Chapter 93: Gligar's Evolution
In the afternoon, after being kept for a meal by Elder Barb, Will and Scorp set off again. For Scorp, enduring hardship was one thing, but being deprived of a meal was a tragedy that would bring him to tears.
They flew in silence, heading straight for the isolated island. The island was very close to Jubilance Town; at their flight speed, it took less than ten minutes to reach the shore.
A few Gligar flew out from the forest as usual. Some of them recognized Will and Scorp and immediately flew back to the central nest to report. Before long, the Gliscor Alpha arrived with a large number of its kin. It seemed the Alpha intended for the others to watch.
"Gligar~" Scorp waved his pincers happily in greeting when he saw his old man. He looked just like a child who hadn't grown up.
"Gliscor," the Alpha looked at his son for a moment, seeming to notice something, but just nodded without saying much. As a father, how could he not see the changes in his own child? But this was something that had to be experienced; no Pokémon could escape it.
Then the Gliscor Alpha shifted its gaze to Will, sizing him up.
"Gliscor?"
"That's right. That's why we've come," Will replied to the Alpha's unspoken question.
"Gliscor," the Alpha said, waving a pincer at a Gligar behind him. The Gligar immediately came forward, holding a huge leaf. On the leaf rested a yellowish, sharp fang, over ten centimeters long.
"Gliscor."
The Alpha picked up the fang and tossed it to Will.
"We don't have to accept your challenge?" Will asked, raising an eyebrow. He passed the fang to Scorp. Scorp wouldn't evolve immediately after taking it; he had to wait until nightfall.
"Gliscor~" the Alpha shook its head lazily, stating frankly that it was no longer a match for Will. There was no need to fight.
"Thank you... by the way, recently..."
Considering this was Scorp's home and his clan was here, Will repeated the warning he had given to the old Scyther.
"Gliscor," the Alpha's answer was completely different from the Scyther's.
The Scyther clan moved around Mt. Silver constantly; they had no particular attachment to any one place and would have no psychological barrier to relocating. But the Gliscor clan had lived on this isolated island since birth. They were deeply attached to this place. Even if the human war were to reach them, they would not leave.
"...Can we stay here for today? I'd like to ask you to teach Scorp some tips on using the fang moves. I'm afraid he won't be able to learn them on his own later."
Will didn't waste any more words on the topic of their territory. In reality, there wasn't much to worry about. As long as the Dragonite Kingdom was the victor, this island would be fine.
"Gliscor," the Alpha nodded and turned, beckoning for Will and Scorp to follow.
Scorp was no stranger here. He followed the Alpha and began to greet the other Gligar, chattering away, likely telling them about his experiences over the past two years. The other Gligar listened, their eyes shining, and some began to think about venturing out into the world themselves.
Will, meanwhile, was observing the island. The number of Gligar was enormous. He had seen at least a hundred on his way in, and that was probably only a fifth of the total population, or even less. It was clear that this clan had lived here for a very, very long time and had never encountered any natural enemies. The only thing that could cause major losses to a clan of this size would be a natural disaster.
There was another thing. Will noticed that the Alpha was the only Gliscor on the entire island. It was impossible that it only had one Razor Fang; it definitely had others. The Alpha must be restricting the evolution of the other Gligar. The reason was unknown, but it was not impossible that it was to maintain its own rule, which was very important for an Alpha in the wild. Scorp was leaving with Will and wouldn't be back for a long time, so his evolution posed no threat to the Alpha's position. That was why it had not been restricted.
Of course, there might be other reasons that Will couldn't guess and that weren't recorded in the Pokédex.
"Wait, are you guys... intentionally planting these?"
Suddenly, as they passed a clearing, Will asked the Alpha in surprise. He saw a few Gligar planting saplings, while others were watering them with large leaves. This truly shocked Will. He had just been wondering if this clan, reproducing without any predators, would one day face internal strife due to a lack of resources. But if they had mastered the skill of agriculture, that day could be greatly delayed. If they could hold out until the Era of Leagues, that day might never come at all, as an endless stream of Trainers would come to the island to catch Gligar, and with each one that left, the island's resources would become more plentiful.
