Chapter Forty-Four: The Attacked Garden

"Stop it!"

"Ran!"

Seeing the situation, Amu immediately released Exeggutor, Ivysaur, and Nidorino. Unfortunately, the mischievous Electrode had been left back at the villa!

Amu had thought the playboy was the most dangerous, and that she, Sonoko, and the others were the safest…

"Use Thunderbolt and Energy Ball!"

Under Amu’s command, Nidorino attempted the still-unfamiliar Thunderbolt. Nidorino’s body shimmered with electric energy, which it swept toward the "Sinister Coffin" before them. But, lacking experience, the electric power merely grazed the target, outlining it more than striking it.

By lucky chance, this did restrict the Sinister Coffin’s movement. Two Energy Balls, each the size of a head, slammed into it with full force, both hitting their mark!

Yet, as the dust settled, the creature seemed barely harmed. Instead, it drifted backward. From the shadows behind it, four ghostly hands emerged, tossing a flickering blue-violet Will-o'-Wisp towards Amu and her Pokémon…

Amu quickly rolled aside—unlike a Pokémon battle, in a real fight, the opponent might attack the trainer!

Exeggutor and Ivysaur dodged as well, but Nidorino was a step too slow and got singed.

Meanwhile, the Sinister Coffin floated away, swiftly vanishing into the shadows of the forested hills.

"Don’t chase… Exeggutor, Ivysaur, stay alert." While her Pokémon stood guard, Amu hurriedly took out a Full Restore and treated Nidorino’s burn.

Amu was certain—this wasn’t a wild Pokémon, and it had no interest in being caught. Besides, there might be more Pokémon on its side, so she didn’t pursue.

Just then, another commotion sounded not far away. Amu kept her three Pokémon out and rushed over.

She found Misty and the others still shaken; Sonoko was sitting on the ground, covered in mud from a fall.

Everyone’s Pokémon—including Conan’s Skateboard Rotom—had been released.

Earlier, the three had been frightened by the Sinister Coffin and fled. Conan, worried something would happen, followed after them, while Amu stayed behind to confront the creature.

"What happened?" Amu asked urgently.

"Just now… a strange man rushed at us and tried to attack Sonoko!" Misty said, still breathless.

Following Misty’s gaze, Amu saw a broken axe lying nearby. It seemed they’d managed to release their Pokémon in time to stop him.

"Fortunately, Ran was there—she kicked the weapon away, and when he saw our Pokémon out, he fled," Misty continued, sounding relieved.

Amu: …

"It was him! The strange man we saw before!" Ran exclaimed.

"Him? The one with the scarf and sunglasses?" Amu was taken aback, a sense of familiarity stirring in her mind.

"It’s not safe in the forest. Let’s go back to the villa," Conan said, dropping his childlike pretense for a moment with his mature suggestion.

Amu quickly agreed. Seeing Sonoko struggling to stand, she stepped forward to help her up.

"Ow…" Sonoko cried as she got to her feet.

Amu soon realized Sonoko had twisted her ankle.

"I’ve got some healing spray in my bag. Let’s head back first," Amu said, glancing at Ivysaur and Exeggutor.

Finding neither suitable for carrying a person, Amu crouched down and let Sonoko climb onto her back.

"Thank you," Sonoko said, blushing.

…

When they returned to the villa, Ayako and the others were startled, but fortunately, Chikako and Hiroki had returned safely as well.

"What? Someone attacked you? And used a Pokémon?" Ayako exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah, I think it was a Cofagrigus," Conan said, glancing at Amu.

Amu hesitated, then nodded. "Yes… I’ll go get the medicine."

It was definitely a Cofagrigus. Though the woods had been dark and the details hard to see, its features were unmistakable.

But…

Amu couldn’t shake the feeling that something was odd.

While fetching the medicine, Amu checked the Pokédex again:

"Cofagrigus: A Pokémon resembling a coffin, with a golden body, glowing red eyes, and four shadowy gray hands.

In ancient times, Cofagrigus symbolized the wealth of kings, so murals of them are common in Unova’s tombs. Legend says they pretend to be real coffins, trapping grave robbers inside and turning them into mummies—but research shows that even if a wild Cofagrigus attacks and pulls someone into its coffin, they’ll only be wrapped in bandages. Unless it’s a guardian in a tomb, a Cofagrigus won’t directly attack humans.

They are quite dangerous, causing multiple tomb robbers’ deaths. Avoid them if found in any tomb."

Not as terrifying as the legends, but not without reason!

In some Unova tombs, Cofagrigus have slept for centuries, faithfully carrying out their duty as tomb guardians—under such circumstances, they really have killed grave robbers…

In Kanto, though, wild Cofagrigus are rare, since Unova is so far away.

Moreover, a purely wild Cofagrigus is much less dangerous; even if someone is pulled inside, it doesn’t result in death, only being wrapped in bandages…

Bandages???

A thought struck Amu. Could this be the "Mummy Man Incident"?

Amu only remembered a handful of Conan episodes, but this one stood out—the "Mummy Man Incident"—not least because of its fear factor, ranking among the most chilling early stories.

Initially, the mysterious figure was described as wearing a scarf and sunglasses, so Amu hadn’t made the connection at first.

But the appearance of Cofagrigus triggered the association—after all, this was the Pokémon world, where many cases had taken on new forms… and the disguises all hid the perpetrator’s identity!

Amu strained to remember the culprit and victim. Names escaped her, but she recalled one detail clearly: the real murderer was a fake fat person, hiding the victim’s head inside a false belly so convincingly that no one suspected.

In the episode, Ran was attacked because she had accidentally glimpsed the murderer’s true figure, risking exposure.

But this time, Sonoko had been targeted?

That wasn’t a major change. What mattered more was…

The situation was clearly different now. There was no "fat person" in the villa, so no one could be hiding that way!

Detective work was clearly not her forte. After retrieving the medicine, Amu hurried downstairs to warn everyone to be careful and to avoid being alone…