Naoki returo the , deg to freeze some ice cubes using molds in the refrigerator. That way, he wouldn’t have to trouble G to make ice every time.

  As he walked back, he saw Cyclizar and Koraidon engaged in training. Koraidon seemed to be teag Cyclizar a new move.

  Naoki paused to observe, standing beside Koraidon, as Cyclizar practiced diligently. Despite their initial reluce, the two Pokémon had e a long way irainiionship. Initially, Koraidon had been indifferent to teag, and Cyclizar had been a little intimidated by its more powerful terpart. But, with time, Cyclizar's persistence won Koraidon's respect, and the lessons became more serious.

  Today, Koraidon was teag Dragon Pulse, a special dragon-type move. The energy o be gathered in the mouth and released in one burst. Koraidon demonstrated it fwlessly, but Cyclizar was struggling to grasp the teique.

  Naoki observed for a while before a suggestion: "Try fog the dragon energy in your body into your mouth first, and then release it all at once."

  Koraidon gave a knowing sigh, as if it had already expihis several times. "Raao."

  Cyclizar blinked in fusion but gave it another shot. It tried trating its dragon energy, puffing its cheeks as the energy built up inside.

  "Yes! Now release it!" Naoki enced.

  But instead of releasing the energy, Cyclizar swallowed it. A moment ter, it let out a small burp, as if the energy had turned into air.

  Naoki and Koraidon stood there, speechless.

  Cyclizar blushed, its eyes getting teary, embarrassed by the mistake. "Gah."

  "Don't worry about it," Naoki reassured, stepping forward to fort the poor Pokémon. "Take your time. You'll get it."

  Cyclizar nodded, determio tinue practig despite the setback.

  Leaving Koraidon and Cyclizar to their training, Naoki returo his tasks in the house. On the grass, Koraidon resumed guiding Cyclizar, patient but firm.

  Koraidon’s mind drifted as it watched Cyclizar struggle. It couldn’t help but think back to its own past—back when it was in the pce of Cyclizar, eager to learn but proo mistakes.

  Maybe, when Koraidon was Cyclizar, the other Koraidon must have watched over it the same way, guiding it and patience. Perhaps that’s how Koraidon, its owor, had viewed it.

  The memories of the time mae i fshed vividly in Koraidon’s mind. Back then, Cyclizar had been on the verge of being pulled into that mae—caught up in something it didn’t fully uand. Koraidon had rushed over, using every bit of its strength to stop the iable from happening. Despite the effort, it had failed to pull Cyclizar back.

  At that time, perhaps Koraidon had also accepted Cyclizar in its heart.

  Koraidon was a little fused. Sometimes it couldn’t tell whether it was still Koraidon or just its former self, Cyclizar.

  Although it didn’t fully uand what was going on, it knew ohing: as long as it could stay by Naoki’s side, that was all that mattered.

  Watg its former self, Cyclizar, work so hard, Koraidon realized that maybe Cyclizar wasn’t as clueless as it thought.

  'Wait! If Koraidon and Cyclizar were ihe same, then had Koraidon been hard on itself all along?'

  The realization struck Koraidon suddenly. Maybe it should be kio its former self, and work with Naoki to help Cyclizar grow as smart and strong as Koraidon had bee.

  ————

  The summer night sky was always so beautiful.

  Dragonite y peacefully on the grass, gazing up at the twinkling stars. A gentle breeze swept over its scales, feeling like Naoki’s f hand.

  Dragonite felt pletely at ease.

  Suddenly, there was a rustling sound nearby. Dragours head to see Cyclizar approag.

  Dragohought back to how Cyclizar had been practig diligently with Koraidon tely. It also remembered how Cyclizar once admitted being afraid of Koraidon.

  Curious, Dragonite asked, "Awoo?" (Are you not scared of Koraidon anymore?)

  Cyclizar blinked and shook its head, though still a little fused. "Gaao." (For some reason, it doesn’t seem as scary now.)

  Dragonite beamed with joy. "Oooooh!" (That’s great! Koraidon is actually very kind! It even taught me Dragon Tail!)

