Clearly, Vibrava's case proved that sometimes, if a move was used correctly, the opponent would bring about their own downfall.

Strictly speaking, having Chansey step in counted as cheating.

It even looked suspiciously like a two-on-one.

Baimu used a brush prepared by the side of the field to clean Vibrava's body and face, thinking about how to persuade it once it woke up.

"Guh?"

"Hard to say. I hope it'll cooperate a little. It is outside help, after all."

"Lucky..."

"You don't need to be so upset. You didn't do anything unnecessary. Ending its suffering sooner was the right thing to do."

He chatted with the two Pokémon while Vibrava slowly came to.

"Vibra!"

The newly awakened Pokémon jolted and flew several meters backward. It looked warily at Aron and Baimu, but when its gaze swept over Chansey, it fell into deep thought.

"Vibra...?"

"Lucky~"

No one knew what Vibrava had said, but Chansey nodded weakly.

"Vibra!"

The fellow suddenly became excited. With its eyes shining, it moved closer, and its enthusiastic behavior frightened Chansey badly enough that she hurried behind Baimu.

"Stop. What are you trying to do to my partner?"

Baimu immediately shielded Chansey behind him. Aron stepped forward a few paces and let out a warning growl at Vibrava.

Vibrava tilted its head, glanced again at the timid little pink egg, then landed on the ground. It moved forward on its four long legs, its antennae bobbing as it tapped the young man's hand in front of it.

"Vibra!"

"Hm?"

Baimu was rather surprised by its obedient attitude.

What had caused the proud and unruly Vibrava to change its attitude so drastically...

Oh~

When he saw it looking eager to get close to Chansey, only to seem a little disappointed whenever she avoided it, the answer seemed clear.

"Looks like you've gained a ton of favorability," Baimu said with a smile, turning to Chansey.

"Lucky?"

She looked confused.

"You don't understand? It means Vibrava is very grateful to you." He rubbed her fluffy head. "Go accept its thanks."

Baimu pushed Chansey toward Vibrava once more.

At the same time, he exchanged a look with Aron. They silently considered whether the fellow was pretending to surrender.

Their conclusion was—

They couldn't let their guard down.

So...

Aron watched Vibrava approach Chansey, ready to slam it away with Iron Head at any moment.

Fortunately, most Pokémon were rather simple creatures, easily influenced by their Trainers.

Baimu and Aron's concerns proved unnecessary. Vibrava was genuinely grateful to Chansey, and it had identified who soothed its emotions through her cries.

Just as Team Rocket's Ekans and Koffing had said, Pokémon did bad things because their Trainers were bad, while Pokémon naturally did good things when their Trainers were good. Pokémon themselves had no stance.

—What an incredibly tool-like statement.

After receiving Vibrava's gratitude, Chansey's inexplicable nervousness eased somewhat, and she smiled more often.

At Baimu's urging, Aron moved closer as well, and the three Pokémon gradually began communicating.

"Looks like the most basic conditions for the competition are finally in place."

He let out a breath and took the sheet of paper covered in writing from his pocket.

This support had come at just the right time, and it was exactly the kind of individual he needed most right now—mobile long-range offense.

Aron might be tough, but it had no long-range attacking ability for the moment. With the airborne Vibrava added in, plus Chansey as support...

A barely complementary team had taken shape.

Unfortunately, borrowed help was still borrowed help. Vibrava would leave sooner or later, so after the competition ended, he had to find a third Pokémon that could cover their weaknesses.

Looking over the sheet again, Baimu slowly formed a set of entries that suited his tastes.

[Pokémon: Vibrava]

[Type: Ground + Dragon]

[Gender: Male]

[Height: 162 cm / 33 kg]

[Ability: Levitate]

[Level: 39]

[Moves: Bite / Mud-Slap / Stomping Tantrum / Sand Tomb]

[Rock Slide / Supersonic / Dragon Breath / Earth Power / Bug Buzz]

To judge whether a Pokémon was strong, a rough assessment came down to its level and the number of moves it had mastered. A closer assessment required comparing its size, health, move quality, and proficiency.

Some Pokémon might have learned a huge number of moves, but they often only used a few regularly. The rest were no different from filler.

A Pokémon's strength would not be lacking if it used its moves well. Ash's Pikachu had practically turned Electroweb into an art form, using it as both a trampoline and a protective barrier. Its adaptability was exceptionally powerful.

Taken as a whole, this Vibrava was absolutely no slouch.

Its size far exceeded that of others of its species. At one meter sixty, with those two pairs of powerful wings, carrying Baimu while flying would not even be a problem. It might know few moves, but which among Rock Slide, Earth Power, Stomping Tantrum, and Bug Buzz was weak?

