“Abo…” By a pile of clutter in a corner of the Daycare Center’s corridor.
A long purple creature was quietly lurking behind a dust-covered cardboard box, carefully poking its flat head out to observe its surroundings, its tail tip twitching idly in boredom, making a faint sound as it tapped the ground.
It had been ordered to stay in this room to search for the source of the scent left by a few brown hairs.
Ekans felt that this was a very boring order.
Compared to sniffing the floor here, it preferred raiding bird nests to swallow bird eggs; even if there were no delicious eggs, eating a few Berries to fill its stomach occasionally would do.
After all, for a Pokémon like it that was in its growth phase, digestion helped accumulate nutrients.
Once its body grew thick enough with age, it could evolve into a majestic Arbok with terrifying patterns.
By then, it wouldn’t need to painstakingly accumulate its pitifully small amount of Poison-type energy to use Poison Sting and slowly wear down its prey with poison; it could just open its mouth and bite, making the prey twitch and collapse on the spot, becoming its meal.
While imagining its beautiful future life, Ekans habitually flicked its tongue.
However.
Just as it retracted its forked tongue again, it suddenly felt a subtle change in the scent molecules its tongue tip sniffed.
The faint smell of dust in the air had vanished.
In its place, a new scent made Ekans alert, and it couldn’t help but analyze it carefully.
…Why is there a numbing and spicy sensation?
“Abo?” Before it could react further, Ekans’s pupils suddenly contracted.
It only felt a force suddenly strike from the shadows behind it!
…
In the shadows of the door crack.
Eevee hid in the dark, its two paws gripping the floor tightly, its eyes wide.
It watched with its own eyes as the pink-haired human cub crept silently behind Ekans, then reached out her small hand with speed and precision, grabbing Ekans right by its neck at the seven-inch mark!
Seeing the miserable state of the long snake being squeezed until its eyeballs almost popped out, Eevee instinctively shrunk its neck, suddenly feeling a chill on the scruff of its own neck.
Fortunately…
fortunately, she wasn’t this forceful when she caught me back then.
“Help me out!” Kaname struggled to pin down Ekans’s thrashing body with her right hand and most of her body weight, fine beads of sweat breaking out on her forehead as she turned to urge Erika, who was already standing nearby, dumbfounded and completely petrified.
“Abo!
Abo!!” Due to the sudden attack, Ekans began to twist frantically from side to side, its purple scales scraping against the floor with a piercing sound.
It opened its mouth wide; having lost its tongue’s ability to detect direction, it could only instinctively let out a “hissing” deterrent sound.
Just watching this fierce scene made Erika’s calves start to tremble; she almost couldn’t help but want to drop the perfume bottle and flee in panic.
But what shocked her even more was Kaname’s current actions.
Right now, a little girl with a physical age of only five had captured an Ekans.
Although the opponent was a juvenile whose body hadn’t fully developed yet, with a body length barely over a meter and far from being as thick and powerful as an adult of its kind.
But even so, for a child’s physique, this was still a contest of vastly disparate strength.
There was no fear at all on Kaname’s face, only a hint of helplessness because Erika had not reacted for so long.
[Warning: High-risk contact detected!] [Target: Ekans (Juvenile).
Strength Assessment: Higher than the host.] [Weak Point Lock-On: Seventh spinal vertebra (seven-inch mark).
Sustained pressure can block its muscle-powering nerves.] [Recommendation: Evacuate immediately!
Recommendation: Evacuate immediately!] The pokédex system in her mind was frantically spamming red warning pop-ups.
But Kaname didn’t care.
It wasn’t strange to suppress an Ekans for a short time.
As the saying goes, hit a snake at its seven-inch mark, and catch an Eevee by the scruff of its neck.
Every Pokémon has its biological weaknesses, and with the precise scanning of the pokédex system, Kaname could clearly see the flashing red points of power.
Even though the pokédex system felt she shouldn’t approach a dangerous carnivorous Pokémon so rashly.
But the one controlling the system was Kaname, after all.
She felt she could, and in fact, she could.
Besides, this was a juvenile Ekans whose poison glands hadn’t fully developed yet.
If it were a fully evolved Arbok, or an adult Ekans reaching two meters in length, Kaname would definitely turn and run, thinking of another way.
Right now, Kaname just continued to urge her.
“Erika!
Hurry!
I can’t hold it down much longer!” “Ah?
Oh!
Coming!” Erika’s mind was a complete blank.
She didn’t know where her courage came from; perhaps she was infected by Kaname’s momentum, or perhaps she was just too scared.
Closing her eyes, she tightly gripped the spray Kaname had given her and pressed the nozzle hard against the menacing open mouth in front of her!
Pshhh—!!
Although Erika hadn’t aimed correctly at all and even sprayed a bit off-target.
But Kaname had already held her breath, seized the moment to exert force with both hands, and forcibly maneuvered the large snake’s head so its open mouth was accurately aligned with the pink mist.
“A…
bo?!” The high-concentration alcohol mixed with extremely spicy Cheri Berry powder turned into a fine mist, instantly covering Ekans’s most sensitive oral mucosa, nasal cavity, and eyes.
The next second.
Ekans’s body stiffened for a moment.
Then, like a live fish thrown into a frying pan, it erupted into a more violent struggle than ever before!
“Hiss-aaaaah—!!!” If Pokémon could speak human language, it would definitely be cursing very foully right now.
It felt as if someone had poured a whole bottle of mustard oil into its skull and lit a fire for good measure.
The massive force instantly knocked Kaname over.
Kaname also took the opportunity to quickly let go and retreat, pulling the still-dazed Erika behind her.
Only then, seeing Ekans rolling frantically on the ground, banging its head against the wall, and even smashing the flowerpots in the corridor to pieces.
Did Erika truly realize that Kaname wasn’t joking when she said there was an Ekans in the Daycare Center.
…She had actually used a spray attack on the terrifying monster before her with her own hands!
“Wu…
wuwaa?!!!” The spicy smell lingering in the air irritated Erika’s nasal cavity; combined with her instinctive fear of snake-like Pokémon and a slight release of post-crisis emotion.
Erika didn’t even need Kaname’s reminder; she immediately opened her mouth and began to wail loudly.
The crying was deafening, instantly piercing through the corridor.
—Not bad!
Kaname silently gave Erika a thumbs-up in her heart.
She watched the teachers rushing over from the end of the corridor after hearing the noise, quickly organized her thoughts, adjusted her expression, then grabbed the still-crying Erika and stumbled toward them.
“Teacher!
There’s a snake!!” Kaname’s face was full of terror as she pointed at the Ekans still rolling and twitching in pain on the floor.
“Erika was terrified by it!
I’m so scared too!
Waaa…” At this point.
Ekans, which had completely lost its ability to fight, still didn’t know what had happened.
It only followed its instinct, struggling to open its swollen eyes amidst the intense pain; its vision was blurred as it stared resentfully at the pink-haired human cub not far away who was tattling to the adults.
—I had no grudge against you…
—Why would you resort to such a cruel hand?!