Time flew by, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.
In the study, Aven stood by the window, gazing out toward the outskirts of the village.
"Lord Aven, here's your milk~"
Phyllis entered with a cup of milk in hand, speaking to Aven, who seemed lost in thought by the window.
As she spoke, her eyes drifted to an official document on the desk. She knew it was a request from the Ironblood Fortress to ransom back the captured hunters.
Aven had read it, but he hadn't stopped the execution that was about to commence. The meaning behind that decision was already quite clear.
Outside the village, a large crowd of villagers had gathered on the open grassland. A tall gallows now stood imposingly on the vast field.
Beneath the gallows, six hunters had their hands bound and mouths gagged with cloth, only able to let out muffled groans.
As they were led onto the platform, the magical beast hunters' eyes were filled with despair and terror at the prospect of death.
Alongside the hunters, their magical beasts were also tied to the gallows. The Mightyenas, weakened and paralyzed with most of their strength drained, began to struggle weakly.
Once the hunters and their magical beasts were secured, Sutter stepped forward to publicly read the verdicts, exposing the crimes the magical beast hunters had committed one by one.
These confessions had been extracted under strict interrogation after the verdicts had already been reached, and each offense had been thoroughly verified.
Initially, the villagers looked at the condemned with a hint of hesitation and pity. But as the long list of crimes was revealed, their expressions gradually turned to fury.
Random killings, looting, unlawful capturing—not just of Pokémon, but also of fellow hunters, innocent villagers, and even patrolling knights. Their hands were soaked in blood!
"Kill them! Kill them! Kill them!"
It was unclear who shouted it first, but soon the entire field was roaring with cries for execution.
Peter stood with his patrol squad on the perimeter of the field, eyes sharp and alert for any threats or interruptions.
After learning of the crimes, they too were filled with murderous rage. There was no way they would allow this execution to fail.
Awooo! Awooo! Awooo!
The Mightyena leader prowled at the edge of the field.
Its eyes fixed on its fellow Mightyena on the gallows. Though not of its own pack, seeing its kind about to be executed left it visibly conflicted.
But when it remembered that they had served as the claws of the hunters, responsible for the deaths of Earlless humans and Pokémon, it shut its eyes in silence and continued its patrol with its companions.
After finishing the verdicts, Sutter immediately declared the start of the execution.
Ropes descended from the gallows, looping around the necks of both hunters and their beasts.
On the other end of the ropes stood a Rhyhorn. Even the powerful Mightyena posed no resistance as it began to pull.
"Mmmf! Mmmf!"
Morton struggled desperately, eyes filled with despair and hatred.
His gaze scanned the crowd and quickly landed on a familiar face—it was a knight from Ironblood Fortress.
Clearly, the Fortress had submitted the formal letter of ransom, but Aven had chosen to ignore the noble agreement and carry out the execution anyway!
…
"Damn it! The letter was submitted—why hasn't the execution been stopped?"
"Is this Earl Aven intending to defy the noble code? Does he not fear the ridicule of the aristocracy?"
The knight's expression darkened as he watched the execution proceed without pause.
Even though the official request had been made, Earl Aven had clearly decided to ignore it—he had no intention of playing by noble rules.
The knight felt helpless. He couldn't stop the execution on foreign territory, and he even suspected that if he made a move, he might be arrested on the spot.
Not far away, Matthew was covertly observing the Ironblood knight.
He remained well-hidden—after all, as a former vice-captain of the Ironblood Knight Order, many still recognized him.
As he watched the punishment unfold, Matthew's gaze became complicated. Strangely, a weight seemed to lift from his heart.
He was, after all, a deserter from Ironblood Fortress, and having been recruited by Aven, he was now in direct opposition to his former home.
This action only deepened the rift between them, yet it also made Matthew feel a stronger sense of belonging.
His mind wandered back to the moment Aven had recruited him—Aven had never once hesitated over the potential fallout with the Fortress. And now, Matthew believed in him.
"Indeed, staying in Fruitvale Village is a thousand times better than that godforsaken place."
A smile crept across Matthew's face.
"Now… let the execution begin!"
Sutter gave a cold glance toward the knight and announced grimly.
The ropes were already tightened around the necks of the hunters and beasts. At his signal, Rhyhorn pulled hard.
The bodies of the hunters and Pokémon were hoisted into the air, thrashing violently.
The struggle grew weaker and weaker until finally, all movement ceased.
…
The day after the public execution of the magical beast hunters, word spread rapidly across Aspiration city.
Everyone who heard it fell into silence—this news from Fruitvale Village shocked the entire region.
Although the village had long ago enacted laws banning magical beast hunters, no one expected that the Earl would actually dare to publicly execute them.
However, not long after the news broke, another document began to circulate—a record of the crimes committed by the executed.
After reading the details, most people applauded the action. It became clear that Fruitvale Village was not indiscriminately punishing magical beast hunters—most were simply fined.
But the nobility, of course, received much more detailed intelligence.
They knew Earl Aven had directly violated the code among nobles by executing a knight from Ironblood Fortress. Many began to frown.
