Before long, a group of Pokemon had gathered around Naoki.
Wattrel, Grafaiai, Tinkatink, Surskit, Petilil, Shroomish...
Predictably, that Slakoth did not come over; it must still be sleeping, right?
A long time had passed since that fire disaster, and this group of Pokemon gradually emerged from its shadow.
Naoki crouched down, took out specially made scarves of varying sizes from the box, and tied them around each one's neck.
After putting on the scarves, this group of Pokemon immediately felt the cold wind blocked out, and the areas covered by the scarves were warming up.
Naoki thought about how these Pokemon used to live in the mountains and probably hadn't seen scarves before, so he explained:
"These are scarves. They can help block the cold wind and keep you warm. With them, you can safely get through this winter."
Upon hearing this, the group of Pokemon seemed visibly moved.
That fire disaster destroyed everything they had.
Homes, friends, family... even they themselves almost died in the fire.
Fortunately, they were saved by Naoki, who temporarily sheltered them, provided them with food, and personally built them little wooden cabins.
Furthermore, Naoki promised to help them rebuild their homes in the future.
Now, worried about them getting cold, he brought warm scarves for them.
Even the most cold-hearted Pokemon can't help but be moved by this.
They could almost imagine what kind of scene they would face this winter without Naoki.
No berries, no shelter, they would freeze to death in the icy snowlands.
Just thinking about it made some Pokemon nearly cry.
Not tears of sadness, but tears of gratitude.
"Alright." Naoki petted Greedent's head: "Stop crying, settle down here comfortably. If you need anything, you can come find me, or if I'm not around, you can ask Indeedee and the others."
Greedent nodded heavily.
Naoki then looked at Tandemaus, having not noticed earlier, he suddenly saw a small addition among them.
Naoki was a bit surprised and then focused his gaze, finding a small white mouse behind the male Tandemaus.
Oh? Has Tandemaus evolved into Maushold?
The little white mouse seemed a bit worried, cautiously hiding behind its parents, watching Naoki in front of it.
But its parents pushed their child forward, as if wanting the human to see their child.
The little mouse stood there timidly.
Naoki raised his eyebrows, "Congratulations, Tandemaus, you've now become parents."
"Squeak squeak~" Tandemaus called out happily.
The arrival of new life is always so joyful, even the other Pokemon felt quite happy about it.
With the cold wind still blowing outside, Naoki didn't stay here long. After giving a scarf to the peacefully sleeping Slakoth, he turned and left the Berry Garden.
After returning home, Naoki began considering his journey to the Galar Region.
Initially, he planned to leave in November, but seeing how the weather would only get colder by then, it seemed better to depart early. Then he could snuggle with the Pokemon by the fireplace, enjoying the snowy view.
"Well... tomorrow seems like a good time to leave." Naoki flipped through the calendar on his desk.
It was already October 8th, and he wasn't sure how long the trip to the Galar Region would take. After pondering, Naoki decided on the departure date.
Tomorrow!
After the time was set, the next step was to decide which Pokemon to take to the Galar Region.
After brief contemplation, Naoki finalized the travel list.
Koraidon and Cyclizar.
This time was different from the last time he went to the Paldea Giant Pit, so he didn't need to worry about safety and thus didn't need many battle-ready Pokemon.
Especially since this trip to the Galar Region wasn't for vacation, and it was simultaneously very cold in The Crown Tundra.
Dragonite would probably prefer staying in a Poke Ball over there; rather than that, it's better to have it stay on the ranch to deliver milk.
Gogoat would remain on the ranch for milking, Naclstack for Rock Salt production, and the other Pokemon with their respective duties.
"Let's leave it at that; next time there's a chance for a vacation, I'll bring everyone along," Naoki thought.
Next was choosing the travel method.
Each region is separated by a vast ocean, and generally, there are three ways to travel to another region:
First, riding your own Pokemon.
Second, taking a ship.
Third, flying on a plane.
The first option was immediately ruled out; it's too cold to ride a Pokemon, and while Koraidon would be fine, he'd be frozen to death by the cold wind.
The second option was viable.
As for the third option...
"Koraidon can't fit into a Poke Ball... seems there's no way to fly," Naoki thought.
From what he knows, current aircraft do not allow passengers to keep large Pokemon outside of Poke Balls, especially not ones like Koraidon, which aren't very tall but are quite heavy.
"So, that leaves only the ship as the option."
The only downside was the lack of a developed network, making it impossible to book tickets online.
For travel to other regions, one had to go to port cities to board a ship.
In the Paldea Region, the cities with ports...
It seems there's only Levincia City.
Levincia City is a technology-rich, commercially vibrant city, with the largest port in the Paldea Region located on its coastline. It's said that commercial ships dock there daily from other regions.
Thinking of this, Naoki opened the Paldea map he previously purchased at the bookstore to check Levincia City's location.
Levincia City... is on the very eastern edge of the Paldea Region.
While he was in Porto Marinada Town, which is situated on the far west side of the Paldea Region, with an entire continent in between.
Naoki: "..."
Oh well, with Koraidon's speed, he should reach it quickly.
After finalizing everything, Naoki began packing the luggage he needed for the trip.
Cold protection gear, camping tent, fire-making tools, pots, blankets, water bottles, thermoses...
Just then, a series of clear hammering sounds rang out from the ranch, as if someone was hammering iron.
Naoki paused and listened carefully for a while; the sound didn't stop.
Curious, he stepped out and followed the direction of the sound, soon finding the culprit in a secluded meadow.
Watching the Tinkatink hammering away at a block of iron, Naoki was a bit surprised.
And at that moment, Tinkatink noticed his arrival and immediately turned around nervously.
Naoki saw that the iron block being hammered had been formed from several nails and looked like it had been hammered for a long time, all flattened.
"Making a hammer?" Naoki asked.
Tinkatink nodded cautiously, "Eep wah..."
Its hammer had been lost before, and it had been diligently collecting iron scraps and nails from the ranch's junk pile, intending to remake a hammer.
Afraid that Naoki might misunderstand it for stealing from the ranch, it quickly said, "Eep wah!"
The iron was gathered from the junk pile, not stolen! It had observed for a long time to realize the junk in that bin was all discarded human items.
Of course, Naoki knew this; he'd already recognized that those rusty nails were the ones he had thrown away after dismantling things from the old house.
Seeing Tinkatink's nervous expression, Naoki couldn't help but say, "No need to be so tense. If you want to make a hammer, just do it. I only came to check because I heard the noise. It's okay, keep hammering!"
Upon hearing this, Tinkatink breathed a sigh of relief.
Cautiously turning around, it was about to continue its work when it noticed Naoki hadn't left yet.
Tinkatink paused, turning back.
Naoki curiously said, "I'm just interested in seeing how you create a hammer."
Crafting a hammer is a natural ability for Tinkatink-type Pokemon.
Before evolving, they are quite weak and need the hammer for protection.
But it still isn't enough because certain metal-eating Pokemon would specifically steal the hammer Tinkatink painstakingly forged and eat it.
Seeing Naoki's genuine curiosity, Tinkatink hesitated for a moment, then turned back around, diligently resuming hammering on the iron.
Naoki observed the scene.
Initially thinking Tinkatink was using its hands to hammer, the reality was a bit different from what he imagined.
In fact, Tinkatink was using its steel-type Metal Claw to constantly hammer the iron scraps, crafting the hammer.