"From now on, Mr. Aven, please focus all your efforts on researching the gray mist."
"I'll report this to His Highness. The hope of Aspiration City rests with you."
Kevin gave Aven a deep, serious look. This young knight might just be capable of creating a legend.
"Of course. After all, I'm a member of Aspiration City too," Aven replied.
Hearing his words, Kevin nodded with satisfaction, gave Aven a firm pat on the shoulder, and walked out of the room with a much lighter expression.
"Now, it's time for continuous testing. Let's hope we can remove this special confused state from you," Aven said, looking at the Rattata in front of him.
After the effect of the potion wore off, the gray mist around the Rattata grew denser, drifting throughout the cage.
If a Pokémon stayed in contact with the mist for too long, even a normal one would fall into confusion—unless it was equipped with a magic beast device.
Aside from the medicinal approach, Aven believed that observing the process of a magic beast being eroded by the mist was also a crucial breakthrough.
However, this would require a healthy Pokémon as a test subject, which made Aven feel deeply conflicted.
The development of Pokémon studies had always been built on countless sacrifices... Aven closed his eyes, recalling something his breeder mentor once said.
…
Magic beasts from the Caverns continued to flood out of the Black Forest.
At first, they were mostly Rattatas, but over time, more and more kinds appeared.
Some were even Ice-type magic beasts rarely seen in the Black Forest, which weighed heavily on the knights guarding the front lines.
Just the usual beasts from the forest were already difficult enough for Aspiration City to handle.
If these new beast were all coming from Mt. Coronet, then the threat to Aspiration City could be fatal.
"They might have just accidentally wandered into the forest… it's still winter, after all," one knight said, trying to console himself.
Aside from the Abyssal beasts, another major event was the public sharing of the method to learn the move Rock Slide.
To prepare for the coming wave of beasts, the knight order fully released the training method, giving every knight a chance to improve.
Aspiration City was now pouring all its resources into resisting the invasion from the Abyssal.
Sutter and Peter were now participating in the defense as well.
Normally, they hadn't thought their Pokémon were especially strong, but in this battle, the difference was immediately clear.
The Pokémon they had raised using Aven's methods were superior to the knights' in every way—especially in the execution of moves.
Battles were, after all, the best way for Pokémon to grow.
With that in mind, Aven handed over his Rhyhorn and Mightyena to Peter for command.
When Rhyhorn used Rock Slide, countless boulders rained down, knocking away groups of beasts. Its power was no less impressive than a Rhydon's.
After a period of focused training, this Rhyhorn definitely had potential to evolve, which made many knights envious.
"Whew, so this is what a knight's battle is like?" Peter watched the scene, blood boiling and fists clenched.
Sutter silently nodded and sighed, "If I had a choice, I'd rather there never be battles again. Living quietly in Fruitvale Village, tending berry trees, would be just fine."
Hearing his words, Peter's smile faded. Thinking of Fruitvale Village, his gaze hardened. He was determined to keep these beasts out.
"Mightyena, use Sucker Punch!"
Seeing a Rattata dart past Rhyhorn and charge toward the defensive line, Peter gave a loud command.
With a flash of shadowy light, Mightyena dashed forward and reappeared behind the Rattata, claws slashing!
The Rattata was blasted into the air, and with another flash, Mightyena caught up, sinking its fangs into it.
After a fierce battle, this wave of beasts from the Abyssal Caern was once again repelled. Snow fell heavily, covering the traces of the fight.
…
Behind the front lines, one area was now completely surrounded by knights.
A faint stench drifted through the courtyard, but the knights standing guard didn't even flinch.
As they looked toward the courtyard, admiration flickered in their eyes.
During each major beast wave, Aven had shown up at the front lines to heal the injured.
Time and again, he healed wounds that even the knights thought were beyond help—yet in Aven's hands, treatment seemed almost effortless.
All the knights stationed outside the courtyard now had benefited from Aven's help. While guarding the courtyard, they were also resting and recovering.
If their Pokémon felt unwell, Aven could provide treatment immediately—this was the best arrangement available on the front.
Inside the courtyard, cages of all sizes held tightly bound Rattatas.
Some cages held more than one Rattata. Among the infected were also some normal Rattatas.
Some wore magic beast gear, some didn't. The one thing they had in common was that they were all enveloped in the gray mist.
In front of the cages, Aven took notes, carefully recording the Rattatas' conditions.
It was clear that the Rattatas without equipment had duller skin and looked very sluggish.
Those wearing the gear were in much better condition—proof that the equipment did help resist the mist's erosion.
"As I thought, this gray mist contains ghost-type energy. It corrodes life to generate more mist."
"Once the Pokémon dies and there's no more life energy to consume, the mist begins to dissipate into the air, along with the ghost energy."
Looking over the data in his notebook, Aven made a preliminary conclusion: the gray mist was essentially ghost-type energy that caused confusion in Pokémon.
Last time, to help an infected Rattata live longer, Aven had asked Petilil to heal it.
But when the life energy made contact with the mist, the mist became even thicker. Apparently, it could absorb life energy and convert it into more mist!
Realizing this, he immediately focused on testing this interaction further, which led him to confirm that ghost-type energy was indeed present in the mist.
He now believed the gray mist was a form of very special kind of deathly aura—one that could erode both life and mind, turning Pokémon into irrational, zombie-like creatures.
(End of Chapter)