The knight regiment were all too familiar with just how potent the stench from the Gloom was against Mightyena.
Under that overwhelming odor, the Mightyena's combat effectiveness would be greatly reduced—perhaps even without the knights needing to lift a finger, the Mightyena might collapse from the stench alone.
Of course, if the Mightyena could endure the stench, then the Gloom pack would engage the intruders in battle to defend their territory. Either way, the knights would reap a double reward by taking down both groups of monsters!
Once Todd, the vice-captain, finalized the plan, the orders were swiftly passed down.
When word spread that the Mightyena pack had been found, the noble members of the regiment were visibly excited.
Mightyena were incredibly impressive creatures, and many had long dreamed of taming one. However, most Mightyena were under the control of the Knight Orders, and wild ones were exceedingly rare—finding an opportunity to capture one was difficult.
Now that they had located an entire pack, the nobles were secretly plotting to seize a few for themselves.
Their plan was simple: use beast gear to capture them, then hand them over to the family's professional beast tamers for training. Even the wildest beast could be fully domesticated in time.
Soon after, the regiment set off.
Since the scout knight had already passed through the Mightyena's territory and left behind his scent, it was only a matter of time before the beasts caught on.
Thus, they needed to complete the hunt quickly before the pack realized something was amiss.
Based on the scout's report, the village now overrun by Gloom should be none other than Fruitvale Village.
Sir Berrin rode at the front of the column atop his Rhyhorn, a smile he could not suppress curling across his lips.
With hundreds of Gloom releasing their foul stench, even if any villagers had survived, they would be living in sheer misery—some might already have suffocated to death in their cellars.
"Just a bunch of commoners," Berrin thought with a laugh.
His true target now was the Mightyena.
Though not as rare or powerful as Luxray, Mightyena still made excellent noble battle partners.
With so many Mightyena present, Berrin felt confident he could capture one or two. As for that Shinx he had once been after, he had long given up hope of finding it again.
Meanwhile, the Mightyena leader was thoroughly enjoying life.
Ever since it had led its pack to help humans fight off a horde of Tangela, the villagers' attitude toward them had changed dramatically.
Not only were they fed delicious brown pellets at mealtimes, but the villagers often brought berries to build rapport with them.
The Mightyena leader knew what the humans were aiming for, but didn't mind.
Its master had given them the freedom to choose their own fate.
If any of its kin wished to live alongside humans, it wouldn't stop them—after all, freedom of choice was something even their master had respected.
The Mightyena leader stretched lazily and moved about a bit.
Life had indeed been too easy lately, and it had grown a little plump.
Looking at the restraint device that had been removed from its body, the Mightyena leader felt a warm trust toward its master and silently vowed never to betray him.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, a sharp sound split the air, yanking the Mightyena leader from its thoughts.
Startled, it looked up—only to see a hail of arrows raining down from the sky!
The Mightyena leader's heart leapt into its throat. Without thinking, it leapt aside just as an arrow slammed into the ground where it had been standing.
Danger! They were under attack!
Reacting instantly, the Mightyena leader let out a long, urgent howl to alert the pack.
It then darted behind a berry tree to shield itself from the next volley.
The other Mightyena were quick to respond as well.
Dodging arrows wasn't too hard for them, but several Poochyena weren't so lucky—several were struck and howled in pain as arrows pierced their bodies.
Awooo!
The Mightyena leader bared its teeth and roared with fury, its heart in turmoil.
Its thoughts immediately turned to Fruitvale Village—and to Aven.
Only Aven could offer them safety now.
Without hesitation, the Mightyena leader gathered its pack and began retreating toward the village.
Fortunately, the barrage of arrows seemed to have stopped momentarily.
As they ran, the Mightyena leader caught sight of humans on Rhyhorn charging toward them, blades glinting menacingly.
Clearly, these were the ones who had ambushed them!
"The Mightyena are trying to flee—catch them!"
The nobles riding the Rhyhorns shouted excitedly.
One of the knights nocked another arrow and drew back his bowstring.
With a sharp twang, the arrow shot out, gleaming silver in the air, and struck a fleeing Poochyena, pinning it to the ground.
"Awooo!"
The wounded Poochyena howled in agony and collapsed.
Hearing the cry, the Mightyena leader skidded to a halt, its red eyes blazing with rage.
It turned and raced back, grabbing the injured Poochyena by the scruff in its mouth before continuing its retreat.
It knew it couldn't defeat these heavily armed human knights—only escape was an option.
Meanwhile, in Fruitvale Village, Aven remained completely unaware of the imminent danger.
At dawn, he had risen early to check on the Shinx.
After a night's rest—and thanks to the energy from his Petilil—Shinx's condition had improved considerably.
After several experiments, Aven had confirmed that Petilil could now channel absorbed energy into genuine life energy using its healing leaves.
Even compared to healing potions, Petilil's healing was superior!
With Petilil's help, Shinx was recovering rapidly and might wake up very soon.
Seeing this, Aven was thrilled.
Now that Petilil had mastered the basics of life energy, perhaps he could teach it other healing moves too.
If Petilil could master healing techniques, Aven could create the world's very first Pokémon Center in this world!
(End of Chapter)