Pino was an ordinary commoner who harbored a dream — the dream of becoming a knight.
Of course, barring some extraordinary twist of fate, for him this dream would remain forever just that — a dream.
After all, to become a knight, one had to endure rigorous, long-term knightly training.
This single requirement alone was enough to eliminate ninety-nine percent of all commoners. Only those from relatively wealthy commoner families might have even the slightest hope of securing the rare chance to follow and train under an established knight.
Such fortunate individuals would serve as a knight's squire, attending to their daily needs and chores. In exchange for their service, they could receive the knight's guidance and instruction.
Naturally, even receiving knightly training was merely the very first step. For the road to knighthood to truly begin, one had to obtain a mount of their own.
It was those mighty magical beasts that formed the true foundation of a knight's strength, granting them the power to stand far above ordinary men.
Thus, the next great challenge for any would-be knight was how to acquire a mount worthy of the title.
Most aspiring knights would swear loyalty to a particular lord, joining the lord's knightly order in exchange for being granted a trained mount.
However, the number of knights a lord could maintain was limited, and so their selection criteria were exceedingly strict. For a commoner squire with no noble lineage or extraordinary connections, the chances of being chosen were next to none.
Without a lord's patronage, the only alternative was to purchase a tamed magical beast themselves — but without deep coffers, such a purchase was utterly beyond reach.
Still, if a squire could somehow acquire a mount, they would instantly become highly sought-after in the eyes of any lord. No lord would reject a fully-equipped, ready-made knight.
"Forget it. Becoming a knight is simply impossible," Pino muttered as he lay sprawled atop a haystack, lazily watching the family's old ox graze in the fields.
He was nothing more than a cowherd boy. Riding the old ox around was good enough to indulge in a knightly daydream, but to sustain formal knight training and acquire a magical beast mount? That was completely out of the question.
"Pino! Pino! Pino!"
An urgent voice suddenly rang out, pulling Pino from his thoughts. He turned his head in puzzlement to see his childhood friend, Stone, sprinting toward him. The boy was panting heavily, barely able to catch his breath, but his face was alight with irrepressible excitement.
"Pino! A knight — I've found a way to become a knight!"
Although Stone's words were breathless and broken, Pino still caught the crucial part: the word "knight."
"A knight? You're saying… becoming a knight?" Pino's eyes narrowed.
"That's right — a real method to become a knight!"
"You'd better not be joking," Pino said evenly. "If you're just talking about some silly 'cow knight' nonsense, don't waste my time."
"What cow knight? I mean becoming an actual, proper knight." Stone straightened up, took a deep breath, and declared seriously, "I heard it from my relatives in Brambleford Village."
"All we need to do is tame an Oddish. Once we have one, we can register as apprentice trainers. As long as we're apprentice trainers, we can take part in the knight selection trials — and that means we'll be eligible to become knights!"
Stone quickly laid out the details of what he'd learned, his face still flushed with excitement. To him, this was the one and only viable path for commoners to become knights. Success wasn't guaranteed, but at least it was a sliver of hope.
"Capture a Oddish… as a mount?" Pino's brow furrowed.
He glanced back toward the grazing ox. Somehow, his friend's proposal sounded even less realistic than the idea of riding a cow into battle.
"I'm not lying to you," Stone insisted. "Right now, lots of commoners in Brambleford Village are already trying to capture Oddish!"
"And besides, Oddish isn't nearly as weak as you think. If you raise it properly, it can even defeat powerful magical beasts like Rhyhorn!"
He hurried to share another piece of news he'd heard — that a two hundred Gloom had easily held off an attack from an entire knight order.
Pino's eyes went wide. The claim was hard to believe.
"All right, I know you probably don't buy it, but this is something everyone in Brambleford Village has seen with their own eyes!" Stone concluded. "Whether you believe it or not, I'm definitely going to try!"
Without waiting for a reply, he spun around and headed for his family's berry grove. His plan was to check their vegetable plots — places where he had often seen Oddish wandering about.
"Capture a Oddish…" Pino murmured, falling into deep thought.
Just then, the old ox let out a loud bellow. Pino turned his head sharply, only to see a Oddish dash past in front of the animal.
"Oddish… trained to defeat a Rhyhorn…" His friend's words echoed in his mind. Slowly, Pino's gaze grew firm. If this truly offered a chance to become a knight, then he was willing to try!
…
At that moment, in Brambleford Village, a brand-new Pokémon Breeding House had just been built at the village center.
Constructing breeding houses across allied territories was part of Aven's collaborative development agreements with various lords.
Sir Berrin, a staunch supporter of the Breeding House initiative, had been actively promoting it since the very start of construction.
The formidable combat power of the Gloom squads naturally became one of his biggest selling points. Coupled with the villagers' first-hand witness accounts, Brambleford Village soon erupted into a full-blown Oddish-capturing craze.
"Igo, the next little while will be hard work for you," Berrin said with a smile to the young apothecary apprentice inside the Breeding House, who was busy arranging potions and Pokémon feed.
