Chapter 25: Let's Play Together

With a thunderous roar, Heath instinctively covered his ears. It felt as though ten thousand high-pitched speakers were relentlessly blasting songs from TikTok right next to his head, making his brain threaten to explode.

“Hiss... it’s... it’s saying it’s hungry,” Zoroa winced, clutching her ears in pain. After translating the message, she quickly slipped into the lounge and shut the door behind her.

Even the normally composed Charmander was shaken, retreating into the lounge, while Farfetch’d collapsed onto the ground, frothing at the mouth and rendered unable to fight.

Heath’s mouth twitched in disbelief. Good grief, even the Magic Guard ability couldn’t block out the Snorlax’s deafening voice?

But then Heath noticed something strange—the oddly shaped Snorlax suddenly seemed forlorn. It lowered its head and trudged heavily toward the forest. Nearby, the snow accumulated on the trees was shaken loose and fell to the ground.

Watching Snorlax’s retreating figure, Heath found himself compelled to pull out his emotion detector. The device displayed a small Snorlax curled up in a corner, sitting alone. A single word appeared: loneliness.

“Snorlax! Are you hungry? I can treat you,” Heath called warmly, feeling a tender pang as he looked at both the large Snorlax and the small one on the screen.

Snorlax turned around, eyes narrowing in disbelief. Its squinty gaze reminded Heath of Brock, sparking the thought that perhaps Brock and Snorlax shared something in common—their similarly small eyes.

Seeing Snorlax hesitate, unsure whether to approach, Heath smiled gently. He picked up a cleaver and began preparing a fresh batch of meat jelly. Considering Snorlax’s enormous size and gargantuan appetite, Heath decided to make extra.

The savory aroma wafted through the air, soothing Snorlax’s unease. It stood hesitantly at a distance, reluctant to approach Heath’s food cart. Its large hands fidgeted nervously, which Heath guessed was a sign of awkwardness, unsure how to relax its grip.

Normally, making meat jelly was a tedious process, but the presence of snow mushrooms simplified it greatly. Soon, a fresh serving was ready. Heath scooped it from the pot and carried it over to Snorlax.

At the sight of Heath, Snorlax instinctively took a step back, as if wanting to flee. But when it saw the sizable chunk of meat jelly in Heath’s hand, it paused, torn.

“If you want, you can give me something small in exchange,” Heath said with a smile.

Snorlax regarded him cautiously, then opened its huge mouth and produced a piece of golden-yellow object.

Heath stared in astonishment. That thing looked like gold.

Snorlax happily took the meat jelly, holding it eagerly in its paws. It opened its massive jaws to eat but then seemed to reconsider, nibbling at the jelly in small bites. Meanwhile, Heath picked up the golden object.

It was heavy and certainly resembled gold, but Heath wasn’t fully sure. After all, this was the world of Pokémon—who knew what kind of item this really was?

Heath was surprised. He hadn’t expected this Snorlax to be a Snow Snorlax, likely an undiscovered Pokémon species. But what type would a Snow Snorlax be?

Given its name, “Snow” implied an Ice attribute. Snorlax was normally Normal-type, so this one was probably an Ice/Normal dual-type. Still, the exact classification would need confirmation from a Pokémon professor.

Heath didn’t recall seeing such a snowman-like Snorlax in previous games. Its existence in reality suggested it was an extremely rare Pokémon, possibly featured only in movies or the anime.

Obtaining a special lottery ticket was a pleasant surprise, and Heath looked forward to seeing what he might draw.

“Huh?” Heath instinctively patted his pocket and pulled out a small handful of sword-like items.

His lips twitched in irritation—another mysterious and powerful item, but disposable. It seemed a bit of a loss, though upon reflection, it might still prove useful. For now, however, Heath doubted he’d have any immediate use for it.

“Buzz—” another loud noise made Heath clutch his ears in pain. That Snorlax’s voice was truly enormous. Was it a natural gift? Or something else entirely?

Seeing Heath’s distress, Snorlax sadly closed its mouth and began lumbering heavily back toward the forest.

Heath watched the Snorlax before him, mouth slightly open. Honestly, he wanted to catch it. After all, a Snow Snorlax, probably Ice-type, fit perfectly with his expectations. Yet he was unsure how to tame this lonely creature.

“Snorlax!” he called again. The Pokémon turned with a puzzled look. Its teeth and claws gleamed ice-white.

“...Want to play together?” Heath asked, recalling the lonely emotion the detector had revealed. Perhaps Snorlax had been shunned because of its unique, booming voice.

At Heath’s invitation, the previously vacant look in Snorlax’s eyes brightened. It seemed excited yet hesitant, reaching out its paw and then withdrawing it, making Heath smile.

“Shall we play together?” Heath stepped forward and stood before Snorlax, meeting its gaze and repeating the question.

As Heath approached, Snorlax grew more nervous but finally extended its paw tentatively, gently placing a single claw in Heath’s palm.

A cool sensation flowed through Heath’s hand—as if he wasn’t holding a paw but a block of ice. It confirmed that this Snorlax truly possessed the Ice attribute.

“Zoroa! Charmander! Farfetch’d! Let’s come out and play!” Heath called cheerfully.

Farfetch’d rubbed its head and jumped from the vehicle, bounding happily toward Heath.