This Zangoose encounter was just a small episode during the journey through the Peaceful River Forest. After defeating it, Aron and Combusken moved on.
"Sure enough, the wild is a great place to battle and level up," Aron sighed.
Compared to the Battle Club, where the strength of the Pokémon is known, the wild offers countless possibilities, and no one knows what Pokémon might appear from the grass at any moment.
However, there are pros and cons. In the wild, the strength of Pokémon can vary greatly, while in the Battle Club, you can fight with Pokémon of a specific strength.
Also, battles at the club can help hone a Trainer's command skills, which are crucial.
But overall, leveling up in the wild is still much faster than at the club.
As they continued their journey, Aron encountered several Pokémon, including a normal-level Marill and a Intermediate-level Gloom. Combusken defeated them one by one, gaining considerable experience points.
Time passed, the sun began to dip toward the west, and it was already afternoon.
While walking through the woods, Aron suddenly heard a rustling sound.
Aron raised his eyes and saw a large river, several meters wide, coming into view.
"This should be the Peace River," Aron said.
He quickly walked forward, and after a while, he arrived at the side of the rushing Peace River.
On the opposite bank, there was another vast forest that stretched beyond sight.
"Let's rest here for a while," Aron suggested.
"Combusken!" Combusken nodded slightly, but then its eyes widened, and it turned to the right.
Aron followed Combusken's gaze and saw an Emolga cautiously making its way toward the woods by the riverbank.
When Emolga noticed Aron and Combusken looking at her, her expression froze. She became very stiff, standing in a daze, her body trembling slightly.
[Pokémon: Emolga (Electric/Flying)
Ability: Static
Qualification: Advanced
Level: Lv4 (Rookie Level)]
"Combusken." Combusken stared at Emolga intently, its eyes filled with wariness. It waved its sharp claws at her.
"Emol..." Emolga trembled slightly at Combusken's stare, then bit her lip, her eyes turned red, and she began to cry, tears streaming down her face.
"This little one..." Aron said softly, taken aback by the situation.
It was also the first time for Combusken to encounter a Pokémon crying after a confrontation. It tilted its head, feeling a bit helpless.
"Let's go, let's comfort this little one."
With that, Aron walked slowly toward the crying Emolga.
Unaware that Aron was approaching, Emolga kept crying, too lost in her sadness to notice.
It wasn't until Aron and Combusken stood in front of her that Emolga stopped crying abruptly, her face filled with fear as she opened her eyes.
"It's okay, we won't hurt you." Aron smiled helplessly, squatting down. He took an energy cube from his pocket and handed it to Emolga. "Here, this is our apology gift."
Emolga stared blankly at the energy cube in Aron's hand, not knowing how to react. But in the next second, her nose twitched, and she caught a whiff of the delicious fragrance. Her eyes lit up.
"Emol..." Emolga called softly. Seeing that neither Aron nor Combusken reacted, she cautiously stretched out her trembling hand to grab the energy cube, then quickly retracted it.
"Eemol!" Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Emolga swallowed the energy cube in one bite, and the delicious taste filled her mouth.
"Eeeeeeemol!!"
Emolga squinted her round eyes, enjoying the taste, her face full of bliss as she flicked her black tail behind her.
"Here, take more," Aron chuckled. He took out two more energy cubes from his pocket and handed them to Emolga.
This time, Emolga eagerly accepted the energy cubes without hesitation, swallowing them eagerly.
"Eeeeeeemol!!"
Emolga looked ecstatic and began to shake her hands, as if singing an unknown song.
Aron couldn't help but laugh. He took out two more energy cubes and handed them to Emolga. "These are the last two."
But just as Emolga was about to swallow them, she paused upon hearing Aron's voice. She stopped abruptly, clutching the energy cubes tightly in her hands.
"Alright, let's go. Don't let other Pokémon steal your food," Aron said, standing up. He waved goodbye to Emolga and turned to leave.
"E-mol..."
Emolga gazed at Aron and Combusken as they walked away, subconsciously hugging the energy cubes tightly against her chest.
"Pokémon are amazing," Aron murmured.
"Com-busken," Combusken nodded thoughtfully.
"It looks like we'll have to be more careful next time. We shouldn't scare these innocent little ones," Aron smiled.
"Combusken..." Combusken understood.
Just as Aron and Combusken were about to leave, a sudden growl came from behind them.
"Eeeeeeemol!!"
"Yeah!" Aron and Combusken exchanged glances, turned around, and rushed back to the spot where they had just been.
---
Meanwhile, not far away…
"Squirtle, the final blow, Water Gun!" Lian said calmly.
"Squirtle, Squirtle!" Squirtle puffed out its cheeks and shot a swift stream of water from its mouth, hitting Vulpix in the blink of an eye.
Vulpix, an orange fox with six curly tails, was drenched, its soft red-brown fur soaked by the water.
"Vul!" Vulpix cried out, falling to the ground with swirling eyes.
"Go, Poké Ball!" Seeing this, Lian was overjoyed and immediately threw a Poké Ball.
The Poké Ball hit Vulpix and emitted a red light that surrounded it, trapping it inside.
Ding... ding... ding!
The Poké Ball continued to shake, and after a moment, it finally stopped.
Lian breathed a sigh of relief and hurried over to pick up the Poké Ball, shouting, "I caught a Vulpix!"
Takashi smiled and clapped. "Congratulations! This Vulpix has good potential and can be a great Pokémon to train."
"Yeah," Lian beamed, holding the Poké Ball tightly.
Takashi grinned. "This is the first Pokémon you've caught through battle.This fells wonderful feeling isn't it?"
"Let's go, let's follow the Peace River and try to evolve Squirtle within the next two days."
"Okay!" Lian nodded eagerly.