Going to the Claw Machine with Cyclizar

School ended at 4 p.m., while Kabukicho did not open until 6 p.m., so there was no need to rush back.

However, because he had deliberately played dirty that morning and screwed Selene over, every student in the class now held absolutely no goodwill toward him. He had been completely isolated.

He had successfully made an enemy of the entire class all by himself, but as was his habit, he did not care what others thought of him. Even if everyone hated him, it was the same. He could just Rest and ignore them.

That was how he had lived for over twenty years in his previous life. Even after suddenly transmigrating here and becoming fifteen again, he would not change so easily...

After school, under everyone's cold stares, he left the classroom alone. But unlike before, he was no longer truly alone. Cyclizar was waiting outside to head back with him.

"Cyclizar~"

"Let's go. We'll head to the commercial district first!"

Xingye still needed to find a job, the sort of temporary work where he could put in a few hours after school every day, then switch to other jobs over the weekend.

After riding away on Cyclizar, he thought about that morning's battle. Selene had indeed been right—he could not command Cyclizar to use moves.

Cyclizar was strong, but that strength meant nothing if it could not use moves. That Rowlet had been extremely agile. If he had not tricked it, Cyclizar definitely would not have caught it. They could have dragged things out until class started without a winner.

"But there's no helping it..."

Xingye was helpless about that as well. He would wait until he had saved enough money, then look for a Pokémon suitable for him during winter break—one that could battle...

Hau'oli City's commercial district was the most prosperous area in the entire city. Even on a weekday, it was packed with people shopping and enjoying themselves.

Drawing on his experience, he quickly found a temporary job at a claw machine arcade in the shopping plaza. His main duty was to keep order, wander around the store, and help customers deal with various issues.

Perhaps because his post-injury aura and appearance seemed especially "friendly," the owner passed his interview without hesitation. The pay was pretty good, too.

The arcade also allowed Pokémon to work, and Cyclizar passed the interview as well. Its pay would be a little lower, and its main task was also to keep order.

Normally, the commercial district was liveliest at night, so his shift ran from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. On weekends, he could work an entire day and be paid by the hour.

As for why he had found work at a claw machine arcade, it was because Cyclizar wanted a Rowlet plushie. In that case, they might as well win one...

Since he urgently needed money, he started working that very day. When the owner happily paid them at ten that night, there were barely any people left in the shop.

"So they were basically all brats and couples. So noisy and annoying..."

Xingye complained a little, but now that work was over, he could relax. Since Cyclizar had worked alongside him, they had earned double pay this round.

"Cyclizar~"

"Alright, I'll take you to win a plushie."

He had also been observing while he worked, getting a rough idea of which machines were easy and which were difficult.

But he was a claw machine expert himself. This time, he was mainly here to give pointers. If you did not win it yourself, then it had no meaning!

Xingye led Cyclizar to a claw machine filled with Substitute plushies. Mixed among them were a small number of Alola Region starter Pokémon plushies. This was the only machine in the whole arcade that had them.

"Did you exchange the coins?"

"Cyclizar!"

"Good. I'll show you how this thing works first!"

Xingye had Cyclizar stand to the side and watch. Then he inserted two coins, gripped the joystick with one hand and rested the other on the button, and began operating the machine.

With a serious expression, he watched the claw move into place. Then he dropped it swiftly, grabbed a Substitute plushie, and immediately shoved the joystick hard, swinging it over so that it fell straight through the prize chute and rolled out.

"See? It's that simple!"

Xingye smiled as he retrieved the Substitute plushie. The instant Cyclizar saw it, it became excited.

"Cyclizar!"

"Don't rush. You need patience with this. Go ahead and try. I'll direct you from the side."

"Cyclizar!"

Cyclizar inserted two coins and copied what he had just done, operating the machine with great seriousness. But since it was its first time playing something like this, never mind winning a Rowlet plushie—it could not even grab a Substitute plushie.

