Whoosh, whoosh…
The night wind swept through the Black Forest.
Darkness had fallen, and with it came a cacophony of sounds—rustles, growls, and distant howls.
When night came, the knights chose to camp near a riverbank.
They were all famished, but their supplies were limited. Each person received only a tiny portion of food.
Some of the Bibarel were given small rations as well. But the Bidoof, once again, had to go hungry—left with nothing but exhaustion and quiet suffering.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Just as the knights were about to rest, a sudden whistling noise filled the air.
The Bibarel's ears twitched. They quickly stood up, and one of them suddenly fired a Water Gun into the sky.
The water shot collided midair with an incoming arrow, shattering the wooden shaft with a loud bang.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
But in the next instant, even more arrows came raining down from above.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
The knights sprang up, drawing their swords with anxious expressions.
Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz…
Then they heard a loud humming, echoing from high above.
"It's the Yanmas! They're attacking!"
The knights immediately recognized the enemy and shouted to one another. The Bibarel and Bidoof stood at the ready, prepared to defend themselves.
But after a while, although the sound of flapping wings continued to echo above, no actual attack came.
"Damn it! Damn it! What the hell are these guys trying to do?!"
One knight shouted in frustration, nearly driven mad by the constant tension. He was so worn out, he felt that a real battle would be better—if death came, so be it. At least it would end this torment.
"They're trying to wear us down," Paul said, his voice filled with helplessness.
Whenever the knights attempted to rest, Fruitvale Village would launch a harassment attack. But if they responded, the enemy would simply back off, forcing them into a cycle of exhaustion.
"Captain, what do we do now?" the deputy commander asked anxiously.
Paul closed his eyes for a moment, as if making a difficult decision. "Leave behind the severely injured Bibarel and Bidoof. The rest—move out at full speed."
The deputy commander's expression changed, but after a moment of thought, he understood—cutting off the tail to escape might be their only hope now.
"We need to save whoever we can," Paul added. "And those Bidoof… they won't last much longer anyway. Let them make their final stand."
"Maybe they'll survive in the forest. Maybe they'll follow the path we left and escape. Maybe… we'll see them again."
This time, the deputy commander didn't hesitate. He quickly relayed the orders. Soon, the knights, along with half the Bibarel, began retreating deeper into the Black Forest.
The remaining Bibarel stayed behind, alert for any incoming attacks, standing beside the wounded Bidoof—unaware of the fate that awaited them.
…
At the Black Forest's edge, the Mightyena lay resting on the ground.
Suddenly, the lead Mightyena lifted its head and looked toward the rustling grass.
Out sprang an Oddish, dashing rapidly toward Sutter.
"Oddish, what's the situation?" Sutter asked, letting out a breath of relief at the sight.
"Odd, odd!"
The Oddish began to report what it had seen.
Though they didn't share a language, a few specific gestures were enough for Sutter to understand the message.
These Oddish had been specially trained by Aven—Oddish with extraordinary escape abilities. At first, Sutter had doubted it. But after witnessing how easily they moved through the Black Forest, he had accepted Aven's claim.
Their stealth and evasion skills were real, and they played a crucial role in reconnaissance.
Just like now—thanks to the Oddish, the knights' attempt to secretly leave behind part of their Bibarel and all of their Bidoof hadn't gone unnoticed.
"Mightyena, let's go around and cut them off. Escaping the Black Forest won't be so easy."
"We've already reached the heart of the forest—it's time those knights get a taste of being hunted like a wild beasts."
Sutter let out a cold snort. If the enemy could rally the forest's monsters to attack, so could they.
Howl! Howl! Howl!
That night, the Black Forest erupted into chaos.
Large numbers of wild Pokémon were driven to attack the retreating knights of Marina City.
For the knights, the retreat turned into a nightmare. Even though they'd sacrificed part of their forces to buy time, they still couldn't escape the enemy's pursuit.
…
The Bibarel leader walked silently beside Paul, its heart heavy.
Every time it closed its eyes, it saw its kin collapsing in the mud, one by one.