"Gliscor," the Alpha glanced over and explained a little more.
Their ancestors had once spied on humans plowing fields and planting crops on the plains. So, they had tried to practice it on this island, and the tradition had been preserved to this day. But for some unknown reason, their success rate was not high, and many of the saplings would wither and die.
Will took a closer look and immediately understood why. These Gligar were just planting the saplings and watering them daily. They did nothing else. Naturally, it couldn't compare to human farming. But for Pokémon to have achieved even this much was already very impressive.
Continuing deeper, Will found that the island's scenery was quite nice; it wasn't just a simple forest as he had imagined. In the center was a small mountain that had even formed a small waterfall, which flowed into a lake that connected to the sea. It could truly be called a place of beautiful mountains and clear waters.
"This is indeed a suitable place to live," Will praised. Although his soul was still human, he had lived two lives as a Pokémon. From a Pokémon's perspective, this place was extremely nice.
"Gliscor," the Alpha couldn't help but smile. Hearing his home praised made him happy. He now looked at Will much more favorably. He called over several small Gligar to bring all sorts of fruits to serve them, and even had two female Gligar come over to give Will a massage by gently tapping his back with their pincers.
However, to Will, it just felt like a light scratching. And he couldn't appreciate the beauty of the two Gligar from a Pokémon's perspective. At most, from a human's perspective, the two delicate-looking Gligar were somewhat cute. If he could choose, he would of course prefer to be massaged by two beautiful human women.
Beautiful women...
Will raised his head and thought for a moment. He really hadn't seen many beautiful women since coming to this world. The adult women of this era had mostly experienced the hardships of the Tribal Period, so their skin wasn't the best. Liz was already the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, but even she had a few small flaws. For example, now that she was approaching thirty, a few crow's feet were starting to appear at the corners of her eyes. It was probably due to overwork.
Besides her, Iris's mother, that hot-tempered woman, was also a beauty, though she seemed to have been a warrior in the past, and the muscles on her arms and legs slightly affected her aesthetic. But judging by the mother's looks, Iris would grow up to be a beauty no less than Liz.
"Gliscor!"
The Alpha's voice brought Will back to the present. He turned and saw that it had already begun teaching Scorp the experience of the Three Fangs: Thunder Fang, Ice Fang, and Fire Fang. They were the counterpart to the "Farmer's Three Punches" that a Dragonite could master. But the punches were superior to the fangs in both power and accuracy. And in reality, the punches were much more convenient to use. You could use a Fire Punch with your left hand and an Ice Punch with your right. Could you do that with fangs?
And biting was just too clumsy, at least for a species like Dragonite.
"Gligar," Scorp tried, but couldn't get the feel for it at all.
This didn't surprise Will. If it could be learned just by watching, then Scorp would be a genius among geniuses. He didn't expect him to learn it right away. Once Scorp evolved into a Gliscor, the memory of the Three Fangs would be etched deep within him, waiting to be recalled, just like his own Extreme Speed. With the Alpha's guidance now, when the time came, Scorp would only need to recall it for a moment to master the moves.
Scorp trained with the Alpha for the rest of the afternoon. When night fell.
"Scorp, it's about time. Pick up the Razor Fang."
"Gligar!"
Scorp nodded obediently and took the Razor Fang in his hand. The light of evolution began to shine. The brilliant light attracted many of the surrounding Gligar, who peeked out to watch. For many of them, it was their first time seeing a Gligar evolve.
When the light faded, a majestic Gliscor stood before Will.
Scorp opened his eyes. In the darkness, his golden eyes shone like two luminous pearls. At the same time, two or three sparks suddenly erupted from his teeth. Then, with a whoosh, his fangs burst into raging flames.
He had mastered Fire Fang immediately upon evolving.
He's been around Charizard for so long, he's seen a lot of Fire-type moves, so he has a better feel for Fire Fang, Will nodded.
Tomorrow, when the sun rises, they could set out for the capital.
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