Alex's conversation with the Pirate King lasted all of 10 seconds before he crushed the man's skull with immense force. The same fate befell most of the subordinates in the castle.
As expected, they were scum. Based on Gardevoir's findings, most of the men living in the castle were among the worst offenders. Piracy, smuggling, murder, slave trading, rape, and pretty much every other crime imaginable. They were some of the worst individuals Alex had ever encountered in medieval Galar.
Roughly half the women on the island had been kidnapped, while the other half were their daughters who had no way to leave. As for the men, roughly a third were ordinary sailors, while the rest had fully embraced the pirates' way of life.
These were the only people who survived Alex's wrath as he swept across all the islands of the Stepping-Stone Sea. After dealing with the scum by having Gardevoir lobotomize them, he gathered all the innocent survivors and addressed them directly.
"I've taken ownership of these islands, and I'm planning to build a magic tower here. You can either stay and train to become Mages or let me take you back to the mainland, where you can continue risking being preyed upon by the same kind of men who brought you here," Alex said, catching everyone's interest. "You can only decide now. There will be no opportunity to change your mind later."
"Um…" An older woman raised her hand. "Are you saying we may never leave these islands if we decide to stay?"
"I don't know," Alex said with a shrug. "I'm planning to have someone else take charge of everything here. They'll decide whether to allow you to leave."
"I… I heard becoming a Mage requires talent. Are all of us going to become powerful Mages?" a young man asked.
"I think everyone can become a Mage," Alex said thoughtfully. "However, you might not become powerful, or at least not as powerful as you'd like. Like you said, becoming a Mage does require talent."
"Ar-Are you sure we'll be allowed to leave alive?" an older sailor asked. "Most of the men here know how to reach these islands and might be able to bring the nobles here."
"Don't worry," Alex said. "I'll have your memories erased. As far as I'm concerned, you won't know how to navigate these waters anymore."
"Then I'd rather stay," another man said. "All I know how to do is sail. I wouldn't know how to live if you took that away from me."
"Suit yourselves. Your lives are yours to decide."
A discussion broke out as friends, families, and acquaintances began weighing their options. Most of the women wanted to leave, though some saw this as an opportunity to seize power and take control of their own lives. Most of the men chose to stay, unwilling to have their memories tampered with. In the end, roughly half of the survivors, most of them women, decided to return to the mainland.
"Alright," Alex said, catching everyone's attention. "Those of you who want to stay, gather all the valuables and bring them to the castle. Assume I'm going to destroy every house on the other islands. As for the rest of you, climb aboard."
Alex released Mantine, whose sudden appearance terrified the survivors. The giant Pokémon cooed at Alex before waiting patiently for everyone to climb aboard. Once they were ready, Mantine took off westward toward the mainland.
The journey took a full day, during which Gardevoir gradually erased their memories and knocked them unconscious. By the time they reached Galar's eastern coast, she had finished her work.
For the rest of the evening, Gardevoir teleported the survivors to their homes or the nearest cities. Alex was even kind enough to provide each person with a pouch of gold coins. The money was enough to let them live comfortably without working for the rest of their lives, while those with greater ambitions could afford to buy a farm and leave something behind for their descendants. Whether they were smart enough to avoid getting robbed was no longer Alex's problem.
"Good job," Alex said, stroking Gardevoir's head as she rested it on his lap.
Gardevoir had spent the entire night teleporting over a few hundred people to their homes along the eastern coast, finishing around sunrise. She deserved a long, relaxing break and some pampering after all that work.
They continued their leisurely flight back to the islands, arriving in the late afternoon. Once they landed, Alex released the Pokémon he had with him, including Gardevoir, Gothitelle, Espeon, Mantine, and Guzzlord. Ditto and Aegislash were also present, though they served as his permanent, silent guardians. He had instructed them not to engage in battle unless he was ambushed or found himself struggling against an opponent.
The rest of his Pokémon had been left on the southern side of the continent, where they were free to train, hunt, and enjoy themselves as they pleased. They had been doing so for over a decade, which was more than enough time for them to enjoy a well-deserved vacation.
As for the five Pokémon accompanying Alex, each had their own reason for staying by his side. Gardevoir was essential because of her Teleport ability, while Mantine allowed him to travel long distances. Gothitelle and Espeon simply refused to leave his side, regardless of where he went.
