Stonefall Village was located in the southeastern corner of the territory, surrounded on three sides by forest.
There were two rivers flowing through this area.
One originated from Mt. Coronet, flowing almost entirely across the Aspiration City domain before emptying into the eastern sea.
The other river began in the Aspiration Mountains, passed through the Black Forest, then flowed past Stonefall Village and onward to the southern sea.
The river where Stunky had been discovered was none other than the Valorpeak River, which originated in the Aspiration Mountains. That meant this Stunky likely came from the Black Forest to the north of Stonefall Village.
"Let's take a look..."
Aven murmured to himself.
The Black Forest was already on his inspection route—after all, the Pokémon there could pose a threat to the village at any time.
…
Splash, splash~
Within the river, the Bibarel leader swam swiftly. Since the lake hadn't been fully excavated yet, the Bidoof tribe had temporarily settled near the riverbank.
"Bibarel, let's check out the Black Forest."
Hearing Aven's command, the Bibarel leader immediately climbed ashore and shook the water from its fur.
On the riverbank, Aven mounted the Bibarel with Petilil in his arms.
Shinx had already dashed ahead, leading the way with evident eagerness. Among them, it was clearly the most enthusiastic about this trip to the forest.
Earlier, Aven had shared his suspicions with Shinx—its tracking skills would be crucial for their operation in the Black Forest.
Meow meow~
Seeing the Bibarel leader catching up, Shinx picked up speed even more, clearly impatient to enter the forest and hunt down whoever had hurt Stunky.
Bibarel and Shinx moved incredibly fast along the river, and before long, they arrived at the Black Forest.
"Shinx, I'll leave it to you."
Shinx nodded quickly, closed its eyes, and began sensing the environment. Soon, waves of electrical signals began appearing in its perception.
…
At that moment, by the shore of a lake deeper within the forest, several magical beast hunters were gathered around a campfire, grilling meat.
Sizzle, sizzle...
Chunks of meat on wooden skewers crackled above the flames, filling the air with a rich aroma.
Nearby, several iron cages had been lined up—and inside them were numerous Stunky, each wounded and lying hopelessly within the cages. From their expressions, it was clear they understood their grim fate.
Around the cages, a few Mightyenas were stationed as guards. With their powerful sense of smell, they were among the best tools available to a magical beast hunter.
…
Back on the trail, Shinx, sniffing the air, suddenly twitched its nose—it had caught the scent of meat wafting through the wind.
Meow meow~
Shinx lowered its body, signaling to Aven behind that they were close.
"It's just ahead?"
Aven narrowed his eyes, glancing at the water's surface beside him.
The Bibarel leader had already slipped into the river, and upon noticing Aven's gaze, it poked its head out and nodded.
Cradling Petilil, Aven carefully followed behind Shinx.
As they advanced, he too caught the scent of cooked meat in the air—an unmistakable sign of human activity.
No Pokémon could cook something that smelled like this.
Meow!
Suddenly, Shinx sensed dense electrical signals from ahead—indicating a large number of lifeforms, including both humans and magical beasts.
"Shinx, Petilil—stay alert."
At Aven's warning, both Pokémon nodded.
Petilil leapt from his arms, green light already beginning to glow around her body—ready for combat.
Awoo—Awoo—AWOO!!
Suddenly, a series of wolf howls pierced the air—the Mightyenas had discovered their presence!
Realizing they'd been exposed, Aven abandoned stealth and sprinted through the forest, quickly reaching a shallow riverbank.
The moment he emerged, the magical beast hunters by the campfire stood up in alarm, grabbing their weapons and glaring warily at Aven.
The Mightyenas crouched, preparing for battle. The moment it began, they would attack without hesitation—ready to tear the enemy apart.
Meow!
Shinx let out a loud cry as electricity surged across its body.
Aven's eyes scanned the enemy camp and landed on the iron cages behind the hunters.
Inside were seven Stunky, clearly their captives.
