In the clearing, the fully-armored Corviknight stood poised and ready, its eyes half-lidded, exuding an air of cold indifference.
With its tallic body gleaming under the sunlight, it looked just like a grim and aloof knight of death.
It was undeniably cool.
But deep down, what was Corviknight really thinking?
“Damn, I look amazing.”
Tilting its head slightly, Corviknight admired its own reflection in the glass, once again marveling at its majestic form under the sunlight.
It had lost count of how many tis it had had this exact thought since evolving.
Ever since its evolution, Corviknight’s narcissism had skyrocketed.
To be fair, though, it was incredibly cool-looking.
At least—until it opened its mouth.
The mont it spoke, all its cold and imposing aura would vanish into thin air.
From Death Knight to Comic Relief in an instant.
Fortunately, Corviknight still had so sense of dignity and maintained a certain level of self-awareness about its image.
Most of the ti, it was careful to keep up appearances.
Like right now—despite being completely lost in its own narcissism, it was making sure not to let anyone catch on.
“Corviknight, I’ll be counting on you today.”
Just as Corviknight was subtly admiring itself, Natsu and i erged from the house.
Imdiately, Corviknight straightened up, masking its vanity and striking the most aloof pose it could manage.
If a stranger were to see it at this mont, they might even comnt on what a majestic bird it was.
Unfortunately, Natsu and i knew exactly what kind of Pokémon Corviknight truly was.
Natsu aside, i had spent enough ti around Corviknight to have an intimate understanding of its personality.
Corviknight’s daily routine involved spouting an endless stream of trash talk and launching relentless psychological attacks on her Pokémon.
At first, Servine had been easy to break—completely defenseless against Corviknight’s verbal assault.
But now, as a Serperior, it had grown much more composed.
At the very least, it no longer lost its cool as easily.
The worst Corviknight could provoke these days was an irritated flick of Serperior’s tail, smacking it in the face.
In fact, i’s entire team—except for the newly recruited Chingling—had built up a solid resistance to Corviknight’s relentless trash talk.
“Thanks for the hard work, Corviknight!”
“Caw caw!”
i, who had been walking beside Natsu, grinned as she cheerfully greeted Corviknight.
Over ti, she had grown quite close to the steel-plated bird.
And as far as Corviknight was concerned, i wasn’t bad at all.
She had even provided it with a few sparring dummies—Pokémon it could insult freely as a form of stress relief.
Not to ntion, she often slipped it a few Pokéblocks as treats.
What a good person!
On the farm, aside from Natsu, if anyone dared to speak ill of i, Corviknight would imdiately rise to her defense.
Even if it was Persian!
Forget this whole "farm's second-in-command" nonsense—Corviknight was the second-in-command!
As it suffered its 800th defeat under Persian’s claws, Corviknight reaffird this belief.
"Alright, ti to head out!"
Seated atop Corviknight's broad back with i, Natsu lightly patted its feathers.
With a powerful beat of its wings, Corviknight effortlessly stirred up a strong gust of wind. The grass below was swept into the air, and before it had even settled back down, Corviknight had already beco a re speck in the sky.
"Lopuu."
"Aiyi."
At the farm's entrance, Lopunny and Indeedee's younger sister watched Natsu depart.
Over the past few days, the newly arrived Pokémon had gradually adapted to farm life.
Chansey had stationed itself near the training grounds, ready to heal any Pokémon engaged in training.
Audino had taken on a role similar to that of a caretaker, spending its days looking after the farm’s troublemakers.
When it ca to those mischievous little Pokémon, Natsu’s words might not always carry weight.
But Audino’s? Absolutely.
Because Audino would pin a troublemaker down and spank them.
Indeedee’s older brother now served as sothing of a farm steward, taking over so of Slowking’s managent duties.
Every day, he was busier than ever.
As for Indeedee’s younger sister, she mostly played the role of a maid, tending to Natsu’s daily needs.
Her responsibilities overlapped sowhat with Lopunny’s.
Yet, surprisingly, the two got along very well.
For Lopunny, besides Cinccino, she now had another close friend.
And for Cinccino?
Well, it was another Pokémon on the farm that actually cared about cleanliness!
No one could truly understand how deeply moved Cinccino was when the female Indeedee suggested they clean together.
Right then and there, Cinccino grasped her hand and declared solemnly: "From now on, your problems are my problems. If anything happens, co to —I have so sway with Natsu!"
