Chapter 102: Treasure at the bottom of Magma

After Metagross took care of Talonflame and Fletchinder, it continued to carry Julian forward. The Dowsing Machine in his hand was now signaling a valuable treasure ahead.

Most of the treasures found in Volcano areas are usually connected to Fire-type Pokémon. Things like Fire Stones and Fire Stone fragments are the most common finds.

After traveling for about half an hour, Metagross slowed down and finally stopped at a certain point.

Beneath them was a massive Volcano, stretching about a kilometer wide and sinking five hundred meters deep into the ground.

The treasure, as indicated by the red dot on the Dowsing Machine, was somewhere inside the Volcano. And more specifically, it was buried deep within the bubbling magma.

Julian switched out his regular shoes for heat-resistant boots and guided Metagross to land at the Volcano's edge. The temperature around them was very high, having climbed to over 70 degrees Celsius. For any normal person, walking in such extreme heat would require heat-insulating clothes.

But thanks to his Mega Pallet Town physique, Julian was able to bear it. Though he could still feel the intense heat, it wasn't enough to slow him down too much. Sweat poured down his face, but other than that, he felt fine.

Metagross didn't like this environment much either, but the heat wasn't anything it couldn't handle for a while.

"Trouble, the treasure is really inside the magma," Julian muttered to himself as he looked down.

Standing at the edge of the Volcano, Julian could see the lava churning and bubbling below. The red dot on the Dowsing Machine made it clear that the treasure was buried deep within the magma.

Julian didn't know exactly what the treasure was, but judging by the size of the red dot—covering about one-third of the Dowsing Machine's screen—it had to be something incredibly valuable.

The only problem now was figuring out how to retrieve it.

Taking the treasure out was going to be tricky. Most of Julian's Pokémon were Steel-types, and even his strongest one, Metagross, wouldn't be able to last long in magma that hot. 

As much as his Mega Pallet Town physique helped, there was no way he could just dive into the magma himself. That would be suicide.

This was a job for a Fire-type Pokémon, and luckily, there were plenty of them around.

Julian glanced over to the pool of magma and spotted about a dozen Magmars, along with a much larger and stronger pseudo-Elite Magmortar lounging in the lava.

Julian didn't want to catch this green-qualified Magmortar, as he had already caught two Pokémon in the Rift.

Magmortar, seemingly sensing Julian's gaze, glared back, with flames flickering from its muzzle-like arms. Its subordinates, the Magmars, stood ready, waiting for orders.

'I'll need to draw them out first,' Julian thought.

'If I battle them in the magma, I might end up causing a Volcano eruption, and that's the last thing I want.'

"Steelix, use Taunt!" Julian ordered.

Steelix: You b*****ds dare to look at me.

Magmar, Magmortar: This f**ker.

Taunt succeeded in raising their anger. Magmortar, now furious, let out a roar and led the charge, leaping out of the magma with the rest of its subordinate Magmar following close behind.

Driven by anger, the Fire-types chased after Steelix, determined to teach it a lesson.

After leading them about three or four kilometers away from the Volcano, the group finally caught up to Steelix.

Magmortar: Run? Why don't you keep running?.

Steelix: There's no need to run anymore. You're already surrounded.

Julian jumped off Steelix's head and Metagross blocked the group's escape route while Dragonair circled above, keeping an eye on things from the sky.

Magmortar: Just a few of you, my little ones can handle you all.

Magmortar sneered at the situation, clearly unimpressed.

Despite sensing a strong presence from Metagross, it wasn't about to back down. Fire-types are known for their fierce tempers, and Magmortar wasn't the type to retreat.

With a single command, Magmortar sent its Magmar followers charging forward. Flames erupted from their mouths as they launched a coordinated attack, aiming multiple Flamethrowers directly at Steelix.

Even though Steelix was a pseudo-Elite Pokémon, the heat from so many Flamethrowers was too much for it to handle all at once.

"Steelix, Dig!" Julian called out.

Although Steelix was just caught, and their tacit understanding was not great, but Steelix didn't hesitate.

It quickly burrowed into the ground just before the flames could hit it. Within seconds, it was gone, leaving nothing but a hole in the ground.

Julian, who had been standing near Steelix, wasn't the target of the flames, but the intense heat radiating from them was enough to burn his hair tips and make his skin feel like it was burning.

Magmortar looked at Julian maliciously, as he prepared another attack, Metagross made its move. It launched itself forward, using Zen Headbutt to strike Magmortar squarely in the stomach.

The force of the attack nearly knocked Magmortar off its feet.

Angry and hurt, Magmortar opened its mouth and fired a powerful Fire Blast at Metagross.

Behind Metagross was Julian, so this attack could not be avoided, But Metagross quickly countered with Meteor Mash, and the two attacks collided mid-air with a loud explosion.

Meanwhile, the remaining Magmars, not wanting to be left out, sent another wave of Flamethrowers toward Julian and Metagross.

After being soaked in magma all year round, their Flamethrower's temperature was higher than that of Normal Fire type Pokémon, and if a Pokémon gets hit it's more than likely to enter the Burn status Condition.

But Dragonair was ready. It used Dragon Tail to swipe through most of the Flamethrowers, dispersing the flames. The few that got through were blocked by Steelix, which had just resurfaced from the ground.

If it wasn't for the fact that it was still relatively close to the mouth of the volcano, a single Earthquake from Steelix would be enough to eliminate the dozen or so Magmar.

"Steelix, use Rock Throw! Dragonair, use Dragon Rush!"

Rocks rained down from the sky, as Steelix unleashed a barrage of stones onto the Magmar below. Several of them were hit directly, while others tried to dodge but ended up getting trapped by the falling rocks.

Dragonair then swooped down from above, striking with precision. It knocked out one Magmar after another, taking full advantage of their limited movement.

In just a matter of moments, the combined efforts of Steelix and Dragonair had defeated a dozen Magmar at level 50 and above.

Magmortar, now alone, couldn't believe its eyes. Its entire group had been taken out so quickly, and it was also losing to that silver Pokémon.

*****

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