Caleb noticed Terrence's nervousness and glanced back at him, somewhat exasperated, "Why are you so tense?"
Terrence looked horrified, his voice barely above a whisper as if afraid of disturbing the Mamoswine: "Bro, aren't you scared? That's a Mamoswine! It could gore you to death in one hit! And you haven't even released Dragonite!"
Caleb: "..."
'It's really not that serious.'
At this point, the two were still about eight meters away from the Mamoswine. For a wild Pokémon, this was already pushing the limits of a safe distance.
Their footsteps crunched softly in the snow.
The Mamoswine had clearly noticed them. It turned its massive body slightly, glancing back at the two small figures approaching.
Terrence was so nervous, he could barely breathe.
But the Mamoswine didn't react aggressively. It simply turned fully around, its attention caught by the Poffins in Caleb's hand. Slowly, it lumbered toward them.
"I-It's c-coming! Run!" Terrence grabbed Caleb's arm in a panic, trying to pull him back.
But his paws slipped, sending both of them tumbling face-first into the snow, leaving two human-shaped imprints behind.
The Poffins flew out of Caleb's hand and landed right in front of the Mamoswine. The Mamoswine paused mid-step, then lowered its head to sniff at the treats.
Then it opened its mouth and gobbled them up, its expression turning blissful.
By the time Caleb and Terrence scrambled back to their feet, this was the scene that greeted them...
Caleb brushed the snow off his hair, face, and clothes, while he shot Terrence a look to stop him from speaking. Then he walked toward the Mamoswine.
The Mamoswine was happily munching on the Poffins. When it heard footsteps, it lazily glanced up. Recognizing Caleb, it let out a couple of friendly grunts.
Caleb placed a hand on the Mamoswine's thick fur, then activated the Viridian Power to connect with its thoughts and explain his request.
The Mamoswine cheerfully agreed: >..Since I ate your food, I'll help you out!..<
It swallowed the last of the Poffins, then lowered its belly to the snow, gesturing for Caleb to climb onto its back.
Caleb looked back at his Smeargle companion. Terrence walked over, disbelief written all over his face, "That's it? It's this tame?! The Mamoswine in my last Instance tried to impale me with its tusks!"
Caleb thought for a moment, then explained, "Maybe it sensed my Viridian Power. You know, this ability comes with a built-in friendliness buff for wild Pokémon."
Terrence supported Caleb up with his paws while asking, "So... just how many Instances have you cleared, Mr. veteran? Spending 500 000 points on the Viridian Power... that's some dedication!"
Caleb settled onto the Mamoswine's broad back and reached down to help Terrence up, "You're overthinking it. I got it from a gacha draw."
Speaking of gacha draws, Terrence recalled that large role-playing Instance, "I once got a gacha draw in a previous Instance too."
Now that both passengers were aboard, the Mamoswine rose carefully and turned toward the mountain peak before breaking into a steady run.
Caleb glanced ahead and asked casually, "What did you get?"
Terrence: "A Psyduck watering can. Makes berries grow faster when planted."
Caleb: "..."
He had a feeling that if he had been the one drawing that time, the reward might've been even worse than a Psyduck watering can...
A faint warmth radiated from the Mamoswine's body. Caleb and Terrence buried themselves in its fur, leaving only their eyes exposed to the outside world.
Two large lumps protruded from the Mamoswine's back, looking utterly ridiculous. If a Snowpoint City reporter saw this, tomorrow's headlines would probably read:
<...What's up with the bumps on this Mamoswine? Everyone knows Mamoswine, but what about the bumps on its back? Let our reporter explain!..>
<...The bumps on the Mamoswine are, in fact, two large lumps on its back. You may wonder... how did these bumps appear? But the truth is just that simple! Even our reporter is shocked!..>
....
Time passed. As they ascended, the wind grew harsher and the cold more biting...
Visibility dropped to less than twenty meters, with nothing but endless white snow in every direction.
Bored, Caleb began braiding small sections of the Mamoswine's brown fur... a skill he'd picked up from styling Lily's hair during the Bug Catcher Instance.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in the snow ahead, struggling forward.
Terrence: "Look, isn't that the pregnant woman?"
Caleb turned to see the 'pregnant woman' walking in an extremely awkward gait. Beside 'him' stood an exhausted Mandibuzz. He must have tried flying straight to the summit but clearly failed.
Terrence squinted for a moment before saying with a strange expression, "Look at how he's walking... like a full-grown man. You think he's actually a guy?"
The 'pregnant woman' turned and spotted the approaching Mamoswine. Staring at the two lumps on its back, it took him a few seconds to notice the half-hidden faces of Caleb and Terrence peeking out...
The 'woman' waved, "Hey kid, mind giving this unc– er, auntie a lift?"
Terrence yelled back, "Dude, stop pretending! You're totally a guy! How's pregnancy treating you? Hahaha!"
Flustered and angry, the man retorted weakly, "Still better than being turned into a dog!"
Terrence laughed, utterly unbothered, "Bro, I'd suggest giving up on this event. Go rest before you miscarry!"
"Damn it!" The man finally dropped the act, "What kind of shitty transformation Instance is this?!"
With that, he recalled his Mandibuzz and summoned a Dodrio instead. Mounting it with some difficulty, he rode off down the mountain, cursing all the way.
Terrence shuddered, "Thank god this Instance didn't turn me into something weird!"
Caleb: "..."
His mind flashed to that macho-voiced Jynx, 'He probably gave up on this event too, right?'
After all, he was only level 15, couldn't release his own Pokémon, and might even get attacked by wild Pokémon along the way...