Chapter 8: First Encounter with Arbok
The Pinsir's level wasn't low. After all, the law of the jungle—the pure survival of the fittest—reigned in the Arbok's territory. If the Pinsir had been too weak, it never would have been able to claim a whole tree as its nest.
But its level was also limited.
Although Will couldn't see the exact level of other Pokémon, he could make a rough judgment by comparing their strength to his own. This Pinsir was probably only around level 15. In a one-on-one fight, Will wasn't even sure he would lose, given his superior intelligence and refusal to waste moves. Against a three-Beedrill group beatdown? It was no contest.
The Pinsir lasted less than three minutes before the trio beat it until its eyes were swirling.
Milly gave the unconscious Pinsir a second glance before looking away, feeling absolutely no appetite for it. As for Wally, it was even less of a consideration. Will had asked him before, and Wally had apparently never eaten another Pokémon. Now that they had achieved food freedom, their desire to prey on other Pokémon was practically zero.
So, without any hesitation, Will led Wally and Milly deeper into the territory.
Along the way, any Pokémon that entered their field of vision was subjected to a group beatdown. Butterfree, Pidgeotto, Rattata, Ekans, Nidorino, Venonat, Gloom... they fought nearly all of them. Their rampage finally came to a halt when they encountered a Paras that was definitely above level 20. After that battle, the stamina of all three Beedrill was completely drained, so they ended their expedition and returned home.
Arriving back at their small territory of a dozen or so trees, Will felt a wave of relaxation wash over him. Frost and Rusty had already eaten their fill and were sound asleep.
"Eat! Then rest!"
Will gave the order and led the charge as he, Wally, and Milly began to eat. Tangleberries and Oran Berries, which could restore HP, were their main focus.
Milly was the first to finish. She landed on a random tree branch, lay down, and promptly fell asleep, displaying a complete lack of ladylike grace. Wally, being the largest, also had the biggest appetite and was still eating.
Once Will felt he had eaten enough, he also lay down and opened his personal status screen.
[Beedrill]
Potential: Blue
Level: 16
Type: Bug / Poison
Ability: Swarm
Height: 1.85m
Weight: 60kg
Moves: Fury Attack, Bug Bite, Poison Sting, String Shot, Harden, Fury Cutter, Focus Energy
Gained 3 levels. That's pretty fast, especially since the experience was split between me, Wally, and Milly.
Will stared at his status screen, performing his daily analysis. He also noticed that his height and weight had increased again, making him marvel at the wondrous constitution of Pokémon. As for moves, he had gained Focus Energy, which allowed him to concentrate his mind so that his next attack would have an extremely high chance of landing a critical hit.
More level grinding tomorrow.
Will muttered to himself before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep. A level of 16 was already considered upper-middle class in the Poliwrath's territory. Once he hit level 20, there was a high probability the Poliwrath would start trying to chase him out. Will estimated that in two or three days, he would have to move his entire group to the neighboring Arbok's territory.
The next morning, Will was awoken by a rustling sound. He opened his eyes to see Wally already eating nearby. He got up, stretched his limbs, and casually speared a few plump, juicy berries with his white stingers to munch on. A full breakfast was essential to have the energy for a day of fighting and grinding.
The expeditionary team was once again the three Beedrill. Will took Wally and Milly out with him to level up. What they needed now was not balanced development across the team, but elite fighting power. Raising Frost's and Rusty's levels wasn't a priority; once Will himself was powerful enough, everything else would be easier.
They spent the next two days in the same fashion.
On the third day, Will had led Wally and Milly deep into the very center of the Arbok's territory. The levels of all three Beedrill had now reached 20. This level had already crossed the Poliwrath's warning line, but it seemed the guardian of the safe zone hadn't noticed their situation yet, so it hadn't come to evict them.
However, a level of 20 was by no means high here. You might not see Pokémon at this level in the Poliwrath's territory because of its vigilance, but in the Arbok's lands, level 20-something Pokémon were everywhere. In the central region, there were even Pokémon over level 30.
Right now, Will, Wally, and Milly were in this central region, looking for a fight. But before they could pick a satisfactory target, another Pokémon found them first.
"Ar-bok..."
The sound came from the woods beside them. The next moment, a colossal creature descended from the branches of a giant tree above them, startling the three Beedrill so badly that they shot back several meters.
When they got a clear look at the target, Will's expression turned grim. Milly even began to look agitated and uneasy. Wally, however, remained calm as ever, flying steadily behind Will.
It was a massive Arbok, over six meters long!
"Arbok."
The Arbok slithered down the tree trunk to the ground. Even with only the front half of its body raised, the snake stood nearly three meters tall.
So this is the boss of this area. It's ridiculous.
Feeling the powerful pressure radiating from the Arbok, Will could feel his own heart rate speeding up. He didn't even need to fight it to know the truth. Even if the three of them attacked together, they would be no match for this Arbok.
"Go!"
The moment he saw the Arbok, Will immediately turned and led Wally and Milly in a swift retreat. With their mobility, as long as they wanted to run, very few Pokémon could catch them. Even if the Arbok was a higher level with superior stats, they could just fly high into the air, where the ground-based snake couldn't do a thing to them.
The Arbok clearly knew this as well, so it didn't even bother to give chase.
"Bzz-bzz? (Aren't we going to fight it?)" Wally asked, a little confused.
"We can't beat it yet. We'll fight it in a few days," Will shook his head.
A wise man knows when to pick his battles. There was no need to challenge the Arbok while they were still weak. The Pokémon of the Era of Primal Beasts didn't know the meaning of mercy. Once you were defeated, you would be swallowed whole.
As they were flying away, another faint hissing sound came from the side.
"Sss-sss~"
Will turned toward the sound and saw a decently sized Ekans. It seemed to be the very same one they had seen in the Poliwrath's territory a few days ago.
"You two stay out of this one. I'll handle it myself."
Will scraped his two large, white stingers together and charged forward alone.
The Ekans's level couldn't be any higher than 22 at most. An Ekans that reached that level would almost certainly evolve into an Arbok, and wild Pokémon instinctively craved evolution. They had no reason to refuse it and would evolve as soon as they could.
Against an opponent of a similar level, Will had no intention of splitting the experience with Wally and Milly.