Because of the surging crowd, Tetsuya could not move forward even a single step.
However, he had already gained a general understanding of the situation. It appeared to be basically the same as what he had expected. The sludge lake had originally been the most suitable habitat for the Grimer colony.
Now that Grimer had left the sludge lake to attack the factories, it meant that his "plan" had taken effect.
The environment was no longer suitable for some of the Grimer to live in, so the first group had been forced to leave the waters. With nowhere else to go and still needing food, they could only attack the factories.
After Officer Jenny suppressed them, the injured Grimer had no choice but to retreat back into the sludge lake. Those Grimer had already been incapable to withstand the extreme toxicity of the water, and with their injuries added on top of that, they would soon die, further increasing the lake's toxicity.
That was why there had been a second group, a third group… and now the fifth group, which was also the largest so far. It showed that the toxicity of the lake had already reached a significant level.
He was definitely going to drive these Grimer back. Letting them die in the sludge lake was the best possible outcome.
"Come out, Golurk."
Tetsuya threw Golurk's Poké Ball. With the current situation, there was no way he could make his way through the crowd on foot. The only option was to ride on Golurk and fly against the flow.
"A Trainer is flying over there!" One group of people shouted as they were the first to notice Tetsuya.
"Idiot! You'd better keep running. Isn't he just throwing his life away by going alone!?" Many people still chose to continue fleeing.
There were still a few kind-hearted people who shouted to Tetsuya, "Young man, there are too many Grimer up ahead! It's too dangerous for you to go alone. Come back!"
By the time they finished speaking, Tetsuya had already flown far away.
"Meh~ Stop trying to be a hero and worry about yourself!" Came a few mocking voices from within the crowd.
"Ah…"
---◓---
Riding on Golurk, Tetsuya finally arrived at the factory closest to the sludge lake. The entire factory had already been occupied by Grimer. Several people were lying on the ground, obviously poisoned.
However, the Grimer's objective was only to find food and a suitable environment to live in. They had no intention of deliberately killing people, and the workers had already been evacuated.
Looking across the entire factory, there were forty or fifty Grimer, but only one Muk. After all, Muk had much greater resistance than Grimer, so they had not yet reached the point where they needed to leave in large numbers.
Tetsuya first landed on the ground and gave Antidotes to the poisoned people.
These people could not be allowed to die. He had never been soft when it came to killing, but killing without purpose was simply the act of a moron, bringing unnecessary trouble upon oneself. Saving them, on the other hand, was far more beneficial.
If Grimer destroyed a factory, the League could simply conclude that they had been forced ashore in search of food. However, if so many people died, the nature of the incident would be entirely different.
The League would have to provide an explanation to the public and would very likely dispatch Investigators and Rangers to eliminate the Grimer in the lake. If that happened, all of his previous plans would have been wasted.
As long as no one died, everything could still be resolved!
After the poison had been cured, the group was no longer in any danger of losing their lives. Tetsuya had Golurk carry them to a safe location.
At that moment, every Grimer inside the factory was busy eating. They must have been starving. They could no longer consume the toxic sludge water, so after coming ashore, the first thing they naturally did was search for food.
"Beedrill, Weezing, Drapion, Spinarak."
With a motion, Tetsuya threw out four Poké Balls. They were all Poison-types, ensuring that they would not be poisoned.
As soon as Spinarak came out, it immediately looked around in every direction. Finding none of its preferred food, it naturally became displeased. Tetsuya had no intention of sending Spinarak into battle yet. He mainly wanted it to observe.
"Drapion, you're up first."
After Tetsuya gave the command, Drapion swung its pincers and unleashed a fierce barrage of Pin Missile. Seven or eight nearby Grimer were struck head-on. The Grimer had been enjoying their food when they were suddenly ambushed, and they immediately flew into a rage, spraying Sludge at Drapion.
Spinarak could not help widening its eyes. After all, eight Grimer had used the move at the same time, and its power was certainly not to be underestimated.
However, just as the attacks approached Drapion, it swung both of its pincers. Using Brutal Swing, it shattered the incoming attacks, then leaped into the air. Cross Poison came crashing down, pinning one of the Grimer to the ground.
Another Grimer behind it was about to come to its aid when Drapion's tail suddenly shot forward, piercing straight into its body. Drapion then lifted its tail sharply, with a Grimer still impaled on it.
Drapion's raw strength was extraordinary. It had relied entirely on the power of its pincers and tail to swim forward against the rushing waters of the glacier falls, repeating the same motion hundreds of times every day.
Drapion swung its tail, causing the Grimer impaled on it to spin through the air. Only when two more Grimer approached did Drapion fling the Grimer from its tail, sending it crashing into the other two that had come to throw away their lives.
The Grimer here had not yet evolved and still acted independently. Although there was one Muk among them, the fact that it had already left the sludge lake together with the Grimer showed that its resistance was not particularly strong. Naturally, it lacked the ability to earn the Grimer's trust, making it incapable of leading them in a coordinated attack.
Although several Grimer were currently fighting Drapion, the others continued eating without a care, completely unconcerned about the fate of their kin.
Facing eight Grimer by itself, Drapion quickly defeated two of them. The remaining six then surrounded it, launching one Sludge attack after another. However, Drapion brought both its pincers and tail into action, batting many of the incoming globs of sludge straight back. All six Grimer were knocked backward repeatedly by their own attacks.
Seizing the opportunity, Drapion thrust Poison Jab into a Grimer's body, then followed with Poison Tail, knocking it down. Its twin pincers shot forward immediately afterward, hooking two more Grimer. The toxins from Poison Fang seeped into their bodies. These Grimer simply could not withstand Drapion's deadly poison, and both of them collapsed.
"Beedrill, Weezing, move in."
Tetsuya no longer had time to watch Drapion put on a show. He still had many things to accomplish before Officer Jenny arrived.
Beedrill's figure flashed, instantly splitting into more than twenty Double Team cloones. The four-headed Weezing also began spinning with Gyro Ball before charging toward a group of Grimer and unleashing Sludge Bomb.
Seeing all three Pokémon enter the battle, Spinarak, naturally ferocious and eager to fight, refused to fall behind. Without waiting for Tetsuya to speak, it started crawling forward.
"Stay!"
Tetsuya shouted, stopping Spinarak.