Although there were many things to do, Carver planned to take them one at a time.
Swellow didn't know when it would be able to invite Latias and Latios to the breeding house to taste apple pie, so that matter was postponed.
Ralts and the others couldn't communicate, so all Carver could currently do was provide them with careful care and companionship.
As for Steven, everything had to wait until his Metang evolved into Metagross before officially beginning.
The Viridian Power matter needed to be approached gradually. Collecting 100 Viridian Power fragments to complete the full Viridian Power couldn't be rushed.
So now, the most important thing was the Bagon situation.
He needed to bring that Pokémon back to the breeding house as soon as possible. If he went too late and another trainer captured it first, that would be terrible.
Bagon's location was clearly imprinted in Carver's mind. He looked left and right outside, saw no customers, so he simply closed the shop door and prepared to head to Meteor Falls with Bewear.
Growlithe, Gastly, and the others were left at the breeding house.
Before leaving, Carver instructed: "Growlithe, remember to help me protect everyone!"
"Growl!" Growlithe nodded firmly.
"Also, if you encounter bad people, do you remember what to do?" Carver looked at the group of Pokémon nearby.
At this time, the Clefairy, Gastly, Chingling, and Bulbasaur had all come to see him and Bewear off.
Hearing this, the Clefairy's faces filled with fighting spirit.
"Clefairy!"
Then they began to glow.
Carver had said that if they encountered bad people, they should all use their most powerful moves together to defeat them!
Seeing this scene, Carver nodded satisfactorily: "Good, then it's settled. Stay well in the house, don't open the door no matter who knocks. Bewear and I will be back soon."
"Clefairy~!"
"Gastly!"
"..."
The group of Pokémon all agreed.
Carver shut them in the main hall, then locked the doors and windows from outside. Before leaving, he saw the group of Pokémon crowded together at the window, staring at him foolishly.
He smiled and waved at them, and the group of Pokémon immediately showed happy smiles.
So cute!
Having such a group of adorable Pokémon waiting for him at home made his heart feel warm.
"Let's go, Bewear. Let's make this quick!" Carver said.
"Bewear~"
Bewear happily agreed, scooped up Carver, and began running madly toward Meteor Falls.
However, before the human and bear had run far, Bewear suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong, Bewear?" Carver was stunned, somewhat surprised.
"Bewear..."
He followed Bewear's gaze and saw a Pokémon collapsed in a roadside grass patch.
It was a chameleon-like Pokémon that was entirely green with red markings on its belly and a curled tail.
That Pokémon was a Kecleon?
Carver got down from Bewear and approached to carefully examine this Kecleon's condition.
"Oh, it's injured!" Carver called: "Bewear, help me get the medicine bag!"
Bewear removed the small bag from its body. This was originally what Carver had prepared for treating Bagon.
After all, that type of personality couldn't be tempted with delicious food—only by proving his strength to them could he gain their recognition.
Carver took healing medicine from the bag and poured it into Kecleon's mouth.
In no time, this wild Kecleon opened its eyes.
It was initially somewhat wary looking at the human before it.
But when it saw the medicine in this human's hands, it immediately realized they had helped it.
"Be more careful in the future, Kecleon." Carver casually took a few Pokéblocks from his bag: "Take these back to eat!"
These were also what he had prepared to get closer to Bagon.
Kecleon accepted them and smelled their aroma, couldn't help but swallow.
"We still have business to attend to, so we'll go first. Take care of yourself, Kecleon!"
Carver stood up and waved at Kecleon with Bewear, then turned and left.
Kecleon was left looking gratefully at their figures, then lowered its head and quickly ate the food in its hands.
Not long after Carver continued forward, a line of text suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[Kecleon's mood improved. Joy Level +70! Received Kecleon's gift: Forest's Gift]
[Forest's Gift: You selflessly helped a wild Pokémon living in this forest and gained the forest's attention. Nature, to thank you for rescuing its children, has bestowed upon you a gift "Viridian Power Fragment x1". Help more wild Pokémon and gain the forest's attention—perhaps it will give you more gifts.]
[Viridian Power Fragment: A gift containing the power of nature. Legend says those who obtain this power receive the forest's blessing, can sense Pokémon's inner thoughts, communicate with them, and borrow nature's power to heal their injuries. Collect 100 fragments to synthesize complete Viridian Power. Current collection progress: 2/100.]
Looking at the text before him, Carver was slightly stunned.
Was this an unexpected harvest?
"I'll call Jenny when I get back to ask about the procedures for becoming a forest ranger," Carver thought.
Since he'd opened the breeding house and was running the inn, adding forest ranger wouldn't be a problem either.
If Officer Jenny asked about it later, he'd say he was carrying on the original owner's father's legacy.
Carver made his plans.
Under Bewear's guidance, the human and bear quickly arrived at the area where Bagon lived.
According to the intelligence and location provided by that Bagon, this Bagon didn't live in Meteor Falls itself, but in a dense forest on the outskirts of Meteor Falls.
When Carver stood on the grassland looking at this vast forest before him, a familiar feeling suddenly surged in his mind.
As if he had been here before, and a clear path to Bagon's habitat emerged in his mind.
Carver looked toward twelve o'clock and thought: "This way."
He walked forward for a distance, passed through dense trees, and soon arrived at a tall waterfall.
The waterfall crashed down from the cliff, gathering into a river flowing into the distance.
And below the waterfall, there indeed stood a small dragon Pokémon with a hard head and blue body.
Bagon had appeared!
That Bagon's attention was completely focused on the waterfall before it.
It stared intently upward, and under Carver's gaze, Bagon moved.
It quickly jumped up along the protruding rocks on the cliff, and after great effort, Bagon finally reached the top of the cliff.
Then, without hesitation, it leaped down from above.