Cottonee's First Battle

Name: Nidorino

Gender: Male

Type: Poison

Ability: Rivalry. Effect: When using moves against Pokémon of the same gender, damage increased by 25%; when using moves against Pokémon of the opposite gender, damage decreased by 25%.

Known moves: Glare, Tackle, Horn Attack, Double Kick, Focus Energy, Fury Attack, Horn Drill, Poison Sting

Inherited move: Iron Tail

Rank: Mid-intermediate

Evolution progress: 34%

After reviewing Nidorino's status panel, Ye Lan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Not only did the Rivalry ability somewhat pull back what had been a disadvantageous situation, but Nidorino did not have many Poison-type moves it could learn at this stage either.

"Cottonee, use Charm!"

On the field, upon hearing Ye Lan's command, Cottonee blinked, puffed out its little cheeks, and tried its best to look cute.

At the sight, hearts appeared in Nidorino's eyes, and its aggression dropped sharply.

Although it was his first time commanding Cottonee in battle, he could not achieve the same tacit understanding he had with Servine, where a thought had barely surfaced in Ye Lan's mind before Servine understood it.

Still, thanks to Prankster's effect and Cottonee's innate talent for status moves, there was not much awkwardness overall.

"Snap out of it, Nidorino!" Wang Zihao clearly had not expected the other side to unleash moves so quickly.

Hearing his Trainer's shout from behind, Nidorino shook its head. Its horn lit up as it charged fiercely toward Cottonee.

But by then, countless tiny cotton-like spores had already drifted throughout the battlefield. Under Cottonee's control, they began converging on the charging Nidorino.

As more and more cotton spores appeared, they not only blocked Nidorino's vision but also greatly slowed its Horn Attack.

"Cotton~"

Cottonee merely gave a light hop and easily dodged the incoming charge.

Before Nidorino could break free from the momentum of its rush, a green seed exploded behind it.

The thorn-covered vines from Leech Seed stabbed fiercely into Nidorino's body, continuously draining its energy.

Just as Nidorino prepared to build up its next move, Cottonee had already put on a pitiful expression where it stood.

Fake Tears activated, reducing Nidorino's Special Defense.

After that, the battle became brutal.

Charm lowered its speed, Leech Seed restored Cottonee's condition while wearing down Nidorino's, Fake Tears lowered its Special Defense, and Razor Leaf provided the damage.

Even though the Poison-type Nidorino doubly resisted Grass-type moves, it could not withstand having its health whittled away bit by bit by Cottonee over dozens of turns.

And Poison Sting, which Nidorino had kept hidden all along in preparation to one-shot Cottonee, never got the chance to be used.

By the time Wang Zihao recalled Nidorino into its Poké Ball, his face had gone numb.

The opponent's status moves were always a huge step ahead of his own. It was like a fierce tiger trapped in a swamp, full of strength yet unable to use any of it.

"Cotton~"

"Trainer, I'm amazing, right~"

Barely injured at all, Cottonee bounced into Ye Lan's arms and happily acted cute toward him.

"Battling is fun, isn't it?" Ye Lan pinched Cottonee's soft body, somewhat astonished himself.

After this battle, he truly understood what Uncle Lei had meant by saying that it was "very talented with status moves."

Its move activation speed was downright terrifying.

It was as though Cottonee had been born with two Prankster abilities.

Cottonee had only begun using its moves after hearing Ye Lan's commands each time.

He did not dare imagine how fast its status moves would become after it and Ye Lan developed a better understanding over time.

"You all saw that clearly, right? Ye Lan gave you a vivid demonstration of the use of status moves. It isn't impossible for the weak to defeat the strong."

Looking at the group of students still immersed in the battle they had just watched, Liu Yan nodded in satisfaction.

New Trainers always focused all their energy on high-power moves while overlooking the value of status moves.

"Wang Zihao, come tell everyone how you felt about that battle."

With everyone's eyes on him, Wang Zihao stepped forward. After a moment of silence, he said, "Dirty. That was way too dirty!"

"It looks so cute, but at its core, it's just a disgusting ball of cotton!"

"I'd rather get beaten senseless by Ye Lan's Servine than battle that disgusting cotton again!"

Nidorino: Something's not right. Trainer, something's seriously wrong with you!

Not far away, Ye Lan, who was lecturing Cottonee about not getting complacent, jolted in alarm when he heard that.

Disgusting cotton? Could he be a transmigrator too?!

After observing him for a while and realizing Wang Zihao had merely spoken from the heart, Ye Lan finally relaxed.

Then again, if Ye Lan had started out with a Nidoran, he would already have crossed the ocean to Kanto and be figuring out how to become Giovanni's underling.

"Huh? So this is where you are, Ye Lan."

Outside the training grounds, Mia came running over, panting, with that royal Servine beside her.

The moment she reached Ye Lan, she shoved a bound booklet into his arms.

"What's this?" Looking at the stack of A4 paper in his hands, Ye Lan already had a guess.

"The move manual you wanted. My family agreed to give it to you. They only hope that once Servine evolves into Serperior, you can make a trip to Unova."

"I will."

Even without this manual, because it concerned Servine's path after evolving into Serperior, Ye Lan would sooner or later travel to the Unova Region to investigate.

Seeing the words "Energy Manipulation Manual" printed on the cover, Ye Lan's mouth twitched.

What a modern-looking manual. It gave off the feeling of a cheap knockoff.

After flipping through a few pages, Ye Lan's expression grew uglier and uglier.

He suddenly snapped the manual shut, looked up at Mia beside him, and forced a smile uglier than crying. "What do you mean every move needs to be tempered with pure Grass-type energy, and a whole Leaf Stone works best?"

"It means every move needs a Leaf Stone. You don't even understand that?" Mia looked disdainfully at Ye Lan, whose smile had stiffened even further.

She had clearly simplified so much of the obscure wording into modern language. How could he still not understand it?

"Is there any other way?" Ye Lan was once again knocked flat by the wealth of these reclusive families.

One Leaf Stone per move? Did they have several Leaf Stone mineral veins or something?

"Of course. Can't a Pokémon that has mastered the technique teach it to you step by step?" Mia once again looked at Ye Lan with disdain.

This Ye Lan really did not seem very smart.

"..."

"I'll be staying in Jindu for a while. Once your Servine learns it, I'll continue my journey through the Huaxia Region."

"In exchange, you and Servine will be responsible for all my food, clothing, lodging, and travel expenses during this time!"

The royal Servine beside her was practically rolling its eyes.

As royalty, how could one demand repayment after bestowing gifts upon commoners? It was simply beneath them!

"This is bread I made. Let your Servine try it and see whether it likes the taste."

Seeing Ye Lan offer over the bread, and sensing an inexplicable warmth from it, Servine reluctantly took a bite.

In an instant, a brilliant gleam burst from Servine's eyes.

"Sssaaah!!!"

It's so good! What is this?! I want to eat this every day!!!