with a faint floral fragrance.

The flowers had finally bloomed, and the Pokémon living on the ranch were thrilled.

A group of Pokémon, including Alcremie, Smoliv, Nacli, and Pawmi, were all drawn to the flowers.

The little Alcremie played hide-and-seek with Nacli among the tall blooms.

Smoliv found a comfortable, shady spot and settled there.

Pawmi ran up to a flower in surprise and sniffed at its fragrance. However, it accidentally inhaled some pollen, causing it to sneeze several times in a row.

'If I were to ask which Pokémon are the happiest,' Naoki thought, 'it would definitely be Butterfree and Combee.'

Early in the morning, three hardworking Combee happily gathered in the field, flying above the blooming flowers and collecting nectar.

Butterfree also gently flapped its wings and landed on a flower.

Wearing a straw hat, Naoki watched the scene with a smile on his face.

The ecological habits of these Pokémon came to his mind.

`In the wild, when a Butterfree encounters a Combee, they usually compete for nectar. But here on the ranch, Butterfree and Combee don't fight. Instead, they coexist in harmony, working together with a sense of mutual understanding.`

"You guys play here, I'm going to get to work," Naoki said to the Pokémon before heading over to the farmland area to begin harvesting the crops.

Koraidon and Cyclizar also came to help, placing the harvested tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, and other crops into the large baskets Naoki had prepared in advance.

`Because I'm worried I can't handle it all by myself, I never expanded the scale of my planting,` Naoki thought, as he worked. `I've done all the tilling, planting, fertilizing, pest control, and weeding on my own.`

He hadn't raised too many Pokémon either, since he was alone.

`Once you raise too many Pokémon, you start to focus on the big picture and miss the small details. That leads to some Pokémon being neglected, which can put them in a bad mood and lower the quality of the products they help produce—resulting in the opposite effect of what you want.`

But even with this careful approach, the work in the fields kept them busy for several hours.

By noon, several large baskets were filled, and Naoki was sweating profusely from exhaustion.

Naoki wiped the sweat from his forehead, his gaze lingering on the vegetables and fruits he had just harvested.

To be honest, the income from agriculture was far less than what he earned from animal husbandry. But leaving such a large piece of land uncultivated felt wasteful. Besides, the crops he grew could be sold or used to feed himself and his Pokémon.

The only downside was that these seasonal vegetables couldn't be stored for long.

'It would be nice to have an ice cellar,` Naoki thought.

Crops like potatoes and turnips could be stored for a long time if kept in a low-temperature environment. But building an ice cellar would be costly and would require specialized refrigeration facilities.

`These kinds of large-scale refrigeration setups consume a lot of electricity. If I really install one, I'll be paying a hefty electricity bill every month.`

So, was there another way?

The first thing that came to Naoki's mind was Ice-type Pokémon. But not just any Ice-type Pokémon—he needed one that preferred to live in icy environments, like Cryogonal, Avalugg, or Glaceon.

`The ice cellar could serve as a home for them, doubling as food storage. With their help, I could save both time and money.`

Among these options, Glaceon was the one Naoki wanted to capture the most.

`I've always dreamed of collecting all the Eeveelutions one day.`

He could picture it: Glaceon living in the ice cellar, Leafeon tending to the crops, Flareon keeping everyone warm in winter, Jolteon providing electricity, and Vaporeon occasionally helping Dragonite with the watering.

`When you think about it, the Eevee family is practically unstoppable!`

But, in addition to these, Naoki realized he needed a Pokémon that could help with farming itself.

He glanced over the farmland and the crops he had just harvested, falling into deep thought.

`For farming…` A particular Pokémon came to mind.

`Calyrex.`

Calyrex, the legendary king who once ruled over the Galar region in ancient times. It was said to possess immense wisdom, capable of seeing everything from the past, present, and future.

The reason Naoki thought of it was because this legendary Pokémon was also known as the "King of Bountiful Harvests."

`Calyrex has the power to heal souls and make plants flourish. It's said that with a wave of its right hand, flowers bloom and grass turns green; with a wave of its left hand, fields become fertile and crops grow abundantly.`

This is simply the god of agriculture!

`If I could bring it to the ranch, it would be a perfect match, in a professional sense.`

Thinking this far, Naoki couldn't help but laugh at himself. `I'm really letting my imagination run wild.`

Not long ago, he had entertained thoughts of doing something dubious to someone's horse, and now he was contemplating kidnapping a legendary Pokémon.

'What a sin, what a sin,' Naoki silently prayed in his heart, 'Lord Calyrex, please bless my farm with a bountiful harvest every year!'

He even began to wonder whether he should build an altar to worship the King of Bountiful Harvests, Calyrex.

According to legend, Calyrex does respond to prayers.

The only downside was that he didn't know whether the King of Bountiful Harvests in the Galar region could sense the faith coming from the Paldea region.

————

At the same time, in the far southern part of the Galar region, there was a snowy field where snowflakes fell year-round.

A Pokémon, small and delicate in appearance but exuding an air of elegance and majesty, weakly opened its eyes.

Its gaze pierced through the vast space and time, focusing on a human being who was praying to it.

Feeling the faint power of faith emanating from that person, the Pokémon stirred, gaining a bit of strength.

If Naoki were present, he would have instantly recognized this Pokémon as the legendary King of Bountiful Harvests, Calyrex.

Calyrex had the unique ability to draw power from the faith of others.

But in recent years, the faith provided by the people of the Galar region had dwindled.

People in the modern era no longer believed in the King of Bountiful Harvests, causing its power to wane and its body to grow weak.

Sensing the faint glimmer of faith, Calyrex murmured softly to itself:

"I never thought that in this era, there are still those who believe in me."