After several days of attentive care, the little Litleo had finally made it through the most fragile stage of its life.
Now he was happily playing outside the cave all by himself.
One moment, the little fellow chased his own tail in circles.
The next, he rolled around on the grass, full of boundless energy and curiosity.
A leaf drifted down from one of the trees, and he immediately pounced toward it, trying to catch the fluttering target.
Unfortunately, he missed completely and ended up planting his face into the ground.
Even so, he refused to give up.
Every failed attempt only made him more excited, and each time he attacked the falling leaf with even greater enthusiasm.
After several tries, he finally managed to catch one.
Overjoyed, the little Litleo threw back his head and roared proudly at the Bird Pokémon flying overhead, seemingly trying to imitate the mighty roar of the Pyroar he would someday become.
He wanted to intimidate those Flying type Pokémon that he could never catch.
Sadly, his tiny, childish voice carried absolutely no intimidation.
The birds merely glanced at him in passing before continuing about their own business as though nothing had happened.
Litleo’s excitement instantly disappeared.
Watching the Pokémon in the sky completely ignore him, he bared his tiny fangs and puffed up angrily, looking as though he would never rest until he managed to knock every last one of them out of the air.
“Simba, why did you sneak out here again?”
Sunny’s voice suddenly echoed from behind.
The moment Litleo heard him, his angry expression instantly transformed into a bright smile.
He sprinted toward Sunny at full speed and leaped straight into his arms.
Simba.
That was the name Sunny had chosen for his little Litleo.
Although he often felt that he was terrible at naming things, he still believed his own Pokémon deserved personal names.
Not only would it distinguish them from other Pokémon of the same species, but it would also strengthen the bond between Trainer and Pokémon.
Why wouldn’t he do something with so many benefits?
Sunny picked Simba up and gently stroked the fur atop his head.
Simba let out soft, rumbling purrs of satisfaction, clearly enjoying his Trainer’s affectionate touch.
“Honestly, don’t keep running off by yourself. There aren’t any bad people or dangerous Pokémon around here, but you still need to be careful. Don’t make me search everywhere for you like last time.”
Sunny tried his best to put on a stern expression, hoping to scare Simba just enough to teach him a lesson.
Unfortunately…
Asking a five year old child to look intimidating was practically impossible.
His supposedly serious face looked anything but serious.
In fact…
It looked rather adorable.
Simba, naturally, was completely unfazed.
His face practically screamed, I’m not listening.
I’m not listening.
Sunny sighed helplessly.
“I seriously don’t know what to do with you.”
“You’re cute.”
“So you get away with everything.”
Right now, Simba was undeniably adorable.
When he grew up, he would surely become a majestic lion worthy of admiration.
Still…
would calling a fully grown Pyroar “Simba” feel a little strange?
Probably not, considering it was the name of a Lion King in his past life.
He just hoped that nothing would happen to him like what happened to that Lion King’s father.
Come to think of it…
Right now, Litleo did not resemble a lion very much.
He looked more like a tiny bear.
Those round, fluffy ears were simply too bear-like.
Sunny quietly checked his status.
Understanding his own Pokémon’s condition was extremely important.
Litleo (Simba)
Gender: Male
Type: Fire / Normal
Level: 3
Ability: Rivalry (Moves become stronger against opponents of the same gender, weaker against opponents of the opposite gender, and remain unchanged against genderless Pokémon.)
Held Item: Flame Scarf
Status: Extremely healthy.
Evaluation: A little lion overflowing with potential.
An obedient baby worthy of becoming your partner.
After reading the information, Sunny found himself genuinely surprised.
He already knows Flare Blitz?
That was an incredibly powerful Fire type move.
Of course, even if Simba could use it now, its actual power was probably nowhere near its true potential.
Perhaps it would only be about as strong as someone else’s Flame Wheel.
After all, he was only Level 3.
There was no way such a young Pokémon could truly withstand the tremendous stamina consumption of a move like Flare Blitz.
It was probably an inherited move.
Sunny had never been a particularly experienced Pokémon game player in his previous life.
At best, he had been a casual fan.
