Pidgey Sparring Partner, Always Ready!

After bidding farewell to the "Pidgey Ball" couple, Mu Yun carried Weedle home.

Once they got home, the human and Pokémon took a bath, then practiced their massage skill along the way.

The usual 10 experience points were added to the account.

The midday sun was pleasantly warm, neither stuffy nor hot. After their bath, the human and bug lay on the sofa and enjoyed a lovely nap.

Meanwhile.

In a dense forest some distance from the old gazebo, where the vegetation grew quite well.

The trees here were thick, their canopies tall, their branches long and lush. Sunlight shone through the woods, casting interwoven, mottled shadows.

Within those shadows, a small brown figure darted swiftly about.

It was Pidgey, who had just parted ways with Mu Yun and the others.

"Pidgey!!"

At that moment, his wings were tucked in and his eyes were sharp. His nimble body shot through the crisscrossing branches at full speed like a cannonball fired from its barrel.

The chaotic, interwoven forks of the trees ahead of him seemed like a broad road whose traffic had long been planned out. Every time, he could effortlessly dodge them by a hair's breadth.

Although he had already mapped out every dodge point in his mind, whenever a gust of wind swept through or sunlight flashed into his eyes through the trees, he would still occasionally scrape against a hard branch.

Fortunately, his natural reflexes were quick. The instant something went wrong, he would instinctively make the best possible response and minimize his injuries.

For a wild Pokémon, engaging in unnecessary activity unrelated to hunting was dangerous and highly irrational.

Yet whether it was the temptation of sandwiches, his wounded pride after being defeated by Weedle, or some other strange longing for companionship, he simply wanted to challenge himself and grow stronger.

Whenever he accidentally crashed into a branch and fell to the ground, Pidgey would briefly stop and stare blankly at the ever-clear sky, remaining silent for a long while.

In truth, even Pidgey himself did not know why he had suddenly begun training so desperately, risking injury despite having known them for only a short time. An ordinary Pokémon like him was destined to go back to being alone...

But he wanted to. He wanted this fleeting dream to last a little longer, even if only by a little...

After resting briefly, the lonely figure took flight again, lush green branches reflected in his resolute eyes.

Just then, a gentle breeze passed by. Amid the swaying shadows of the trees, sunlight miraculously pierced through layer after layer of obstruction and fell straight down beside him.

"Pidgey!!"

(Again!)

The afternoon was warm and pleasant.

After exhausting training, a lovely nap truly refreshed both body and mind.

After preparing the sandwiches as payment for the sparring partner, Mu Yun returned to the sofa, scooped up the bleary-eyed Weedle, stood him upright, and declared in an impassioned tone.

"Little Lieutenant Weedle, Great General Pidgey has just issued a challenge! A new battle has appeared—don't go back to sleep!"

"Woooh~~"

Weedle's mind had yet to wake up after being forcibly powered on, but his body instinctively responded as he let out a muddled cry.

"Alright, wake up. It's time to find Pidgey and train."

Seeing that Weedle was still drowsy but responded to every sentence, Mu Yun smiled and rubbed his cheeks.

After a round of rubbing, Weedle woke up completely. His little eyes refocused, his body instantly straightened, and he let out a loud "Woooh!"

A mature Pokémon couldn't be tripped up by sleepiness. Next time, I'll definitely wake up early!

"Awake? Then let's go."

Mu Yun did not know about Weedle's inner change. Seeing that he was fully awake, he scooped him into his arms and headed out the door.

After going downstairs, Mu Yun set Weedle down.

The afternoon sun was no longer scorching, making it the perfect time for a run.

Mu Yun estimated the time. If they finished the remaining three kilometers of today's run before heading to the gazebo—level six required six kilometers, split into two runs—they would arrive at exactly four o'clock.

"Go, go, go! Let's set off!"

"Woooh!!"

Just as Mu Yun had estimated, at around 3:50, the human and Pokémon arrived at the old gazebo.

As before, Pidgey was already standing at the edge of the gazebo, watching and waiting. When he saw Mu Yun and Weedle arrive, he happily flew over.

"Good afternoon, Pidgey."

"Pidgey~~"

After a simple greeting, the afternoon move training officially began.

Since they had plenty of energy and time, Weedle used String Shot a full forty times during this training session, directly completing today's daily move training task.

[Ding! Daily Mission 1: Move Training completed. 10 points have been awarded!]

[Ding! Weedle used String Shot in a simulated battle. Proficiency +2!]

[Ding! Weedle's fighting spirit has been ignited, granting him a deeper understanding of the move String Shot. Additional proficiency +2!]

[String Shot (Mastered, 312/1000) → (Mastered, 472/1000)]

"You did great, Xiao Du."

"And thanks for the effort, Pidgey."

After more than two hours of training, Mu Yun encouraged the bug and bird.

Then, he took out two Energy Cubes and handed one to each of them.

Having eaten one before, Pidgey naturally understood that it was something good that could quickly replenish stamina and energy.

He guessed that the reason he had been able to complete one more full-speed obstacle flight that afternoon was because of this little cube.

"And these are the payment I promised you." After giving him the Energy Cube, Mu Yun took out another paper food bag.

Inside were individually wrapped sandwiches, ten in total.

There were more than they had agreed on, but Mu Yun did not mind. Pidgey the sparring partner deserved them.

"Pidgey, Pidgey!!"

The moment he smelled the sandwiches, Pidgey became excited. He happily flapped his wings to express his thanks.

"There are plenty inside. You can save some for breakfast tomorrow." Mu Yun rubbed Pidgey's head and said softly, "Oh, right. I saw that you were injured at noon. I happen to have some Healing Spray, so I can treat you."

As he spoke, Mu Yun pulled a palm-sized pale green spray bottle from his pocket.

Healing Spray could quickly heal surface wounds. It was one of the items Mu Yun had prepared on the day he collected the Pokémon Egg. Since Weedle rarely trained through physical confrontation, it had never been used.

Holding the spray, Mu Yun carefully aimed at several scratches on Pidgey's body.

The gentle motions and cool sensation made Pidgey freeze for a moment. He quickly returned to normal, but his expression was no longer as excited as before.

"Woooh?"

While eating his Energy Cube, Weedle looked toward Pidgey.

What was wrong with this crybaby, greedy, silly bird? Why did he look so dazed?

"Well then, same time tomorrow. Sorry for the trouble, Pidgey." After treating the scratches, Mu Yun put away the spray and bid Pidgey farewell while holding Weedle.

"Pidgey, Pidgey!!"

Pidgey regained his energy and replied loudly.

Pidgey the sparring partner, always ready!