Aiven's Command

"Sure enough, someone would try to take Petilil!"

Aiven's gaze gradually turned icy. He had known this day would come.

His training of the Pokémon during this time had been meant to prepare for a situation like this.

It was easy to imagine that if he hadn't been strong enough to protect himself, Petilil would have been snatched away again today!

Across from him, Sir Enzo's expression also grew serious when he saw Aiven suddenly appear before him.

The very thing he least wanted to see had happened. Now, if he wanted to take Petilil away, he would have to use force!

"Luxray, be careful."

At its master's words, Luxray nodded slightly and took a few steps forward.

At the same time, the other two Great Wolfdogs did the same. They were planning to gang up on their opponent.

Their opponent was also Luxray. Without knowing exactly how strong it was, this was the safest approach.

As long as they took down this Luxray, they could take Petilil away without trouble.

On the other side, when the three Monsters advanced at a slow pace, the Luxray beside Aiven took a step forward.

Just then, Petilil wriggled free of Aiven's arms and leaped down, landing directly on Luxray's head. It, too, intended to join the battle.

"That Petilil..."

The three men across from them were stunned by the sight. Was Petilil planning to fight?

But what could a Petilil do in battle?

"Luxray, be careful. Don't hurt Petilil." Sir Enzo looked troubled.

At their master's words, the other two men in black looked enlightened. Was he planning to use Petilil to hold them back and make them hesitate?

"Get ready, Luxray. Charge in and use Tackle." Aiven spoke quietly, his voice calm.

The Luxray before him paused when it heard Aiven's voice. Then, without paying much attention to it, it charged forward, its body flashing white.

Under normal circumstances, unless Pokémon had accepted a Trainer, they wouldn't follow another Trainer's commands.

Luxray seemed to be following Aiven's command, but this was simply how it fought!

The opposing Luxray also used Tackle. The two Luxray collided at speed, and their tremendous strength sent them both stumbling backward.

They dug in their paws and stopped retreating at the same time, eyeing each other warily. After that first exchange, they were evenly matched!

This Luxray was strong, too... Sir Enzo was a little surprised. His Luxray had undergone rigorous training by his family. What about the other one?

As he considered this, Sir Enzo gave another command. "Luxray, charge!"

"Luxray, use Leer!"

Aiven's command followed immediately.

But the Luxray before him didn't obey. Instead, it chose to meet its opponent head-on.

Aiven was a little helpless. As expected, it was difficult to direct a Pokémon that wasn't his. "Luxray, then use Charge. Trust me!"

The two Luxray had already clashed again. When it heard Aiven's words, especially the last part, Luxray hesitated before choosing to obey.

At the same time, the opposing Luxray's mouth crackled with electricity. It was using Thunder Fang!

Its sharp teeth sank into Luxray, and in an instant, electricity surged from its body and poured into its opponent.

But just then, Luxray used Charge, absorbing all the electricity pouring out of its opponent into its own body!

Seeing this, the other two Great Wolfdogs immediately pounced. They also opened their mouths and bit down on Luxray, making it let out a muffled groan.

"Luxray, use Discharge!"

This time, Luxray didn't hesitate. It released the electricity it had absorbed.

Arcs of electricity surged outward, quickly spreading to the three Pokémon biting it. They were forced to let go, then staggered back, trembling!

"Petilil, now!"

Aiven suddenly called out. Sir Enzo was startled.

Then he saw that Petilil had already leaped into the air as Luxray used Discharge, landing squarely on his Luxray's back.

At Aiven's words, Petilil nodded. A surge of purple energy suddenly appeared around it as it used Deadly Poison Technique.

Through direct contact, the poisonous energy began seeping into Luxray's body, making it let out a pained growl.

Taking advantage of the opening, the farm's Luxray pounced again. Its Tackle sent its opponent crashing to the ground, carving a deep furrow in the dirt.

"Luxray, are you all right?" Sir Enzo cried out in alarm.

Mrow!

Luxray slowly got back to its feet, then shook itself hard. An unhealthy purple glow had appeared across its body.

"Is that... Poisoned State?"

Sir Enzo was experienced enough to recognize Luxray's condition right away, and his expression grew even grimmer.

Meanwhile, Aiven smiled. Now that his opponent had fallen into Deadly Poison State, its fighting ability had been greatly reduced.

Mrow!

Luxray backed away to Aiven's side with Petilil.

It glanced at Aiven in surprise. His commands had been spot-on, and it now trusted him a little more.

Then it took up a battle stance again. The fight wasn't over yet!

After fighting for a while longer, Sir Enzo finally couldn't take it anymore.

Luxray was fighting while Poisoned, and it probably wouldn't last much longer. If it went down, the two Great Wolfdogs alone wouldn't be enough to keep them safe.

"Let's go."

Sir Enzo gestured to the two men beside him, then slowly retreated.

The Great Wolfdogs and Luxray also fell back. With the Great Wolfdogs bringing up the rear, the men climbed over the wall and disappeared into the night.

Watching them leave, Aiven let out a sigh of relief. If they had really thrown caution to the wind and attacked, Luxray and Petilil might not have been able to hold them off.

Right, Mukkuru... Aiven suddenly jolted. Without checking the battlefield, he hurried toward the Fruit Grove.

Under a fruit tree, he saw Mukkuru surrounded by the Cherubi. Mukkuru was lying on the ground, unconscious.

"Mukkuru!"

Aiven was startled. He hurried over and picked Mukkuru up.

You fool... He could imagine how Mukkuru must have fought desperately to protect this place after discovering the intruders.

Petilil ran over, looking frightened.

Aiven hurriedly pulled a Healing Potion from his pocket and gave it to Mukkuru. He saw the pained look on Mukkuru's face ease considerably.

Whew, the injuries didn't seem too serious... Aiven relaxed a little.