One level 60, one level 65.
Three Champion-level Pokémon.
If it had been anyone else, they probably would have turned around and run at the first sight of danger.
Unfortunately for these three Pokémon, the person they encountered wasn't just anyone—it was Nathan.
"So, it looks like you really didn't learn your lesson last time. In that case, let me teach you properly!"
"Come out, Volcarona!"
"Come out, Mewtwo!"
Nathan once again released two of his Pokémon.
Upon seeing the Pokémon that Nathan summoned, the Mr. Rime who had initiated the confrontation visibly deflated.
It had thought that bringing two companions along would be enough to drive off this outsider.
But who would've guessed this intruder had even more powerful Pokémon at his side? And not just powerful—but overwhelmingly so!
"Volcarona, use Fire Spin!"
Flames erupted from Volcarona's body, a dazzling spectacle in this vast snowy expanse.
The intense heat quickly melted the snow around it, and even the ice beneath began to thaw.
The fiery vortex spun forth, radiating searing heat as it shot toward the three Mr. Rime.
Everywhere it passed, a trail of scorched, melted earth was left behind.
Sensing imminent danger, the three Mr. Rime simultaneously activated Light Screen.
With three layers of protection up, the Fire Spin was halted after breaking through just two of them.
Seeing that the attack had been stopped, the three Mr. Rime breathed a collective sigh of relief.
However, their relief was premature—Mewtwo was already making its move.
Thunderbolt surged forth, a stream of high-voltage electricity shooting straight at the Mr. Rime.
With only one layer of Light Screen left, there was no way it could withstand the power of Mewtwo's attack.
Crackling electricity engulfed the trio.
Sparks exploded in every direction as all three Mr. Rime took the full brunt of the attack.
Scorch marks appeared all over their bodies and around their feet.
"You outsider, you..."
The Mr. Rime who had attacked first tried to speak, pointing its frosty tendrils at Nathan.
But after just uttering "you," it didn't know what else to say.
Not because it didn't want to—but because it didn't dare.
They simply couldn't beat him, and continuing to speak might just earn them another beating.
"You what? You still want to pick a fight after all that?"
Nathan shot them a glare and walked away without another word.
After he left, the three Mr. Rime huddled together, whispering amongst themselves.
"This is your fault! You're the one who called us over just to get beat up!"
"What do you mean 'my fault'? How was I supposed to know he had that kind of backup?"
"So now what? Do we get more help? Are we just going to take this beating lying down?"
----------------
Too bad Nathan was already far away.
Had he still been within earshot, and heard that they were still thinking about revenge, he would've definitely come back and given them another beating.
"You want revenge? I'll beat you until the thought never crosses your mind again!"
Having been ambushed twice already by these Mr. Rime, Nathan was not in the best of moods.
And he was growing more and more uneasy.
According to the map, he had only traveled about one-tenth of the distance to his destination.
And already, he'd run into Champion-level Pokémon trying to attack him.
If this was just the beginning, what would the later stages look like?
Would Champions be everywhere? Would Master-level or Legendary Pokémon just be roaming the land?
But beyond that, one thing kept bugging him—the way the Mr. Rime referred to him.
"Outsider."
This area—known as the Frostline Region—hadn't seen any humans in a long time.
Yet the Mr. Rime attacked him on sight, and even called him an outsider.
Did that mean... someone had come here before him?
But who would have the strength to do that?
Nathan wasn't arrogant enough to call himself the strongest in the world.
Still, those who could surpass him in strength were few—so few they could be counted on one hand.
Unless—
Unless it was like the World Championship, where someone had help from a Legendary Pokémon?
Still, one thing Nathan could now be almost certain of—
Someone, or some Pokémon, had been here before him.
"Sigh... I just hope that if anyone came before me, it was just Pokémon."
Nathan exhaled, speaking more to himself than to anyone else.
If it had only been Pokémon, perhaps they were just looking for a place to inhabit.
But if it was a human—then that was another story entirely.
Nathan knew better than anyone just how greedy humans could be.
Even he himself—though he liked to think of himself as better than most—had moments of selfishness and greed.
It was human nature. Inevitable.
And if someone else had already reached the place he was going...
If they had already taken the treasure he was after...
Then wouldn't all his efforts—his time, energy, and risk—be for nothing?
"No way... I can't let that happen!"
Just imagining his treasure being snatched away by someone else lit a fire under Nathan.
His determination surged stronger than ever.
But now he was starting to regret not interrogating those Mr. Rime earlier.
If only he had questioned them... maybe they would've spilled some useful information.
And then—before he could dwell too much on that regret—another attack came.
This time, it was the same kind of Pokémon again—Mr. Rime.
"Outsider! You still want to move deeper into our territory?"
The leading Mr. Rime called out, its tone full of arrogance.
This time, it had brought everyone—its third cousins, distant relatives, the whole Mr. Rime family tree.
Surely now they could handle one outsider?
"Sigh... what should I even say to you guys?"
Nathan let out another sigh, shaking his head at the sight of them.
There were quite a few this time—six in total.
Among them, two were at the Elite level.
"What? Are you scared now? Hahaha!"
The same Mr. Rime that had attacked first began to laugh wildly.
But its laughter didn't last long.
Because Nathan began releasing his team.
Volcarona, Frosmoth, Mewtwo, Metagross...
"..."
Looking at the increasingly large and powerful team beside Nathan, the Mr. Rime suddenly felt like they had a migraine.
What was with this outsider?
Why did he have so many Pokémon?
And why were they all so strong?
Could wild Pokémon still live in peace with monsters like this roaming around?
"I'm going to ask you a few questions. If you answer honestly, I won't beat you up."
Nathan gave the group a look that could only be described as what a shady uncle might give to a naughty child.
He hadn't wanted to do this, but these Mr. Rime just kept showing up like they were asking to be punished.
What choice did he have?
"Ask away! We'll answer everything honestly!"
The Mr. Rime replied instantly, completely deflated.
After the last two beatings, they had finally learned their lesson.
Nathan nodded in satisfaction. Now that's more like it.
"I want to know—why do you call me 'outsider'? Did someone like me come here before I did?"
"That's right," the Mr. Rime nodded. "Someone like you came here before."
Hearing that, Nathan's heart sank.
His treasure—please don't let it have already been taken.
At the same time, he really wanted to grab his system and slam it into the ground.
------------------
"What did that person do? Why do you all hate outsiders so much?"
Nathan asked, holding back his growing frustration toward the system.
The Mr. Rime could feel Nathan's suppressed anger and grew even more nervous.
They didn't know the anger wasn't directed at them—they assumed he was mad because of their actions.
"The person who came before you awakened that one, so now we hate all outsiders," the Mr. Rime muttered, its tone full of dread.
"That one?"
Nathan was puzzled.
Who is "that one"?
A Pokémon? A powerful Pokémon?
Even the way the Mr. Rime spoke changed when referring to that one.
Could it be that this so-called "one" was some sort of highly temperamental Legendary?
"Who exactly is this 'that one'? What kind of Pokémon?"
Nathan pressed curiously.
But the Mr. Rime immediately began shaking its head, refusing to say anything further.
The fear was written all over its icy face.
They were clearly terrified.
Nathan's curiosity only grew.
To make a Champion-level Pokémon this scared, that one must be at least at the Legendary tier.
Despite his best efforts, Nathan couldn't get any more useful information from the Mr. Rime.
No matter how he questioned them, they clammed up about that mysterious being.
Seeing this, Nathan decided not to push further.
He let them go and continued on his journey.
Even though he hadn't uncovered more details about that one, he had at least learned something important—
The place he was headed to... was still unexplored by humans.
(End of Chapter)