LightReader

Chapter 111 - 110-A Dangerous Encounter

The next morning, Sieg set out on his journey.

He wasn't in any rush to brew the poison. At the moment, he was still missing a "Weatherflow" Pokéblock, which wasn't perfect yet.

Besides, right now, there was no place he could gather materials for his research.

"Still, if I happen to come across any Poison-type Pokémon, I can at least collect their toxins and strengthen the Black Sludge a little."

The Black Sludge he carried was clearly of a rather poor grade. Its poison would barely affect Pokémon above level 30.

If he could gather some fresh toxins and infuse them into the sludge, he could make its venom more potent. That, too, was part of Sieg's plan.

Unfortunately, Poison-types were scarce in the desert.

After walking for several hours without encountering a single one, Sieg had mostly run into Ground- and Rock-types.

Crossing another sandy slope, he stopped to survey his surroundings.

Deserts were called one of nature's forbidden zones for good reason. Even though the one Sieg was crossing was just a small formation within a larger plain, it still hid many dangers, such as quicksand pits.

From the surface, these pits looked no different from normal sand, a thick layer of yellow grains spread evenly across the ground.

But underneath, they were hollow.

Perhaps a powerful Pokémon had once nested there, or perhaps it had been used as an egg-hatching site for a whole colony. Sometimes, they even formed naturally.

Regardless of origin, the hollow areas were usually five or six meters deep.

If you fell in, you'd be buried in sand before you could even cry for help.

Caution was second nature to Sieg. Every route he took, he first had his Pokémon probe ahead with their moves. Naturally, his pace was slow.

"The one good thing is that Pokémon are sparse in the desert," he murmured, "I don't have to worry too much about wild attacks, and I can go straight instead of making a long detour."

Traveling straight was his chosen route. It was convenient, and he still had the thrill of discovery.

Like now, he'd just spotted a tree in the middle of nowhere.

It was small, ancient-looking, and completely withered, not a trace of green.

But as a breeder, Sieg immediately sensed something unusual about it. It was most likely a rare species that had adapted to life in the desert.

"Honchkrow, use Drill Peck."

He scraped off a chunk of bark to take as research material, storing it in his spatial backpack.

Consulting his Pokédex, he confirmed he was already halfway across. In less than half a day, he could be out of the desert.

Still, he never lowered his guard. That vigilance was a habit forged over years.

As he pressed onward, the number of Pokémon encounters began to rise, likely because he was nearing the desert's center.

Most of them were Digletts and Dugtrios.

Digletts were harmless enough. They only dug shallow tunnels, one or two meters deep, and their mounds were easy to spot.

Dugtrios, however, were a real headache. They dug deeper, hid their burrows better, and were harder to detect.

Now, Sieg was forced to probe the ground with moves every single step.

Some of the more mischievous Dugtrio even attacked him outright, only to be boiled alive under Crawdaunt's scalding Water attacks.

A few faster diggers managed to retreat underground before meeting the same fate.

The sun blazed overhead, its heat merciless at high noon.

Just as Sieg was about to cross another dune, he heard it, a clear clamor of battle. The surge of moves, the faint shouts of human commands.

"Even here, there are Trainers?"

He was surprised. Surviving in the desert required not just strength but skill in wilderness survival. Whoever they were, they were no rookies.

Slowing his steps, Sieg circled around the slope, peering toward the source of the noise.

"Bang… boom!"

The crash of an impact shook the sand, spraying it into the air.

A crisp voice rang out, "Skarmory, use Air Cutter!"

Sieg narrowed his eyes, following the sound.

A young man in an expensive suit stood in the sand, directing a gleaming silver Skarmory in battle against a Dugtrio.

But Sieg's attention was drawn not to the young man or his bird, but to the elderly man at his side.

The old man, dressed in casual black clothes, looked upon the young man with gentle fondness. Yet the Pokémon standing beside him radiated immense, oppressive energy.

Even from afar, Sieg could tell, its level was extraordinarily high.

Its face was like a solid stone shield, its body massive. Its head was gray, but the rest of it was golden-yellow, blending seamlessly into the desert's sands.

Bastiodon.

From their bearing, Sieg guessed their identities, a scion of a great family, and the butler who served him.

The respect in the old man's manner toward the other confirmed it. Sieg cast a wary glance at the Bastiodon.

Spying on someone's battle was bad manners, and Sieg had no intention of inviting trouble. He began to withdraw quietly.

But the old man suddenly turned his head, his sharp gaze sweeping over the dune where Sieg hid.

The young man, regal in bearing, asked softly, "Alfonse, what's wrong?"

Alfonse gave the young master a deep bow, then smiled kindly and said, "Nothing, nothing at all… just a little eavesdropping bug."

Then his voice turned cold as he barked, "Bastiodon, use Ancient Power!"

At once, massive boulders, each the size of a house, coalesced in midair and shot toward Sieg's hiding spot at terrifying speed.

The angles were uncanny, striking from all directions at once, leaving no room to escape.

Sieg had no time to dodge.

"Protect!"

His roar split the air.

But the next moment, a thunderous crash shook the desert. The dune where he'd been concealed collapsed under the force of the blow.

A whirlwind of golden sand exploded upward like a raging storm, sweeping countless grains into the sky.

That was just a casual strike.

When the dust cleared, Sieg knelt on one knee, his expedition gear torn, his Pokémon beside him breathing heavily.

Only by combining their full power had they managed to block that single attack.

More Chapters