Chapter 16: If You Do Not Forsake Me, Eevee is Willing to Serve…

The boy had never imagined that he would see that small, brown figure again, especially when he was in a desperate situation. His eyes stared blankly at the Eevee that had suddenly appeared and blocked the flames for him.

"Eevee...vee..."

The brown fur was instantly ignited. The agonizing pain of being burned alive followed, but Eevee gritted its teeth, not letting out a single cry of pain.

Hikaru let out a soft sound of surprise. He had originally thought that the intruding Eevee was just another useless Pokémon belonging to that kid, but it had actually taken a Flamethrower from Houndoom head-on... It seemed it might have some potential for training.

"Houndoom, control the output and use Flamethrower again. Try not to kill it."

"Awoo~." A howl erupted, and a scorching breath spewed from its nose and mouth. Flames rekindled deep in its throat, and its dangerous gaze locked onto the Eevee, whose fur was scorched black in several places.

The burns on its body were constantly sending waves of pain, but Eevee only looked down at its leg. The bandage that had been wrapped around it had already been burned to ashes. A fleeting look of regret flashed in its round eyes.

Lifting its head again, Eevee knew that the vicious dog in front of it was an enemy it could never defeat alone, but there wasn't a trace of fear or dread in its eyes. It even roared back defiantly.

This action undoubtedly angered the already irritable Houndoom. The fire in its maw grew even brighter, and a scorching breath erupted.

"Eevee..."

Its forelegs, unable to bear the weight, half-knelt. Its lungs felt suffocated, as if blocked. The flames had taken a large patch of its beautiful brown fur, and the remaining portion drooped lifelessly.

"You're quite good. How about choosing to follow me? I can give you the best training resources and growth environment you can imagine, far more comfortable than that pathetic worm lying on the ground behind you."

Hikaru took a few steps forward, stopping five meters away from Eevee. He bent down slightly and extended his hand, appearing extremely sincere.

"Eevee..." The trembling legs struggled to support its body. Eevee raised its head, stubbornly keeping its eyes open and staring at the other party.

"I see. What a pity." Having confirmed something from those eyes, the smile on Hikaru's face completely disappeared. "Houndoom, put it out of its misery."

He had no intention of forcing it. A Pokémon that could maintain such a firm will even at the moment of death, no matter how much potential it had, would only be a ticking time bomb if forced to stay by his side.

Eevee could feel the scorching airflow close to her. It felt like a tongue of fire licking her body greedily. She knew she couldn't withstand the next wave of attacks. It wasn't a matter of belief; her body had simply reached its limit.

She instinctively turned her head to look behind her. The boy she had once considered her master hung his head, not daring to look her in the eye. His lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he couldn't get the words out.

But it didn't matter anymore. She hadn't come here to continue following him... It was just a pity that she wouldn't be able to see that boy again, to tell him the ideal she had finally figured out.

"I'll help you!"

A loud shout pulled Hikaru and Houndoom's attention completely away from the dying Eevee. At the edge of their vision, a black-haired boy stood, holding an iron staff in one hand, the other pointing forward. His imposing aura was completely unlike his youthf ul appearance. He stood tall, as if he had an army of thousands behind him.

And beside him, a gray-black Mightyena crouched, baring its teeth. Two scarlet, fierce glints flashed, and its gaping maw seemed like a gateway to the underworld. Even without engaging in battle, there was already a sense of fear.

"Wait, this is... Mightyena's Intimidate ability!" Hikaru, who was feeling somewhat breathless from the suppression, finally realized the problem. He quickly reached out to calm the bristling Houndoom beside him, while his gaze was filled with apprehension towards the black Mightyena opposite him.

While he was a Pokémon Poacher, he also considered himself an amateur Pokémon researcher. He knew about Mightyena. In terms of pure potential, it wasn't a particularly outstanding Pokémon. Even with a powerful ability like Intimidate, it was difficult for it to make a name for itself.

But the Mightyena in front of him was clearly different! This Intimidate was so strong that it was causing hallucinations. He had never seen an Intimidate user with this kind of aptitude before.

To be able to train such a Pokémon, and it was just a kid who looked no older than ten? No... that wasn't necessarily the case. Perhaps he was just using a Pokémon from his elders.

