"I'll give you all one chance to run. Get out of Pidgeotto's territory!"

Perched atop Pidgeot, Lin Feng took the opportunity to act a bit imperious, channeling his Viridian Aura to ensure the meaning of his words reached the Pokémon below.

"Pidgeot!"

Pidgeot let out a timely, warning cry.

The gathered Spearow snapped back to their senses, panic flooding their eyes. They scattered in utter chaos, some so frantic that they crashed into each other and tumbled to the ground in dizzy confusion.

Within moments, the Spearow were gone without a trace, leaving nothing behind but scattered feathers.

Behind Pidgeot, the Pidgeotto and Pidgey flock lingered in stunned silence for a brief moment before erupting into thunderous cheers.

"Pidgeotto!"

The cries rose like crashing waves, echoing endlessly through the forest.

Every Pidgeotto and Pidgey gazed at one another with tearful eyes, overwhelmed with emotion. One by one, their gazes shifted toward the figure at the center Pidgeot. They flew circles around it, chirping in unending jubilation.

In their calls, Lin Feng could hear the message loud and clear: they were acknowledging Pidgeot as their true leader!

"This is great!"

Watching the flocks swirling around them, Lin Feng's mind began racing with ideas.

Pidgeotto were sturdy, highly resilient Pokémon, and their flight speed wasn't bad at all.

Previously, he'd thought that if he ever wanted to develop a courier service for home delivery, he'd have no choice but to rely on Pidgeot.

But using Pidgeot for deliveries seemed like a colossal waste of talent, and besides, he only had one. He couldn't expect Pidgeot to spend all day delivering packages.

But now, with so many Pidgeotto here… could he "recruit" them to help out?

"Hehehe…"

The thought made Lin Feng chuckle to himself.

"Pidgeot, Pidgeot!"

Unlike Lin Feng, who was lost in daydreams about future business ventures, Pidgeot was cawing out commands, addressing the assembled Pidgeotto and Pidgey like a commander delivering a victorious speech.

"Pidgeot!" (From now on, as long as my Trainer and I are here, our territory will never again be taken from us!)

The flock burst into cries of righteous fervor.

"Pidgeotto!" (Leader!)

"Pidgey~!" (Leader!)

"Pidgeotto!" (Leader…)

Lin Feng chose not to interrupt their raucous celebration. He could feel how elated Pidgeot was at that moment.

This high spirit wasn't just from the triumph of driving out the Fearow flock but also from the weight of responsibility it now carried.

Pidgeot knew that from this day forward, the flock would listen to its commands.

Yet Pidgeot, having only evolved the day before, still wasn't quite sure how to handle everything. So it shifted its sharp gaze back toward Lin Feng. "Pidgeot?"

It was looking to its Trainer for guidance.

Lin Feng's lips curled into a faint smile. "Asking me what to do? Well, you're asking the right person! Here's the plan: I'll give you two days here to reclaim all the territory the Spearow and other Pokémon took from us.

Then pick out ten smart Pidgey and another ten Pidgeotto who are good fliers. Bring them to the breeding facility. We'll get them officially on staff to help me out. Make sure it's all voluntary, though. What do you say?"

"Pidgeot~"

Pidgeot nodded firmly but then seemed to remember that with it being away these past two days, the plantation had been left unguarded.

Even as a newly evolved Pidgeot, it hadn't forgotten its duties back at the plantation.

Lin Feng patted its head. "That? Don't worry about it. Gardevoir is guarding the place at home."

"Alright, drop me off. This is the perfect time to rally the Pidgeotto and Pidgey. We shouldn't waste the momentum."

Lin Feng hadn't insisted on forcing the Pidgeotto or Pidgey to do anything. Even driving out the Spearow had merely been to push them out of Pidgeotto's rightful territory.

They'd still be able to survive elsewhere in the forest.

Nature had its own balance. Every Pokémon, every mountain, tree, and river was part of that balance.

Humans only needed to intervene when there was a true problem. Intervening too much could easily throw the ecosystem into chaos.

Once Pidgeot set him gently back on the ground, Lin Feng looked up at it, while Pidgeot fixed its keen gaze on him in return. A flicker of unshakable determination shone in its eyes.

Pidgeot had decided.

Though it didn't really understand what kind of work its Trainer wanted the Pidgeotto and Pidgey to do…

It was determined to pick the very best ten Pidgey and ten Pidgeotto…

To go and "stand guard" for its Trainer!

[Congratulations to the host for raising Pidgeot's friendship level to 100. Reward: Ho-Oh's Sacred Feather (A sacred feather infused with Ho-Oh's energy. When absorbed by a pure-hearted Pokémon, it will greatly enhance their potential and power.)]

"Whew…"

Hearing the system's notification, Lin Feng couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.

He glanced up again at Pidgeot soaring overhead…

Why did it always get so lucky?

Shaking his head, Lin Feng decided not to give Pidgeot the Sacred Feather immediately. Instead, he summoned Snivy and began walking toward the edge of the forest.

Unbeknownst to him, a Lucario leaned silently against a tree trunk, watching the resolution of the Pidgeotto and Spearow conflict without any major bloodshed. It slowly closed its eyes again.

"Lucario…" (Not a bad job handling things…)

…

On the way back

"Snivy…"

Snivy trudged along behind Lin Feng, looking bored. As it glanced at a terrified Weedle trembling nearby, evidently still spooked from the clash between two Pokémon factions, its eyes grew even more listless.

It had thought there'd be a real battle this time. Instead, Pidgeot had settled the whole affair single-handedly.

"Feeling disappointed, huh?"

Lin Feng paused his steps. Once Snivy caught up, he asked, "Want to go stir up some trouble in the Beedrill territory?"

"Snivy?"

Snivy shot him a look, rolling its eyes.

It wanted to battle, sure. But not pick a fight with a whole swarm of Beedrill.

"Hahaha…"

Seeing Snivy's reaction, Lin Feng couldn't help bursting out laughing.

"Snivy?" (What are you laughing at?)

"Nothing… nothing at all. I just thought your eye-roll was super cute. It reminded me of how you used to look when you were still a little Snivy."

"Snivy? Snivy!"

But the very next second, two Vine Whips lashed out, wrapping firmly around Lin Feng's waist and arms, lifting him clean off the ground.

"Hey, what…? What are you doing?!"

Dangling in the air, Lin Feng was completely bewildered. "I was complimenting you, Snivy!"

"Snivy!" (I don't need compliments like that!)

Snivy hoisted Lin Feng behind it and marched resolutely toward the edge of the forest, refusing to look back.

It would never admit that it was just embarrassed, caught off guard by mention of its younger days.

That seemed to be a universal trait of living beings whenever someone brought up their childhood, an awkward kind of embarrassment inevitably followed.

Lin Feng could only stare after Snivy, thoroughly bewildered. "Huh?!"

…

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