Female Indeedee, being the expert conversationalist she was, naturally played along and attentively flattered Cinccino.
A true top-tier hype partner.
Back to Natsu—
Even though Corviknight was larger than the average of its kind, it was only just big enough for him and i to sit comfortably.
As Corviknight took off, the sudden acceleration pushed their bodies backward.
By the ti they regained their balance, i had unconsciously grabbed onto Natsu’s arm.
The two sat very close together.
Feeling the warmth beside them, both instinctively turned their heads away.
A second or two passed. Just as Natsu was about to speak, Corviknight's voice interrupted him.
"Caw caw." [Sit tight. I'm speeding up.]
Corviknight reveled in the joy of soaring freely through the sky.
It completely failed to notice how the two passengers on its back had just been pressed even closer together.
"Um..."
i, who had nearly ended up in Natsu’s lap, awkwardly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say sothing—
But for a mont, she had no idea what to say.
So, she changed the topic.
"This ti, I’ve prepared a lot for the competition."
"I’ll definitely surprise you, Natsu."
Her attempt at shifting the conversation was a bit clumsy, but given the current situation, Natsu was more than happy to go along with it.
"Is that so? Then I’ll look forward to it."
After that, silence fell once more.
Only the sound of the wind rushing past their ears remained.
To be honest, Natsu had always considered himself fairly socially adept. Maybe not an expert, but certainly not clueless.
Most of the ti, he simply didn’t speak because he didn’t see the need to.
But now?
Yeah, he admitted it—his conversation skills might actually not be that great.
At least, not when it ca to finding the right words in situations like this.
"Natsu, Natsu! Want to turn on navigation, Roto?"
Fortunately, just as the awkward silence was setting in, a hero arrived to save the mont.
Rotom burst out of Natsu’s pocket, still in its phone form.
"Oh, right—Rotom, turn on navigation, please."
If Rotom hadn’t reminded him, Natsu might have completely forgotten about navigation.
At first, he had rembered to bring Rotom specifically for this reason.
But after all the chaos with Corviknight, it had slipped his mind.
"Roger, Roto!"
With its ever-present grin, Rotom flew in front of Corviknight, projecting a map onto its screen.
And then—
"You’re flying the wrong way, you dumb bird!"
Thwack thwack thwack!
"Caw!" [Stop hitting , stop hitting !]
Natsu lightly smacked Corviknight’s head with his fist.
If it weren’t for the risk of a Black Hawk Down scenario, he honestly would’ve given this bird a real wake-up call.
With Rotom’s help, Corviknight finally got back on the right course.
"Alright, start descending up ahead."
As the outlines of buildings beca visible in the distance, Natsu patted Corviknight’s head to signal the landing.
Cities had strict regulations for flying Pokémon.
To fly within city limits, one needed both a permit and special authorization.
It was a hassle, really.
Without the proper paperwork, getting chased down was entirely normal.
Getting shot out of the sky wasn’t unheard of either.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Natsu would rather walk a little extra.
"Caw!"
Following the command, Corviknight swiftly descended.
Having once lived in the city with Natsu, it was already well aware of the rules.
"Should we grab a bite first?"
"Or head straight to registration?"
After landing and returning Corviknight to its Poké Ball, Natsu turned to i.
"Let’s go register first."
After thinking it over, i decided to take care of registration first.
Judging by the schedule, the tournant wouldn’t last too long.
Dinner could wait—after all, it’d make for a good victory celebration.
Yes.
Even before the competition started, i was already planning the victory dinner.
It couldn’t be helped.
If she were competing alone, she’d be focused on strategies and tactics.
But with Natsu here?
The championship was practically guaranteed.
A small-ti tournant having even one competitor of Natsu’s caliber was already unusual.
Having two?
The chances were close to zero.
Lower than the odds of a Legendary Pokémon attacking a city.
At least, in Jadeleaf, that was the case.
"Alright then."
"Let’s get going."
Tapping a Poké Ball, Natsu released Zorua and Togepi.
"Suo!"
A midair flip with a 360° spin!
"Chagi!"
A flawless landing—no splash!
The two little Pokémon dramatically leaped onto the ground, each striking an elaborate pose.
And, of course, they provided their own sound effects.
"Clap clap clap!"
Zorua struck a dramatic pose, bowing to the empty air around them as if graciously accepting the roaring applause of an invisible audience.
