Chapter 39:

The distant roar of the battle between Milotic and Gyarados echoed through the forest, sending shivers down Cain's spine.

"Phew, what a terrifying battle," Cain thought to himself, "It's a good thing I didn't go out and try to catch that Milotic. Judging by the aftermath, both Pokemon are over level 40."

As the battle faded into the distance, the frightened Pokemon went into hiding and the lake calmed down. Cain asked Slowpoke to release his hold on the waterfall and returned to sit deeper in the cave to wait for the rain to stop.

"I wish I could get back to that level of fighting so I wouldn't have to be at the mercy of others," Cain pondered, as he looked at Murkrow and Slowpoke by his side. "But in this life, I will never give up on you guys," he silently made a promise to them.

The rain eventually stopped and the trio left the cave behind the waterfall with Slowpoke's help. The forest was damp, but the water droplets had given it a new atmosphere and with the sunlight just breaking through the dark clouds, it felt as if the forest had come to life.

Cain led Murkrow and Slowpoke away from the lake area and decided to take a walk along the river, in search of the Squirtles he had seen earlier. The pokeblocks were made and all that remained was to wait for them to solidify completely, and take advantage of the sunny weather.

The heavy rain had caused the path to the waterfall to flood, leaving Cain and his Pokemon to trudge through the uneven grass. The fresh, clear water after the rain, however, proved to be a boon for finding Water-type Pokemon, but to Cain's disappointment, most of the Pokemon he encountered were common species such as Magikarp and Goldeen.

Cain couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment as he searched for the valuable starter Pokemon, knowing it was a matter of luck whether he would be able to catch one. After walking along the river for over a dozen kilometers, there was still no sign of the Squirtles, but there were a few rare Water-type Pokemon. However, with the exceptional Slowpoke by his side, Cain didn't see the point in wasting resources on average Pokemon.

"I guess it's lucky just to have met Slowpoke," Cain mused as he trudged through the damp grass. The thought of having such a talented Pokemon by his side made him content.

As he looked up at the darkening sky, Cain knew it was time to turn back. But just as he was about to do so, an unexpected event occurred.

A pale blue Pokemon, dressed in flowing water, leapt out of the river and landed not far in front of Cain. "Golduck!" Cain exclaimed, recognizing the Pokemon that had suddenly appeared.

It was a Golduck that he hadn't seen before during the rainstorm, in fact, he hadn't seen any Psyducks at all during that time. With the sudden arrival of this Golduck, Murkrow quickly appeared in front of Cain, followed by Slowpoke. Cain could sense the strength emanating from the Golduck, and a faint light flickered in his eyes as the Golduck's data appeared before him.

Pokemon: Golduck (Yellow)

Gender: Male

Level: 38

Type: Water

Ability: Damp

Held items: None

Egg moves: Mud Bomb, Yawn

Basic moves: Aqua Jet, Water Sport, Scratch, Tail Whip, Water Gun, Confusion, Fury Swipes, Water Pulse, Disable, Screech, Zen Headbutt, Aqua Tail, Soak, Psych Up

Taught moves: Hydro Pump, Iron Tail, Ice Punch

Technical Machines (TMs): None

Cain's expression turned serious as he realized the gravity of the situation, "I never thought I would come across a level 38 Golduck, what bad luck..."

He had believed that after the battle between Gyarados and Milotic, there would be no more powerful Pokemon in these waters, so he felt comfortable searching for the Squirtle colony, but he never expected a Level 38 Golduck to appear out of nowhere.

Unknown to Cain, this Golduck was the true ruler of this area, and the previous Gyarados and Milotic were merely passing through. Due to their power, Golduck had not dared to reveal its flock of Psyducks, but now, seeing that the wind and waves had calmed, it emerged to confront Cain and his Pokemon who were leisurely wandering through its territory.

"Those two powerful Pokemon could afford to provoke me, but now you little things dare to do so as well!" Golduck thought in contempt as it looked at Cain and his Pokemon. It had its own way of judging the strength of other Pokemon. Although these two Pokemon had a sturdy aura, they were still too young in his opinion.

As the overlord of an area, Golduck didn't want to take on "weak" Pokemon like Murkrow and Slowpoke, but it needed to vent its anger, and who better than the trio right in front of it.

"I'll show you who owns this place!" Golduck roared inwardly, as a wave of water energy fluctuations gathered in its mouth. The torrent of water continued to overflow as it accumulated energy.

Cain couldn't help but chuckle to himself, "Do you need to accumulate your power to deal with us? You want to kill us all at once, don't you?"

These thoughts flitted through Cain's mind, but he had no time to dwell on them.

"Slowpoke, Teleport, let's go!" Seeing that Golduck was about to make its move, Cain quickly issued the command.

"Ya dong!" Slowpoke sprang into action, enveloping Cain, Murkrow, and himself in a mysterious blue wave as the psychic energy in his azure eyes coalesced.

Golduck, who also possessed psychic-type moves, instantly sensed Slowpoke's actions and stopped accumulating its power, launching 'Hydro Pump' instead.

A thick column of water shot out of Golduck's beak, reaching Cain in the blink of an eye.

"Murkrow, use Protect!" Cain gave the command just in time, and a light green energy shield appeared around Murkrow, expanding to block Hydro Pump completely.

"Slowpoke, faster!" Cain shouted, seeing that Murkrow would not be able to hold on much longer, as Hydro Pump continued to be released under Golduck's control.

"Ya dong!" Slowpoke also noticed the situation and disregarded the upper control limit of his psychic energy, the blue light in his sharp eyes skyrocketed as the mysterious energy fluctuations surrounding them grew stronger.

Cain looked at Golduck with cold eyes, and a strong killing intent surged in his heart. In an instant, the psychic energy fluctuations reached their limit, and Cain, Murkrow, and Slowpoke disappeared before Golduck's eyes. With no barrier to stop it, Hydro Pump crashed into the ground, leaving a deep crater about 3 meters in diameter.

Golduck watched helplessly as the weak bugs disappeared before its eyes, and he felt that its majesty as an overlord had been dealt another blow. But when he thought of Cain's eyes, an inexplicable chilliness welled up in its heart.

Golduck couldn't help but shudder and abandoned its intention to search for them. With a swoosh, it plunged back into the water and disappeared.

With a fluctuation of psychic energy, the trio reappeared in the cave behind the waterfall. Murkrow stumbled and fell to the ground, exhausted after barely holding on. Slowpoke also slumped to the side, his spirit exhausted.

Cain's expression was unprecedentedly solemn as he said, "There really are a lot of powerful Pokemon in this forest." He helped Murkrow up, fed him a few Pokeblocks, and then let him rest for a while.

"Slowpoke, use 'Calm Mind' to restore your psychic energy," Cain spoke with a hint of apology after looking at the sluggish Slowpoke. "If Slowpoke hadn't violently exploded his psychic energy at the last moment, things wouldn't have gone so easily."

"Ya dong~" Slowpoke closed his eyes after a faint cry and began to use Calm Mind. A slight wave of psychic energy appeared around him. Not only could this move increase the user's special attack and special defense in battle, but it could also increase the effects of psychic energy during normal training.