Inside the tent, Perrin whispered in awe.
"It's so quiet..."
Lucas, who had been observing the sleeping Ogerpon, paused and shot her a strange look. "You probably shouldn't say things like that."
Perrin looked confused. "Why not?"
Lucas waved his hand. "Just remember."
Suddenly—
From outside came Serperior's calm cry.
"Serpe~"
Both shifted their attention outdoors.
They immediately noticed not only was it eerily silent, but thick fog had enveloped the entire Timeless Woods.
Lucas and Perrin exchanged glances, as if confirming the same suspicion, and got up to go outside.
Perrin's Growlithe followed closely.
The commotion woke Ogerpon, who, despite feeling much safer with Lucas, had developed a habit of waking up at the slightest disturbance from her time living in the wild.
She hesitated for a second, but followed Lucas and Perrin out of the tent.
Better to see what was happening.
Outside, the air was noticeably colder, but that was just the appetizer.
Only after stepping outside did Lucas and Perrin realize how creepy things had become.
Endless fog swallowed the vast forest like a giant maw.
Blood-red light from the sky—a crimson moon—bathed the fog, painting everything a ghastly red.
Even Ogerpon cowered in terror.
Even Lucas and Perrin were startled, scanning their surroundings with caution.
This scene could fit seamlessly into any horror movie or game!
After the fright, Perrin's excitement surged. She clutched her camera, eyes gleaming.
Could Lucas have really been right!?
Meanwhile, Lucas, after joining Serperior, was pondering something else.
Was this Bloodmoon Ursaluna really just an ordinary Pokémon?
Not only was its entrance so grand, but it had a legendary status in Kitakami folklore.
Even the wild Pokémon had all vanished.
Now, Lucas was both expectant and excited, even more curious about the true nature of the Bloodmoon.
If not a legend, it was legendary in all but name.
He didn't have to wait long. Minutes later, in the eerily silent forest, heavy footsteps echoed.
Each step was like a drumbeat, thumping at their hearts and shaking the ground.
As branches and underbrush rustled, a massive shadow emerged from a gap in the woods.
It stood nearly three meters tall, a wall of muscle.
With each step, its heavy breathing echoed through the forest.
Suddenly, it stopped, and its glowing green eyes glared their way.
That deep gaze made Perrin shiver. Her Growlithe, terrified, tucked its tail and hid behind her.
Perrin clutched her pounding heart and looked at Growlithe reproachfully. "You little coward, you're worse than me!"
Without hesitation, Perrin scooped up the cowering Ogerpon, grabbed her mask, and hid under a tree near the river, cheering Lucas on: "The battle's all yours!"
Lucas ignored her, facing the creature with Serperior.
Though the fog obscured much, the crimson moon's light let him see the so-called "Bloodmoon" Ursaluna clearly.
Its burly upper body, legs, and tail were covered in hardened gray mud, while the rest was dull brown fur.
Its face was almost entirely shielded by mud, except for a small patch on the upper right.
But the most striking feature was the blood-red, moon-like circle embedded in its forehead—strangely sinister.
On closer look, its left eye was darker than its right, surrounded by markings like an eyepatch.
If not for the left eye's eerie green glow, Lucas might have thought it was blind.
"So this is the Bloodmoon?"
Lucas sighed. It did look like Ursaluna, but also very different.
The most obvious differences were the blood moon on its forehead versus Ursaluna's full moon, and the Bloodmoon's upright stance versus Ursaluna's usual all-fours.
Seeing that Lucas and Serperior had no intention of fleeing, Ursaluna narrowed its eyes. Its left eye could see through darkness, so it didn't miss the rare sight of humans and Pokémon standing their ground.
How rare—after countless seasons living here, this was the first time Ursaluna had met beings unafraid of it.
Long ago, it had crossed the sea to this forest, enduring countless trials and battles, until it became what it was.
Its strength was now incomparable.
Even the kings empowered by Sinnoh's blessings would be hard-pressed to beat it.
Because it was so strong, whenever it appeared, no Pokémon dared approach. It could choose when to visit the lake, and every time, the area cleared out—even the aquatic Pokémon stayed hidden.
It was the first time Ursaluna had met anyone unafraid.
Lucas and Serperior had caught its interest.
Ursaluna decided to test them.
"Rooooar—!"
With a glint in its eyes, Ursaluna opened its mouth and roared, the sound echoing through the forest, making all the hiding Pokémon curl up tighter.
It was terrifying.
The roar wasn't just loud—its powerful sound waves swept out like a hurricane, even flipping the tent that was staked to the ground.
Lucas, taking the brunt of the roar, simply uncovered his ears and strode toward Ursaluna with Serperior.
He wanted to test this legendary Bloodmoon Ursaluna himself.