Sand Tomb and Supersonic included, they would surely produce miraculous effects in the right environment.

It truly deserved to be a cadre's partner. Even though it was clearly not a main Pokémon, it still possessed such outstanding combat power.

Aron had only managed to gain a slight advantage in their earlier battle because Vibrava had been arrogant, careless, and underestimated its opponent. With a Trainer directing it, it surely would not have ended up in such a state.

Come to think of it, the combat strength of each rank within the Quicksand Team was surprisingly well organized.

From what Baimu had heard from others, ordinary members usually had Pokémon no higher than level twenty or thirty. Any higher, and Pokémon became much less obedient.

The docile ones might occasionally still listen, but they would battle according to their own ideas. Pokémon as unruly as Ash's Charizard would simply refuse to fight at important moments, no matter how much you tried to persuade them.

At the Squad Leader level, Pokémon were generally around level forty.

A cadre's main Pokémon were basically above level fifty.

The Pokémon of high-ranking cadres stood another step above that. Rumor had it that they generally surpassed the major thresholds of level fifty-five or even sixty, making them exceptionally terrifying.

As for how strong the Quicksand Team's boss at the highest level was, no one knew.

Of course, that was not absolute. There were always outstanding and unusual individuals, like Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators in immortal cultivation novels who could fight Golden Core Stage cultivators. Still, most combat power followed this pattern.

However, the Quicksand Team members participating in next week's competition were basically only as strong as regular members, with none exceeding that level.

"There's still a lot of work to do."

Baimu could not help smiling as he watched the three Pokémon let down their guards and play without a care.

Beep beep beep—

The piercing sound interrupted them.

"Time's up, everyone." Baimu patted the dust off himself. "Happy times are always especially short. It's time for us to go home."

The three Pokémon looked at each other. Though somewhat reluctant, they slowly gathered around him.

He recalled the three Pokémon with Poké Balls, then gave a start when he opened the door.

"Huh?"

By the door, Otsuka was riding Donphan and intensely playing a strange handheld game console. The moment he saw Baimu come out, he stopped. "Finished?"

"You stayed by the door the whole time?" Baimu looked at him strangely. "You didn't go have fun?"

Otsuka shook the game console. "I came back after buying this. There were too many tempting things around, and I was worried that once I started buying, I wouldn't be able to stop."

When nearly every Trainer lived paycheck to paycheck, it was truly not easy for Otsuka's family to have at least two million in savings. They must have resisted many temptations.

"Want to play?"

"No."

Baimu declined the man's kind offer. Realizing that Otsuka had waited outside for more than an hour, he could not help feeling a little embarrassed.

But there was no helping it. Some private matters absolutely could not be shown to outsiders. Having an extra person inside would also make it harder for him to connect with his Pokémon.

The two set off on their way back.

Since it was just noon, Baimu treated Otsuka to a meal at the restaurant they had visited last time and brought up the loan as well.

"I definitely have to pay interest. Taking advantage of someone isn't right; even brothers need to settle accounts clearly. As for how much interest... how much do you want?"

"I really don't want any—okay, since I paid eight hundred eighty thousand, how about rounding it up to nine hundred thousand? As for the loan period... ten years?"

"Ten years?"

"Twenty years would be fine too!" Thinking Baimu was unhappy, Otsuka hurriedly waved his hands. "Twenty-five years, thirty years..."

"One year."

He tapped the table. "Just one year. I'll return the full nine hundred thousand, principal and interest included."

Otsuka opened his mouth, then quickly shut it again without saying anything.

Baimu raised an eyebrow. "You don't believe me?"

"Repaying nine hundred thousand in a year, no matter how you put it..." Otsuka muttered awkwardly, not daring to meet his eyes.

That money had not been saved by Otsuka alone. It included savings from his entire family, even his grandparents' generation. They had only managed to save that much with great difficulty, yet Baimu said he would repay it within a year?

"Don't worry. If I said one year, then it's one year."

Baimu said in an unquestionable tone, "Once I learn how to write an IOU in a couple of days, I'll write one for you."

"Ah? Okay..."

Otsuka nodded, hesitated, then asked tentatively, "Can you really earn that much within a year?"

"You'll find out when the time comes."

He did not elaborate. With the simulator, if he could not earn a million within a year, that would be far too pathetic. It was not like he was talking about one or two hundred million.

Unexpectedly, Otsuka's eyes lit up at those words. "Could you take me with you?"

"I wasn't talking about doing business... Fine. If there's an opportunity, I'll bring you along."

Baimu said it casually.

At present, he still did not trust Otsuka completely, but weren't tools better in greater numbers? As long as they were paid enough.