Chapter 27: Building A Pond
“Wh-what?! Your Highness, you want to raise monsters?”
Hearing Lei Wen’s intention, the old butler Elif was full of surprise.
“No need to be so nervous, Elif, this is just an experiment,” Lei Wen slowly ate his breakfast from the plate.
Magikarp, a type of Pokémon, are hardy creatures. Anyone can take care of them; just throw a few berries into the pond they inhabit every day, and you can keep these Pokémon alive.
It won’t take much time or resources at all.
If even one of them evolves into a Gyarados during this period, it would be a profit.
Although Magikarp are not very useful, the Gyarados they evolve into are very powerful.
Rain Dance can be used to water farmland, and Hydro Pump can be used to repel strong enemies and defend territory.
They are Pokémon that are useful for both life and battle.
“Alright… alright.” The old butler couldn’t help but wipe the sweat from his forehead.
At Lei Wen’s request, Elif quickly found a girl suitable for this job and brought her before Lei Wen.
“Megan, fourteen years old, with prior experience caring for monsters when she was in the Royal City,” Elif introduced her to Lei Wen.
Hearing this, Lei Wen was quite surprised. Did his territory actually have such talent?
He looked the freckled girl up and down and asked, “Have you taken care of monsters before?”
Megan nodded timidly, “Yes, Your Highness Lei Wen. I used to be a slave in the Royal City, responsible for taking care of the monsters that worked for the Royal City.”
Those monsters were captured from outside by knights and used for labor. They were fitted with shackles and chains, and if they were found to be slacking off, the overseer would whip them severely.
Megan was responsible for caring for those monsters. Unlike people who feared monsters, Megan only felt they were very pitiful.
“Fine, in that case, I’ll leave this job to you.” Saying this, Lei Wen stood up, brought his Dratini, and said to them, “Let’s go, the knights should have already dug the pond.”
“Yes!” Megan was a little afraid of such an esteemed figure as His Highness, and unintentionally used respectful language when speaking.
Lei Wen noticed her reaction and couldn’t help but smile and say:
“Don’t be nervous, Megan. There are no slaves in this territory anymore. This is just ordinary work. After we get through this winter and stabilize things, I will give you appropriate compensation.”
“I-I know!” Megan looked at Lei Wen with eyes full of adoration. “Your Highness is a good person! Everyone is talking about Your Highness during their rest time!”
“Talking about what?” Lei Wen asked, a little surprised.
“They say Your Highness is the most benevolent, kindest king they’ve ever seen, who loves his citizens the most!” Megan replied.
Lei Wen: “…” This is a bit too exaggerated.
However, looking at the girl’s adoring gaze, he could only offer an elegant and polite smile.
Soon, they arrived at their destination.
The knights had already dug a large pond by the riverside and channeled water from the great river into it.
Under Lei Wen’s command, the Dratini skillfully flew into the river and, in no time, used Thunder Wave to shock dozens of fish.
Every time one witnessed this scene, it was impossible not to exclaim—the resources of the Pokémon World are truly abundant!
As usual, Lei Wen handed over the ordinary fish to the residents of the territory for them to take home and eat. Any leftovers would be frozen by the Snowrunt and stored in the warehouse.
As for the six Magikarp, he fished them out and placed them in this pond.
Although directly stocking a newly dug pond with fish might cause the fry to die, Magikarp, being Pokémon, were clearly not among those at risk.
Moreover, they could eat the silt and microorganisms in the pond, thus purifying the water source.
The six Magikarp, shortly after being placed in the pond, woke up.
They opened their vacant, dead-fish eyes and swam aimlessly in the water.
In addition, Lei Wen had people dig up some water plants and algae to put into the pond.
He looked at the reclaimed farmland not far away.
This way, in the future, this pond might also be used to raise other water-type Pokémon that could help with watering.
“Your Highness Lei Wen, are these red fish the monsters I need to take care of?” Megan asked, squatting by the pond.
“That’s right,” Lei Wen nodded. “They are called Magikarp, a type of monster with strong vitality, capable of surviving even in the dirtiest ponds.”
…in the dirtiest ponds. Megan paused for a moment. She recalled her previous life as a low-level slave and couldn’t help but murmur in her heart, “Just like me.”
At this moment, looking at these dazed monsters, Megan couldn’t help but feel a sense of “shared misfortune.”
Fish, oh fish, can I also survive as tenaciously as you? Megan thought.
The sadness was fleeting, and Megan quickly recovered.
Your Highness Lei Wen had abolished her slave status, and now she was a free citizen!
Furthermore, the wooden houses for insulation were nearing completion, and her life would surely get better!
“Your Highness Lei Wen, I will definitely take good care of them!” Megan promised.
Lei Wen nodded with a smile. “Don’t be so nervous. Magikarp are easy to raise; they only need to eat silt and water plants to survive. However, since we’ve decided to raise them, we can’t just feed them these.”
“So, your job is to break the berries into small pieces and come feed these Magikarp every day. In short, from now on, you will be their caretaker,” Lei Wen said.
If “love,” “affection,” or “bonds” are developed during the raising process, the chance of these Magikarp evolving into Gyarados would greatly increase.
“Yes, Your Highness Lei Wen!” Megan replied.
“Good luck!” Lei Wen encouraged her.
If he weren’t busy with various matters in the territory, he would even want to raise a Magikarp himself.
After all, Gyarados are also very powerful Pokémon.
But unfortunately, there were no Poké Balls in this era, so he couldn’t carry the Magikarp that lived in the water with him at all times.
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Initially, apart from feeling a sense of shared misfortune with these “humble and pitiful” monsters, Megan had no other feelings about helping to raise them.
Every day, following Your Highness Lei Wen’s instructions, after completing her daily berry Gathering, she would bring some berries and fruit to the pond to feed the Magikarp.
The Magikarp were dazed, but they didn’t seem to be completely unaware.
As she came more often, the Magikarp would actually come to the surface in anticipation of her arrival!
This greatly surprised Megan.
At the same time, her heart developed a sense of attachment because these Magikarp were waiting for her.
Gradually, Megan increasingly found this group of dazed fish to be very cute.
Although they couldn’t speak, they were very good listeners.
Megan would often sit alone by the pond and tell the Magikarp about her past in the Royal Palace.
“Fish, oh fish, what are you thinking?”
The Magikarp did not answer, nor could they answer; they continued to stare blankly.
Seeing the Magikarp spacing out, Megan couldn’t help but space out with them, letting her mind go blank.
Gradually, she grew to like this feeling.
