The Culprit is the Contrasting Lolita

Chapter 66 The Culprit is the Contrasting Lolita

The next day.

Natsuki and Haruka left Fukiyo City.

Walking along the road, past the Tower of Heaven, Natsuki and Haruka finally saw the iron ants that had been bothering Miss Joy.

but.

Upon seeing the appearance of those iron ants, Xia Mu and Xiao Yao couldn't help but gasp.

"This is...

"Oh my god, what on earth happened?"

At this moment, Xia Mu even wanted to use the iron ants to spell out a large "misery" character.

It was clear that none of the iron ants had intact bodies.

Its outer steel armor was pitted and uneven, the metal tentacles on its head that resembled a dowsing rod had fallen off, and even the steel mandibles of several iron ants were damaged.

To know.

The iron ant's enormous steel mandibles are its greatest help when digging burrows, easily crushing even the hardest rocks in front of it.

Even when encountering ore during excavation, they easily crush it with their giant jaws, turning it into nutrients for their steel armor.

Such a hard part is now damaged.

and.

Xia Mu then realized something even more important.

Like ants, Iron Ants are social Pokémon.

Therefore, when faced with an invasion, they never fight alone, but rely on cooperation to fight the enemy.

A Pokémon capable of beating a swarm of iron ants into this state.

They must either be incredibly numerous or extremely powerful.

In any case, Xia Mu had already made up her mind.

After arriving at the nest and assessing the situation, I contacted Miss Joey and asked her to notify Officer Jenny or Wind Dew to resolve the issue.

At this time.

"Could they have encountered their natural enemy?"

Seeing the pitiful state of the Iron Ants, May immediately thought of the famous rivals of the Hoenn region—Spiritopod and Zangoose.

In the Hoenn region, if you encounter a heavily wounded Zangoose in the wild,

Most people's first reaction is that it's dried snake.

vice versa.

Therefore, upon seeing the appearance of the iron ants, Xiaoyao's first reaction was that these iron ants had encountered a natural enemy.

but.

"It doesn't seem like it..."

It's not that iron ants have no natural enemies.

Both the smelter ant that inhabits the Unova region and the sand serpent that inhabits the Galar region can be considered natural enemies of the iron ant.

The Melting Ant Beast melts the iron ant's steel armor with high-temperature flames, while the Sand Snail Python attacks the iron ant's eggs with sand.

Judging from the injuries on the iron ants, they had clearly suffered melee attacks.

and.

Although the iron ants looked miserable, the attacks were all aimed at the steel parts of their bodies, so their injuries were not serious.

As long as you maintain proper nutrition and eat plenty of minerals, it will grow back in no time.

It may even become harder.

"Making it sound like sustainable development..."

Xia Mu suspects that his money-making tips have been copied.

Upon hearing Natsuki's whisper, Haruka rolled her eyes adorably.

"You're still joking at a time like this...."

.

but.

After learning that the iron ants were not a big problem, Xiaoyao was relieved.

"Shall we go check out the vicinity of the nest now?"

"Um!"

Xia Mu nodded.

Although it's unclear what Pokémon is attacking.

but.

Both of them can confirm it.

These iron ants were forced to abandon their previous nest after a fierce battle.

Xia Mu and Xiao Yao did not disturb the iron ants, who were as frightened as startled birds.

Following the map given to them by Miss Joey, the two bypassed the iron ants digging on the main road and entered the forest.

A short while later.

The two saw footprints all over the ground, and compared them with the iron ants they had seen before.

Xia Mu immediately confirmed it.

These footprints all came from the iron ants that were attacked.

"Okay, I feel like maps aren't really necessary anymore..."

2

Following the direction the footprints came from, Xia Mu and Xiao Yao passed through patches of bushes.

Finally, we saw a tunnel that was about the height of a person.

"This is it!"

After comparing the map with the one Joey had given him, Xia Mu nodded.

This tunnel is one of the entrances to the iron ants' labyrinthine nest.

but.

Looking at the numerous footprints of iron ants fleeing from the entrance of the nest, Xia Mu was somewhat puzzled.

"Why can't I see any trace of the attacker...?"

.

Judging from the panic the iron ants were in, the attacker must have chased them for quite a distance.

But now.

Xia Mu looked at the footprints all over the ground, but only found traces left by the iron ants.

Logically speaking...

If there were a significant number of attackers, there should have been many other different tracks besides the iron ant footprints.

and.

"Are we really going to have to crawl into this dark, maze-like tunnel?"

Xia Mu was ready to hand over his work and leave.

But she was also worried that if Nurse Joy asked, she wouldn't be able to tell him the identity of the attacker's Pokémon.

Just then.

clang!

clang!

clang!

A rhythmic clanging sound of metal came from inside the tunnel.

The echoing sounds in the tunnel were quite jarring, causing Natsuki and Haruka to frown involuntarily.

The creator of the sound seems to have noticed this as well.

then.

The knocking stopped abruptly after a moment.

wow~

As the sound of dragging an object drew closer, Xia Mu and Xiao Yao exchanged a glance.

They immediately hid behind a dense thicket of bushes nearby.

Under their curious gazes, the first thing that caught their eye was a pile of objects that gleamed with a metallic sheen.

Xia Mu realized it immediately.

Those things were the remains that had fallen from the iron ants and the metal ores they had collected.

Then.

A pink radish diced into shape appeared in Natsuki and Haruka's sight.

"A young blacksmith!?"

Looking at the Pokémon holding a hammer, Xia Mu could hardly believe it.

It wasn't that Natsuki didn't recognize the Pokémon.

It was the enormous hammer that made Xia Mu wonder whether the Pokémon was a junior blacksmith or a great blacksmith.

He looks just like the little crybaby from Padia, but the hammer he wields is as huge as the Padia bully's.

and.

Compared to the timid expression of a typical young blacksmith, this young blacksmith in front of me seemed quite aggressive.

Duang!

A loud bang.

Upon reaching the cave entrance, the young blacksmith picked up the enormous hammer and began striking the metal before him.

Seeing this scene.

Haruka quietly took out her encyclopedia.

"Little Blacksmith, Hammer-type Pokémon, Fairy and Steel type."

"I make hammers by hammering iron filings, and I keep redoing them until I'm satisfied with the result. I use my handmade hammer to protect myself, but my hammer is often stolen by Pokémon that eat metal."

???

I looked at the little Luoxia Ding in the illustration, and then at the little blacksmith holding a big hammer in front of me.

"Smashing iron filings?!"

Mountains of metal are disappearing at a rate visible to the naked eye.

"The hammer was stolen by a metal-eating Pokémon?"

Xiaoyao thought of those iron ants whose hardest parts had been knocked off.

emmm...

Haruka suspects there might be something wrong with her Pokédex.

Unlike Xiaoyao, Xia Mu's eyes lit up when he looked at the young blacksmith in front of him.

She has a cute appearance.

Despite being just a humble blacksmith, he possessed immense strength.

The courage of one person venturing into the nest of iron ants.

It's unclear why the little blacksmith who lives in the Padia region would appear in the Unova region.

but.

"want to!"

Xia Mu immediately decided to subdue the little blacksmith in front of him.

She reminded Xia Mu of Xiao Gang's squinty-eyed Lucky Egg.

They are all pink and possess immense, monstrous strength.

and.

The Fairy type will also have an advantage when challenging the Dragon Gym in the future.

A contrasting appearance can also add color to your videos.