Pushing up his glasses, after figuring out the truth, Hikaru calmed down considerably. No matter what, he was a Pokémon Poacher who had been at large for many years. There was no way he would lose to such a small child.

Although he had heard that one of his colleagues had been defeated by a child, and he had even used this incident to advise Yamada to be more cautious, the kind of guy who would be defeated by a kid was nothing more than a careless and arrogant fool. How could experienced poachers like them possibly...

His gaze suddenly noticed the iron staff held by the boy opposite him. A strange sense of unease welled up within him—

That looked like Yamada's staff, didn't it?

"Hei, Crunch!"

Sharply capturing the moment Hikaru was stunned, Kazuki didn't hesitate and immediately ordered Hei to use the move it had just learned after evolving.

Hearing this, the Mightyena, which had been gathering its strength, shot out like a black arrow. Rows of guillotine-like fangs were revealed, and the black Dark-type power surging and gathering on them was terrifying.

"Don't be afraid, Houndoom! Use Flamethrower to intercept!"

Hikaru, having recovered, hurriedly commanded Houndoom. Intimidate's effect was to shock the opponent with its aura, preventing them from exerting their full strength and greatly weakening physical attacks.

But his Houndoom relied more on the special attack moves powered by the vast Fire-type energy within its body, what was known as a "special attacker." Intimidate was meaningless against them.

"Awoo!" Seeing the Mightyena rushing towards it, Houndoom felt a little apprehensive, but it couldn't disobey its master's orders. It took a deep breath and spewed out flames once again.

The flames were close at hand. At this distance, it was absolutely impossible to change direction, or even stop in time. It was either withstand the heat and complete the attack.

Its two front paws pushed off the ground, and its body instantly soared into the air. The flames swept beneath it, only scorching a few gray hairs on its belly.

"!"

Hikaru almost dropped his glasses. Flamethrower, as a Fire-type move that didn't require charging, had a fast firing speed and a wide attack range. At mid-range, it was almost impossible to dodge. Who would have thought that this Mightyena could maintain such agility at this speed?

In mid-air, Hei's scarlet eyes firmly locked onto the bespectacled man below. Kazuki had instructed... to prioritize taking out the trainer.

"Houndoom, stop it!"

Taken aback by the malicious gaze, Hikaru took a step back. He ordered Houndoom to stand in front of him while trying to take out other Poké Balls from his pocket.

"Awoo..." Houndoom reluctantly took a step forward to meet Hei, who was about to land. Seeing the open mouth with rows of gleaming sharp teeth, its body couldn't help but tremble.

"Inferno at close range!"

Estimating that Houndoom wouldn't be able to dodge this Crunch, Hikaru gritted his teeth and simply had Houndoom use its most powerful move, hoping to trade damage.

Crack. One of its forelegs was pierced by sharp teeth, and a section of its leg bone seemed to be shattered under the pressure. The excruciating pain that shot up from its paw almost caused Houndoom to dissipate the fire energy it had just gathered. Howls of pain echoed.

"Hei, retreat for now."

Kazuki wasn't in a hurry to press the attack. Houndoom was preparing a move that would envelop the enemy in concentrated, intensified flames. It had terrifying power and could drive fire energy into the enemy's body, inflicting the "Burn" status.

While having such a powerful effect, the drawbacks of this move were also obvious. In order to pursue power, the highly concentrated flames sacrificed attack range, and accuracy was naturally difficult to guarantee. It was only in this close-range situation that it could ensure a stable hit.

His intentions were seen through, but Hikaru wasn't worried. He watched as a pillar of fire erupted from Houndoom, but it missed because the Mightyena had retreated in time. In the first round of exchanges, he had suffered a great loss, but forcing the opponent back had given him the time and space to release his other Pokémon.

Red lights flashed, and five more Pokémon appeared in front of him.

Hmph, so what if you have such a high-aptitude Pokémon? How many Pokémon could such an inexperienced kid have in his pocket? Now it's many against few, the advantage is mine!

Just as Hikaru was thinking this, a cacophony of sounds reached his ears. It seemed to be coming from all directions. Dozens of different sounds were mixed together, making it impossible to distinguish what they were.

