"Lass~"
In midair, the silhouette of Froslass suddenly appeared.
As her ghostly form emerged among the horde of Gastly, the gray mist clinging to their bodies began to stir violently, as though drawn by some invisible force.
In the next instant, all of the mist twisted and changed direction, flowing rapidly toward Froslass. However, the other ends of the mist were still connected to the horde of ghost Pokémon, preventing it from detaching directly.
But this scene was nothing new to Froslass. She had long since become accustomed to it.
Just like last year, back when the gray mist first appeared she had drawn the mist away from the corrupted beasts in exactly this way!
The gray fog surged and drifted, streaming toward Froslass at astonishing speed before merging straight into her body and vanishing without a trace.
"Lass~"
When she had absorbed all of the gray mist, Froslass slowly opened her eyes.
Just like before, the mist did not harm her at all. On the contrary, she even felt an odd, almost soothing warmth spreading through her body.
After all, Froslass had evolved while she was being corroded by the gray mist. Her body had been reshaped and transformed by that same energy, altering her very essence and granting her the ability to ignore the harmful side effects of the fog.
Back then, the reason she had lost her sanity under its influence was not because the mist itself was incompatible with her but because she had absorbed far too much of it all at once.
It must be remembered that at that time, Froslass had absorbed every last trace of gray mist remaining in the Abyssal Cavern, and by doing so, she had directly broken through into the King-tier!
That alone proved how vast and terrifying that energy truly was.
Moreover, in her current state, as long as she refrained from channeling ghost-type energy recklessly, the mist posed no real danger to her at all. That in itself showed that the gray fog could no longer harm her.
Therefore, as long as she didn't absorb it excessively, Froslass would not suffer any ill effects and could even use the mist's strange power to strengthen herself further!
"It seems my assumption was correct," Aven murmured softly. "Absorbing a moderate amount of gray mist won't cause her any harm."
"But if Froslass were to take in too much again, like last time, she'd still be at risk of losing control completely."
He exhaled in relief after witnessing the scene before him. Only after personally confirming this could he finally relax, allowing Froslass to begin absorbing the mist in measured amounts.
This time, however, he would not make the same mistake as before. He would never again let Froslass take in all of the gray mist.
All they needed to do was absorb the portion clinging to the corrupted Pokémon — and let the rest naturally dissipate on its own.
"Lass~"
Just as Aven was lost in thought, Froslass suddenly gave another low, ethereal cry.
At that moment, the Odd Keystone hanging around her neck began to float into the air, releasing a radiant blue glow.
Then, something astonishing happened — the gray mist that filled the battlefield surged toward it all at once, flowing rapidly into the gemstone!
One after another, the streams of mist vanished completely, and only when the last trace disappeared did the light around the Keystone slowly fade.
"The keystone can absorb the gray mist?" Aven blinked in surprise.
Back then, it had been this same stone that drew the corruption from Froslass's body and now it was doing the same to the gray fog around them!
Originally, Aven had prepared to let Froslass absorb the mist herself and then later find a way to remove the excess from her. But to think the Odd Keystone still retained such power even now!
Ever since the malevolent spirit and dark power within Spiritomb had been purified, the Odd Keystone had undergone a mysterious transformation, it had become a special artifact capable of sealing and cleansing evil spirit energy.
And since the gray mist itself was essentially composed of chaotic ghost-type death energy, it perfectly matched the Keystone's purifying nature, allowing it to directly absorb and neutralize the mist.
"Lass~"
Froslass's expression shifted subtly as she closed her eyes and carefully sensed her own body.
Almost immediately, she realized that pure ghost-type energy was now coursing within her.
It was completely clean — free from the chaotic taint of the gray mist. Clearly, the Keystone had absorbed only the corrupting energy while leaving behind the harmless, pure ghost essence for her to use.
In other words, the Keystone was functioning like a spiritual purifier, constantly filtering out the impurities within the gray mist and allowing only the purified ghost energy to flow into her!
"Froslass, how do you feel?" Aven asked, eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"Lass~"
Froslass answered softly, describing what she had sensed.
The situation was slightly different from what Aven had initially planned — but it was a change for the better.
Now, Froslass could absorb the mist far more freely without fear of corruption. So long as the Keystone had not yet reached its absorption limit, she could safely continue drawing upon the purified energy.
And beyond that, since the Odd Keystone could extract ghost-type energy directly from the mist, Froslass could even use this process as a form of training, refining both her control and power at once.
"Kir~lia~"
Kirlia, meanwhile, had been keeping her attention fixed entirely on the Gastly nearby.
Through her sensitivity to emotional energy, she could feel the confusion, pain, and despair that emanated from them.
