Buzz buzz buzz—
The familiar sound of wings flapping.
When a few Pokémon dealt with the wild Pokémon watching from afar, a noisy sound echoed from quite a distance away.
It was slightly similar to the sound of Beedrill flapping its wings.
Soon, something yellow appeared like thick fog in their line of sight.
It was a swarm of Pokémon.
To be more precise, it was a swarm of bee-like Pokémon.
"Combee?"
Seeing this large group of Pokémon, Natsuhiko was somewhat surprised.
The surprise stemmed from the number, not the type of Pokémon.
Combee, an insect-type and flying-type Pokémon that looks like a small beehive, has three honeycomb faces, with each of the top two faces having an antenna, and wings on the sides of each.
Combee is quite special.
Because they are among the few Pokémon in the Pokémon realm whose evolution is influenced by gender.
Combee's evolved form is Vespiquen, but only female Combee can evolve into Vespiquen, while male Combee have no possibility of evolving throughout their lives.
Add to that, Combee's swarms are similar to most bee-like Pokémon; the queen holds the highest status in the swarm, and all male bees born in the swarm live their lives serving the queen.
This densely packed swarm of Combee gathered like clouds brings quite a visual impact.
Togetic cautiously looked next to Beedrill and gently nudged it with its hand.
"Chako yi?"
'Your relatives?'
Beedrill glared back indignantly.
They look completely different, come on!
The threat of a single Combee isn't significant, but such a large gathering nonetheless exerts significant pressure on Natsuhiko and his Pokémon.
If things go south, running is the only option…
But the moment the thought of running was mentioned, Togetic kicked Honedge squarely on the head, showing it was the first to oppose the idea.
Boldly standing in front of Natsuhiko.
Behind them was the barbecue they had worked together to prepare, which was almost ready; how could they leave?
Surprisingly, for once, Beedrill agreed with Togetic's stance.
Seeing Togetic and Beedrill's attitude, Yujira, who was originally indifferent, also expressed its stance.
The three Pokémon looked at Honedge.
Feeling their gazes, Honedge hung its head and muttered softly.
"Sigh—"
'Too reckless, still too reckless…'
Despite the words, its body honestly edged closer to Natsuhiko; its ribbon slowly withdrew from the scabbard.
Clang!
The sharp blade signaled its resolve.
Witnessing the change in the Pokémon's attitude, Natsuhiko laughed.
Since they wanted to battle, how could he, as a Trainer, let them down?
"Then let's do this."
"Chako yi!"
Togetic put on a serious face, brandishing its little fists.
Get them!
Just as they prepared to face the Combee swarm, suddenly the dense group of Combee made way, parting to form a path.
Accompanied by a deep wing-vibration sound, a Pokémon that looked quite different from these Combee slowly flew out from behind them.
Also a bee-like Pokémon, with crimson eyes and a ruby-like crystal between them, two sets of comparatively small wings for its size, with a skirt-like structure below its body occupying a large proportion; the "skirt" resembling a beehive.
The appearance unmistakably signaled it as Combee's evolution stage, none other than Vespiquen!
Upon Vespiquen's emergence, a regal aura enveloped them.
Trait: Pressure!
And it was not solely the pressure from its aura.
"This huge swarm of Combee, it's… Leader's Aura?" Natsuhiko squinted his eyes.
Leader Pokémon are a special presence in the wild.
"And this coloration..."
Natsuhiko looked at this Vespiquen, noting its unusual orange and yellow stripes rather than the usual yellow-black ones.
"Shiny Bee Queen?"
Shiny Pokémon, also known as uniquely colored Pokémon, are special due to their color differing from the usual Pokémon, making them extremely rare.
Natsuhiko recalled countless nights lying in bed shiny hunting.
This was still the first wild Shiny Pokémon he saw besides that terrifying Shining Charizard.
"Buzz—"
Upon appearing, Vespiquen didn't immediately attack. The Combee behind it waited obediently, standing guard without any movement.
Yet Vespiquen's gaze fell upon Beedrill.
That look...
Natsuhiko's expression turned strange.
It wasn't just him who found it odd.
Togetic gently nudged Beedrill.
"Chako yi."
'It's looking for you.'
Beedrill froze, suddenly sensing something bad might be unfolding.
Yet holding onto the principle of shouldering one's responsibilities, Beedrill flew forward, directly facing Vespiquen.
Meanwhile, Beedrill sensed Vespiquen's power level.
Elite Level!
Under the protection of hundreds of Combee, backed by their collective strength, this wild Vespiquen possessed Elite-level power!
Sensing Vespiquen's strength, battle spirit welled up in Beedrill's eyes.
A foe at the Elite level was rare.
Though battle spirit filled Beedrill's eyes, Vespiquen's response differed.
"Buzz—"
Vespiquen called softly, its voice laden with such affection that even Natsuhiko, as a human, felt it.
This Vespiquen seemed to have taken a liking to Beedrill?!
Pfft—
Togetic couldn't help but laugh.
Yujira also grinned, while Honedge looked confused, oblivious to the situation.
Beedrill's expression was completely rigid; it sensed things might not be simple but hadn't anticipated such a development.
"Beedrill, why not just go along?" Natsuhiko teased.
"Chako yi!!"
Togetic nodded earnestly, happy to stir things up for fun.
It wanted things resolved quickly to enjoy the barbecue.
Beedrill turned to Natsuhiko, eyes wide, showing a tint of embarrassment for the first time.
"Hahaha—" Natsuhiko couldn't hold back his laughter.
Of course, he was just joking; he wouldn't let the Pokémon he trained hard with, forming great momentum, simply "marry into" Vespiquen's kingdom.
He wasn't that foolish.
But truth be told, it reminded him somewhat of when Dimwit's Butterfree ran off with a shiny Butterfree.
Since that moment, Dimwit completely embarked on an uninhibited path of "letting go."
"However, this indeed is not too personal. Why not just… deal with it yourself?"
Natsuhiko, a single man of two lifetimes, struggled to understand matters of men and women, let alone intricacies between different species with Pokémon.
"Buzz beep!" Beedrill showed a face of despair.
Turning to Vespiquen.
Finally, it made the most sound decision.
Shaking its long needle towards Vespiquen.
'Bring it on! Winning against me is the only ground for further discussion.'
Rephrasing in Togetic's style.
Beat me, and you'll deserve me.
"Sigh..."
Honedge finally understood, gazing at Vespiquen warily.
'Turns out, female creatures are indeed the most dangerous beings in this world.'
Upon hearing Beedrill's words, Vespiquen understood its intent, with its roar, the aura around her grew increasingly dangerous.