Pokémon: Chronicles of Freedom

Karen also had her own plans.

She didn't completely trust Cain, but considering his strength wasn't bad at all, refusing him could lead to a fight.

Moreover, there was another crucial point: this Absol, hidden deep in the mountains, probably wouldn't be easy to capture, and she wasn't sure she could do it alone.

If she worked with him, capturing Absol should be much simpler.

"Alright, but let's get one thing clear: I'm leading the capture of Absol. Without my instructions, don't make any moves," Karen said, pretending to be very serious.

Cain raised his hands, indicating he had no issue with that. After all, his presence here was merely to take advantage of the situation—an easy, low-risk task. He had no information to begin with, so he couldn't lead even if he wanted to.

Thus, two people who initially had their differences teamed up and began venturing deeper into the forest.

Who knows if Absol, with its ability to sense disasters, would realize that two people with questionable intentions were slowly approaching?

Cain and Karen didn't walk very close to each other; there was some distance between them due to the mutual distrust from their first encounter.

Deep in the mountains, there were many wild Pokémon, and as they went further, some attacked them directly.

Additionally, without realizing it, they entered unknown Pokémon territories. To protect their turf, these Pokémon also launched attacks.

To progress faster, Cain had his Honchkrow, Sneasel, and Skorupi fight at full capacity, focusing primarily on training Sneasel and Skorupi, while Honchkrow took care of the rear guard.

Plant- and Poison-type Pokémon were very common in the forest, giving Sneasel and Skorupi a significant advantage against them.

Similarly, Karen summoned her Skarmory to advance more quickly. Since her Roserade was less effective against Plant- and Poison-types, Skarmory became her main offensive Pokémon, while Roserade took on a supporting role, using moves like Grassy Terrain to recover energy.

As the number of wild Pokémon increased, the distance between Cain and Karen gradually shortened.

They say bonds between comrades are forged through shared adversity. Cain and Karen, fighting wild Pokémon together for a common goal, began to form a connection.

Karen started setting aside her prejudices against Cain, at least no longer viewing him as a threat. However, she had no idea that the only reason Cain was being so friendly was the hunter points he would earn by capturing Absol, given that he had no information of his own.

If she knew this, she probably would've fought Cain on the spot.

After two hours of trekking through mountains and rivers and continuous battles for their Pokémon, Sneasel was holding up well, while Skorupi had quickly leveled up to 25.

Cain had already started consciously developing Skorupi's Poison-type abilities, knowing that when it evolved into Drapion, it would lose its Bug type and gain Dark type, retaining only Poison.

Ahead of them, a lake appeared in the middle of the mountain. Karen signaled for them to stop, and Cain approached slowly.

"According to my information, someone spotted Absol at this lake. However, due to their lack of strength, they didn't stay long and left quickly," Karen said, glancing at Cain before continuing. "Do you have any information to share? We've come this far; there's no reason to hide anything."

Cain looked at the lake, watching how the blue water reflected the surrounding forest.

"As I said before, this is your show. Let's go with your information, and if we don't find anything, I'll see if mine is useful. I don't want to interfere and mess up your plan," Cain said calmly.

Karen eyed Cain with suspicion, feeling something was off.

"Well, staying here won't help. Let's investigate," Karen decided, opting to press on. After all, they'd find out whether Absol was here by moving forward.

The area seemed too ideal for only one Absol. Perhaps they could even find other high-level Pokémon to capture.

Karen knew that as a low-class trainer, everything she had was the result of her hard work. Without her income as a hunter, she probably wouldn't have reached her current level.

It all started with a lucky break when she captured a Budew, which, through great effort, evolved into Roserade. Roserade had decent talent, which led her down the challenging path of being a trainer.

However, she didn't know why, but she had always been lucky on her journey. Whenever she tried to capture a Pokémon, if she reached the right place, the Pokémon always appeared. She had never experienced going to a location and not encountering the right Pokémon.

She always attributed her good fortune to the protection of the "Father Sky," considering herself a trainer who refused to give up.

This was why, the last time Cain wandered around the rocky mountain for nearly an entire day without seeing a single Onix, Karen stumbled upon two Onix immediately.

This showcased her exceptional talent for luck.

Following her intuition, she believed there was a high probability that Absol would appear here.

And sure enough, as they ventured further into the area, they found a tuft of white fur in a bush.

Although Absol symbolizes disasters and is a Dark-type, its fur is white, making it distinct from other Dark-type Pokémon. Its pure white fur gives it a more sacred appearance than any other Pokémon.

Cain rubbed the tuft of white fur between his fingers and said confidently, "This is Absol fur. Absol is definitely here."

Karen said nothing, staring at the fur in Cain's hand. Her intuition was growing stronger; she felt that Absol was about to appear.

As if confirming her thoughts, on the other side of the lake, a Pokémon covered in white fur appeared, with a bluish-gray scythe-like horn on the right side of its head and a tail shaped like a scythe of the same color.

This Pokémon was the "Walking Disaster" they were searching for: Absol!

"Absol!" Cain exclaimed upon seeing the Pokémon.

Absol stared at them with its two eyes, making them feel as if its gaze could see through everything.

(End of Chapter)