This laser-like, scorching pillar of fire—
like a razor-sharp cutting line—
carved a straight trajectory through the air,
and wiped out every single Pokémon cleanly!
"Beee—!"
"Bzzz-bzzz—!"
"Da-ka—!"
"Ssss—!"
One miserable scream after another rang out.
Every Pokémon was burned into a flaming ball, tumbling down to the ground,
unrecognizable—alive or dead, no one could tell.
Forget Beedrill and Butterfree, Bug-types with naturally poor fire resistance—
even Hoothoot and Zubat, Flying-types,
didn't fare much better under Shiko's Flamethrower!
The massive commotion on Shiko's side
immediately drew everyone else's attention.
The seven Team Dark members and Himeko all turned their heads at the same time, staring toward Shiko.
A blazing crimson firebeam plowed through the air like a laser.
Those Pokémon fell like kites with snapped strings,
one after another,
their bodies still carrying flames that hadn't gone out!
This…
This was Flamethrower!?
Himeko was dumbstruck.
Wait—
why could Shiko use Flamethrower?
And why was his Flamethrower this terrifyingly powerful?
One shot, and it took out more than ten Entry-level Pokémon?
That was absurd!
At this moment, she couldn't overlap the image of the old Shiko—who only lazed around, slept, and enjoyed himself—
with the Shiko in front of her now, who looked like a war god.
What was going on?
Why was he so strong?
Himeko's brain practically crashed.
Team Dark was just as stunned.
In their understanding—and their deductions—
no matter how strong this Charmander was,
at most it would only be Entry-level.
If that was the case,
the Pokémon they sent out would absolutely be able to handle it.
But what happened instead?
That Charmander burned them all to ash with a single Flamethrower!
The one-eyed man's brow furrowed.
A sense of dread began spreading in his chest.
"Mankey! Machop! Geodude! Bidoof! Skorupi!"
"Go—kill that Charmander!"
"The rest of you, hold that Lopunny back!"
The one-eyed man barked orders rapidly.
The ones he sent out
were the highest-level, strongest fighters among the Pokémon they had left.
And he kept half behind
because that Lopunny was also extremely troublesome—
powerful in battle.
They had to restrain her and finish things quickly.
"Shiko! Be careful!"
Himeko glanced toward Shiko,
her face full of worry.
She didn't know if Shiko could withstand this second wave of assault.
…
[Congratulations, Host, you have gained 4 experience points!]
[Congratulations, Host, you have gained 5 experience points!]
[Congratulations, Host, you have gained 4 experience points!]
[Congratulations, Host…]
A string of notifications rang out in Shiko's mind one after another.
After dealing with those flying Pokémon,
the bits of experience stacked up—
and he received a total of forty-two experience points in one go!
[Congratulations, Host, you have leveled up. Current level: 16. You can undergo your first evolution!]
[Would you like to evolve?]
Yes!!
Facing the next wave of Pokémon rushing in,
Shiko nodded without the slightest hesitation.
In a life-or-death battle like this,
he had to use every possible method
to raise his combat strength!
Boom!!
A dazzling white light burst from Shiko's body,
instantly wrapping him inside it.
The evolution factors within him linked and recombined without stop.
Shiko felt a powerful force slowly being born inside his body—
as it continuously reshaped him,
it also nurtured every inch of his flesh and blood!
Shiko didn't notice—
inside the alloy cage behind him,
the unconscious Ralts
slowly opened its tired eyes.
It witnessed everything Shiko was doing.
In Ralts' despairing gaze,
a complex mix of emotions quietly surfaced—
joy, anticipation, surprise,
and an awed, infatuated admiration.
He evolved!!
The intense white light shrouding Shiko
naturally pulled everyone's attention back again.
Himeko suffered a second shock.
Her stunned expression froze in place.
He evolved!?
Shiko was already level 16?
Wait—
why was he already level 16!?
He ate, drank, and slept every day—
where did he even get that much experience!?
Himeko stared blankly at Shiko's silhouette shifting within the white light,
feeling like her entire worldview was about to collapse.
(End of Chapter)
If I see that this fanfic has support, I will upload 20+ chapters to Patreon!!
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]