Togepi, ever the perfect partner, clapped enthusiastically in response, showering Zorua with praise.
Truly, classic Zorua!
"Alright, you two, that's enough showing off."
Natsu scooped them up, one in each arm, securing the restless duo in place.
"Suosuo!"
"Chagi chagi!"
Even in his arms, Zorua and Togepi wriggled in protest, unwilling to stay still.
Natsu's Pokémon may have wanted to break free from his arms, but having experienced firsthand the chaos of mischievous Pokémon, he had no intention of letting these two troublemakers run wild.
He had always disliked trainers who let their Pokémon roam unchecked, causing trouble wherever they went.
And he certainly didn't want to beco one of them.
That would be kind of ironic, wouldn't it?
Becoming the kind of person you once despised.
"It feels like it's been forever since I've been in such a bustling place."
The unique energy of the city hit him all at once.
Ever since inheriting the farm, Natsu had spent most of his ti there. Even when he left, it was usually just a short trip to the nearby town for supplies.
The noise and liveliness of a city like this—yeah, it had been a while.
"Feels like I've suddenly aged quite a bit."
Scratching his head, Natsu wondered aloud.
He was only nineteen.
Wasn't it a little dramatic to call himself old?
Then again, even kids around fifteen or sixteen—heck, even so ten-year-olds—were out there complaining about feeling old.
So maybe it wasn't that big of a stretch?
Besides, his ntal age probably wasn't that young to begin with.
"Natsu, you're still young! You're even younger than by half a year," i chid in, lightly poking him.
At first, she'd always seen Natsu as a reliable senior figure.
Even though they were the sa age, his presence just didn’t feel like that of a recent high school graduate.
Then she found out not only were they peers—he was actually younger than her by six months.
That realization gave her… well, a rather interesting feeling.
The dependable senior had suddenly turned into a younger little brother.
And strangely enough, that was kind of exciting.
"Oh? Should I start calling you ‘big sis’ then?"
"Of course! If Natsu calls ‘big sis,’ I’ll be full of energy for the entire day!"
"Alright then. I won’t."
"Wait, no! Just say it once!"
"Denied."
"Co on, I beg you! This is my one and only request in life!"
"You said the sa thing last ti when you wanted extra food at dinner."
Laughing and teasing each other along the way, they made their way to the tournant venue.
But as they walked, Natsu started to feel like… a lot of people were looking at him.
Hmm...
Probably just his imagination.
It's not like he was famous or anything.
Maybe they were just admiring how cute Zorua and Togepi were?
"You two sure are attracting a lot of attention, huh?"
Looking down at the little Pokémon in his arms, Natsu smiled.
"Suo?" [What?]
Zorua tilted its head in confusion.
What are you talking about?
I don’t see anyone looking at .
They're all looking at you.
Zorua couldn’t understand Natsu’s mistake.
That misunderstanding lasted all the way until they arrived at the registration desk.
"Excuse , are you Mr. Natsu?"
The woman handling sign-ups hesitated slightly as she asked after he finished signing in.
"Hm?"
"Yeah, that’s my na."
Natsu paused for a mont.
There were plenty of people with the surna Natsu.
And he wasn't the only person nad Natsu in the world.
Maybe she was asking about soone else with the sa na?
Thankfully, the receptionist quickly clarified.
"Are you the sa Natsu who defeated the Legendary Pokémon?"
"The one who took down Ting-Lu?"
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him.
And for the first ti in his life—both his past one and his current one—Natsu had the distinct experience of being recognized by a stranger.
"So it really is you!"
"When I saw your na on the registration list, I thought it was just soone with the sa na."
"But when you ca to sign in, you looked really familiar, and I just had to confirm!"
Now certain of his identity, the woman excitedly rambled on about his battle with Ting-Lu.
For most people, encountering a Legendary Pokémon was a once-in-a-lifeti experience.
Let alone actually defeating one.
And yet, the person standing in front of her—a guy who had just barely reached adulthood—had done it alone.
That was why Natsu had been trending online for a while.
Though he had gone quiet recently, his na hadn't completely faded from the spotlight.
Behind him, another tournant participant stood frozen, staring at Natsu’s back in shock.
Wait a minute…
Wasn’t this the guy who had been all over the internet recently?
His na was… Natsu, right?
The one who took down Ting-Lu?
No way…
Am I supposed to battle that Natsu?!
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