With three Pokémon and under the lead of Houndoom "Dire Tiger," Lucas arrived at the crooked tree.
There, a huge group of Houndour had already gathered—at a glance, there were at least thirty or forty.
That was nearly half the total Houndoom population Lucas knew of. To gather so many "rebels," in a way, Dire Tiger and his group were truly "talented dogs."
As for the evolved Houndooms, besides the one who'd been beaten down by the Eevee sisters, there was now another Houndoom present.
The two seemed close, and judging by the shorter horns, the newcomer was a female.
Lucas boldly guessed that her relationship with the younger Houndoom wasn't simple.
If not lovers, then perhaps close childhood friends or siblings from the same litter.
Surprisingly, the Houndour weren't noisy. Led by the two Houndooms, they maintained strict discipline and silence.
Watching this, Lucas mused—
Maybe they really were suited to being police dogs and joining the team.
Houndoom Dire Tiger's arrival instantly energized the Houndour.
Their tails wagged slightly, eyes fixed with determination. At a glance, they looked the part.
"Woof."
Seeing its senior return, the young Houndoom came forward, looking questioningly—
Did Serperior agree to battle the Houndoom boss?
Dire Tiger shook his head, then nodded.
"Woof."
Looking at Dachsbun beside Lucas, he indicated that Dachsbun would be the one to challenge the Houndoom boss.
Seeing Dachsbun's corgi-like build, the young Houndoom and the other Houndoom fell silent.
But, having witnessed Serperior's power before, seeing Serperior present put their minds at ease.
At least Serperior would keep things under control.
At the foot of the mountain, in the open field—
A Houndoom with a Doberman-like build, even more robust, and with horns full of honorable battle scars, paced its territory with a fierce gleam in its eye.
Wherever it went, the playful Houndour would stop, respectfully move aside, and not even dare meet its gaze.
Eye contact meant provocation—a challenge.
No one wanted to get beaten up and then exiled from the pack.
Still, this didn't stop them from admiring the Houndoom boss, willing to become its followers and vassals.
For most Houndoom, "the strong rule" was the greatest and simplest law.
The Houndoom boss was powerful. In battle with Salazzle, it could handle wave after wave of Salandit.
No other Houndoom in the pack could do that.
Enjoying its usual authority, the Houndoom boss was like a majestic lion, patrolling its territory with head held high.
But the more it patrolled, the more it sensed something was wrong.
Something was off—very off.
Don't be fooled by Houndoom's rough exterior, as if it only knew how to fight.
To lead a pack of over a hundred in the wild was no small feat—it certainly wasn't stupid.
Lately… Little Seven (Dire Tiger) and some others have been restless.
Houndoom narrowed its eyes, its face showing a suspicious look like a lifelike Pallas's cat.
With limited territory and the pack's numbers obvious, it was impossible not to notice Little Seven and the rest's little tricks.
But even knowing, the Houndoom boss disdained to care.
A rabble—unless they could defeat it head-on, they'd never win respect, especially since it had loyal followers to protect it. If they wanted to challenge, they'd have to get past them first.
Still, today felt especially odd.
The territory was visibly emptier—almost half the Houndour were missing. The Houndoom boss thought for a moment, then summoned its underlings.
Three Houndooms again, but visibly more battle-worn than Little Seven and the others.
While the Houndoom boss was considering being more alert, a powerful howl suddenly echoed from the edge of the territory.
"Awoo—!"
The sound was strong and carried far. Even Salazzle, in her cave being attended by the Salandit, noticed.
Her pheromone-laced gas became more seductive, curiosity gleaming in her enchanting eyes.
Barely a few days of truce, and those big black dogs are up to something again?
Meanwhile—
In the Houndoom pack's territory:
"Awoo—"
The Houndoom boss glared menacingly, baring sharp teeth, growling at its challengers.
Opposite, three Houndoom stood in a row, a group of Houndour behind them, looking ready to revolt.
Behind the Houndoom boss, more Houndour were shocked and angry at the turncoat companions.
At this moment, Dire Tiger's heart was pounding. It stared at its former boss, whom it'd never dared meet eye-to-eye, and howled—
Today, they would overthrow the Houndoom boss's rule!
The Houndoom boss glanced at its three loyal Houndoom, then at the rebels.
It nearly laughed.
With such a clear gap in strength, were they mad to try a coup?
Having guessed what its old boss was thinking, Dire Tiger howled at the rebels.
Soon—
The Houndour parted, and Dachsbun walked out with sparkling eyes.
"Woof—"
That's your real opponent.
Dire Tiger looked at the boss, then walked toward one of its loyal Houndooms.
Wild Pokémon don't bother with trash talk.
The moment sides are chosen, the horn of battle sounds.
The Houndour immediately broke out into a melee, but per Lucas's instructions, they abandoned their usual reckless, injury-for-injury fighting style and focused on dodging and self-defense.
Lucas's exact words were: he didn't want them to injure or kill each other, just to stall for a while.
"Woof?" (Boss, will you be okay?)
A Houndoom underling quietly asked as it went to face the young Houndoom.
The Houndoom boss impatiently urged it to deal with the traitors and flashed a confident grin.
"Woof!" (We will win!)
…
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