Seeing Lucas and Serperior still not running, Ursaluna faced them head-on.
Not only did they not flee, they advanced? In that case, let's see what they're made of!
With that decision, Ursaluna's blood, dormant for years, began to boil, its fighting instinct awakening. It scraped the ground with its sharp claws and nodded in satisfaction.
Good, my claws are still sharp!
"Is it really going to be a fight!?"
Hidden behind a tree, Perrin peeked out, watching the confrontation anxiously.
Ogerpon and Growlithe mimicked her, looking just as nervous.
On the other side—
As both sides closed in, Ursaluna struck first.
With a skyward roar, it stomped the ground, channeling energy through the earth straight for Lucas and Serperior!
Arcanine emerged from its Poké Ball, carrying Lucas away with a well-timed leap, dodging the attack's area.
The next moment, the ground under Serperior shook and split, erupting with orange energy like a volcano.
A Ground-type move—Earth Power!
Serperior didn't even glance at the attack. Head raised, it shot Ursaluna a taunting look. Although it hadn't even moved, after the eruption, Serperior seemed to have teleported closer.
"Leaf Blade."
Before Ursaluna could react, Serperior, tail like a blade, darted in and slashed at Ursaluna's shoulder!
With their experience battling bears, Lucas and Serperior knew the bear's strength lay in its huge body and powerful paws. If possible, they'd better disable those claws first.
But the Leaf Blade struck with a metallic clang, as if hitting something impossibly hard, leaving only a visible mark—no real damage.
"What the—!?"
Perrin was stunned. Ursaluna's defense was that high?
Lucas, meanwhile, looked thoughtful.
"Hardened mud? Seems even tougher than Mudsdale's mud."
With the first attack failing, Serperior retreated, not giving Ursaluna a chance for a bear hug.
Both sides eyed each other in surprise.
Ursaluna was amazed at Serperior's speed, Serperior at Ursaluna's toughness. Even without sunlight to warm up, Ursaluna's defense was off the charts.
Realizing this, Ursaluna wasted no time and lunged with a paw at Serperior!
Serperior snorted coldly in response.
Night or day, the forest was its domain.
With its tail, it drove a massive root from the ground, smashing into Ursaluna's paw!
A shockwave erupted, making trees sway.
That was just the beginning. More roots burst from the earth, directed by Serperior to whip at Ursaluna.
But Ursaluna's paw burst into flames, tearing through the roots, then it roared again.
"Roooar—!"
This roar was even more powerful than before.
The soundwaves shredded Serperior's roots like a giant blender, the force almost enough to tear the sky apart.
Dodging once again on Arcanine's back, Lucas narrowed his eyes.
A Normal-type move—Boomburst?
He quickly realized something was off: this Ursaluna was better at special attacks than physical!
While Lucas pondered, Ursaluna barreled through Serperior's Leaf Storm, its flaming paw grabbing for Serperior!
Serperior stayed calm, twisting to dodge, then countered with another Leaf Storm, this time hitting Ursaluna's unarmored belly.
The result: a super effective hit, making Ursaluna howl in pain.
But, to Lucas and Serperior's surprise, instead of being stunned by the blow, Ursaluna just took it, howled, and kept attacking, undeterred.
If it couldn't grab Serperior, it would charge instead!
Dodging narrowly, Serperior used Grassy Pledge pillars to block another Boomburst. Amid this lethal rhythm, Lucas and Serperior finally noticed something was off.
It wasn't just about strength and size.
This Ursaluna's battle experience, intelligence, move combos, and even its aura were all astonishing.
It was like a regular Ursaluna, but leveled up into something more!
To put it precisely—this was a Seasoned King Ursaluna!
"Interesting...!"
Lucas's eyes sparkled with excitement. From the start, this "Bloodmoon" Ursaluna had been full of surprises.
He couldn't help but wonder what other hidden powers and surprises it had.
On the other side, Ursaluna was getting fired up for the first time in years.
At first, like with all the people it'd let go before, Ursaluna planned to just test Lucas and Serperior and then let them go.
But the more it fought, the more frustrated it became.
Where it should have landed solid combos, it couldn't even touch Serperior's tail, and it kept getting hit with painful moves.
Its calm, honed over years of seclusion, was tossed aside.
Now, enraged, it had only one thought—
Fight!
"Rooooar—!"
Ursaluna roared, then fixed its gaze on Serperior. Another near-solid blast of sound erupted, and Serperior, as before, blocked with roots and Grass Pledge.
But when the wall dropped, Ursaluna had vanished!
Before Serperior could sense its aura, Lucas's warning came first.
"It's above you!"
Serperior looked up and saw Ursaluna, improbably agile for its size, leaping straight down at them from the sky!
…
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