The Best Helper

Baimu knew full well how stupid Shibata was.

But he had not expected him to be this stupid.

He clearly had Pokémon to help him, yet just to vent his anger, he had disregarded his current predicament entirely. Worse, his companions had not only failed to stop him, but had even become his accomplices.

"The cart tracks ahead are there for a reason. Now he's reaping what he sowed. It's just my old brothers who have to suffer."

Baimu sighed from his hiding place around the corner.

Not far away, in the remaining passageways of Jade Mine, the relatively spacious area was occupied by a large number of ferocious-looking Pokémon.

Shibata and his companions huddled trembling behind a Rhyhorn, their backs pressed against a narrow, cramped corner. Yet despite their terror, they continued frantically squeezing backward.

As though they could force their way through the rock wall and escape alive.

Several other people of unclear condition lay sprawled across the ground, covered in wounds. The many bloodstains, clearly visible even within the dim cave, made one's heart tremble.

Even in the Pokémon World, excessive blood loss or severe injuries still carried a considerable chance of immediate death. Rhyhorn and those Pokémon were currently locked in a standoff, but who knew how long it would last.

He had to get them out as soon as possible...

But who would dare go out in a situation like this?

Baimu found himself in a difficult spot. Though he had prepared a backup plan, it was not enough to bring everyone out safely. Not to mention, he had intended for the entire group to pass the assessment and strengthen his side's forces.

Crawl forward? Sneak in and shoot without a sound?

Hurry up and start fighting already.

Then he could enter amid the chaos. If nothing else, he could at least secure a whole chunk of jade and guarantee that he passed.

Baimu slowly took a deep breath and waited for an opportunity.

Rhyhorn probably could not hold on much longer. Sooner or later, one of the Pokémon would launch a probing attack, just like a pride of lions hunting.

"Guh."

The crisp cry exploded beside his ear like a thunderclap.

For an instant, Baimu's heart nearly stopped. He stiffly turned his head and saw a small, somewhat familiar figure nearby.

At the edge of his vision, he could vaguely see that two Loudred in the Jade Mine passage had heard the cry. They curiously turned around and started coming this way.

You! Me!

Baimu and the approaching Aron stared wide-eyed at each other. Filled with helplessness and regret, he pulled a small purple ball from his pocket.

But before he could do anything, the little bastard that had ruined his plans calmly walked past him and came face-to-face with the two approaching Loudred, as casually as if it were strolling down the street.

"Guh!"

"Gomph?"

The Loudred exchanged glances, scratched their heads, then turned around and left.

They had thought it was an assessment participant hiding nearby, but it was just some little thing like this. What a letdown.

Bullying scaredy-cats was more fun. They were practically about to wet themselves! Hahaha!

The two Loudred ran back excitedly, shouting encouragement from the outskirts to cheer on the Pokémon at the front.

Aron watched their backs, looking as though they feared the world would not become chaotic enough. A trace of disdain flashed through its azure eyes before it turned around and returned to where Baimu was hiding.

"Guh!"

"..."

Baimu said nothing. The way he looked at Aron was rather strange.

Had this thing just helped him out?

Why?

He quietly moved away from the Jade Mine passage and beckoned to Aron, testing whether it would follow him.

It really followed him!

Seeing Aron slowly approach like a puppy, Baimu's heart trembled slightly. He quickly went to a corner far from the other Pokémon and silently crouched down.

He did not understand what it was thinking, but it probably meant no harm. In that case, rashly testing it with a Poké Ball would be foolish. He should try communicating first.

He took off his mask and said, "Thanks for helping me just now."

"Guh."

Aron stopped before Baimu and raised its head slightly. It looked even more like a well-behaved big dog, aside from the strange armor covering its body.

After thinking for a moment, Baimu took out the iron ingot hidden against his chest and gave it a shake. "Do you want this?"

"Guh?"

Aron froze. After visibly hesitating for two seconds, it nodded.

It wore an expression that said, I guess I want this?

Hm?

Baimu was stunned as well. "You don't want this? Then why did you follow me?"

"Guh!"

Aron extended a little claw and pointed at the iron ingot.

Liar!

You were clearly confused just now. You came up with that excuse on the spot, didn't you?

Still, Pokémon in the animated version were absurdly intelligent. It had understood what he said so easily.

Or perhaps this Aron possessed Natural Talent?

Baimu wanted to ask more questions, but Uproar suddenly sounded from the direction of the Jade Mine passage, accompanied by faint explosions.

They started fighting!?

"Um... Aron, I'd like to ask you for a favor." He quickly explained his request, saying he was willing to use the iron ingot as payment, and that if it was not enough, he would buy more for it after they got out.

After speaking, he worried that he had talked too fast for it to understand, so he had no choice but to calm down and carefully repeat everything.

"...Guh."

Under Baimu's expectant gaze, Aron agreed without much hesitation.

The two quietly returned to the tunnel from before.

However, the scene inside the Jade Mine passage greatly surprised Baimu. At some point, a Plate carved with a red serpent totem had appeared between Rhyhorn and the group of Pokémon.

The serpent's head had shattered and flown out, connected by a strand of black, unknown substance that emitted an eerie sound.

"Disss!"

It was actually a Galarian Runerigus... Were they negotiating?

He exchanged glances with Aron. The latter nodded, then ran in on its four short legs, bit the clothing of someone lying on the ground, and pulled with all its strength.

A Pokémon turned to glance at it, then turned back as though it had seen nothing.

There was a rule against continuing to attack unconscious humans. Besides, bullying them was not interesting, and once this was over, they would have to carry them out anyway.

No one could be bothered to care.

Just like that.

"You're amazing."

Overcome with excitement, Baimu could not help patting its head. Only after withdrawing his hand did he realize that his action had been somewhat reckless.

Aron seemed startled too. It blankly stared at him, its azure eyes wide and round.

But the awkward moment lasted only an instant.

A colleague's faint groan broke the silence. Baimu hurriedly checked on him, while Aron continued moving the remaining people.

The situation was not good.

Although humans in the Pokémon World were physically tough, Shibata's group had clearly beaten these people half to death. Their consciousness was muddled, and they could not wake up at all.

All Baimu could do was observe their basic condition, check their pulses and breathing, and perform a little treatment to keep them from dying underground.

Hopefully, the others were not in such bad shape. Otherwise, things would become very troublesome.

Baimu let out a deep sigh.

Suddenly.

He stopped moving and turned to look behind him, catching sight of a sneaky black silhouette.

Another participant?

The person seemed to be hesitating over whether to come closer. Their headlamp was off, and their shifting movements in the darkness were somewhat frightening.

Baimu narrowed his eyes and barely made out their features. Then he looked toward the Jade Mine passage, confirmed that no one besides Aron, which was diligently dragging people away, was paying attention to him, and decisively flashed his headlamp twice.

The figure paused.

Then it silently and swiftly approached. The way it charged over made it look like a ghost.

Once the person came within roughly five meters, their appearance was revealed.

A bloodstained face was covered by a damaged mask, while a pair of eyes shone with startling brightness.

"Baimu!"

Cheng Hong called out excitedly.

"Shh!"

Baimu covered Cheng Hong's mouth and seriously shook his head.

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