"Wh-What's going on here? Did we invade its territory or something?"

  Seeing the drooling dog that had suddenly appeared, Ichiki was startled.

  There weren't many Pokémon species that actively attacked humans. Most wild encounters occur when humans accidentally enter a Pokémon's territory.

  "Did we stumble into its turf by mistake?"

  Ichiki wondered.

  "But that doesn't make sense—I slept right next to this rock before, and this dog wasn't around. Did it cim the area as its territory after that?"

  "No, Houndooms like this one usually acts in packs, led by one or two Houndooms commanding a group of Houndours," Stephen expined calmly.

  Most Pokémon had a habit of moving in groups—Meowth and Houndour families were prime examples. Typically, an evolved form served as the leader, guiding the unevolved ones. Even Team Rocket's Meowth had once followed a Persian as its boss.

  This pattern was even depicted in the Scarlet and Violet games.

  But this Houndoom had no subordinates in sight. Most likely, it was domesticated.

  "Oh? So this thing's called 'Houndoom,' huh? Is that the name recently approved by the League? Since I captured it, I've only issued commands without ever giving it a name," came a voice, dripping with malice.

  At that moment, Stephen and Ichiki noticed a burly figure emerge from behind the Houndoom.

  The man wore a mask that obscured the upper half of his face. His stocky build and eerie grin made it clear he wasn't someone you'd want to mess with.

  "It's him—the League's A-Css wanted criminal, Pokémon Hunter Bishas!"

  Ichiki excimed, his face tightening in arm.

  "Hahaha~"

  Bishas didn't react much to being identified. He simply smirked and stared greedily at Stephen's Umbreon and Ichiki's Exeggutor, like a collector spotting rare artifacts.

  "That one's a Dark-type, right? Hahaha, Dark Pokémon have become quite trendy since the League recognized the type. I've got clients cmoring for them tely. And that Grass-type over there—what's this, a newly discovered species? What luck! Who'd have thought I'd hit the jackpot before leaving Johto?"

  To Bishas, Stephen and Ichiki might as well have been air as he ogled their Pokémon.

  "Listen up, kids—leave your Pokémon and scram, and I might let you go unharmed," Bishas smirked. Then, his voice dropped into a sinister chuckle.

  "Or did you think I'd say that?!"

  The mood shifted abruptly.

  The already hostile Houndoom bared its fangs and unleashed a dark, purplish-bck energy wave straight at them.

  Dark Pulse!

  "Unlike those soft-hearted fools, I, Bishas, believe in leaving no loose ends—not even kids!"

  Bishas roared with ughter.

  "Don't get cocky!"

  Despite the sudden attack, Ichiki, hailed as a prodigy since childhood, quickly regained his composure.

  Exeggutor, standing beside him, began to emit a shimmering psychic wave from its body, unleashing a colorful surge to counter the Dark Pulse.

  Psychic!

  But the next moment, the Dark Pulse tore through the psychic energy and kept coming.

  Ichiki was shocked.

  "What?! That didn't work?"

  "Dark types are immune to Psychic moves," Stephen reminded him nonchantly as if expining a basic lesson.

  Umbreon darted forward, meeting the incoming Dark Pulse head-on.

  BOOM!

  The Dark Pulse detonated against Umbreon, shrouding the area in a cloud of dust.

  "It took that hit directly?!"

  Bishas's grin faltered.

  As the smoke cleared, Umbreon emerged, baring its teeth in a feral grin and gring down the rger Houndoom with eerie confidence.

  "Compared to the training partner' we've faced, your Houndoom's attacks are weaker than the women working the streets of Goldenrod," Stephen taunted.

  Bishas's face darkened.

  With a fsh of light, Umbreon charged forward, a blur of bck and white streaking toward the Houndoom.

  "Watch out!"

  Bishas shouted.

  THUD!

  Umbreon smmed into Houndoom's chest, sending it skidding backward several meters. Despite the blow, the sturdy Houndoom was far from defeated.

  A bzing column of fmes erupted from Houndoom's throat and roared toward Umbreon.

  Fmethrower!

  "Fire and Dark-type? That's a perfect counter to my Exeggutor!"

  Ichiki frowned.

  "Snarl!"

  Stephen's sudden shout startled Ichiki. He wasn't sure if Stephen was giving a command or simply yelling.

  "Umbreee—!"

  Umbreon let out a resonant howl, releasing rippling waves of dark energy.

  The Fmethrower cshed with the dark waves, partially dispersing them before continuing toward Houndoom, though its power was noticeably weakened.

  Even so, the attack barely made Houndoom flinch.

  "Hahaha! Is that supposed to be an attack?"

  Bishas mocked.

  "Keep ughing," Stephen smirked, his tone dripping with contempt.

  As Houndoom unched a more intense Fmethrower, Umbreon rushed straight into the fmes, her crazed grin growing wider as the fire scorched her body.

  "Impossible!"

  Bishas's confidence began to waver.

  "Double Kick," Stephen ordered.

  Umbreon leaped high, spinning in midair before nding a powerful kick with her hind legs.

  BAM!

  Houndoom crashed into a tree behind Bishas with enough force to make the entire tree sway. The startled bird Pokémon perched atop it scattered in every direction.

  "Umbree!"

  Umbreon stood victoriously, lifting one paw to the ground and tilting her head back in a taunting pose.

  Ichiki and his Exeggutor exchanged uneasy gnces, a shiver running down their spines.

  "Note to self: never provoke this guy..."

  Ichiki muttered, his earlier suspicions of Stephen being the Joker resurfacing.

  But he quickly dismissed them.

  "Still... that Umbreon's stance... It's just like Joker's Pokémon back at the Goldenrod Station!"