The male Scovillain had intervened.
Its level was significantly higher than Espathra's, so even though its Special Attack individual value was equally poor, it was still not something Espathra could withstand.
After neutralizing Espathra's Lumina Crash, the swift male Scovillain used Sunny Day. Instantly, the sun in the sky beat down even more fiercely.
Bolstered by the harsh sunlight, the female Scovillain raised both its heads. Light began to condense atop them, and a second later, the green head unleashed a golden beam of light toward Espathra.
It was the powerful Grass-type move, Solar Beam. With the support of Sunny Day, this move, which usually required charging, could now be fired instantaneously.
However, Espathra was very fast and possessed the Speed Boost ability. The moment the Solar Beam was fired, it used Agility, stacking speed upon speed. It vanished from its spot in the blink of an eye.
BOOM!
With a massive explosion, the Solar Beam blasted a deep crater into the ground.
At this moment, neither Scovillain noticed that Komala had already reached their rear. A faint, eerie light shimmered on one of Komala's paws, and a moment later, a massive, spectral black claw formed over its hand.
It was the Ghost-type move, Shadow Claw!
Komala raised the Shadow Claw and lunged at the female Scovillain. The male Scovillain, whose Chlorophyll ability had doubled its speed under the harsh sunlight, detected the attack. There was no time to warn its mate, so it threw itself forward, forcefully knocking her out of the way. Consequently, it took the full force of Komala's Shadow Claw.
The male Scovillain cried out in pain and tumbled away. Its two heads went limp as it lost consciousness immediately. It couldn't even withstand a single blow from Komala.
Sco sco~
The female Scovillain cried out in worry and tried to run to her husband. However, Espathra crossed its long legs and blocked her path.
Lumina Crash, go!
The distracted female Scovillain was hit squarely and went rolling across the ground.
Her Special Defense was already quite low, and the Lumina Crash had further lowered it significantly. Seizing the moment while she was still reeling, Espathra casually released a Psybeam, and the female Scovillain collapsed as well.
Seeing their father and mother defeated, the three Capsakid immediately started shouting and barking at Espathra.
"Don't worry, your parents are fine," Ange quickly told them. "They'll wake up soon."
Cap cap~ Big bully!
Cap cap~ Bad person!
Cap cap~ I'm gonna beat you up!
However, the Capsakid didn't stop. They lunged at Ange with fierce expressions.
Honk honk~
At that moment, the female Oinkologne stepped forward. She raised her tail and began swiveling it around. A rich fragrance diffused outward from her. Upon smelling the scent, the three Capsakid became dazed and ran toward the female Oinkologne with infatuated expressions, chasing after her tail.
The floral scent released by a female Oinkologne was excellent for soothing agitated Pokemon.
After calming the three Capsakid, the Oinkologne blinked playfully at Ange.
"Thanks, Oinkologne!"
Ange gave her a grateful look. He then walked over to the two Scovillain, first feeding them each a berry to restore their physical strength, and then sprinkling rock salt from Garganacl onto their wounds.
Miraculously, the moment the rock salt was applied, the Scovillain's wounds disappeared!
As expected, Garganacl's rock salt possessed powerful healing properties. No wonder it was so popular in Paldea.
A short while later, the two Scovillain woke up. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?" Ange asked.
The two Scovillain shook their heads simultaneously.
Ange's gentle tone touched them. Feeling that their pain had vanished, they looked at Ange with even more satisfaction.
This Trainer is worth following!
"Can I catch you now?" Ange inquired.
Sco sco~
Sco sco~
The Scovillain couple nodded together and called out to the three Capsakid nearby.
Called by their parents, the three Capsakid came running over.
The family of five sat in a row in front of Ange. He took out five Poke Balls and placed them before them.
"I'll be in your care from now on!"
The Scovillain couple nodded to Ange and barked at their children. Seeing the three little ones nod, they pressed the buttons on the Poke Balls and were pulled inside in flashes of red light.
Seeing this, the three Capsakid also reached out and pressed the switches on the Poke Balls, similarly disappearing into three streaks of red light.
Ange picked up the five Poke Balls, an excited smile spreading across his face.
The Scovillain family, GET DA☆ZE!
Stowing the Poke Balls away, Ange said to Arven and the others, "Let's head back."
