Pelipper soared through the skies, feeling out the air currents. Flying straight was no issue.

If a good gust came through, it could glide with the wind, saving even more energy.

Pelipper flew steadily, but Reiji was another story—he was terrified.

It was his first time riding a Flying-type Pokémon. It was only natural to feel a bit shaky.

If he had the kind of piloting experience that Pokémon hunters did, he could've handled it with ease.

But a hunter was a hunter, and he was just himself. All he could do was practice slowly.

That afternoon, he'd spent most of his time practicing how to ride Pelipper, working on his balance and getting Pelipper used to his weight.

Every thirty minutes or so, they took a break—Pelipper needed to rest too.

After about two hours, Reiji called it for the day. He'd gotten the hang of balancing. Now it was just a matter of refining it through repetition.

If it was only for getting off this deserted island, and no unexpected problems cropped up, his current flying skill level would do.

Now he was resting in the shade of a tree. He suddenly noticed bloodstains on the strap of his black backpack. He'd need to wash the strap along with his clothes later.

If he walked into civilization with blood like that on him, people would start assuming he'd murdered someone, or worse—been part of some criminal deal gone wrong. Someone might even call the cops. He wasn't about to end up in a police station over a misunderstanding.

While checking the strap, he also opened the bag to grab some food for Pelipper. The flight hadn't been exhausting, but the vertical takeoffs and landings were tough on the bird.

To be fair, Reiji wasn't that heavy. About 70 kilograms—roughly 130 to 140 pounds—same weight as in his previous life.

As Pelipper munched on its food, Reiji pulled out a piece of bread for himself. He had plenty of it left—maybe forty or fifty pieces in the bag—so he could eat freely.

While reaching for the bread, his hand brushed against a Poké Ball. He pulled it out and saw it belonged to Slowpoke.

Considering Slowpoke had likely been intended as food by the Pokémon hunter, Reiji decided to let it out. Not to eat it, of course. He actually found Slowpoke kind of adorable.

Pink, fluffy, like a plush toy from his past life. It probably felt nice to pet—just like his old cat.

With something like that, how could he bring himself to eat it? Better to use it as a pillow or cuddle buddy.

Pop—

Without hesitation, he opened the Poké Ball and released the Slowpoke inside.

"Yadon…" The Slowpoke was slow to react. After being released, it just stared blankly around in confusion.

But the moment it spotted Reiji, its body stiffened and it fell into a frozen state, quickly shifting its gaze as if it hadn't seen anything at all and continued looking around.

Reiji, sharp-eyed as ever, caught the brief moment of fear in the Slowpoke's reaction. He didn't mention it.

From that one glance, he could tell—this Slowpoke wasn't dull or brainless. It was actually clever.

That dazed look must have been a front. In the wild, playing dumb or dead was a valid survival tactic—especially if you didn't want to end up as someone's lunch.

"Yadon…" After scanning its surroundings, the Slowpoke's gaze settled on the ocean, falling into a trance.

But it wasn't actually spacing out. It was thinking—planning how to escape into the sea.

There were three Pokémon nearby: a Spinarak on a tree branch, Butterfree training its psychic power, and Pelipper napping off to the side.

If it ran now, it'd probably get caught—maybe even get beaten, just like when it tried to escape before to avoid having its tail cut off, only to get dragged back and punished by the hunter.

Reiji watched the Slowpoke space out, studying it closely. Its body was plump and pink, with curled ears, small pupils in large round eyes that gave it a vacant look.

Its mouth was butter-yellow, with two visible teeth in the upper jaw. It had short limbs, each ending in a single claw, and a long pink tail with a lighter pink tip.

He'd heard that Slowpoke tails gave off a sweet scent—no nutritional value, but the Slowpoke itself felt happy when bitten.

When soaking in water, the tail would emit a sugary aroma, which it used to lure in prey—but it usually forgot what it was doing halfway through and just lay by the river all day.

This thing was basically a seasoned angler. Kind of Reiji's type.

Still, he didn't approach rashly. Instead, he called Butterfree over. "Butterfree, talk to it. Tell it we're not a threat. And bring some food."

"Fwee-ee…" Butterfree paused its psychic training and glanced at the ocean, where Slowpoke was still frozen like a statue.

Hearing Reiji's command, it grabbed some bread and Water-type food from Reiji's hand and fluttered over.

"Fwee-ee? Fwee-ee?" Butterfree called out twice, but Slowpoke didn't respond. Confused, it even waved a tiny paw in front of its face.

Slowpoke had heard and seen it, but it didn't respond—too scared to engage.

New place, strange people, unfamiliar Pokémon… it had zero sense of safety. Everything around it screamed danger.

Butterfree tore a bit of bread off, chewed it, then gently placed another piece into Slowpoke's open mouth.

"Yadon?" It took a few minutes, but eventually the Slowpoke realized something was in its mouth—bread crumbs and Pokémon food.

After confirming that Butterfree was eating the same thing, it determined the food was safe and began to chew.

Butterfree gently said, "You're safe now. We're not the bad guy. We're not going to eat you."

She knew words alone wouldn't be enough—not for a Pokémon who'd had its tail cut off. But there wasn't much else she could do.

