Bird Pokémon possess strong wings, capable of longer, more enduring flight, and far greater speed.
The base of their tail feathers secretes oil, so even in violent storms, they need not fear their feathers becoming soaked through.
With a proper reconnaissance specialist, searching for mission targets, determining bearings, or even harvesting rare medicinal herbs from sheer cliffs would become far more convenient.
Kael could even install a smart camera on a flying scout. That way, he could remain in the safest location possible while observing everything the scout saw through a computer.
In the Kanto region, only a handful of Pokémon met Kael's requirements. Of them, his personal favorite was Pidgeot, the final evolution of Pidgey. Powerful and reliable, it could fly at altitudes of up to 1,000 meters. Over long distances, its top speed could reach 350 kilometers per hour—practically the perfect large raptor reconnaissance aircraft.
There were even reports of researchers discovering wild Pidgeot capable of reaching the terrifying speed of Mach 2.
Kael believed such extraordinary Pidgeot could exist. The differences between individual Pokémon could sometimes be described as nothing short of astonishing.
Among the same species, some individuals could be powerful enough to rival Legendary Pokémon, while others might be so weak that even a Rattata could dominate them. Neither extreme was impossible.
But Mach 2 sustained over long distances? That was out of the question.
Kael was certain of that.
Mach 2 meant roughly 2,450 kilometers per hour. Maintaining that speed over a long flight would require something like a supersonic fighter jet—a steel monster built for it. Flesh and blood alone simply couldn't withstand such immense propulsion. Prolonged friction against the air would set Pidgeot's feathers ablaze.
So the so-called Mach 2 Pidgeot reported by researchers was most likely performing a short-distance high-speed dive during a hunt.
...
Boom—!
Just as Kael was about to drift off to sleep, a sudden tremor from the ground jolted him awake.
Before he could process what was happening, the earth shook again with another heavy boom. From the forest to the south of the island came the sharp crack of splintering trees. Something massive was barreling through the woods, smashing through everything in its path—and heading toward the beach.
"Weavile! Weavile!"
Weavile leapt down from the coconut tree, pointing toward the southern forest with a grave expression as she spoke urgently.
"Weavile says she just saw a huge black monster with a horn on its nose coming this way."
Lulu translated through telepathy in Kael's mind.
"A black monster… with a horn on its nose?"
Kael couldn't immediately place what that described. But whatever it was, the sheer force of its footsteps alone was enough to make him retreat without hesitation.
"Time to go. Time to go," he muttered.
He wasn't reckless. Knowing when to avoid danger was one of the essential qualities of an excellent bounty hunter. Besides, this incoming beast wasn't his mission target. If he didn't leave now, was he supposed to invite it to lunch?
If it was a herbivore, perhaps it wouldn't be too aggressive. But if it was carnivorous—that would be real trouble. Having lived its entire life on this uninhabited island, it might never have seen a human before. It might very well consider him an excellent new food source.
Kael scooped Lulu into his arms and made a swift escape into the eastern forest. Weavile followed closely behind.
Roughly three minutes after they fled, a colossal dinosaur-like creature—over four meters tall, its body seemingly clad in black armor—emerged onto the beach.
Just as Weavile had described, the gigantic beast bore a conical silver horn on its nose. Its body was jet black, like polished obsidian. Its eyes gleamed a shattered gold. A single glance at it was enough to send a chill straight through one's heart.
"Isn't that… a Rhydon?" Kael whispered.
Hidden high in the branches of a large tree, he and Lulu observed the massive figure on the beach through binoculars.
Granted, the coloration and size were off. But in terms of form, it was unmistakably a Rhydon—just scaled up more than double.
The average Rhydon stood around two meters tall. Even a well-developed alpha within a large herd—a Rhydon king—would rarely exceed two and a half meters.
But the black Rhydon on the beach? By visual estimate, it stood at least four meters tall. Possibly even taller.
Genetic mutation? Exceptional innate talent? Or had it consumed some rare treasure on the island that caused it to grow to such a size?
Countless possibilities flooded Kael's mind.
There was no way a Rhydon would grow that large for no reason. That simply defied logic.
After some thought, Kael leaned toward the theory that it had consumed some rare natural treasure.
In this world, nature often nurtured special materials. What humans referred to as "mystical items" were, in most cases, formed from rare natural substances processed through technology.
Take the Mystic Water Kael had won aboard the S.S. Anne, for example. Its source material was a pearl nurtured by a peculiar giant clam living in the deep sea. The pearls resembled droplets of water, so people called them "water-drop pearls."
Yet the clam that produced them wasn't considered a Pokémon by scientists or researchers. It possessed no intelligence and could only survive in the deep sea. The moment it reached shallow waters, pressure imbalance would kill it instantly.
As for the massive black Rhydon—
The moment it stepped onto the beach, it was drawn to the food scraps Kael had left behind.
It lumbered over to a discarded beef bone half-buried in the sand. Squatting down, it picked it up with its three-fingered hand and brought it to its nose.
It sniffed.
A fragrance unlike anything it had ever encountered flooded its senses.
In an instant, drool streamed from its mouth. It shoved the bone into its jaws—
Crack!
From the day it first gained awareness, it had never tasted anything so divine.
Too little.
The Rhydon let out a disappointed roar. The scrap barely filled the gaps between its teeth. Irritated, it swung its massive tail and slammed it against the sand several times.
To the Rhydon, it was merely a small gesture of venting frustration.
But with a body of that size, even a casual stomp made the ground quake. A tail strike was far worse.
Kael, who had been observing intently from the tree, nearly lost his balance and was almost shaken down by the tremor from that simple flick of its tail.
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