"Marshadow, after I leave, I'll have to ask you to look after Little One."
After putting Little One to sleep, Fire Emperor found Marshadow in the shadows and spoke to it.
"I understand." Marshadow nodded.
After observing the human infant throughout the winter, it no longer felt as averse to him as it had at first.
Besides, this human infant even shared his milk with it!
Seeing that Marshadow had agreed, Fire Emperor felt relieved.
Then it once again went over some things to watch out for, just to be safe.
Marshadow's mouth twitched.
How had it never realized before that Fire Emperor was so talkative?
"Once I've driven those evil people away, I'll come right back," Fire Emperor said at last.
"Got it." A hint of helplessness crept into Marshadow's voice.
Fire Emperor turned and walked over to Dongshu. Lowering its fluffy head, it affectionately nuzzled Dongshu's cheek. Then, reluctantly, it stood up and took one last look at him.
After that, Fire Emperor left the cave, and its fiery red figure soon disappeared among the mountain woods.
Once it was gone, only Marshadow and Dongshu remained in the cave.
Marshadow gave a quiet sigh, then slipped into Dongshu's shadow and silently watched over him.
Who knew how much time had passed? Outside, the sky gradually darkened, and vast swaths of sunset clouds appeared on the distant horizon. Their crimson glow spilled into the cave.
Raikou slowly walked into the cavern from outside. It stared at the evil human infant lying on the Leaf Bed and snorted twice.
"Mm..."
As soon as Dongshu opened his eyes, he saw a lithe figure standing not far away. He had no idea when it had appeared.
Thinking it was Fire Emperor, he called out without thinking, "Fire Emperor~"
But the backlit figure didn't come over to him as usual. It remained standing in the distance, gazing at him with faintly glowing eyes.
Dongshu froze. He rubbed his eyes, then looked more closely and realized that the figure wasn't Fire Emperor, but another of the Legendary Beasts: Raikou.
Fire Emperor had already left... A wave of disappointment washed over Dongshu.
Just then, a cold voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
"I'm not Fire Emperor. I won't treat you the way it does."
With that, Raikou went by itself to the other side of the cave, keeping its distance from Dongshu. It lay down and closed its eyes, seemingly resting.
Dongshu: "..."
Seeing how cold Raikou was, Dongshu couldn't help feeling a little hurt.
Hadn't he done anything to Raikou?
If it were Fire Emperor, it would have hurried over and lain beside him, using its warm, fluffy body to keep him cozy.
Sigh, whatever!
He wasn't a little kid. He could take care of himself.
"Grrrr!"
He was hungry.
Dongshu got to his feet and staggered over to the basket of Berries Fire Emperor had gathered for him that day. He reached in and took one out.
A few months ago, when he was still so young and didn't have any baby teeth, Fire Emperor had always used Sacred Fire to roast the Berries until they were soft enough for him to eat.
But now that Fire Emperor was gone, the Berries in the basket seemed especially cold.
They were chilly, and they made his stomach feel cold, too.
It was spring, but the weather was still chilly. With Fire Emperor gone, a coldness seemed to seep through the whole cave.
Dongshu had wanted to go back to sleep, but before long, the cold woke him up.
There was no bed, no blanket, and no Fire Emperor to keep him warm.
It was so cold...
Night had fallen, and the bright moonlight shone through the cave entrance.
In the hazy moonlight, Raikou slowly opened its tightly shut eyes and looked over at the human infant shivering on the other side.
This had nothing to do with it.
Raikou hadn't wanted to get involved, but it remembered its promise to Fire Emperor to protect the human infant.
Fine. I already promised Fire Emperor.
Just as Dongshu was wondering whether he should spend some Shock Points to buy bedding from the shop, he suddenly felt a shadow come to his side.
That was... Raikou?!
Dongshu froze for a moment, but Raikou had already lain down beside him. It was like a tiger with a cub: Dongshu was the cub, and Raikou was the tiger.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only worried you'll freeze to death and leave me unable to answer to Fire Emperor," Raikou's cold voice sounded again.
Dongshu: "..."
For some reason, Raikou made him feel a little uneasy.
Unlike Fire Emperor, Raikou didn't seem easy to get along with at all. It wasn't friendly in the slightest.
He didn't dare act as boldly as he had in Fire Emperor's embrace, climbing on whenever he wanted or burying his face in its fur. All he could do was lean against Raikou's short, sleek coat and take in a little warmth.
Before long, Dongshu realized he really wasn't as cold as he'd been before.
Now he could sleep properly!
He slowly let out a sigh of relief and shifted a little, about to settle down for a good sleep, when he suddenly heard Raikou let out a muffled groan beside him.
Dongshu immediately opened his eyes and looked at Raikou.
"Raikou?"
Raikou kept its eyes closed, seemingly not having heard him. It didn't react at all.
But Dongshu keenly caught the faintest trace of blood in the air.
It was coming from Raikou's foreleg!
And the spot he'd just been resting his head on was right over Raikou's foreleg.
Dongshu immediately crawled over and cried out in Pokémon language, "You're hurt!"
Raikou opened its eyes, its voice still stiff and cold. "This has nothing to do with you."
Raikou had returned to Heavenly Green Mountain this time to recover from its injuries.
Unlike Pokémon raised by humans, which were taken to a professional Pokémon Center for treatment when they got hurt, wild Pokémon like Raikou had to find somewhere safe and wait for their wounds to heal on their own.
On its recent trip, it had encountered a group of exceptionally strong people. They seemed to be after it. Working together, they had surrounded it from all sides and tried to capture it.
Raikou had summoned thunder to punish those ill-intentioned people, but it had been injured in the process and could no longer roam around as it had before.
That was why Raikou had returned to Heavenly Green Mountain, planning to wait there until its injuries healed.
As far as Raikou was concerned, this had nothing to do with the human infant.
But as soon as it finished speaking, the human infant crawled up.
Then, without Raikou knowing what he'd done, a moment later it saw a strange object in the child's hands.
Potion: A basic spray-type healing item that can heal some of a Pokémon's injuries and restore its stamina. Cost: 50 Shock Points.
Dongshu held the Potion and sprayed it over Raikou's injured foreleg.
The next moment, something miraculous happened.
Under the effects of the spray, the wound on Raikou's foreleg began healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The dull ache in its leg gradually faded. Raikou stared wide-eyed, its face showing shock and disbelief.
This human infant... was actually treating it?!
Before you continue