Escape

Run!

Xia Yan met up with Weedle at their agreed spot, scooped up Weedle and the two unassuming fruits wrapped in its silk, which showed no trace of anything unusual.

Just like ordinary Berries, their rich fragrance and flickering glow had completely vanished.

But Xia Yan and Weedle clearly had no time to care about that now.

At this moment, they had only one thought.

Run!

They swiftly darted through the dense woods. Memorizing the route back in advance and driving away any aggressive Pokémon that might appear along the way had all been preparation for this moment.

"There's an exposed tree root up ahead. Then a patch of thorny bushes. After that, we need to go around a large tree."

Xia Yan's face had flushed red.

Fine beads of sweat instantly seeped across his forehead, soaking his hair, reddening his eyes, and dampening the tip of his nose.

Not only did he need to run quickly, but he also had to continuously recall every place they had passed that required caution.

It was a dual test of stamina and mental strength.

Before long, he had no choice but to gasp heavily through his mouth, his chest heaving like a bellows.

Fortunately, he and Weedle had been training hard lately. To set an example for Weedle, he persisted every day until he truly could not go on before resting.

On top of that, his meals had improved compared to before, and his body was no longer so frail.

Otherwise, even if he had snatched the fruits from those Bug-type Pokémon, he would not have been able to escape.

Buzz, buzz, buzz.

Yet no matter how desperately he ran, the sounds of wild Pokémon still came from behind him. At the front were two Beedrill with bloodshot eyes.

Wielding their twin stingers, their thin wings beat furiously as they gradually closed the distance to Xia Yan and Weedle.

Xia Yan ignored them and simply ran with his head down. He leaped, charged, and easily avoided every obstacle that could hinder their escape.

Still, branches and thorns scraped him into a sorry state. The clothes he had spent a fortune on not long ago were shredded during the run.

Perched on Xia Yan's shoulder, Weedle gripped his clothes tightly with its seven pairs of pink legs and turned to face the Pokémon pursuing them.

Hiss, hiss, hiss—

Strands of silk and webs shot out one after another. It did not seek to deal much damage, only to slow the Bug-type Pokémon chasing them.

It stuck both ends of its silk to trees on either side of their escape route, setting up layer after layer of barriers.

Whenever a Pokémon came too close, it fired an Electroweb to restrain it.

Weedle was responsible for holding back the pursuers, while Xia Yan was responsible for running. One human and one Pokémon had clearly divided their roles, and they trusted each other completely.

Xia Yan believed Weedle could absolutely stop the pursuit, so he did not spare even a shred of attention for what was behind them. He merely kept recalling the environmental obstacles ahead and calculating the best escape route.

Weedle also believed Xia Yan could definitely get it away, so it focused on blocking the Pokémon behind them, using all its strength and abilities.

With their cooperation, the pursuers did not fall behind, but they could no longer close the distance. Weedle's silk became the thing they hated most, yet they had no way around it and could only trail far behind.

Neither Beedrill nor Butterfree, the fastest among the pursuing Pokémon, had any solution.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Suddenly, a violent figure crashed through everything from behind and charged to the front.

It was Pinsir!

It had finally caught up. Dragging its battered body along, it hunched over, its enormous pincers like sharp harvesting blades. Branches, bushes, and even Weedle's silk could barely hinder it.

Its arrival put immense pressure on Weedle.

"Wuu!!" It let out a low growl, and most of its attacks fell on Pinsir.

But neither String Shot, Poison Sting, nor Electroweb could deal much damage. The pain seemed to further ignite its Rage, and turbulent currents swirled around its body as it drew ever closer.

This was an enemy Weedle could not defeat yet.

Bolstered by Rage, Pinsir charged ahead without a care.

Xia Yan could not run faster than it.

"Wuu!!"

Weedle was getting anxious. During a gap between attacks, it called out to Xia Yan.

It vaguely regretted this.

If they had not entered this forest, if they had not fought over those two Berries, they would never have ended up in such a dangerous situation.

Xia Yan no longer had the strength to speak. He only gave Weedle a firm look.

That look made Weedle, which had nearly decided to sacrifice itself to buy Xia Yan time, freeze for a moment.

Then it understood.

Don't panic. Stay calm.

Though Xia Yan had not said it, the words it heard most often during training and battles echoed through its mind at that moment.

Trust Xia Yan. As long as he hasn't given up, there's still a chance!

Weedle's gaze sharpened as it once again unleashed every attack it had at Pinsir.

Even if it could not deal much damage, even if it could not hinder Pinsir much, as long as it persisted, an opportunity might appear.

Its tiny eyes became exceptionally focused, Locking On to Pinsir's body as it calculated its running path and the tiny gaps within that seemingly tough shell.

That was Pinsir's weakness!

Weedle's eyes brightened slightly, as though it had caught hold of something crucial. Three Poison Stings shot out almost on instinct.

Pfft—

Then, even Weedle looked slightly surprised as the Poison Stings deftly curved through the air, avoiding the hard shell on Pinsir's legs and plunging into the soft muscle in the narrow gap between two plates of armor.

"Gyaaah!!!"

As though heavily injured, Pinsir let out a miserable roar. Its steps immediately became stiff, and it stumbled before crashing heavily to the ground. Its tremendous momentum even sent it sliding several meters before it stopped.

It worked!

Delight filled Weedle's eyes.

But before it could celebrate for long, its focus on Pinsir had distracted it. The two Beedrill had already rapidly closed in, and Weedle could even feel the chill radiating from their sharp stingers.

Oh no!

Splash—

Just as Weedle thought things were about to go terribly wrong, Xia Yan, who had been running all this time, finally reached the most crucial point of his plan.

A stream that was not particularly swift.

This was the best place he had envisioned for shaking off the pursuit!

One hand grabbed Weedle from his shoulder, while the other covered the two precious Berries in his clothes. Taking a deep breath, he covered three steps in two and jumped straight in.

Splash—

The bone-piercing stream water of late autumn carried the night's chill, nearly forcing out the breath he had held. Water rushed into his ears and nose, but Xia Yan held Weedle against his chest, curled up, and let the current carry them away.

The Bug-type Pokémon chasing them were furious when they saw this.

But they instinctively feared Water, especially after Xia Yan disappeared beneath the surface.

The Berries no longer gave off any fragrance, making it impossible for them to continue the pursuit.

After pacing angrily along the stream for dozens of laps, they could only gradually retreat, filled with resentment and rage that had nowhere to go.

On the other side, Xia Yan, who had held his breath and plunged into the water, felt his lungs burn. Only after confirming that they had drifted far enough away did he finally break the surface, dragging his somewhat numb body to the bank.

He fell heavily onto the ground by the stream and set Weedle down beside him.

Weedle, which had never been flooded like that before, had been badly startled as well. It only came back to its senses once its feet touched the ground again.

One human and one Pokémon looked at the two little round bulges inside Xia Yan's clothes, then looked at each other

and smiled.

If nothing unexpected happened, there should be another chapter tonight. Please vote with monthly tickets and recommendation tickets!

Oh, right. As requested, every 100 monthly tickets will mean one extra chapter.