Chapter 57: Two Gyarados Brothers!
The offshore area of Cherrygrove City was relatively shallow, with the distance between the sea surface and the seabed being only a few dozen meters. When Ryū entered the sea with the two Magikarp, he could see many Krabby and Shellder strolling leisurely on the sand below.
Normally, Krabby wouldn't stay in this location; they prefer to sunbathe on the beach. But in this era, the relationship between humans and Pokémon was not yet harmonious. During the earlier tribal period, it was even more dangerous. Krabby that came ashore faced the constant threat of being hunted, which is why most of them now stayed underwater.
"These guys shouldn't be high-level," Ryū glanced at them and lost interest.
The nature of Shellder meant their levels were generally low. They rarely initiated conflict. If attacked, they would just clam up and wait for the enemy to leave. Their only method of leveling up was through natural growth over time. It was only in the later Alliance Era that people began to discover the true training potential of Shellder.
As for Krabby, its evolution to Kingler at around Lv. 28 meant that any Krabby he saw here were almost certainly below Lv. 30. He wouldn't target them.
"Let's go a little deeper."
Ryū took his two energetic Magikarp and swam further out to sea. The Magikarp had been cooped up in glass tanks for so long they had almost become shut-ins. Now, back in the ocean, they were instantly revitalized, their entire demeanor changing.
There were Pokémon everywhere. No matter where he looked, he could see dozens in his field of vision. He didn't have to swim more than a dozen meters before he found suitable opponents.
"Let's take care of these five together."
Ryū looked down at the sand below where five relatively large Staryu were lying quietly. According to the Pokédex, Staryu are typically 0.8 meters long, but these five were about 2.5 meters. Clearly, their levels were not low—at least above Lv. 25, but not exceeding Lv. 40.
Wild Staryu, much like Shellder, don't typically attack other Pokémon, so they also grow naturally. To reach Lv. 40, they would have to be very old. But as a Pokémon himself, Ryū could sense that these five Staryu were not ancient.
"Gulu gulu? (Want to fight them?)" Liz's Magikarp asked, looking at Ryū. Ryuuki's Magikarp looked at him too. Their minds were simple; they didn't consider whether they could win or not.
"Okay. I'll attack first. You two use Tackle from the sides while they're distracted," Ryū instructed. This battle would mainly be him versus five. The Magikarp were just here for the experience. Defeating these five Staryu should be enough to raise their levels by two or three instantly.
With that said, Ryū flicked his tail, sending out a Twister. The huge vortex caused a stir underwater, and the smaller fish and Pokémon hovering nearby immediately swam away.
Bang!
The Twister was large enough to hit all five Staryu at once, successfully enraging them. The red cores on their chests flickered, and all five unleashed a Water Gun attack.
Ryū casually twisted his body to dodge, then used Agility to close the distance. His speed in the water was much faster than on land. The two Magikarp seized the opportunity, rushing in to ram and tail-slap the distracted Staryu.
"Get back! Get far away!" Ryū immediately shouted to the Magikarp as a yellow light began to shine on his body.
[Hone Claws]
[Thunderbolt]
Buzz!
The golden current conducted through the seawater, striking all five Staryu with a critical hit. The red cores on their chests flickered violently and then dimmed. They had lost their ability to battle.
The nearby fish that didn't escape in time, as well as the two Magikarp who were a beat too slow, also suffered from the shock. Fortunately, they were only grazed by the overflowing sparks at the very edge and didn't faint.
"Terrifying," Ryū grinned. He knew expanding his movepool was the right choice. Learning Thunderbolt had been a massive advantage.
"Continue!"
He came back to his senses and continued his conquest with the two Magikarp. They advanced triumphantly, with Ryū using Thunderbolt to knock out three or four Water-type Pokémon at a time.
An afternoon passed. Ryū felt like he had electrocuted at least 30 Pokémon.
[Thunderbolt]
Ryū squeezed out the last bit of electric energy from his body, taking down two Tentacruel.
"I can't... I'm out of Thunderbolt," Ryū panted. To put it in game terms, the PP for the move had run out. Besides, after battling for an entire afternoon, he was exhausted. Today's training was over.
"Hmm, finally leveled up," he thought. After about half a month, Ryū had finally gained another level. Only he knew how difficult it had been.
"Huh?!"
Suddenly, Ryū saw a dazzling bright light behind him. He turned his head and was blinded for a moment. When his eyes opened again, the two Magikarp were gone.
In their place were two huge and ferocious Gyarados.
"Whoa, the Gyarados of this era are way too big, aren't they?" Ryū couldn't help but swallow when he saw them.
His own body was 9 meters long, which was already terrifying. But these two Gyarados were even more exaggerated, reaching a length of 13 meters each! Based on their proportions, their weight was probably around 470 kg—close to half a ton. They were absolute monsters.
Who said Magikarp were weak in ancient times? They could evolve at Lv. 20 into a beast with a base stat total of 540. They were only weak to Rock and Electric, could learn moves from 13 of the 18 types, and could even Mega Evolve to a base stat total of 640, overwhelming lesser legendary Pokémon. If this was considered weak, then in ancient times, the Gyarados line must have been an overlord of this world.
"Let's go. Let Liz see your new faces," Ryū said, staring at the two Gyarados. Their eyes held a hidden ferocity, but it was contained, which meant they had controlled their infamous tempers very well.
It seemed his decision to have Liz and Ryuuki bond with them as Magikarp first was the right one.
"ROAR!!!" x2
The two Gyarados roared energetically. The massive sound waves surged through the sea, scaring away countless Pokémon. Even high-level ones didn't dare to approach.
Ryū traversed the sea dominantly with his two new Gyarados subordinates. An elegant and noble Dragonair, followed by two majestic and powerful Gyarados.
No matter how you looked at it, the scene was beautiful.