When Petilil had used Aromatherapy earlier, suppressing the mist's corruption, Kirlia had distinctly sensed those negative emotions weaken, the Gastly's fear and anguish softening slightly.
Now, with the gray mist completely gone from their bodies, their emotional states had shifted once again.
What Kirlia felt now was no longer chaos or agony — but calmness, hope, and gratitude. The Gastly were regaining clarity.
"Gast~ Gas~ Gast~!"
All around the clearing, the Gastly turned their eyes toward Froslass.
They seemed to understand that it was she who had drawn the gray mist from their bodies, freeing them from their torment.
"Lass…"
Froslass hovered silently in the air, her gaze steady as she looked upon them.
Then, her body emitted a powerful wave of energy the unmistakable pressure of a King-level Pokémon rolling outward in waves.
"Gast!"
The Gastly shuddered all at once, their expressions changing.
They could clearly feel the crushing power that radiated from Froslass, and one by one, they froze in place, not daring to move.
"You're safe now," Aven said calmly as he stepped forward to stand behind Froslass.
"The gray mist's corruption has been cleansed. You will no longer be devoured by it, nor lose your consciousness."
"Lass~!"
Froslass nodded in agreement, looking gently at the Gastly.
She, too, had once suffered under that same corruption — she could deeply understand their fear and pain.
Thus, she slowly withdrew her intimidating aura and began to softly comfort the frightened Gastly.
"Gast?"
"Gas~ Gast~!"
The Gastly exchanged glances with one another. The once-hostile glow in their eyes faded, replaced by quiet understanding.
Then, all together, they lowered their heads toward Froslass — a gesture of gratitude.
"Lasss~"
Seeing the Gastly finally calm down, Froslass let out a small sigh of relief.
She floated closer to them, her expression thoughtful. She intended to check their conditions carefully and to question them about what exactly had happened within the Abyssal Cavern.
From the start, she had been wondering about the true cause behind the reappearance of this gray mist.
Meanwhile, in the distance, Berrin and his knights stood frozen, gazing at the scene in astonishment.
The sky was now clear. The once-hostile Gastly were floating peacefully, surrounding Froslass like obedient followers.
Had… everything truly ended?
"Lord Aven… is it over?" Berrin finally asked as he approached him after a long silence.
Aven smiled slightly and nodded. "Yes. The gray mist that tainted those Gastly has completely dissipated. Everything's fine now."
"It's… fine?"
The knights behind Berrin exchanged bewildered looks, their gazes fixed on the Gastly above.
Even without the gray mist, those ghostly beings still looked eerie — floating with their wide grins and flickering eyes.
To ordinary humans, ghost-type Pokémon were still terrifying creatures. After all, in countless knightly tales, ghosts and spirits had always symbolized evil and misfortune.
"Don't worry," Aven said, noticing their unease. "Ghost-type Pokémon aren't the same as cursed spirits or vengeful ghosts."
"In essence, they're no different from other Pokémon."
Indeed, he knew that the life force of humans naturally attracted ghost-types — that was true and some Pokémon did feed on human life or souls. But those cases were exceedingly rare.
Most ghost Pokémon, like these Gastly, were beings from the Ghost World who had never even encountered humans before. They wouldn't instinctively harm what they didn't understand.
With proper guidance — by teaching them that human life and other Pokémon are not food, and showing them that there are better sources of energy to sustain themselves, ghost Pokémon could live peacefully alongside people.
In the future, though ghost-types would remain rare, there would still be countless trainers who would specialize in raising them.
Every league would one day have a Ghost-type Gym Leader, and some even Elite Four members dedicated to ghost Pokémon, guardians who used their spectral partners not to harm humans, but to protect them.
That was why Aven bore no prejudice against ghost-type Pokémon. He believed firmly that they, too, could be kind and noble — that they, too, could become protectors of humankind.
"Lass~"
Froslass floated gracefully through the air, surrounded by the Gastly.
It was easy to see that the Gastly were now completely docile.
Being of the same type, they could sense the immense, regal power emanating from Froslass. She had saved them — and that alone was enough for them to acknowledge her.
Under Froslass's calm direction, the Gastly all gathered together, slowly descending from the air.
"Lass~!"
Froslass turned to Aven and gestured toward the Gastly behind her.
After a brief exchange through psychic communication, Aven understood:
Froslass had successfully taken them under her wing.
Since they had nowhere else to go — unable to return to the Ghost World for the time being, and lost in this unfamiliar world, they had all chosen to follow her.
For the weak, seeking protection from the strong was instinct.
And so, these Gastly made their choice — to gather around Froslass and form a tribe of ghost-type Pokémon, under her watchful guidance and shelter.
(End of Chapter)