"Who are you?"
The lead hunter narrowed his greedy eyes at Shinx, then shifted his gaze to Aven.
The man and beast before them made the hunters frown—they had no idea why this stranger had wandered into their camp.
"You're a magical beast hunter, aren't you?" Aven asked flatly.
There was no real need to ask—their gear, those cages, and the imprisoned Stunky said it all.
"You answer us first—who are you?"
The lead hunter narrowed his eyes further.
With just one Shinx, they couldn't figure out why this plainly dressed young man had dared enter the Black Forest.
To them, this man wasn't even worth talking to.
If he was just an ordinary civilian, they wouldn't mind stealing that Shinx. Its market value could easily surpass their entire current haul!
"I want you to release those Stunky and leave this forest."
Aven's voice was calm, but his words caused a moment of stunned silence—then the hunters burst out laughing.
They couldn't believe what they had just heard. Did this guy seriously think he could drive them off with just one Shinx?
And who did he think he was, butting into their business?
Their laughter was full of mockery and malice, and several gazes turned toward Shinx with ill intentions.
"So you're not going to comply..."
Aven said softly.
Shinx, already bristling with electric energy, showed no fear facing the five Mightyenas in front of them.
"Hmph! Like hell we'd obey you!"
"Since you're so eager to die, we'll just take you and your little beast with us!"
The lead hunter snorted coldly and gave the signal—one of the Mightyenas immediately charged at Shinx!
These magical beast hunters had long since grown accustomed to living with danger—killing a person was no big deal to them.
They didn't know who Aven was, but this was the Black Forest. As long as they killed him and blamed it on the magical beasts, no one would question it.
And that Shinx... was too tempting to pass up.
"Shinx, use Spark!"
At Aven's command, Shinx launched forward, electricity crackling around it as it sprinted toward the enemy!
BOOM!
In midair, the two Pokémon collided violently.
After a momentary stalemate, they both broke apart—surprisingly matched in strength.
"Huh? This Shinx... is strong!"
The lead hunter frowned. His Mightyena was a intermediate-tier magical beast—yet this Shinx had just fought it to a draw?
That kind of power was unheard of for a Pokémon this small!
The other hunters were also stunned—this hound was the strongest among them!
"Everyone, attack together!"
At his command, all the Mightyenas lunged at Shinx.
"Shinx, give it everything you've got!"
Aven responded quickly. He wanted to see how far Shinx had come in its recent training.
Meow!
Shinx nodded and broke into a sprint. As it ran, its muscles stretched, and electricity surged across its limbs.
The currents concentrated in its legs, giving it a massive boost in speed!
A Mightyena lunged—but Shinx was already gone.
With lightning reflexes, it dodged and countered from the side with another Spark—sending the hound flying backward, barely stopping itself with its claws.
Another Mightyena tried to attack while Shinx was mid-strike—but Shinx had already sensed it coming.
Guided by electrical waves in its brain, Shinx leapt into the air and dodged, then immediately retaliated with a Thunder Shock, electrocuting the enemy below with a howl of pain.
At this point, Shinx had clearly mastered using electricity to stimulate its muscles—releasing incredible speed and agility.
Combined with powerful Electric-type moves, the five intermediate-tier Mightyenas couldn't even land a single hit on it!
"So fast... is this really a Shinx?"
The hunters were shocked by Shinx's explosive speed.
They felt that even a Luxray wouldn't be this fast—and this Shinx hadn't even evolved yet!
"This Shinx is a treasure! It'll fetch an enormous price!"
The lead hunter's eyes gleamed with greed. He turned his gaze back to Aven and suddenly shouted:
"Kill the human!"
In battles between magical beasts, the human trainer was always the weakest link. If they could take Aven down, the battle would be over.
The Mightyenas knew this tactic well. While four kept Shinx busy, the strongest one charged directly at Aven!
Its claws slashed forward, eyes glowing with bloodthirsty fury—
(End of Chapter)