Many of the deeper mechanics were unfamiliar to him.
He had always preferred discovering things naturally while playing rather than reading detailed strategy guides.
Everything had been left to fate.
He only used Pokémon he personally liked.
He had never cared much about competitive strength or optimization.
Now…
He would have to learn everything little by little.
For Simba’s sake.
If he wanted his partner to become stronger, he had to improve alongside him.
After all, nearly every Pokémon dreamed of becoming stronger.
Especially a species like Pyroar, officially classified as the Royal Pokémon.
Still…
There was no rush.
Simba was still just a baby.
For now, his priority should simply be enjoying life.
Sunny had no intention of becoming the kind of parent who forced children into endless training from an early age.
He firmly believed in raising them with freedom.
“Come on, Simba.”
“I’ll introduce you to my friends.”
Lifting Simba high into the air, Sunny took a deep breath before suddenly sprinting forward.
He ran so quickly that Simba immediately grabbed onto him in panic.
After they disappeared into the distance, Entei slowly walked out from inside the cave.
Silently, he gazed in the direction they had left.
Nobody knew what he was thinking.
Meanwhile, Sunny and Simba had already found his group of Pokémon friends.
However…
Everyone seemed a little unhappy.
None of them looked particularly interested in greeting him.
Honestly, that reaction was perfectly understandable.
Sunny had turned down their invitations to play over and over again recently.
It was only natural for them to feel a little upset.
If they showed no emotion whatsoever, that would have been far stranger.
Sunny quickly apologized.
“I’m sorry, everyone.”
“I’ve been busy taking care of Simba these past few days, so I haven’t had time to visit you.”
“I really didn’t mean to ignore everyone.”
“Can you forgive me?”
He puffed out his cheeks and deliberately put on a pitiful expression.
He knew these Pokémon far too well.
That trick almost always worked.
As expected, none of the Pokémon were unreasonable.
They had been friends for a long time.
Seeing Sunny acting so apologetically, whatever little anger remained quickly melted away.
It had never been a particularly serious matter in the first place.
Soon, everyone’s attention shifted toward the little Litleo in Sunny’s arms.
We’ve never seen this kind of Pokémon before.
Still…
He’s pretty cute.
Before long, many of them had already begun treating Simba like their own little brother.
Faced with so many Pokémon staring at him all at once, Simba became nervous.
He instinctively buried himself deeper into Sunny’s embrace.
Sunny gently patted his head before quietly comforting him.
Then he introduced him to everyone.
“This is our family’s newest member.”
“My partner, Simba.”
“Simba, these are all my friends.”
“Don’t be afraid.”
“They’re all very kind.”
“They won’t hurt you.”
Slowly, Simba adjusted to everyone’s curious gazes.
He trusted his Trainer completely.
Summoning his courage, he took a hesitant step forward.
Sentret was the first to approach.
He greeted Simba warmly.
The two Pokémon touched paws together.
A simple gesture.
The beginning of a new friendship.
Once the first Pokémon stepped forward, the second soon followed.
Then the third.
Before long…
Every Pokémon present had personally welcomed Simba.
Gradually, Simba grew bolder.
It did not take long before he was happily playing together with everyone else.
He adapted even faster than Sunny had when he first met them.
Perhaps…
Simba was simply born with remarkable social skills just like his namesake.
Watching his little partner make so many friends so quickly, Sunny’s lips curled into a gentle smile.
His heart was filled with happiness.
This was wonderful.
If Simba ever encountered danger in the future, he would already have friends willing to help him.
No matter where one lived…
Having many good friends was always incredibly important.
All of the Pokémon adored their new little brother.
They constantly looked after him.
Whenever they played games together, they intentionally let him win from time to time.
They also praised him every chance they got.
Those compliments filled Simba with overwhelming pride.
Soon enough…
He began developing the delightful illusion that he was already invincible.
I…
Simba…
Was born to be a king.
One day…
I’ll definitely become the strongest!
Judging from the confidence shining in those bright little eyes…
Perhaps one day…
He truly would grow into a powerful Pokémon capable of standing above all others.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Again, just like his namesake.
Sorry for the inconvenience.)
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