Then there was Guzzlord. Alex couldn't exactly unleash the gluttonous monster on the continent without worrying about the consequences. If left to its own devices, it would have probably devoured the entire Frozen Tundra by now. Besides, Alex had promised to feed Guzzlord his Dark type energy every day. That alone ensured the Pokémon would accompany him wherever he went.
"Our objective is to clear the island of all Champion ranked Pokémon and above," Alex said. "It doesn't matter whether they're giant or not. I want to make sure nothing threatening remains on this island. Is that clear?"
The Pokémon responded with cries of understanding before turning their attention to the island's biggest threat. A 100-meter-tall, Master ranked giant Galarian Slowking rested on the shore. Without a doubt, it was the most dangerous Pokémon on the island.
"Guzzlord, why don't you play with it for a while? Keep its attention on you while the rest of us bombard it with attacks."
"Guzzlord!" the gluttonous Pokémon roared excitedly.
"Alright, let's go!" Alex shouted.
Alex's Pokémon raced across the water toward the beach, where the Galarian Slowking lay lazily on the shore. Alex followed, drawing his greatsword and running across the water as though it were solid ground. While his Pokémon distracted the giant, he circled around to its flank, preparing to strike from behind.
Meanwhile, the island's inhabitants watched their new owner charge toward the monster that had prevented the pirates from conquering the island. Unable to overcome the giant Pokémon, the pirates had been forced to settle along the outer edges, where there was barely enough land to grow a small garden. As a result, the inhabitants had to rely on fish and whatever scraps or unwanted provisions the selfish pirates were willing to leave them.
Guzzlord attacked first, leaping forward before using Crunch to bite down on the sleeping giant's stomach. At the same time, Gardevoir, Gothitelle, and Espeon spread out behind the giant, floating above the water as they launched Shadow Balls that drilled into its body.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Alex reached the giant's back and leaped high into the air, aiming for its neck. He reinforced his body with Aura, channeled his Dark type energy into his greatsword, and swung down with tremendous force, cleaving a large chunk out of the giant's neck.
Poisonous blood spewed from the wounds, splattering across the beach and shoreline. Despite the brutal assault, the giant continued sleeping. Apparently, their attacks still weren't enough to wake it.
"That's good!" Alex cheered. "Keep it up!"
This wasn't the first time Alex and his Pokémon had hunted a giant. Based on their experience, giants were roughly 10 to 100 times stronger and more difficult to fight than ordinary Pokémon. They also required 10 to 100 times as much food to sustain their massive bodies, which explained Kaia's immense efforts to keep the Pokémon they were raising well-fed. In return, hunting giants yielded far more meat than hunting ordinary Pokémon.
With that in mind, Alex and his Pokémon continued their relentless assault. Guzzlord repeatedly bit into the giant, the three Psychic types bombarded it with Shadow Balls, and Alex hacked away at its body with Night Slash. Galarian Slowking was vulnerable to Ghost and Dark type attacks, making their combined assault particularly effective.
Eventually, the giant finally reacted.
ROOOOOAR~
The mighty Galarian Slowking let out a massive Yawn. Its effects spread far beyond the battlefield, reaching Alex and all his Pokémon, the inhabitants watching from the shore, and the other Pokémon across the island. One by one, they succumbed to drowsiness and fell asleep.
Alex and his Pokémon quickly injected themselves with concentrated Chesto Berry extract, which would cure their Sleep status once its effects took hold. Everyone else lacked such protection and promptly drifted off to sleep.
With their resistance to the giant's Yawn secured, Alex and his Pokémon resumed their assault. They bit, blasted, and hacked away at the massive target until Galarian Slowking finally rose to its feet and looked down at its assailants. Its entire body was covered in wounds, and poisonous blood continued to seep from the countless gashes.
The giant tilted its head and released a wave of psychic energy, using Amnesia to bolster its Special Defense. The effects of Shadow Ball immediately weakened. Instead of drilling deep holes into its body, the attacks now left only shallow wounds.
Even so, the poisonous blood continued to pour from its injuries, contaminating the beach and surrounding waters. An ecological disaster was unfolding as weaker Pokémon and fish began dying and floating to the surface.
Alex and his Pokémon continued their assault, prepared for a long, drawn-out battle against such a massive and durable opponent. They had dealt with giants before and knew better than to expect a quick victory.
Then, to their disbelief, Galarian Slowking simply lay back down and used Slack Off.