"Mhm," Arven nodded and was the first to climb onto Espathra's back.
Ange, holding Komala, also climbed on. He waved to the other Pokemon behind them and said, "Let's go home!"
Espa~
Espathra responded to Ange with a cry. It suddenly grabbed Pawmi by the scruff of its neck with its beak and began to sprint with its long legs.
Honk honk~
Honk honk~
Roc~
The two Oinkologne and Mabosstiff also let out excited howls and began to run behind Espathra.
Paw paw paw~
Pawmi's screams echoed continuously through the air.
They were in high spirits, but unexpectedly, a Pokemon blocked their path while they were passing through a rocky area.
Espathra was running smoothly when a pillar of fire suddenly shot out from nowhere. Fortunately, Espathra braked in time, or they would have crashed into the flames.
Following this, the ground shook violently. A Camerupt appeared with a frenzied look on its face. Thick smoke billowed from one of the humps on its back, and waves of searing fire erupted, scaring the surrounding Pokemon into fleeing in all directions.
A young Rockruff was unable to run away in time. Seeing that it was about to be hit by the flames, Ange quickly shouted, "Espathra, Lumina Crash!"
Espa~
Espathra screeched as a colored light radiated from its eyes. A sphere of rainbow light was fired.
BOOM!
The sphere collided with the flames, neutralizing them just in time. The Rockruff was saved.
"Run, quickly!" Ange shouted to the stunned Rockruff.
Ruff ruff ruff~
The Rockruff finally scrambled to its feet and bolted into the distance.
The Camerupt was still rampaging. Many Pokemon living in the rocky area were currently hiding in the distance, watching the Camerupt with fear. The place where they lived had been turned into a mess by the rampaging Pokemon.
Ange looked at the Camerupt with his Eye of Observation.
Camerupt Type: Fire, Ground Ability: Anger Point Gender: Male Level: 61 Moves: Rock Slide, Tackle, Growl, Amnesia, Ember, Fissure, Eruption, Bulldoze, Earth Power, Lava Plume, Earthquake, Flamethrower, Dig, Yawn Individual Values HP: 25 Attack: 28 Defense: 14 Special Attack: 24 Special Defense: 21 Speed: 18
This level was even higher than the male Scovillain's, and its individual values were far better than the two Scovillain's. One look told him it would be very difficult to deal with.
Ange wanted to just leave, but he couldn't bear to see those pitiful Pokemon.
He looked at the Komala in his arms and asked, "Komala, could I trouble you to stop the Camerupt?"
Komala didn't make a sound; it simply wriggled out of Ange's arms and landed steadily on the ground.
"I'm counting on you, Komala. I'll buy you a bottle of good wine later!"
Hearing this, Komala was clearly motivated.
A pillar of fire came at it, but Komala quickly rolled out of the way. It rolled all the way near the Camerupt and swung its Shadow Claw.
Cam cam~
The Camerupt wailed as it was knocked to the ground. It scrambled back up, and the humps on its back suddenly erupted with a massive amount of smoke and fire. Its aura began to surge.
Seeing this, Ange thought to himself that this was bad. He quickly shouted to Komala, "Oh no, Komala! You triggered Camerupt's Anger Point ability. Now its Attack has been raised to the maximum level. Be careful!"
Hearing this, a light flashed rapidly across Komala's body. It used Psych Up to copy the opponent's stat changes, and its own aura surged as well.
Cam cam~
The Camerupt let out a loud cry. It raised its two front hooves high and slammed them heavily onto the ground.
Komala, of course, wouldn't just sit and wait for death. It raised the log in its arms, which began to glow with a brownish-yellow light, and slammed it fiercely into the ground.
Both Pokemon used Earthquake.
RUMBLE!!!
Cracks spread across the ground as the two seismic waves collided violently. The earth trembled so much that Ange and the others could barely keep their footing.
The difference in level meant that the Camerupt's Earthquake ultimately couldn't compete with Komala's. With a loud bang, the Camerupt's seismic wave was shattered, and Komala's wave struck its body.
The Camerupt wailed and collapsed, unable to get back up. The surroundings finally grew quiet, and the Pokemon hiding behind the rocks began to emerge one by one.
Ange slid down from Espathra's back, picked Komala up, and patted its bottom. "Great work. I'll buy you that wine tonight."