"Don't worry, Sir Berrin. I'll do my best to run this Breeding House well," Igo replied, his hands never stopping as he directed assistants to move crates of potions while he began carefully writing out the price lists.
"If you encounter any difficulties, just tell me. I'll do everything I can to meet your needs." Berrin nodded in satisfaction.
To help promote the Breeding House business, Aven had personally sent apprentices to assist at each location. Igo, as Link's deputy, already had ample experience.
Moreover, every apprentice sent was a trained apothecary who had also undergone basic breeder training. They were highly familiar with the effects of various potions and Pokémon foods.
Knock knock knock—
A faint vibration sounded from outside.
Berrin stepped out of the Breeding House and saw a Skutank pulling a cart approaching at a steady pace.
It stopped right in front of the Breeding House, and the knights escorting it leapt from their mounts to unload crates of goods.
"Careful! Handle them gently — these are valuable potions," Berrin called out.
These were potions he'd purchased from Fruitvale Village, to be sold in his own Breeding House.
Truth be told, Berrin had long desired to buy the formulas for these potions — such as the Bloom Powder Auxiliary Potion, the Growth Fertilizer, and the Rock Slide Auxiliary Potion.
Unfortunately, Fruitvale Village kept their formulas strictly secret. The only way to get them was to buy the finished products.
Fortunately, with the cooperative agreement in place, he could now purchase stock at relatively low prices, enough to meet his needs while still making a healthy profit from sales.
In addition, he had successfully bought the usage methods for these potions and the basic breeding techniques for Oddish — another highly profitable investment.
With these techniques and supplies, he could easily raise large numbers of Oddish, greatly boosting his territory's combat strength.
Oddish was so common that he could already imagine every major territory in Aspiration City fielding sizable Oddish units in the near future.
This was the heart of the cooperation — with Oddish squads, lords could protect their lands without relying on the magical beast trade.
"Misai, how's the site selection for the Pokémon Breeding Area coming along?"
"All ready, Sir Berrin. We've narrowed it to several locations for you to approve."
"Excellent. Make sure the Pokémon Breeding Area and the patrol teams are set up without delay. Also, step up patrols across the territory and expel any magical beast hunters you find.
From this day forward, magical beast hunters are banned here. The Black Forest is the largest breeding ground for Pokémon — we must protect it."
Expelling magical beast hunters was also part of the inter-territory cooperation plan.
Not just the southeastern and northeastern territories — by now, almost all the lords in the East of Aspiration City had joined the alliance. Soon, magical beast hunters would vanish entirely from the region.
The Black Forest bordered both the east and south territories. If both regions expelled hunters, it would become nearly impossible for them to capture magical beasts there.
This was key to crippling the magical beast trade — without beasts from the Black Forest, hunters would have to head for the Aspiration Mountains.
But the mountains were practically the Ironblood Alliance's backyard. Ordinary magical beast hunters would lose all access unless the Alliance allowed them in.
...
Meanwhile, in a dim, humid tavern thick with the scent of cheap ale, Gino pushed the door open.
Half-naked men sat at the center tables, sweat glistening on their backs as they downed mugs of poor-quality beer, roaring with laughter at each other's jokes.
Scantily clad serving girls weaved through the crowd, topping off mugs and occasionally tossing flirtatious glances toward the brawnier patrons.
Gino's brow furrowed slightly as he made his way straight to the bar, where the owner — a scar-faced man with a scruffy beard — kept a watchful eye on the room.
"Gino! Haven't seen you in a while. Where've you been?" the barkeep greeted with a broad grin.
"I've been busy," Gino replied with a faint smile, picking up a mug of beer. "I'm here today to give you a commission."
The tavern might look like it dealt only in drinks, but everyone knew it was a hub for trading information and posting under-the-table jobs.
"What's the job? I need to know before I decide whether to take it," the owner said, lowering his voice and scanning the room.
"Relax — it's nothing shady. I just want you to send a recruitment notice to the magical beast hunters up north. Tell them Fruitvale Village is hiring hunters as forest rangers.
Of course, those with a long list of crimes don't qualify. If they show up, what's waiting for them will be judgment, not a job."
The owner blinked in surprise. He'd taken on plenty of covert commissions before, but never something so formal. Still, he understood — the real point was to use his channels to spread the word quietly.
And since the target was the northern territory of Aspiration City— beast trader territory — this was essentially poaching from their ranks. The message would have to be passed along in absolute secrecy.
"Alright, I'll take on this commission. But spreading this kind of news in the northern territory isn't without risk. I'll need this much!"
The shop owner held up three fingers.
"Fine," Gino replied without hesitation.
He paid the commission fee swiftly, then left the tavern without another word.
The next step was to head to the western territory to spread the news there as well. Gino glanced up at the sun in the sky, then gradually merged into the bustling crowd until he disappeared from sight.
(End of Chapter)
I'll just call the Pokemon Breeding Area of other territories just that and let only Aven's Pokemon Breeding Area to be the only one called Safari Zone.