Mt. Coronet was the largest mountain range in the Sinnoh region, dividing the entire continent into east and west.
In winter, Mt. Coronet was covered in snow. The temperature dropped below zero, freezing rivers and coating trees in ice.
Aspiration Mountain was a branch of Mt. Coronet, located east of Aspiration City and bordering the Black Forest.
The magical beast from Mt. Coronet would enter the Black Forest by passing through Resolution Mountain.
At this moment, in the heart of Resolution Mountain, a group of magical beasts were marching mechanically. Their eyes were tightly shut, as if sleepwalking, giving the scene an eerie atmosphere.
On a mountaintop, a cloaked figure draped in a black hooded robe held a dark crystal. Floating beside him was a pitch-black entity.
Its entire body was black like a shadow, constantly roiling with a murky mist. White hair cascaded over most of its face, revealing only a pair of bright blue eyes.
Black energy seeped endlessly from its form, shrouding it in dark fog. Only the two glowing blue lights of its eyes could be seen flashing and expanding outward.
A small Rattata poked its head out from the snow, then suddenly trembled. A flash of blue light appeared in its red eyes, and it collapsed to the ground.
Moments later, the Rattata twitched again, stood up with eyes still shut, and began to move like a puppet on strings, crawling east to join the monster horde.
Scenes like this were unfolding all over Resolution Mountain, causing the monster horde to grow in size.
The horde marched east, up and down mountains. The deep snow could not hinder them in the slightest. Eventually, they neared the gray mist-shrouded Black Forest and plunged into it.
…
Kevin had been stationed on the frontline of the Black Forest all along.
Magical beast from the Abyssal Caverns kept pouring out of the forest in wave after wave of beast tides.
'Why are there so many Abyssal magical beasts?' Kevin's expression was grim as he stared up at the gray mist that covered the Black Forest.
Ever since the last wave of beasts, the magical beast in the forest had emerged one after another, seemingly endless.
Although the scale of this incoming beast tide had been anticipated, not even the chief knight had predicted this kind of number.
And this was only the beginning. It was hard to imagine how many more magical beasts would appear afterward.
The latest wave of Abyssal beasts had finally been wiped out, meaning there should be a brief pause before the next one.
Seeing this, the logistics soldiers began clearing the battlefield, retrieving the iron arrowheads from the monster corpses.
Metal was a rare resource in this world. Even Aspiration City's elite knights could only be allocated a few dozen iron arrows each.
Soon, the knights returned with the recovered arrowheads, leaving behind piles of monster corpses that were gradually buried by snow and disappeared from view.
The knights rested while they could. No one knew when the next wave would arrive.
Kevin set down his longbow and sighed in relief. After dozens of shots, even a skilled knight like him was feeling the strain.
But just as he was about to rest, a Staraptor suddenly swooped down from the sky.
An urgent horn sounded immediately after—it was the signal that a new batch of magical beast had left the Black Forest and were advancing on the frontlines.
"This just never ends!"
The knights cursed under their breath and readied themselves once again.
A sentry on the watchtower peered into the distance. Upon seeing the oncoming creatures, he suddenly shouted, "Oh no, what kind of beast is that!?"
Kevin also saw the approaching beast and his pupils shrank.
The creature was covered in thick fur, had a red snout and boar-like tusks, and moved like a living mountain.
"A Mamoswine!" Kevin called out its name and growled, "But why is a Mamoswine showing up in the Black Forest!?"
Mamoswine were Ice-type magical beast that thrived in snowy, frigid environments—exactly like the current winter conditions on Mt. Coronet.
The reason magical beast from Mt. Coronet came down into the Black Forest in the first place was because the mountain's harsh winter brought cold and food shortages.
But wasn't that kind of environment exactly what Mamoswine preferred? Had they suddenly changed habits and come looking for warmth?
"What on earth is happening on Mt. Coronet?"
Kevin's gaze shifted westward, toward the distant mountain range. The unusually large number of magical beast coming from the Black Forest this winter had already been suspicious.
Now, with Mamoswine joining in, he was sure something was wrong. Perhaps the explosion of gray mist from the Abyssal Cave was also related to the strange changes on Mt. Coronet.
"Catapults! We need the catapults—those magical beasts are too strong for arrows!"
On the frontlines, the commanding officer shouted orders. Different magical beast required different countermeasures.
Soon, over a dozen catapults were set up. Soldiers hauled stones into the machines to load them.
With a mechanical groan, the catapults launched stones in high arcs through the sky, whistling through the air as they smashed toward the Mamoswine.
Due to their slow movement, the Mamoswine were easy targets. One was struck with a booming crash and collapsed.
But moments later, some of the fallen Mamoswine got back up, ignoring their wounds as they continued to lumber toward the frontline.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Stones whistled through the air again and again, continuing the barrage.
Meanwhile, a Rhydon strode up to the frontlines. It raised its arms and summoned a boulder with Rock Slide, hurling it forward with a roar!
This Rock Slide was far more powerful than a catapult. It sent a Mamoswine flying, slamming it hard into the ground.
With the first blow landed, the Rhydon kept up the pressure, using Rock Slide to halt the enemy's advance and give the catapults more time to reload.
The catapults had decent power, but terrible accuracy. If only the enemies were stationary, they'd be far easier to hit.
"These magical beasts are even stronger than siege engines," one soldier muttered in awe as he hauled stones.
In all of Aspiration City, only a small number of knights had bonded with magical beast. Most soldiers, like him, were just regular people.
Another soldier shook his head. "Not necessarily. Magical beast wears out quickly in battle. These machines can keep firing without rest."
"True, but the strongest would be magical beast equipped with siege weapons."
"Maybe we'll see that soon." A soldier looked out over the battlefield. In the distance, Armored Rhydon had begun moving.
"The catapults are useless at this range now."
"Archers! Archers, get ready! Draw your bows! All of you, draw!"
The commander shouted, and archers rushed to the front, nocking arrows to their bows.
"Fire!"
A volley of wooden arrows whistled through the air, striking the oncoming Mamoswine.
But the arrows bounced harmlessly off their thick hides—they did no damage at all.
"No good! Their skin's too tough, wood arrows can't pierce it!"
"Damn it! Get the magical beast out front to hold them off! Knights! Knights, switch to iron arrows! Aim carefully and shoot for the head!"
The commander's face was grim. In this situation, ordinary archers were nearly useless—they had to rely on the knights.
The knights moved quickly. Glowing iron arrows were loaded onto bowstrings, and they aimed precisely at the Mamoswine's heads, striking with deadly accuracy.
Meanwhile, armored Rhydon began arriving at the frontlines.
But unlike ordinary Rhydon, these ones were outfitted with iron-plated, savage-looking ramming horns.
"They're here—the real war machines." The soldiers stared at the field in awe.
Even among them, many had only heard of such weapons. Few had actually seen them in action.
Under their awed gazes, the Armored Rhydons charged, the metal horns on their heads gleaming coldly.
As soon as they collided with the Mamoswine, the savage horns pierced deep into their bodies, causing blood to spray in all directions.
(End of chapter)