At the same time, the ground began to shake. Several cracks spread out from the boy as the center, as if something was about to break out of the ground.

"Zubat~~" A Zubat flew out of the shadows, flapping its wings, and stopped directly on Kazuki's shoulder.

It was like a signal. Hundreds of Zubat cries echoed in the cave, and a surging purple cloud slowly rose behind Kazuki.

It wasn't just the bat Pokémon! The cracked surface of the ground also completely broke open at this moment. Round holes opened up, and purple snakes with golden rings poked their heads out. Dozens of round rocks with hands rolled forward, arriving last.

The most representative Pokémon of Mt. Moon's cave were all gathered here. There were so many Pokémon that they could no longer be counted. They surrounded the black-haired boy in the center, as if they were supporting their "King".

From some unknown point, Eevee's gaze had pierced through the Pokémon Poacher and his Pokémon, completely captured by the black-haired boy who, as a human, was surrounded by a group of Pokémon. Sparkling light flashed in her round eyes, and the pain of her injuries was completely forgotten.

"This... this is ridiculous."

Hikaru felt a cold sweat break out on the back of his head. The corners of his mouth twitched, but he couldn't issue a single command. And the Pokémon he had just released all turned their heads to look at their master. At this moment, silence spoke louder than words.

"...Retreat!"

...

Kazuki didn't pursue the Pokémon Poacher relentlessly. For one thing, there were several seriously injured Pokémon on the scene that needed treatment. Secondly, even with the numerical advantage, the Pokémon Poacher's endless stream of despicable methods might cause casualties among the children behind him. Since he had left Eevee and the others behind, there was no need to fight to the death.

Moreover, so much time had passed since he had called the police. Officer Jenny's police force had probably already surrounded Mt. Moon several times over. That Pokémon Poacher probably wouldn't be able to escape even if he had wings.

He glanced faintly at the boy who had regained feeling in his legs and was finally able to stand up. The boy, sensing Kazuki's gaze, was immediately filled with shame. He bowed his head and lowered his eyebrows, not daring to meet his eyes.

What could he say? He had scolded and driven Eevee out of the team, but when he was at his wit's end, it was Eevee who had risked her life to stand in front of him. He had even thought of shouting for Eevee to run away, but because of his fear of death, the words were ultimately blocked by his cowardice.

He had no intention of reprimanding the other party. Kazuki quickly withdrew his gaze and walked quickly to Eevee's side, bending down to bandage her again.

"Eevee...vee..."

Hearing Eevee's words, Kazuki was slightly stunned, then smiled:

"I see, so you've already figured out what you really want..."

"Eevee...Eevee..."

"To protect all weak humans and Pokémon, and to always stand in front of them when they are in danger... That's a really great ideal, but it won't be easy to achieve."

His hand gently stroked Eevee's head. As he had expected, this was a kind child. Perhaps the reason it had never been able to learn attack moves was because it instinctively didn't want to hurt anyone.

Feeling the warmth on her head, Eevee raised her head. Kazuki in her eyes seemed to be enveloped in light. He had saved her, guided her, and in the moment he led a group of Pokémon like a savior, she saw the future of her ideals.

If she was just a knight who followed her beliefs, then he was a benevolent and righteous king, worthy of her lifelong assistance and unwavering loyalty!

Her eyes became firm. 

Eevee gently pushed away Kazuki's hand holding the bandage, swaying her body and forcing herself to stand up. 

Then, she raised her head to face Kazuki directly, her eyes full of solemnity. 

She bent her front leg and bowed her head, placing her other front leg on her heart, as if performing some kind of ritual.

"EeveeEevee..."

Eevee drifted for half her life, regretting that she had not met a wise master. Now that I have met you, it is as if the clouds have parted and the sun has shone through, enlightening me. If you do not forsake me, Eevee is willing to serve...

In Kazuki's somewhat bewildered gaze, Eevee couldn't finish the last line. Her injuries, combined with the ups and downs of her experiences, her body was unable to resist the sudden surge of exhaustion.

Her body swayed like a candle in the wind, and finally, she lost her support and fell into a warm embrace.