Shattered?
His teeth were completely shattered?
The moment Raticate's incisors cracked apart hit the other Rattata present like an indescribable visual and psychological shock.
The Raticate line's proudest incisors!
A sharp weapon that could easily shred steel plates!
And they'd been smashed to pieces by this Charmander!?
Worse—by their boss's incisors!?
The Rattata froze.
Their bodies started trembling on instinct.
Some with weaker nerves wet themselves on the spot.
Even more absurdly, a few just fainted outright—stiff-limbed on the ground, life or death unclear.
Shiko himself hadn't expected it either.
That precise strike, seizing the opening—
The effect was so good it exceeded his expectations.
He'd actually shattered his opponent's weapon!
"S-Squeee…"
The Raticate whose fur had been singed staggered as he forced himself back onto his feet.
After taking that hit, he hadn't instantly lost the ability to fight.
But—
Now that he'd lost his incisors, he wasn't much of a threat anymore.
Feeling the sharp pain and strange wrongness in his mouth, Raticate was terrified to the extreme.
No matter what, he couldn't have imagined it.
That the Charmander in front of him—
With a single Flamethrower, nearly turned him into a roasted rat,
And at the same time cracked the incisors he was proudest of!
When he looked at Shiko again, his eyes were filled with thick, heavy fear.
His short, round body trembled nonstop.
"SQUEEE!!"
After that piercing scream, he finally couldn't withstand the pressure any longer.
He turned and fled toward the depths of the forest.
"Chit-chit!"
"Chit-chit!"
The Rattata also bolted as fast as they could to get away.
What happened today—
Would absolutely become a lifelong psychological shadow for them.
At the same time, inside Shiko's mind, the system's electronic voice sounded.
[Congratulations to the host for defeating a wild Pokémon. Experience Points +4. Lucky Day buff triggered: additional Experience Points +4.]
The corner of Shiko's mouth twitched slightly.
He beat a Rattata while five levels lower—
And he only got four points of experience?
That was way too little!
At this rate, he'd have to take down twenty-five of them like this in a single day—
Just to gain one level!?
Compared to lying flat and doing daily quests, this was worlds apart!
No wonder the Academy's entry-level Pokémon test weeds out so many people!
The difficulty really was high!
"Buneary! Buneary!"
Buneary's voice pulled Shiko's thoughts back.
He turned his head.
And saw Buneary looking at him with an expression full of admiration.
After making eye contact with Shiko, a blush rose on Buneary's face.
Then—
She shyly buried her head into her long, pink fluff.
The whole look—
Was like an adorable girl who'd just seen the person she liked.
Uh…
Shiko felt the atmosphere starting to turn a bit pink.
This Buneary—
Don't tell him she'd fallen for him?
This…
"Why were they chasing you?"
Shiko coughed lightly and asked a serious question.
"Buneary! Buneary!"
Buneary lifted her head, gave a few soft calls, and then pulled out a green herb and offered it to Shiko.
"They were chasing you for this?"
Shiko frowned and picked up the herb to examine it.
At first glance, the green plant didn't look particularly special.
But—
Shiko keenly sensed something unusual flowing through it: a powerful life force.
That vigorous vitality—
Even taking one sniff made a Pokémon feel refreshed and clear-headed.
"This is a Revival Herb?"
Shiko was surprised.
"Buneary! Buneary!"
Buneary nodded.
Shiko's pupils shrank.
So that's why those Rattata chased Buneary like they'd gone mad.
Revival Herb was an extremely rare and precious plant.
A single Revival Herb—
Could bring a dying Pokémon back from the brink, restoring all stamina.
That was exactly why it had such a name.
The attraction of this plant to any Pokémon was obvious.
"Buneary! Buneary!"
Buneary hopped in place as she called out.
"You're giving it to me?"
Shiko was a bit taken aback.
He hadn't expected Buneary to make that decision.
After all, she'd been chased for so long because of this Revival Herb—
Which showed how important it was to her.
"Buneary! Buneary! Buneary!"
Buneary looked utterly sincere.
"Alright."
Shiko nodded.
He didn't put on airs and accepted it.
He'd saved Buneary's life.
Taking this in return wasn't too much.
"Are you okay?"
After putting the Revival Herb away, Shiko looked at Buneary and asked.
As soon as he spoke, Buneary nodded.
She parted the fur on her thigh.
On her wheat-colored skin was a very obvious wound—
And it looked fairly serious.
Shiko frowned, preparing to treat Buneary.
But then he suddenly realized something was off.
A Buneary with an injured thigh—
How could she possibly outrun so many Rattata?
That didn't make sense.
Shiko pulled up Buneary's attribute information.
With one look—
He was left completely stunned.
(End of Chapter)
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[[email protected]/Zukooo]
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