Komala yawned in Ange's arms, turned over, and buried its head in his chest to continue its deep sleep.
After comforting Komala, Ange walked over to the Camerupt to check its body. A Camerupt wouldn't rampage for no reason; there had to be a cause.
Furthermore, he had noticed something during the battle. Camerupt had two humps, but only the front one was erupting fire. The back one was constantly emitting smoke but no fire. When it emitted smoke, it didn't shoot straight up into the sky but leaked slowly into the surroundings.
Sure enough, when Ange looked into the hump, he saw a pitch-black Pokemon stuck inside. Who could it be but a Rolycoly?
Roly~
Seeing Ange, the Rolycoly let out a pitiful cry.
It turned out that while the Camerupt was sleeping, the Rolycoly had accidentally fallen into its hump and gotten firmly stuck.
With the hump blocked, the magma inside could not flow smoothly. This caused the Camerupt immense pain, which was why it had rampaged so recklessly.
It was also fortunate that this Rolycoly had the Flash Fire ability. Had it been any other Pokemon, it would likely have been burned to ash by the searing magma inside the Camerupt's body by now.
Ange said, "Rolycoly, wait a moment. I'll get you out right now!"
Roly roly~
Tears welled up in Rolycoly's eyes.
Ange waved to Espathra. "Espathra, could you come over for a second?"
Espa~
Espathra complied and strode over to Ange and the Camerupt.
Ange pointed at the Rolycoly in the hump and said to Espathra, "Espathra, please use Psychic to grab the Rolycoly and pull it out of the Camerupt's hump."
Espathra nodded, a colored light emanating from its eyes as powerful psychic energy enveloped the Rolycoly.
Roly~
Espa~
Following a bit of pulling, the Rolycoly was pulled out of the hump with a "pop." It landed on the ground and rolled several times before coming to a stop.
Roly roly~
Having regained its freedom, the Rolycoly hopped and jumped with excitement.
Ange sighed in relief at the sight.
Psychic powers really are useful! If Espathra hadn't been there, rescuing the Rolycoly wouldn't have been easy. Having been roasted by the fire, the Rolycoly was scalding hot and impossible to touch, let alone pull out of a hump.
Besides, the temperature inside a Camerupt's hump is extremely high; it was impossible for a human to reach inside.
"Be more careful in the future. Don't be so scatterbrained again," Ange said to the Rolycoly.
Roly roly~
The Rolycoly nodded and then hopped away.
Next, Ange fed the Camerupt some berries. Before long, the Camerupt slowly woke up and looked at Ange with gratitude.
Cam cam~ Thank you!
"It's good that you're okay. Sorry about earlier, making Komala attack you," Ange said, patting the Camerupt.
The Camerupt shook its head, indicating it didn't matter. Fortunately, Ange had stopped it, or it didn't know how much longer it would have suffered.
Ruff ruff~
A spirited bark sounded next to Ange. He looked down and saw a Rockruff at his feet, though he didn't know when it had arrived.
"It's you!"
Ange knelt down and stroked the Rockruff's back.
This Rockruff was the same one Ange had saved from the Camerupt's Flamethrower. it had come to say thank you.
Ruff ruff~
The Rockruff immediately rolled onto its back, exposing its fluffy belly. It was incredibly cute. Ange picked it up by its armpits and couldn't help but rub his cheek vigorously against its belly.
So good!
So healing!
Awoo?
Another cry came from nearby. Ange turned his head and saw a Lycanroc (Midday Form) looking at him with a strange expression.
Ange's whole body froze. He gave the Lycanroc an awkward smile and said, "Don't misunderstand! I'm not a pervert! I just think Rockruff is exceptionally cute."
As he spoke, he gently placed the Rockruff back onto the ground.
Ruff ruff~
The Rockruff snuggled up to Ange again, rubbing its head against his palm.
The little guy was quite clingy.
The Lycanroc composed its expression and barked at Ange twice. It was the Rockruff's mother. Since Ange had saved her child, she had specifically come to express her gratitude.
Ange rubbed the Rockruff's head. "If you encounter danger in the future, you must run away quickly, okay?"
Cam~
The Camerupt next to them looked ashamed and expressed its apologies to the Rockruff and Lycanroc.
Roc~
The Lycanroc and Rockruff knew the Camerupt hadn't meant it, so they generously forgave it.