"Rhy! Rhy!"
As Aven was still contemplating what to do with the Raticate, his Rhydon suddenly let out a warning growl and fixed its gaze toward the other side of the grass.
Without hesitation, Rhydon used Bulldoze. The ground rolled like waves, revealing the figure hidden within the grass.
It was a purple cobra standing upright, with an eerie black marking on its abdomen—an Arbok.
"Why is such a dangerous Pokémon appearing near the outskirts of the Black Forest?" Aven's expression turned grim. By all accounts, a Pokémon like Arbok should only appear in the deeper parts of the forest.
Especially Arbok—this species has a strong territorial instinct and usually stays within its own domain. The outskirts of the Black Forest are frequently patrolled by knights from Aspiration City. If an Arbok had been here for long, the knights would've already known.
That meant this Arbok had only recently moved into the area and hadn't been discovered yet.
"Hisssss…"
The Arbok flicked its tongue. Perhaps sensing Rhydon's threat, it merely stood its ground, eyeing Aven as he slowly backed away from the grass.
Once Aven was fully out of the grassy area, Arbok suddenly darted forward and swallowed the fallen Raticate whole. Then, it turned and slithered away. Its only intention had been to hunt—Aven was not its target.
Aven opened his mouth slightly, then sighed.
Arbok and Raticate are natural enemies. Even in the modern world, they compete for the same prey. Looks like this grassland had already become Arbok's new territory.
After a brief hesitation, Aven gave up on crossing the grassland and instead moved in the opposite direction, away from it.
Having already encountered both Raticate and Arbok just on the outskirts, Aven became much more cautious. He planned to finish collecting herbs nearby and head back soon.
As he ventured deeper, he noticed signs of Pokémon activity—mostly Oddish, which were common in the Black Forest. Since they weren't aggressive, they hadn't been driven out.
Later, Aven spotted some Bug-type Pokémon on the trees. They were black worm-like Pokémon wrapped in green leaves—Burmy.
'Burmy,' Aven recalled the data from memory.
Then suddenly, words like "steamed" and "deep-fried" floated into his head. Yeah… just like Cherubi, Burmy was also considered food here.
However, nobles would never eat such disgusting bugs. Only commoners might hunt and cook these Pokémon.
Shaking his head with a sigh, Aven left the leaf-filled branches alone and continued deeper. The further he went, the more herbs he found.
He was now very close to his target location—an area where Uncle Mike had once found an important ingredient for a particular potion.
Rustle, rustle.
As he walked, Aven suddenly heard rustling from the nearby grass. He froze and stared toward the source of the sound.
Sensing danger, Petilil quickly conjured a Leech Seed and fired it into the grass.
Just as the seed landed, a blue figure suddenly burst out.
Its head and front half were light blue, while the back half and tail were black. Yellow four-pointed stars marked its ears and tail.
"Shinx," Aven muttered in surprise, just as the Pokémon glanced at him, then swiftly disappeared into the woods with incredible agility.
Aven instinctively reached for his waist, where he usually kept his Poké Balls. For a split second, he had the urge to catch the Shinx.
But by the time he realized what he was doing, it was already too late. The Shinx had vanished. He sighed in frustration.
Shinx's final evolution, Luxray, is a powerful Pokémon with huge potential. Aven had always wanted to raise one.
"What a pity."
He exhaled deeply. It was too late to chase after it now.
Besides, the direction it ran was toward the depths of the Black Forest—charging in recklessly would be far too dangerous.
'Next time, maybe…' he thought.
Aven walked over to where the Shinx had been hiding and found a half-eaten white berry.
"A Berry?" Aven blinked, then his eyes widened.
That wasn't a normal berry—it was an Apricorn!
One of the most important uses of Apricorns was for crafting Poké Balls. Before modern Poké Balls existed, Apricorn Balls were the norm.
This technology dates back 400 to 700 years ago and represents the earliest form of Poké Ball creation in this world. Although modern science replaced Apricorn Balls due to their inefficiency and high crafting time, the method was still passed down and even offered as an elective course for Pokémon breeders.
And as someone who aspired to be the strongest Pokémon breeder, Aven had studied this craft. He hadn't specialized in it, but he still remembered the entire process!
He had once thought of crafting his own Apricorn Balls, but Uncle Mike had told him he'd never seen any Apricorn trees here, so Aven had assumed none grew in this region.
But now, he'd seen a white Apricorn with his own eyes—hope rekindled in his heart.
'Find that Apricorn tree!' Aven's heart roared with excitement. He glanced in the direction the Shinx had run and gritted his teeth, then began searching the area with his Pokémon.
As they delved even deeper into the Black Forest, Aven could clearly sense an increase in the number of Pokémon. Aside from the usual Grass- and Bug-types, he also spotted Starly and Buneary.
He had now entered the heart of the Black Forest—this was no longer the outskirts. Human traces were few and far between.
Even the knights who patrolled the forest rarely ventured this far, which had allowed a rich ecosystem of wild Pokémon to flourish here.
(End of Chapter)