Only time would heal this kind of wound. When Slowpoke finally let its guard down and truly believed it was safe, then maybe it would open up, maybe even become one of them.

But before that, she still had to ask something on Reiji's behalf—something stupid. He apparently wanted to pet this fluffy thing.

Butterfree rolled her eyes. "Fwee-ee. Reiji wants to touch you. Don't bite him. Or I'll beat you up."

"Yadon?" Slowpoke had relaxed when it heard it wouldn't be eaten… but now this? Still, it didn't resist.

When you're under someone's roof, you lower your head. It had once sacrificed its tail to survive—what was a couple pats in comparison?

As Butterfree nodded, Reiji moved in.

He started by patting the top of Slowpoke's soft, pink head. Slowpoke stiffened, but didn't resist, so Reiji picked it up and sat it in his lap.

He leaned against the tree trunk and started petting the plush, velvety fur.

Just like petting his cat back home—head, limbs, body, tail—all soft, all soothing.

Touching Slowpoke melted his tension, calmed his nerves. In short: petting Pokémon was pure joy.

And petting Slowpoke? Same deal.

Butterfree, seeing Reiji so blissed out, got jealous and butted her head into him, snapping him out of his daze.

He looked up and saw the expression on her face—jealous, sulky.

With a chuckle, he stopped petting Slowpoke and instead reached out to stroke Butterfree's head. "Alright, alright. You've still got training. We're leaving this island tomorrow. You've got to be strong. The outside world's a lot tougher than this place."

"Fwee-ee," she cooed, satisfied, and flitted off to train again. Reiji clearly still cared about her—Slowpoke hadn't stolen the spotlight.

"Yadon…" Slowpoke watched all this, wide-eyed. Its fear and tension were already fading.

Lying on this trainer's lap, watching him talk to Butterfree—it felt warm. Safe.

This human didn't look at it like food. He wasn't cold or indifferent. He didn't make Slowpoke feel uncomfortable. Maybe, just maybe… its tail was safe this time.

It let out a long breath, relaxing completely. Maybe staying by this trainer's side wouldn't be so bad. For now, it wouldn't run. It'd just observe.

After coaxing Butterfree into resuming training, Reiji went back to petting the Slowpoke on his lap and gazed out over the shimmering blue sea.

His thoughts drifted to another Pokémon—one that had shared the same fate as Slowpoke. Another one treated like food.

Farfetch'd.

He stopped petting and pulled out Farfetch'd's Poké Ball. This duck had eaten one of its own kind. It was unpredictable—could go berserk any time. Releasing it would require backup.

"Pelipper, go to the shore and call Krabby over," Reiji said.

Krabby would be the one to keep Farfetch'd in check. At over level 20, it should have no problem subduing a level 13 duck.

"Peli!" Pelipper, having just finished eating and drinking, took to the sky and glided over to the shore, where Krabby was practicing Water Gun.

"Peli! Hurry up, Reiji's calling for you!"

"Kraak? On it." Krabby stopped training, said goodbye to Poliwhirl, and scuttled ashore toward the shade where Reiji was waiting.

"Kraak, kraak…"

"Krabby," Reiji said, explaining the situation. "I'm releasing the Farfetch'd from this ball. I need you to subdue it. Break its will."

Pokémon that bore hatred toward humans couldn't be reasoned with. There was no point in earning favor. Not now.

This Farfetch'd wouldn't listen to a word.

There was only one way: Might makes right.

Overpower it. Crush its resistance. Then the rest would follow.

He'd show through action that he wasn't going to eat it. But if it couldn't be tamed…

Then maybe it would end up on the menu.

Compared to eating Farfetch'd, he'd rather stick to the crabs by the sea.

There were tons of those. The duck, though—only one on the island.

A unique, irreplaceable Farfetch'd.

"Kraak kraak!" Krabby lifted its claws in understanding. A weak duck? No big deal.

"Alright. I'm releasing it now. Be ready."

Reiji tossed the Poké Ball ten meters away to avoid being hit in the crossfire—and let Farfetch'd out.

"Gah-gah! Gah-gah!" The moment it was free, it locked onto Reiji and charged, leek in hand.

"Quick Attack… and Fury Cutter," Reiji noted, seeing the green Bug-type energy gleaming on the leek.

"Kraak! Kraak!" Krabby blocked the duck's path, intercepting the Fury Cutter with its claw.

"Gah-gah!" Farfetch'd didn't understand. Why was Krabby protecting a human? Humans were awful. It didn't get it.

"Kraak—pfft pfft pfft!" Krabby countered with three Mud Shots at point-blank range.

"Gah!" Farfetch'd, fast as it was, managed to deflect the mud with its leek, then used Leer—but it had no effect.

It followed up with Roost, trying to restore some stamina.

But it was already at its limit.

It hadn't eaten since being caught. It was starving.

The Quick Attack and Fury Cutter had drained it completely.

The only thing keeping it standing was pure hatred—its desire for revenge.

Hatred was the strongest, most terrifying form of negative emotion. Fueled by rage, it could override pain and exhaustion. Given enough strength, it could destroy everything in its path.

(End of Chapter)

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