An entire morning passed in the blink of an eye.
That was a lie. It wasn't a blink at all.
Xia Chi felt that in all forty years of his two lives combined, he had never endured such a long, agonizing morning.
Just holding a horse stance had nearly killed Xia Chi, a fragile college student.
Floragato and Kubfu, roped into keeping him company, naturally had a much easier time. They had Pokémon physiques, after all.
And at times like these, Victini's importance really shone through.
A gentle stream of energy flowed into Xia Chi, instantly dispelling the burning pain and heaviness in his muscles. His depleted strength welled up again like spring water.
Watching Victini emerge from invisibility, even the composed Mustard couldn't keep a trace of surprise from his eyes.
He had sensed a Pokémon lurking invisibly beside Xia Chi all along. He simply hadn't expected it to be one like this-one he had never seen before!
With over seventy years behind him, Mustard was practically a walking Pokédex. If even he had never seen it, this Pokémon was probably more than merely rare.
Still, this clearly wasn't the time for questions like that. Mustard pretended he hadn't seen anything and continued supervising Xia Chi's horse stance training.
"Stop!"
Mustard's shout sounded like heavenly music to Xia Chi.
He deflated almost instantly, his legs buckling beneath him as he teetered on the verge of collapsing.
Yet the close encounter with the ground he had expected never came.
A small, furry yet remarkably strong paw pressed firmly against his waist, supporting his falling body with perfect timing.
"Thanks, Floragato."
Xia Chi thanked Floragato weakly, but when he turned his head, he saw surprise in those eyes.
"Flora."
[It wasn't me. I hadn't even had time yet.]
Xia Chi turned