"Car~" -- Entei?
Munchlax tilted its head, not understanding what the name represented.
But it felt a strong closeness to the other party, and sitting on its back was warm and cozy, making it want to lie down and have a good nap.
"Entei~" -- Little Fatty, why were you attacked by those people when you are so weak?
Munchlax replied with an innocent expression:
"Car~" -- I don't know either. I only know they were selling berries, and I ate all the berries they were selling. I wanted to take them to Jiang Fan to get money, but they wouldn't listen and insisted on attacking me. It's not like I wasn't willing to pay.
"Entei~" -- Jiang Fan?
"Car~" -- He's my good friend. Now, whenever I eat, I have him pay for it.
"Entei~" -- Where is he? I'll take you to find him.
Munchlax's mouth slightly opened, and its short hands went to its mouth as it fell into deep thought.
A moment later,
"Car~" -- It seems to be in a city called Pewter City.
"Entei~" -- That's not far from here. I'll take you there to find him now.
Entei turned around and ran in the opposite direction, carrying Munchlax.
However, just as it turned, Munchlax called out to it.
"Car~" -- Stop quickly, stop.
Entei stopped in its tracks and looked back in confusion.
"Entei~" -- Little Fatty, what's wrong?
"Car~" -- I saw something good.
Munchlax jumped off Entei's back and went to a bush, picking up a blue glass whistle.
After looking at it for a few moments, it hid it in its fur.
"Entei~" -- Little Fatty, why did you pick up this thing?
"Car~" -- I'll give it to Jiang Fan so he'll buy me something to eat. I'm a very rule-abiding Munchlax. If I want to eat something, I always exchange something for it.
Munchlax jumped onto Entei's back.
"Entei~" -- Why do you have to exchange things with him for food? Isn't he your Trainer?
"Car~" -- He's not my Trainer; he's Charmeleon's Trainer, my good buddy.
Entei looked back.
It seemed to not quite understand their relationship.
"Entei~" -- You seem to really like this Jiang Fan. Why don't you let him become your Trainer? That way, you probably wouldn't have to exchange things for food.
Munchlax put its hands on its chin, suddenly looking troubled.
"Car~" -- I haven't thought it through yet. I'm afraid he'll be like my previous Trainer, who said he'd give me delicious food if I won a battle, but then he tricked me.
"Entei~" -- Has he ever tricked you?
"Car~" -- It seems not. Last time, he told me to run to a tree, and he'd treat me to a big meal. I went, and he really let me eat my fill. And he's kept every promise he's made since then.
"Entei~" -- It seems he wants you to trust him.
"Car~" -- It seems so. I thought of my good buddy Charmeleon. He used to be a listless little Waste , always cooped up in a corner waiting to die, and he couldn't beat me at all. After meeting Jiang Fan, he knocked me down in two moves, and he's been very happy every day. To be honest, I'm a little envious.
"Entei~" -- Then this Jiang Fan really is a very good Trainer. You can try to trust him.
"Car~" -- Can I really?
"Entei~" -- Why not? Little Fatty, I, Entei, have traveled this world for a long time and found that people are not all the same. There are both good people and bad people; it just depends on how you distinguish them. Since you've felt sincerity from him, you can trust him. If one day you don't feel it anymore, then leave. Don't be afraid of being hurt. You and he are together for mutual benefit, not dependence. You must understand that you are your own master.
Upon hearing this, Munchlax put its hands in its mouth again, lost in thought.
However, as it thought and thought, Entei never received a reply.
Looking back, it found that Munchlax had already fallen asleep on its back.
"Entei~" -- What a cute Little Fatty.
.....
When Munchlax woke up, it was already dark.
Opening its eyes, the first thing it saw were tall buildings bathed in light.
It was looking down on these tall buildings.
"Entei~" -- Little Fatty, you're awake.
Entei's voice came from beside its ear.
Entei was standing on top of a tall building, its long gray mane rustling in the breeze.
"Car~" -- Where is this?
Munchlax looked at the tall buildings with some confusion.
"Entei~" -- This is Pewter City, the city where humans live, just as you said. Find your good friend Jiang Fan here.
Munchlax looked down carefully upon hearing this.
Not long after, it saw the Pokemon Center sign.
It pointed to it.
"Car~" -- Jiang Fan should be there.
As soon as it spoke, Entei leaped down from the tall building.
It swiftly weaved through the tall buildings, and in the blink of an eye, it arrived in the shadows fifty meters from the Pokemon Center.
"Entei~" -- Go, Little Fatty.
Entei lay down.
"Car~" -- Here, this berry is delicious.
After getting down, Munchlax took out a pink berry from its fur.
Entei looked at Munchlax in surprise.
It knew this Family was obsessed with eating, and it hadn't expected it to take out a berry to share with it.
Entei took it with its mouth and swallowed it.
At the same time, its body glowed faintly, and a warm, orange-red hair flew from its neck into Munchlax's hand.
"Entei~" -- Munchlax, if one day you feel that Jiang Fan has tricked you, just burn this hair with fire, and I will immediately come to your side, take you away, and help you teach him a lesson.
Munchlax, like a curious baby, picked up the warm, glowing hair and observed it.
By the time it remembered to thank Entei, Entei had already left.
"Car~" -- I understand, Entei.
Munchlax mumbled a cry and put the orange-red hair deep within its own fur.
Then it waddled its backside towards the Pokemon Center.
When it arrived at the entrance, Jiang Fan, who had been searching all day, also happened to return to the Pokemon Center with Charmeleon.
"Munchlax, where did you go? Do you know that Charmeleon and I have been looking for you? If you wanted to eat, you should have told me first, instead of running off by yourself," Jiang Fan said with a slight frown.
"Rua~" -- Exactly, exactly! Do you know how worried we were?
Charmeleon echoed from the side, with an angry expression.
Munchlax looked at the somewhat angry Jiang Fan and Charmeleon.
It lowered its head.
"Car~" -- I'm sorry.
Seeing Munchlax's apologetic expression, Jiang Fan's slightly furrowed brow gradually relaxed.
At the same time, he realized that he had been a bit too emotional. He then squatted down, patted Munchlax's head, and said softly:
"Never mind, never mind. Next time you want to eat, just tell me beforehand."
As he finished speaking, he noticed that the apologetic look on Munchlax's face, which had just been there, had completely vanished.
Instead, it was looking eagerly at the ramen shop across the street, drool uncontrollably flowing from the corners of its mouth.
"Car~" -- I want to eat this.
Munchlax pulled Jiang Fan towards the ramen shop, and at the same time, took out an item from its fur and threw it into Jiang Fan's hand.
Jiang Fan picked it up and looked.
His eyes lit up.
It was a blue glass whistle that could cure a Pokémon's sleep status.
Then, his pupils suddenly contracted.
He found that Munchlax's affection had actually reached 0 points.
It had clearly been negative 14 during the day.
How could its affection suddenly increase so much after it disappeared?
"What exactly did Munchlax experience during the time it was gone?"
At the same time,
On a tall building a hundred meters away, Entei watched as Munchlax poured bowl after bowl of ramen into its mouth outside a ramen shop.
"Entei~" -- This Little Fatty.
Entei leaped into the air, and a few seconds later, disappeared into the night sky of Pewter City.