The fleet commanders rested in Lucien City for half a month, then set sail once more, continuing their search across the open ocean.
Though he had made up his mind to go to Kalos, Lucien was in no particular hurry. He stayed in Lucien City, watching Anna and the Elite Four work through the affairs of the Pokémon League with steady, growing competence.
He watched a new group of young Trainers receive their first Pokémon and set off into the world with bright, uncertain eyes. He watched the Kingdom's workers and Pokémon laboring side by side in the heat, laying railway lines and power grids outward from Lucien City toward the far corners of Unova. Everything moved with purpose and order.
At night, he stood on the castle rooftop with his Pokémon and watched the lights come on across Lucien City, one window at a time. Even without his direct involvement, the country ran. It breathed on its own.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Come in."
Elif entered, his face bright with barely contained excitement. "Your Majesty, the harvest reports from the various regions have come in!"
Lucien turned from the window. "Oh?"
"A great harvest, Your Majesty." Elif's voice rose with genuine feeling. "This spring, the entire Kingdom has seen an unprecedentedly abundant yield. Every storehouse is full to overflowing. And the berry cultivation you expanded last year has also come in exceptionally well." He paused, letting the weight of it land properly.
"From this year forward, the common people and Pokémon throughout the Kingdom will not go hungry."
Lucien was quiet for a moment.
"Good," he said. "Very good."
He had done it.
"Your Majesty," Elif continued, "there are also reports coming in from villages and towns across the Kingdom. The people have begun building shrines to Landorus."
Lucien didn't give it a great deal of thought. Given how things had unfolded, it seemed almost inevitable. Even thousands of years into the future, the legend of Landorus would likely still be circulating throughout Unova, and because of his presence here, the shape of that future had already shifted in ways he could only partially foresee.
"Arthur and the others should be returning soon," Lucien said.
Arthur was the young man he had sent out with Landorus, Thundurus, and Tornadus, traveling the breadth of Unova, improving the land's soil quality and clearing the latent energy disruptions that had held back the country's growth for generations.
"Arthur and his group have already reached Lacunosa Town," Elif confirmed. "They should arrive within a few days."
"See that he's rewarded properly when he returns." Lucien paused. "Lacunosa, it's changed considerably, hasn't it?"
Elif nodded. "Because of your arrangements, Lacunosa Town was among the earliest to receive a steam train connection. With the large population of Ice-type Pokémon in the surrounding area, it's become a destination for Trainers looking to train or catch Ice-types. The town grew faster than almost anywhere else in the region. It's a proper city now."
Lucien nodded slowly. His arrival had changed a great many things. Some of them he had planned. Others had simply grown on their own, from seeds he hadn't consciously planted.
Three days later, a steam train rolled into Lucien City from the direction of Lacunosa Town, its whistle cutting a long, clear note across the morning air.
At the station, a crowd had already gathered on both sides of the platform, and the moment the train came to a stop, the cheering that broke out was enough to shake the rafters. Not only because of Arthur's return, but because of the three figures that descended behind him.
Landorus moved wreathed in soft, steady Earth-type energy. Wherever it stepped, grass pushed up through the cracks between the stones.
Thundurus and Tornadus flanked it on either side, their wild, restless energy settled into something calmer and more composed than anyone who had known them before would have recognized.
These three Legendary Pokémon, beings that had once stirred the heavens and split the earth, walked quietly and obediently behind a single young man, and the sight of it brought people in the crowd to their knees without a word being spoken.
Arthur himself had changed. His clothes were worn and travel-stained, mud and grass still marking the fabric, but his face carried a resolution that hadn't been there when he left. He descended the platform steps without hurrying, his gaze moving through the crowd until it found Lucien standing at the front.
He dropped to one knee without hesitation.
"Your Majesty." His voice was clear and steady. "Arthur has not failed in his duty. Together with Lord Landorus, Lord Thundurus, and Lord Tornadus, we have traveled throughout Unova, enriching the soil, clearing the land's disrupted energy, and cultivating the earth across the entire Kingdom."
/
"Everything has been restored to life, and left more fertile than before."
The words fell over the crowd, and for a moment the entire station held its breath. Then the cheering erupted, wave after wave of it, rolling out across the platform and into the streets beyond.
Lucien stepped forward and reached down, helping Arthur to his feet himself. He looked at the young man standing before him, the same person who had left Lucien City as a somewhat naive boy, and who had returned as something noticeably different, and let the praise show plainly in his eyes.
"You've worked hard, Arthur. You've done very well. Without you accompanying Landorus across every mountain and river and lake in this Kingdom, there would have been no great harvest this year. The common people and Pokémon would not have escaped poverty as they have. Every effort you made, we all saw it."
"Your Majesty..." Arthur's voice faltered. His eyes were bright with emotion he was struggling to contain.
He had never imagined this. He had come from a farming family, ordinary in every way, nothing remarkable about him at all. That a king would look at him and speak to him like this was more than he had ever allowed himself to expect. And compared to what His Majesty Lucien had done for all of them, what Arthur had contributed felt small. And yet..
His voice steadied. His expression became resolute.
"Arthur swears to serve and protect Your Majesty, with his life if necessary!"
Lucien blinked.
With his life?
He kept his expression composed. "Rise. You've had a long journey, rest well."
He turned to Elif, who stepped forward at once and addressed the assembled crowd in a clear, carrying voice.
"Young Arthur, brave and steadfast, with the people always in his heart, obeyed His Majesty's command and accompanied the three Lords of the Skies on their journey throughout Unova, improving the land and making an immeasurable contribution to the Kingdom and its people."
"Arthur is hereby appointed President of the Unova Kingdom Pokémon Agricultural Association, responsible for all matters of farmland improvement, soil management, and berry cultivation across the Kingdom, and for leading the integration of Pokémon into agriculture nationwide.
He is granted a residence in Lucien City, free access to the Royal Palace and Pokémon League headquarters, and the honorary title of Distinguished Unova Trainer. He may select a starter Pokémon from any location within the League system, and shall receive treatment equivalent to that of the Champion."
Arthur was trembling by the time Elif finished. He dropped back to one knee, and when he spoke, his voice cracked with the effort of holding himself together.
"Arthur thanks Your Majesty, from the bottom of his heart. Arthur swears to serve Your Majesty faithfully, to the end!"
Lucien stared at him for a long moment.
This child is entirely sincere.
He reached out and rested a hand briefly on Arthur's shoulder, then turned his gaze to the three Legendary Pokémon standing quietly nearby. He gave them a slow, acknowledging nod.
Looking at the scene before him, the last trace of worry that had lingered in the back of his mind finally dissolved.
The Unova Kingdom was truly at peace.
The Trainer profession was flourishing, with Anna and the Elite Four carrying the work of guiding humanity and Pokémon forward with steady, capable hands.
Officer Jenny led the police force and its coordination with the International Police, maintaining law and order across the regions. Geralt commanded the army, stationed throughout the Kingdom, a reliable shield at every border.
Everything was in place. Everything was held.
And so, at last, he could leave without looking back.
Not as a private traveler. Not quietly, without announcement. He would go as the King of Unova, sailing to the Kalos Region to meet Az.
...
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