To the nobility, it didn't matter if the knight was also a magical beast hunter or even a mere carriage driver—no matter the crime, noble agreements had to be honored.
To them, Aven's actions broke the rules and stirred deep dissatisfaction.
…
At Ironblood Fortress, Marquis Hormay received the news first—and in a rage, shattered his favorite crystal wineglass.
After confirming that the letter had indeed been sent, yet the Earl from the southeastern border had still executed his knight, the marquis was livid.
"If you won't respect the rules, don't blame me for what happens next!"
Holme's voice was cold and full of menace.
The president of the Gilded Fang Merchant Guild kept a calm expression and asked quietly,
"What would you have us do, my lord?"
"Inform the Eastern Division of the Guild. Have them covertly provoke the magical beasts of the Black Forest into attacking Fruitvale Village. I don't need to spell it out for you, do I?"
The guild president lowered his head in understanding. After all, this wasn't the first time they'd done such things.
…
The Eastern Division of the Gilded Fang Merchant Guild was located in the Town of Keystone.
This town was under the control of Viscount Kilton and lay close to the Black Forest.
Normally, few lords would establish territory near such a dangerous place.
But Viscount Kilton had his own plan. Although he is a viscount, he was also a member of the Gilded Fang Merchant Guild .
He had chosen to build his Town specifically to house the guild's eastern regional branch.
Because of its proximity to the Black Forest, the town attracted large numbers of magical beast hunters every year, earning it the nickname "Adventurer Town."
Having a guild branch there meant they could buy freshly caught magical beasts immediately—making it one of the most important divisions in the city of Aspiration.
In the guild office, Viscount Kilton was currently discussing how to handle Fruitvale Village with the branch president.
They had received the marquis's order and intended to teach Fruitvale Village a harsh lesson.
"Hmph. Arrogant commoners."
Viscount Kilton sneered. He looked down on Aven, who had come from a commoner background.
"Since the marquis has given the order, we'll make sure this border Earl gets properly disciplined."
The branch president added coldly.
Of the six executed magical beast hunters, aside from the leader Morton and the scar-faced one, the other four had all been hunters affiliated with their branch.
Losing four mid-level magical beast hunters at once was a huge blow to the guild. After all, training such beasts was no easy task.
"President Reagan, you know the Black Forest well. Do you have a plan?"
Hearing this, Reagan pulled out a detailed map of the Black Forest and spread it on the table.
"Fruitvale Village may be small, but it's not weak," he began.
"They repelled an entire knight regiment from Marina City, so we need to use advanced-level magical beast packs to pose a real threat."
He pointed to Fruitvale Village on the map, then traced a path to a location marked as Nidoking Valley. A grin crept onto his face.
"This season, the Nidoking and Nidoqueen pack have just given birth," he explained.
"From our intel, they are extremely protective of their young—and appear to have a kind of tracking ability tied to their offspring."
"Last time, a hunter stole one of their children, and it triggered the whole pack into a frenzy. The hunter barely escaped after abandoning the baby Nidoran."
He tapped the Nidoking Valley. Viscount Kilton's eyes lit up.
If that's true, luring them into attacking Fruitvale Village would be far too easy.
…
Back in Fruitvale Village...
Though a day had passed since the executions, the topic remained hot.
But Aven had already left the village and returned to the Safari Zone.
There, he was making final preparations before heading into the Black Forest with Matthew to investigate the Nidoking Valley.
"Rhy! Rhy! Rhy!"
Rhyhorn was incredibly excited to hear they were going into the Black Forest.
It had been training relentlessly lately and felt its whole body was growing rusty. It desperately wanted a worthy opponent.
Meow meow! Meow meow!
"Luxio reporting for battle!"
Luxio had also been training hard, now able to fully control its Electro Ball move.
Like Rhyhorn, it was itching for a fight. Sadly, no one at the farm wanted to battle anymore—and it couldn't beat Rhyhorn. So, it had shifted its sights to wild Pokémon instead.
"Rhyhorn, you'll stay here this time," Aven said.
"We're going into the forest to scout Nidoking Valley. You're too conspicuous."
"But Luxio can come. We'll need you for recon."
Rhyhorn looked petrified, while Luxio jumped for joy.
"I promise you'll be the first one up next time there's a fight," Aven said apologetically.
Rhyhorn sighed. Guess it would have to go find Torterra to vent its frustration again.
The final exploration team consisted of: Petilil, Froslass, Ralts, Vileplume, Luxio, and Bibarel.
Petilil, Froslass, and Bibarel were all advanced-level Pokémon. Combined with Matthew's two advanced-level Pokémon, the team barely reached the strength of a Gym-level Trainer.
Additionally, Aven brought along several Oddish with the Run Away ability to help with reconnaissance.
"Four advanced-level Pokémon, plus Torterra and Rhyhorn... that's a terrifying lineup."
It was Matthew's first time seeing Aven's full team, and he was stunned.
Not even the captain of the Ironblood Knight Order had that many advanced-level monsters.
(End of Chapter)