On a cold, snowy night, a bitter wind howled outside, carrying with it flurries of heavy snow.
Inside the newly built wooden house, Ellie sat around a warm bonfire. Suspended above the flames was a pot of fragrant, fish broth, its steam curling into the air.
"All right, it's ready to eat!" Anna's mother, Ellie, called out gently as she ladled the broth into bowls.
"It's snowing so hard outside!" Anna and Zorua exclaimed in awe as they peered through the small window at the swirling blizzard. At Ellie's call, Anna turned and ran back to the fire. Beside her, Zorua leapt down from the windowsill onto the wooden floor, eyes shining as he sniffed the pot of steaming soup.
"It smells so good!" Anna said eagerly.
"Then have some more," Ellie replied with a smile. She filled another bowl and placed it in front of Zorua. "Zorua, this one's for you too. If it's not enough, just let me know."
"Zorua!" The little fox Pokémon dipped his head and lapped at the broth with his pink tongue, tail wagging contentedly.
Ellie watched the scene with quiet amazement. She remembered the moment Anna had been out gathering herbs, only to be attacked by a wild beast. If not for Zorua's intervention, she would have been badly hurt. From then on, she had fully accepted the Pokémon's presence. Living alongside such a companion wasn't frightening at all, it was comforting.
"Delicious!" Anna bit into the golden, charred fish, her face lighting up with joy.
Ellie smiled softly. "Anna, make sure you study hard under Lord Lucien. Don't let him down, all right?"
It was thanks to Lord Lucien that they had this home, this warmth, this chance to live. Without him, they would probably have frozen to death in the storm outside.
"Yes!" Anna answered firmly.
Anna nodded vigorously. Remembering the task Lord Lucien had given her, she turned to Zorua and said, "Zorua, let's practice some more illusions before bed!"
"Zorua!" the little fox barked excitedly.
...
As evening came, Lucien returned from outside, shivering. He shook the snow from his cloak and stepped into the room. The fireplace burned brightly, sparks crackling as its warm glow bathed the house in orange light. Soon, Lucien felt the chill leave his body.
Perhaps because of the comfort, Dratini and the Minccino were already growing drowsy. The five Minccino huddled together on the bed, while Dratini coiled up on a cushion by the carpet and drifted off to sleep. None of them stirred when Lucien entered.
Smiling, Lucien signaled his maid to bring in dinner. Their meal consisted of grilled fish, fish soup, white bread, and smoked ham, with diced pomelo fruit for dessert.
The delicious aroma quickly spread throughout the room. Dratini stirred first, lifting its head with a soft trill. The Minccino perked up soon after, noses twitching as they scrambled upright.
Lucien chuckled. "Dinner's ready!"
The Pokémon immediately gathered around him, their eyes shining with excitement, and joined him at the table to eat.
Lucien himself ate quickly, and while Dratini and the others were still finishing, he summoned his dashboard.
"Now, time to check on the technology."
With the completion of the wooden house, the satisfaction of his residents had already increased by 500 points. Over the afternoon, it continued to rise steadily, surpassing 600.
With a flick of his mind, the familiar technology tree unfolded before his eyes:
[Gathering (Unlocked)] → Branch 1 [Basic Fruit Cultivation (Unlockable)]
→ Branch 2 [Basic Herbalism (Unlocked)] → [Advanced Herbalism (Unlockable)]
[Animal Husbandry (Unlockable)] → [Basic Processing (Unlocks some basic agricultural and sideline product processing recipes)]
[Fishing (Unlocked)] → [Basic Shipbuilding (Unlockable)]
[Mining (Unlockable)] → [Basic Ore Theory (Unlockable)]
Lucien's eyes moved slowly over the branches of the technology tree.
With over 600 Satisfaction Points stored, he already had enough to unlock both Mining and Animal Husbandry.
But…
His gaze lingered on the remaining options, and he fell into thought.
Basic Fruit Cultivation would unlock automatically once the farmers planted pomelo seeds into the soil next spring, there was no need to spend points there.
Advanced Herbalism looked tempting. It contained recipes for stronger healing potions, the sort that could save lives in an emergency. The trouble was that unlocking it required 500 Satisfaction Points.
"Forget it. With the herbs Lila has right now, even if I unlock it, I won't be able to brew the potions properly."
After a moment's consideration, Lucien dismissed the idea. He would wait until next year, when they had a proper herb garden and more ingredients, before investing in that branch.
His eyes drifted next to Basic Shipbuilding. This technology came with crafting methods and blueprints for small wooden boats. While useful for traveling by water, Lucien had already resolved to remain in this territory for now. Even if he built a boat, it would see little use.
That left only two practical choices: Animal Husbandry and Mining. And once Animal Husbandry was unlocked, Basic Processing would follow.
[Animal Husbandry: Unlocks methods for raising land Pokémon. Redemption cost: 200 Satisfaction Points.]
[Mining: Unlocks techniques and methods for extracting mineral resources. Redemption cost: 200 Satisfaction Points.]
[Basic Processing: Unlocks processing recipes and techniques for some basic agricultural and sideline products. Redemption cost: 300 Satisfaction Points.]
"Although we know there might be ore in the mountains where Aron lives, we currently lack miners and the proper tools to dig within our territory…" Lucien pondered aloud.
Then again, could Pokémon like Aron help locate the exact veins of ore?
He shook his head. "Forget it. The most important thing right now is to ensure food security within the territory."
A well-fed and well-clothed population would yield far more Satisfaction Points in the long run.
With that in mind, Lucien spent 500 Satisfaction Points to unlock Animal Husbandry and Basic Processing.
A rush of knowledge surged into his mind in an instant.
[Unlocked methods for raising land Pokémon such as Miltank, Mareep, Wooloo, Bounsweet, Chansey, Tropius, Alcremie, Slowpoke, and Groudon!]
[Unlocked methods for processing agricultural products such as milk, honey, wool, fruit, cream, wheat, beer, and eggs!]
Visions filled Lucien's thoughts, methods for making cheese, weaving cloth, fermenting yogurt, cooking jams, milling flour, and much more.
At the same time, a new message appeared on his dashboard:
[Teach these techniques to the residents of your territory, creating more career possibilities for them!]
[Cheesemaker, Brewer, Beekeeper, Miller, Farmer, Miner, Fisherman…]