  Cyclizar smiled shyly at Dragonite’s praise, but that smile soon faded. It lowered its head in disappoi. "Gaao." (But I still haven’t mastered Dragon Pulse.)

  Dragonite nodded in uanding. "Ouch." (I know how that feels. I never mastered that move either.)

  The two Pokémon sat in silence for a while, staring up at the starry sky.

  At this time, Naoki, having finished washing up, went outside to che the chi coop. On his way, he happeo sponite and Cyclizar sitting quietly uhe stars.

  "I was w why I didn’t see you two in the house. So, you’re out here stargazing?" Naoki smiled, walking over and sitting beside them. "What’s the matter? You both look a little down."

  “Gah.” Cyclizar let out a small sigh, looking disheartened.

  Naoki took one look at Cyclizar’s expression and guessed, "Is it because you still ’t use Dragon Pulse?"

  The Cyclizar nodded sadly, its eyes refleg its frustration.

  Seeing this, Naoki gently patted its head and reassured it, "Hey, don’t stress about it too much. Maybe you just haven’t found the right key yet. Keep trying, and one day you’ll unlock it. You’ll bee as strong as Koraidon!"

  "Gaao?" Cyclizar looked up, tilting its head curiously at the mention of Koraidon.

  Naoki chuckled and remembered an old legend he’d once heard. He leaned in and said, "You know, there’s a legend that ties you and Koraidon together. Some say that Koraidon is actually what you used to be."

  Cyclizar blinked, clearly puzzled.

  Naoki thought for a sed before expining, "It’s like, Koraidon is what you were in the distant past, a long, long time ago."

  He tinued, "There’s another one, called Miraidon. It’s said that Miraidon is what you might look like in the far, far future. One from the past, one from the future, and you, Cyclizar, belong to the present."

  "Gaao?" Cyclizar's fusion deepened. It wasn’t sure what to make of all this talk of past and future forms.

  This made Cyclizar think of the Pokémon on the rand their evolutions. Could it evolve too, into something like Koraidon or Miraidon? Its eyes sparkled with excitement at the possibility.

  Naoki noticed Cyclizar’s suddehusiasm, realizing it might have misuood. He smiled warmly, ruffling Cyclizar’s head, and said, "Don’t worry if you don’t get it just yet. The world they e from is from a time far beyond ours."

  Hearing this, Dragonite on the side couldn't help but ask, "Ouch?" ('Was there a past or future version of itself too?')

  Even though Naoki couldn't fully uand Dragonite's words, he could guess its meaning from its eyes and expression. At first, he thought about shaking his head, but then remembered the giant Dragohat appeared he lighthouse in the anime, drifting above the sea, shrouded in fog.

  Legend had it that this colossal Dragonite was from an a era.

  Thinking of this, Naoki responded, "Maybe."

  At that moment, other Pokémon started gathering around.Butterfree, Pawmo, Alcremie, and Koraidon all approached curiously. Butterfree floated down to sit beside Naoki, joining him in stargazing. Meanwhile, Pawmo, Koraidon, and Alcremie followed suit, clearly w why Naoki hadn’t e baside to sleep yet.

  Naoki smiled at his Pokémon and tinued answering Dragonite’s question, “Who knows, maybe a long, long time agonite had a body as rge as a mountain.”

  'A body as big as a mountain?' Dragonite’s eyes widened, its imagination running wild with the thought of such immense power.

  Naoki chuckled, enjoying the serene night with his Pokémon, but something still felt missing. He stood up a bato the house, returning with a piiket. He spread it out on the grass and id down an array of snacks: lucky pudding, berries, strawberry milk, tree sap juice, honey buns, sandwiches, cream smoothies, and grass dumplings.

  “Let’s make this a little starlit feast,” he said, smiling.

  He asked Alcremie to gather the rest of the Pokémon.

  Alcremie cheerfully agreed, and soon enough, G, Gogoat, Nacli, Naclstack, Miltank, Smoliv, and bee all gathered on the soft grass.

  G, however, had its eyes fixed on the creamy smoothie on the b, its expression revealing just how badly it wa.

  Naoki, notig this, handed G the smoothie cup and took the opportunity to gently rub G's head.

