Chapter 493: Houndoom Leader: We Will Win!

Together with three Pokémon, led by the Houndour Sang Sang Biao, Luo Mu made his way to the crooked-neck tree.

A swarming crowd of Houndour had already gathered here — a rough glance put their number at somewhere between thirty and forty.

The count was nearly half the total size of the Houndoom pack he knew of. To be able to rally this many "rebels," in a certain sense, Sang Sang Biao and the others really were "canine talents."

And besides the junior Houndoom that had dropped to its knees after getting beaten up by the Eevee sisters that day, there was now one more Houndoom — the evolved form of Houndour.

Judging by how intimate the two looked, and the shorter horns on this Houndoom, it was clearly a female.

Luo Mu boldly guessed that its relationship with the junior Houndoom was no simple matter.

If not a love-struck young couple, then childhood friends with a close bond, or siblings from the same litter.

Surprisingly, these Houndour were not only quiet — under the lead of the two Houndoom, they even maintained an extremely disciplined silence.

Watching this scene, Luo Mu fell into thought—

Perhaps they really were suited to serve as police dogs and get themselves on the payroll?

The arrival of the Houndoom Sang Sang Biao instantly activated the Houndour.

Their tails wagged slightly, their gazes fixed firmly on it — at first glance, they actually looked quite the part.

"Luka."

Seeing the senior return, the junior Houndoom stepped forward to greet it, casting a questioning look—

Did Serperior agree to take the field and suppress the Houndoom boss? Sang Sang Biao shook its head, then nodded.

"Luka."

It looked at the Zigzagoon following behind Luo Mu, indicating that the Houndoom boss would be defeated by the Zigzagoon.

Staring at the Zigzagoon's chassis, which was barely taller than a corgi's, the junior Houndoom and the other Houndoom fell silent.

But just like Sang Sang Biao's inner thoughts, having witnessed Serperior's methods in turn, the moment they laid eyes on Serperior, the boulder in their hearts dropped to the ground.

At the very least, Serperior was still holding the line.

At the foot of the mountain, in the open plains.

A Houndoom with a build resembling a Doberman yet more powerfully built, its curved horns covered in scars that spoke of honor, its gaze carrying a vicious glint, paced across its own territory.

Wherever it passed, the Houndour at play would stop what they were doing, respectfully step aside, and not even dare meet its eyes.

Because meeting its gaze meant provocation — a challenge to fight.

They had no desire to first get beaten half to death, then get driven out of the pack to wander alone, wretched and forlorn.

Even so, that did not stop them from worshipping the Houndoom leader, willingly becoming its subordinates, its vassals.

For most Houndoom, "the strong rule" was the greatest reason, the simplest truth.

The Houndoom leader was strong — strong enough to handle the Salazzle that came at it wave after wave with ease, even while locked in fierce combat with a Coalossal.

This was something no other Houndoom in the pack besides itself could do.

Enjoying its authority as always, the Houndoom strutted through its territory like a majestic lion, head held high and chest thrown out.

Yet the more it patrolled, the more it sensed something was off.

Something was wrong — ten points, even nine points wrong.

Don't let the Houndoom's rough exterior fool you into thinking it only knows how to fight.

To lead a pack of over a hundred members — a sizable force even in the wild — it was no mindless brute.

Recently, Little Seven and some of the others have been getting a little restless.

The Houndoom narrowed its eyes, a human-like suspicion surfacing on its face — it looked just like a Tibetan fox sprung to life.

The territory's range was limited, the pack's numbers plain to see — how could it possibly fail to notice Little Seven and the others' little schemes? But even knowing, the Houndoom leader couldn't be bothered to care. A rabble of misfits — as long as they couldn't beat it head-on, they could never win the pack's loyalty. Besides, it wasn't without its own fiercely loyal underlings; to challenge it, Little Seven would first have to get past them.

Only today, the situation felt especially off.

The territory was visibly emptier — at least nearly half the Houndour were missing. The Houndoom leader thought for a moment, then simply summoned its underlings.

Three more Houndoom — but ones who, just by their appearance, had clearly seen far more battles than Little Seven's lot.

Just as the Houndoom leader figured keeping a little vigilance couldn't hurt, from the edge of the territory suddenly rose a long howl with piercing penetration.

"Aooo—!"

That cry carried an extreme penetrative force — even the Coalossal in a nearby cave, being attentively attended to by Salazzle, caught wind of it.

The alluring pheromones in the toxic gas it secreted thickened, and a glint of curiosity rose in its captivating eyes.

It had only been a few days since the ceasefire — what stunt were those big black dogs pulling now?

At the same time.

Inside the Houndoom pack's territory.

"Ao—"

The Houndoom leader's gaze turned vicious, sharp teeth bared, as it let out a threatening growl at the one opposite.

There, three Houndoom stood shoulder to shoulder, a crowd of Houndour behind them — looking every bit ready to rebel.

And behind the Houndoom leader, the Houndour — slightly more numerous than those opposite — stared at their rebelling kin in shock and fury alike.

At this moment, Sang Sang Biao felt its heartbeat pounding faster and faster. It fixed its gaze on the leader it once hadn't dared look in the eye, and let out a howl—

Today, they would overthrow the Houndoom leader's rule!

The Houndoom leader looked at the three Houndoom underlings behind it, then looked at the opposite side.

It nearly laughed out loud.

With such a massive gap in fighting power, had they eaten the heart and gall of a bear and leopard? How dare they still rebel.

Roughly guessing what its former boss was thinking, the Houndoom Sang Sang Biao simply let out a howl toward the rear.

Shortly after.

The Houndour parted to clear a path, and the Zigzagoon walked out, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

"Luka—"

It is your true opponent.

The Houndour named Sang Sang Biao glanced at its leader, then walked directly toward the young Houndour standing beside it.

Among wild Pokémon fighting for status, there is no phase for trash talk.

The moment opposition was confirmed, the horn signaling war had already sounded.

The Houndours immediately clashed into a melee, but under Luo Mu's instructions, they abandoned their usual fierce and reckless style of trading injury for injury, focusing instead on evasion and self-preservation.

Luo Mu's exact words were that he did not wish them to fight to the death and suffer severe injuries; they only needed to delay for a while.

"Luka?" (Boss, is everything alright?) the young Houndour called out softly to the Houndour leader as it went forward to confront the rebellious junior.

The Houndour leader impatiently urged it to properly deal with the traitor, revealing a confident smile.

"Luka!" (We will win!)

(End of Chapter)