When Ryan saw the Pokémon trying to help push the carts earlier, a flash of inspiration struck him.
Since the weaker Pokémon couldn't help much, why not find some stronger Pokémon to assist?
So, he took out the Honey he had drawn from the lottery and asked Scyther to go deep into the forest to find some strong Pokémon to help, with the Honey as a reward.
Scyther and Bounsweet didn't disappoint him, actually finding Heracross.
The three Heracross didn't approach them but maintained a distance, with a hint of wariness in their eyes.
When they heard it was to help humans transport things, they initially refused.
But the temptation of the Honey was too great, coupled with the repeated persuasion of the two Pokémon, they finally agreed to come and see.
Ryan also noticed their apprehension. He took the Honey from Bounsweet's head, took out a few bags of Pokémon food, and slowly walked towards the Heracross.
"We have no malicious intent. We just want to ask you to help transport some wood. This can of Honey and this food will be your reward."
"If you're worried, you can ask these Pokémon. They can also vouch for us."
The Heracross looked at the surrounding Pokémon and then at the Honey in Ryan's hand. Finally, they nodded, indicating their willingness to help.
The surrounding players were all staring at the Heracross, especially the three male players, whose eyes were practically glowing.
Which boy hadn't caught beetles or similar bugs to play with when they were young? Now seeing such a cool Heracross, their hearts were incredibly excited.
"Don't just stand there spacing out. There are ropes on the carts. Tie the ropes to the Heracross."
Hearing Ryan's reminder, the players also came back to their senses and hurriedly turned the carts over, then tied the ropes to the three Heracross.
"Two of you stay here to continue cutting trees. The other three, each holding onto a cart, come back to the territory with me."
"Who's going back?"
"It doesn't matter who goes back, we'll have to come back anyway. We can't transport all this wood in one trip. We can just switch shifts later."
The players discussed it and decided to let Old Ye and the two female players go back first.
Seeing that they had decided, Ryan turned to Scyther and instructed: "I'll go back to the territory first. Please stay here and protect them. Return to the territory with them tonight."
"Scythe!"
"Let's go!"
The three Heracross bent their hind legs, their wings fluttered slightly, and then they sprinted out like arrows shot from a bow.
Leaving only a few players staring at each other in place.
"What are you still spacing out for? Hurry up and chase after them!"
Seeing this, Ryan shook his head helplessly and then chased after them, carrying Bounsweet.
"Damn, are they that strong? They can even run?!"
"Speaking of which, do they even know the way? They're just running ahead."
"Stop talking, in a moment we won't even see their shadows!"
The players also chased after them.
On the city walls of Firefly Town, several militiamen were on guard.
Calling them city walls was an exaggeration. They were just small stone walls, three or four meters high, their symbolic meaning far greater than their actual function.
"Do you think those refugees can bring back the wood? My house is completely uninhabitable. Our whole family has been staying separately at relatives' houses these past two days. This can't go on."
A militiaman said with a worried expression.
"Who knows? You saw it this morning too. I always feel like those refugees are a bit mentally unstable. But the fact that they dared to enter the Flowing Firefly Forest is still admirable."
"Didn't Lord White say that's their unique custom? Even if you don't trust them, you should trust Lord Baron, right?"
"Of course I trust Lord Baron, but wait! Why is there smoke and dust ahead? It's a monster! Quickly blow the horn!" Several militiamen in a flurry blew the horns, and the low sound of the horns echoed throughout the territory.
The residents of the territory felt a tightening in their hearts upon hearing the horns. The destruction of the beast tide a few days ago was still vivid in their minds, and the damage it had caused hadn't yet healed. Could they be about to experience it again?
They didn't have time to think much. Just as they were about to pack their things and take shelter, the sound of the horns suddenly stopped.
"Why did the horn stop? Are there really monsters or not?"
"Could it be that those young guards on duty made a mistake?"
"Impossible. This has never happened before. Why don't we go to the city gate and see?"
Several of the more courageous residents prepared to go to the city gate to see what was happening.
As soon as they arrived at the city gate, they saw the militiamen surrounding Lord Baron, saying something to him, their eyes full of respect and admiration.
Beside Lord Baron stood three monsters with huge horns on their heads. Not only did they not attack humans, but they also seemed to be pulling several carts of wood.
"Little Arthur, what exactly is going on?"
The residents mustered their courage and approached. They didn't dare to disturb Ryan but found a militiaman to ask about the situation.
"When we were on guard just now, we spotted monsters, so we quickly blew the horns. But when they got closer, we saw that there were people beside them—those refugees from this morning and Lord Baron."
"Lord Baron told us to stop blowing the horns, saying that he hired these three monsters to help transport wood and told us not to be nervous."
Little Arthur said excitedly.
"Really? Can monsters be hired? Won't they hurt humans?"
"I've always said that Lord Ryan is a capable person. I've thought he was capable since he was a child."
"That's not right. Didn't you used to say that Lord Ryan was afraid of monsters since he was a child and couldn't be a lord at all?"
"Slander! He's slandering me! I'm suing you for slander!"
The surrounding residents were a bit incredulous, but the facts were right in front of them. The three monsters stood docilely in place, showing no intention of attacking them at all.
This greatly changed their opinion of Ryan.
To be honest, although they had previously supported Ryan inheriting the territory, it was because Ryan was the only child of the old lord, and they had no other choice.
They themselves didn't really trust Ryan. How could a lord who was even afraid of monsters protect the territory well?
But now, Ryan had not only overcome his fear of monsters but even had the ability to hire monsters to work for the territory, accomplishing something that even the old lord hadn't done. This restored their confidence in the future of the territory.
And this was also the result Ryan wanted to see. If it was just about transporting wood, there were actually other ways. It didn't necessarily have to be Pokémon helping.
So why did he insist on hiring Pokémon? On the one hand, it was to allow the residents and Pokémon to have more contact, gradually eliminate their fear of Pokémon.
On the other hand, it was to achieve the current effect, to rekindle the residents' confidence in him and the future of the territory.
Now it seemed that all these goals had been achieved. He had managed to kill three birds with one stone.
"Alright, let's not talk about it anymore. Uncle White, please find some people to take over these logs. These few still have to go back to continue transporting."
"Understood, I'll call people to take over right away." White's eyes were full of relief and pride.
He had rushed to the city walls at top speed after hearing the horns, originally thinking there would be a fierce battle, but he didn't expect this situation at all.
This made him feel proud of Ryan in his heart, and he became even more convinced that Ryan had indeed received divine revelation, otherwise, how could he have changed so much?
After dealing with the handover of the wood, Ryan didn't return to the forest with the players. They already understood the basic process, and Ryan didn't need to follow them all the time.
His main task now was to continue improving this "game" and enhance the players' experience.
"When I played games back then, what attracted me? Tasks? Rewards?"
Looking at the remaining Creation Points in the panel, Ryan began his "game completion" plan.