  For a moment, G froze, unaced to human touch.

  "Go ahead, enjoy!" Naoki enced with a grin.

  "Buyi." G shyly lowered its head and began silently lig the creamy treat, its little tongue sav each sweet taste.

  Naoki took out some green grass dumplings from the piic basket.

  The three Gogoat, always drawn to the st, immediately came over, their witg. Naoki smiled as he stroked their fur, gently feeding them the green grass dumplings.

  “Well, maybe I should experiment with some new dishes made from grass,” Naoki thought aloud.

  Ideas like grass ice cream, grass pie, and grass cake flickered through his mind. After all, his kit was already equipped with everything he o bake. Tomorrow might just be the perfect time to try making a grass cake to switch things up for his Gogoat.

  "Meaaa."

  At that moment, one of the Gogoat seemed to pick up on his thoughts. It showed aed expression and affeately licked Naoki's hand, its tongue faintly tasting of grass.

  Surprised by the suddeure, Naoki quickly pulled his hand away from their horns.

  It didn’t take him long to realize what was happening—the Gogoat had sensed his thoughts through his hands!

  This was a known trait of Gogoat. By toug their horns to others, they could seions and even pick up on the feelings or iions of their trainer.

  Naoki, now curious, asked, " you really feel my mood?"

  The Gogoat squiheir eyes, appearing tent, and all responded in unison, "Meaaa~"

  "Wow, you're amazing!" Naoki praised, giving a at to the lead Gogoat. This particur Gogoat had ears position as leader after an intetle against Koraidon. It had evolved from a young Skiddo into a sturdy Gogoat and had e out victorious in a wrestling match, gaining the respect of the others.

  After finishing the grass dumplings, the three Gogoat settled down and y beside Naoki, their stomachs full and tent.

  Naoki’s gaze then drifted toward Miltank, who was rolling around in the grass a little further away.

  This particur Miltank was full of energy, and its best move was Rollout—a fitting talent for su active Pokémon.

  Naoki observed Miltank's rolling movements and a thought struck him—what if he could create a dish for Miltank? Could it help enhance Miltank’s Rollout move?

  “I should give it a try ter,” Naoki noted mentally, already pnning how to make it.

  As he pondered, he took a bite of his lucky pudding and then shifted his attention to the Salt Pokémon, Nacli, and Naclstack, who had e to py.

  First, he stacked the Nacli on top of each other, then carefully pced them all on Naclstack, f an almost ical tower of salt blocks.

  Naoki tilted his head, studying the structure. "You know, these guys look more like characters from Minecraft than Pokémon," he mused with a chuckle.

  Just then, Butterfree fluttered nearby, catg Naoki's attention with a sudden excmation, "Freee!"

  Naoki followed Butterfree’s gaze and saw something enting—soft, yellow-green lights floated zily above the stream, glowing softly in the night air.

  "Fireflies?" Naoki murmured in surprise. Fireflies usually appeared in July ust, so seeing them now was ued.

  But then he remembered—the world here didn’t follow the same rules as his previous life. The seasons were unique, and Kosaji Town’s proximity to the sea meant the climate was warm and humid throughout the year, making the sight of fireflies possible.

  More and more fireflies gathered over the river, their glowing bodies f a breathtaking spectacle, like a miniature Milky Way flowing through the night.

  “Alcremie.” Alcremie, standing nearby, let out a soft murmur of awe, its eyes refleg the glowing lights.

  All of the Pokémon turheir heads to take in the view.

  Naoki, too, marveled at the sight. "It really is beautiful," he sighed.

  In his past life, w and living iy left him no time to appreciate nature like this. Now, he could finally embrace these moments, where beauty and serenity were within reach.

  Oher side of the river, the group of Psyducks also noticed the fireflies. One particurly curious Psyduck stretched out its paw to toue of the glowing is.

  But in its clumsy attempt, it lost its band spshed into the river. The drenched Psyduck quickly scrambled out, water dripping from its feathers, and stared up at the fireflies, seemingly unbothered by the mishap.

  Naoki watched the se and thought to himself, 'Humans and Pokémon really are part of the same natural world. We share the same awe and wo its beauty.'