They were its people—and yet, as their leader, it could only stand by and watch them fall behind.
The scene outside the Black Forest had left a deep scar on its heart. The desperate cries of its kin would never be forgotten.
And now, leading the remnants deeper into the forest, it couldn't stop asking itself—What am I doing? Am I abandoning my kin?
The Bibarel leader glanced at its remaining companions and saw the same confusion mirrored in their eyes.
…
"Leave behind another group of Bibarel to slow the monsters down. The rest—keep moving! We're almost at the Black Coast!"
Paul continued issuing orders, unaware of the growing turmoil inside the Bibarel leader's heart. Every word was like a dagger, pushing it further into despair.
…
Back at Fruitvale Village, Aven was treating a severely injured Bidoof.
Only Petilil could heal such serious wounds.
As waves of life energy poured into the Bidoof's body, its expression softened, the pain slowly fading.
"You'll be fine now. Just rest for a while, little one," Aven said with a smile, gently patting its head after Petilil finished the treatment.
Phyllis watched nervously, afraid the Bidoof might lash out.
But to her surprise, the little Bidoof was calm—even affectionate, nuzzling its head into Aven's hand.
"Phyllis, Pokémon are simple," Aven said quietly. "If you treat them with sincerity, they'll do the same for you."
"But betray them—and they'll leave you just as easily."
"Take care of your Pokémon."
He lowered his head, picked up the tired Petilil, and fed it a healing potion.
"…I will," Phyllis nodded, feeling something strange about Aven—but she couldn't put her finger on what.
…
After a full night of marching, the knights of Marina City finally emerged from the Black Forest.
Seeing this, Paul let out a slow breath of relief. The supply post at the Black Coast was in sight.
He turned to look at the knights gathered outside the forest, his expression dark as he gazed toward the direction of Aspiration City. A flash of hatred crossed his eyes.
Once, the knights had been full of ambition. With over a thousand Bibarel and nearly two thousand Bidoof, they had marched out to crush Fruitvale Village and claim Aspiration City's southeastern corner.
But now, they had lost all the Bidoof, and even the core force of Bibarel had been reduced to less than five hundred.
A complete, humiliating defeat.
"Fortunately, as long as we still have knights, we can train more Bibarel and Bidoof."
Clenching his jaw, Paul forced himself to forget about Fruitvale Village.
"Bibarel, let's go."
Dragging his exhausted body, he headed toward the supply post.
But after a while, he noticed something—the Bibarel leader wasn't following.
He turned back, confused—and saw the Bibarel leader standing motionless, head bowed.
"Bibarel!" he called out sharply.
But the Bibarel didn't move. It was as if it hadn't heard him.
"BI! BI! BI!"
Just as Paul was about to call out again, the Bibarel leader suddenly looked up and gave him one last deep gaze.
Then—it turned and dashed back toward the Black Forest.
"Bibarel!!" Paul shouted angrily.
But the Bibarel leader never paused, charging headfirst back into the woods.
Then a second Bibarel followed. A third. A fourth. Then—all of them.
Every last Bibarel turned and followed their leader back into the forest!
…
"Paul, I've brought you safely out of the Black Forest,"
the Bibarel leader seemed to say in its heart.
"But now—it's my turn to help my kin."
"I am their leader. I can't just watch them be abandoned in that forest."
"Goodbye… or maybe we'll never meet again. That's fine too."
"I'm tired. All I want now is to live with my kin, no matter what awaits us."
Tears glimmered in its eyes as it ran.
"I'm sorry, my friends. I shouldn't have left you behind. But now—I'm here."
Gradually, the Bibarel disappeared into the forest, leaving behind only stunned and confused knights.
"Damn it! DAMN IT!!"
Paul finally lost control and roared in fury.
He had just felt relief at saving most of the Bibarel—and in the blink of an eye, they'd betrayed him.
He had fought so hard to get them out—and now they had run off to die.
This was betrayal. Plain and brutal betrayal.
(End of Chapter)