Still, under Xingye's careful guidance, after failing repeatedly and having the owner reclaim half of its day's wages, it finally succeeded once and won a Substitute plushie. It was absolutely delighted.

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

"Mm-hm, keep it up. I saw Rowlet's foot in that pile in the middle. First, toss away the Substitute plushies on top."

"Cyclizar!"

Cyclizar continued operating the machine. Xingye thought for a moment, then decided not to give it any more hints and see what it would do next.

After succeeding once, things did become much easier. Cyclizar won several Substitute plushies in a row, while Xingye helped pick them up.

But as the number of plushies inside began to shrink, they became increasingly difficult to grab. There were all sorts of empty claws, or plushies that got caught only to fall during the ascent.

Finally, all of Cyclizar's wages had been reclaimed by the owner. Its spoils were ten Substitute plushies, while Rowlet was still only showing one foot. What a disastrous loss.

"Cyclizar..."

Cyclizar turned around pitifully, tears welling in its eyes. It was too bad at this. It could not win it. It did not want to play anymore; all its money was gone.

After packing up the Substitute plushies, Xingye patted its head and encouraged it with a smile. "So you lost. I'll exchange more coins for you. No matter what you do, you must never give up!"

He did not care about that small amount of money. Since he had said he would help Cyclizar win a Rowlet plushie itself, then he had to make it happen. Promises between him and his Pokémon were extremely important to him.

Then the wage reclamation plan began once more. They got off work at ten, but stayed until eleven. The money they had earned that night was almost completely squandered.

Cyclizar inserted the last two coins in its hand and focused completely, not daring to relax in the slightest. Xingye watched closely and began giving instructions again.

As they watched the claw sway and lower bit by bit, one of its prongs happened to hook the tag on Rowlet's butt. This was the moment!

"Swing it over!"

"Cyclizar!"

Cyclizar reacted instantly, nearly snapping the joystick in half. It finally pulled Rowlet out from among the Substitute plushies and successfully swung it into the prize chute!

"Cyclizar!"

Looking at the plushie that had dropped out, Cyclizar was wildly excited, as though it had accomplished something unprecedented. Then it bit Xingye on the head.

"Ow, ow, ow..."

After forcefully breaking free, Xingye was happy for it too. He took out the plushie, then paused slightly in surprise. This Rowlet was a little different—it was light green and even had cat ears.

"It's a limited crossover edition—a Rowlet wearing a Sprigatito outfit! We made our money back!"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

The two of them celebrated like children. In the distance, the owner, who had completed his wage reclamation mission, was even happier than they were...

Their final haul was twenty-one Substitute plushies and one crossover Rowlet plushie. Although they had spent nearly all their wages, at least they had not lost out.

Cyclizar hugged the Rowlet plushie happily, while Xingye packed up the Substitute plushies and prepared to go home for dinner.

But at that moment, he caught sight of something. He hurriedly used the last of his wages to exchange for two more coins, inserted them into a machine, and used his skills to win another Substitute plushie.

"Cyclizar?"

Cyclizar was confused. What was he doing? They already had so many.

"Hehe, we hit the jackpot today!"

Xingye picked up the plushie and showed it to Cyclizar. This Substitute plushie had a slightly different color scheme. Its belly had a tire-like bulge, its cheeks were blushing, and it looked a little like someone...

"Cyclizar?"

"That's right. It's a Substitute plushie of you!"

He had not expected one of these to be mixed in here. But Cyclizar's signature move, Shed Tail, created a Substitute, so perhaps it made sense.

"Cyclizar~"

Looking at this miniature version of itself, Cyclizar stared blankly for a moment, but did not take it. Having the Rowlet plushie was enough for it. This one should naturally be kept for Xingye.

"Alright, then we'll take them all home and put them on display. The house is so empty; it really should have some things in it. Now, let's go home~"

"Cyclizar~"