Changes on Mt. Chimney

Changes on Mt. Chimney

Dense velvet clouds blocked out the moon, while the thick fog carried a chilling, eerie coldness, like some unseen dark entity lurking in the shadows.

At this point, the tearing roar instead sounded like a herald of light ripping apart the curtain of night. It exploded at the horizon, followed by a rumble as though the earth itself were splitting open.

Jing He and Steven Stone's expressions changed upon hearing the commotion. Gastly and Metang immediately moved to shield them.

The next second.

Crack!!

The wooden boards separating the two hot springs were smashed apart by a massive boulder.

The two hot springs had been connected.

"What happened?" Steven Stone hurriedly asked.

"There—" Roxanne stopped halfway through her words. Her cheeks, already slightly flushed from the hot spring, now looked like ripe red apples.

Her face was bright red. Her twin tails had come undone, and her wet hair hung loosely over her shoulders.

Fortunately, whether it was Roxanne, Flannery, Jing He, or Steven Stone, all of them had towels wrapped around themselves.

Steven Stone froze for a moment before realizing what had happened, his expression turning slightly awkward.

"There was a rock! A huge rock fell from the mountain!" Flannery was less sensitive about it and hurriedly explained.

In truth, given that she had roughly the same build as Jing He and Steven Stone... ahem.

The mountain?

Jing He, the only one who remained relatively calm, frowned and looked up the mountain.

Since most of Lavaridge Town's hot springs depended on the heat from Mt. Chimney, most of the hot springs and inns had been built alongside the mountain.

Jing He and Steven Stone's side was still fine, but Roxanne and Flannery's side was practically pressed against Mt. Chimney's rock face.

Because of the distance and the jagged terrain, they could not tell what had happened on the mountain just by looking.

However, in the dim night, they could vaguely see a glow of fire rising above them.

The flames swayed like a sword in the night sky, gradually growing larger, as though they were about to cut a hole through the darkness.

"Could the volcano have cracked open? Is magma about to seep out?" Jing He muttered.

The three others' expressions changed drastically.

Flannery, who had somehow already changed into her clothes, wore a grim expression as she stared fixedly at the firelight in the night sky, looking determined to head up there.

If Mt. Chimney had really cracked open and the magma inside began pouring out, then judging from the location of the flames, Lavaridge Town would likely... Lavaridge Town was her hometown. She could not simply stand by and watch! And not just her.

Steven Stone and Roxanne did not react as strongly as Flannery, but their attitudes were the same.

Noticing the three of them, Jing He sighed inwardly.

He knew that under such circumstances, his identity as a teacher could no longer suppress the sense of justice in their hearts.

The firelight was not yet very obvious, and since Mt. Chimney itself was dark red all over, they might not even have noticed it if not for the fallen boulder.

At the same time, the flames were gradually growing larger, though the change was still not obvious. That meant that if magma truly was leaking from within Mt. Chimney, this might be the best time to contain it.

He did not have much time to think, but he had already made his decision.

"Roxanne, Flannery, go notify Lavaridge Gym, Lavaridge Police Station, and the teachers at the Pokémon Center. Steven Stone and I will go take a look."

If someone had to go, then as a teacher, he could not avoid it.

And Steven Stone was the strongest among the four.

At the same time, his Metang, Skarmory, and even Baltoy could carry them away in the worst-case scenario, if things became impossible to handle.

"Teacher Jing He, I..." Roxanne wanted to say something else, but Jing He cut her off with an unquestionable look.

"I understand."

Roxanne lowered her head and took a deep breath. She understood the importance of the situation as well.

But Flannery was not as easy to persuade as Roxanne.

"No, I have to go!"

As if she knew what Jing He was about to say, she immediately added, "I know this place best. That location... I know a small path that's fast!"

Every second counted. Jing He could feel Flannery's determination and said gravely,

"Fine! You lead the way, but if anything happens, you listen to my orders!"

"Okay!"

"Ko—"

Gastly brought Jing He his clothes.

Mt. Chimney.

Jagged rocks, steep cliffs, and three figures quickly darted through the terrain.

"This is the shortcut you were talking about?" Jing He leaped across uneven boulders, following Flannery's steps.

"I used to take this route all the time. It looks dangerous, but as long as you don't step wrong, it's safe." Flannery ran at the front.

Don't step wrong... Jing He and Steven Stone both glanced down at their feet.

They fell silent.

Jing He was starting to regret it a little.

If it had only been him and Steven Stone, they could have flown directly up with Skarmory, Metang, and Baltoy.

Flying that high with psychic power would consume a great deal of a Pokémon's stamina and energy. Running up did conserve their strength in case of emergencies, and the time difference was not great, but this route was truly difficult for anyone without the physique of a Super Rookie.

Fortunately, although Flannery seemed reckless, the shortcut she mentioned really could get them to their destination.

Very soon.

They arrived at a moderately sized platform.

"Geodude, Geodude—"

Quite a few Geodude and Graveler had gathered on the platform. However, they were curled up in the corner as though they feared something.

When they saw Jing He and the other two arrive, they shrank farther into the corner, sending chunks of rock rolling down the mountain with a rumble.

But the three of them were focused on a crimson crack in the rock wall before them.

The crack was not large, roughly wide enough for one person to pass through. The firelight they had seen from below was coming from within it.

"This is..."

As the three approached, they immediately felt a scorching heat coming from inside the crack, far more intense than the heat in Lavaridge Town.

Flap flap—

Suddenly.

A Zubat burst from the crack in a panic at incredible speed.

Jing He and the others moved aside in time, so no conflict broke out.

Then a large swarm of Zubat, mixed with one or two Golbat, squeezed out through the crack and quickly flew away from Mt. Chimney.

Seeing this, the three of them gradually grew solemn.

Wild Pokémon were the most sensitive to environmental changes. Whether it was the Geodude or the Zubat, they all indicated that something inside the cave frightened them.

"Gastly," Jing He called softly.

They absolutely could not rush in recklessly under these circumstances, so Jing He stopped the impulsive Flannery.

"Ko~~"

Gastly floated out from Jing He's clothes. It looked into the bottomless crack without fear, seeming faintly excited instead.

"Be careful."

Jing He had no choice but to give it a serious warning.

"Ko!"

Gastly winked at him, let out a strange laugh, transformed into a cloud of Haze, and slipped into the rock wall.

Time rapidly passed, second by second.

To be honest, even Jing He, who was normally calm, felt somewhat nervous. He was not worried about himself, but about Gastly.

After all, they did not yet know what was inside, and Gastly was not particularly strong.

What's more, this was Mt. Chimney!

"Ko~~"

Fortunately, Gastly soon poked its head out from the rock wall.

It's so hot—

It stuck out its tongue, clearly expressing its dislike for the temperature inside Mt. Chimney.

But seeing it emerge allowed Jing He to relax slightly. He asked, "Gastly, how was it?"

"Ko!!"

Gastly took a deep breath, and its body suddenly expanded.

There was something huge inside!