In the clearing outside the thatched cottage, Guo Yi and Su Qingxue stood facing each other.
"Teacher, my Nidoran♀ has already mastered [Hone Claws]. You're going down for sure."
Su Qingxue declared boldly, her face brimming with confidence.
She knew her teacher's command skills were impressive, but her own Nidoran♀ had [Hone Claws] now—and Guo Yi's Nidoran♂ had only just been caught.
So this time, Su Qingxue was absolutely certain of victory.
"Oh?"
"Then don't come crying when you lose."
Guo Yi replied with an easy smile.
"Hmph!"
"Don't blame me for not holding back, then!"
Irritated by Guo Yi's dismissive tone, Su Qingxue called out sharply:
"Nidoran♀, use [Hone Claws]!"
Na-na!
Nidoran♀ stretched out her claws, scraping them against the ground as dark-type energy began coursing through her body.
In an instant—
Not only did her claws gleam sharper, her eyes turned fierce and focused.
"Nidoran♂, charge!"
"Use [Hone Claws]!"
Even as Su Qingxue issued her command, Guo Yi responded immediately.
But unlike Nidoran♀, who used the move standing still, Guo Yi had Nidoran♂ merge the [Hone Claws] buff into his approach—building momentum as he powered forward.
By the time the move finished, Nidoran♂ would be in striking range, ready to attack.
Su Qingxue's eyes widened in shock when she saw how smoothly Nidoran♂ executed the move.
Seeing her momentary distraction, Guo Yi reminded her sternly:
"Qingxue, losing focus in battle is a fatal mistake!"
"Nidoran♂, use [Poison Jab]!"
Before Su Qingxue could react, Nidoran♂ was already in position.
Wang wang!
Nidoran♂ raised his gleaming, freshly sharpened claws, now coated in thick poison-type energy.
Bang!
The Poison Jab struck cleanly, launching Nidoran♀ backwards through the air.
"Nidoran♀!"
Su Qingxue cried out in alarm.
Na-na!
Nidoran♀ managed to stop herself from tumbling further and turned to call back reassuringly.
Though she looked a little battered, the hit hadn't done much damage.
Poison-type attacks didn't deal heavy damage to fellow poison-types, and with the [Eviolite] she carried, her defenses were significantly boosted.
Su Qingxue let out a long breath of relief.
Thank goodness. If Nidoran♀ had been taken out in one hit, that would've been humiliating.
"Nidoran♀, let's show him what we're made of!"
"Charge! Use [Iron Tail]!"
Determined to regain momentum, Su Qingxue launched her counterattack.
"Na-na!"
Though the blow hadn't hurt too badly, the pain was still real. Gritting her teeth, Nidoran♀'s tail glowed with a brilliant white light as she dashed toward Nidoran♂.
As a move passed down genetically, [Iron Tail] was one Nidoran♀ had already mastered far better than [Hone Claws].
And now she was striking back with full force.
If it hit, Nidoran♂ would be in real trouble.
Luckily—
Having grown up in the wild, Nidoran♂ had a special trick up his sleeve.
"Nidoran♂, [Dig]!"
Just as Nidoran♀ closed the gap, Guo Yi ordered Nidoran♂ to burrow underground.
Suddenly blinded to her target's location, Nidoran♀ froze, glancing around in confusion.
"Stay calm, Nidoran♀," Su Qingxue urged.
"Try to feel the vibrations in the ground."
She'd watched countless battle videos where opponents countered [Dig] using [Earthquake]. The second-best option was to sense the moment of the enemy's attack and strike back precisely.
Unfortunately, her Nidoran♀ hadn't learned [Earthquake] yet.
So she'd opted for the more difficult method.
But—
That tactic required significant battle experience.
Counterattacks always hinged on anticipation. If you couldn't predict the move, you had no way to respond in time.
And Nidoran♀, raised in the comfort of a garden-like environment, clearly lacked such experience.
Suddenly, Nidoran♂ burst out from behind her, landing a devastating hit to her back.
"Na-na!"
Nidoran♀ cried out in pain, then collapsed, unable to stand.
"Nidoran♀!"
Su Qingxue cried out again and rushed forward to check on her.
Nidoran♂ trotted back to Guo Yi's side like a triumphant general.
"Wang wang!"
(See that? I'm amazing!)
For some reason—
Ever since becoming Guo Yi's Pokémon, Nidoran♂ had started dreaming about battles under his trainer's command every night.
Even the move Hone Claws—he'd learned that in a dream.
That was the effect of the [Nidoking Template].
It enhanced Nidoran♂ in every aspect, gradually raising his strength.
Which was why, even though this was his first time teaming up with Guo Yi, the two already moved with uncanny coordination.
At that moment, Guo Yi used 300 [Trainer Points] from the system to redeem a bottle of high-grade healing spray and stepped forward.
"Qingxue, here. Use this to treat Nidoran♀'s injuries."
Su Qingxue accepted the bottle and gently sprayed it on Nidoran♀'s wounds.
There was no doubt—
If it came from the system, it had to be top quality.
Sure enough—
Before long, Nidoran♀ stirred and slowly opened her eyes.
Still, the sting of defeat weighed heavily on her, and her spirits were low.
"Nidoran♀, remember—failure is the mother of success."
"Don't let one or two losses shake your confidence."
Guo Yi offered her a Pokéblock and coaxed her gently.
Su Qingxue added encouragingly, "Yeah! You did really well out there!"
"If anything, it was my fault."
"And besides, we're students—losing to our teacher isn't something to be ashamed of!"
With both of them comforting her, Nidoran♀'s eyes brightened. She chomped down the Pokéblock, and her energy began to return.
"Qingxue, what you just said is right."
"But in that battle, you also revealed a few key weaknesses."
Now that Nidoran♀ was okay, Guo Yi began breaking down the flaws in Su Qingxue's strategy.
"As a trainer, losing focus during a battle is a serious mistake."
"Just look—because you spaced out, Nidoran♀ lost her advantage."
Su Qingxue pouted in protest.
"Teacher, there's no way that Nidoran♂ is a Pokémon you just caught yesterday."
"Otherwise, how could he already know [Hone Claws]?"
In her mind, there was no doubt—this Nidoran♂ had been secretly trained.
Otherwise, how could they be so perfectly in sync?
She even began to suspect the true origin of that Nidoking.
Maybe it wasn't some wild catch at all, but a powerful Pokémon passed down by one of her teacher's ancestors. After all, what kind of wild Pokémon becomes that obedient just from a few snacks?
That... would explain why someone with his skill is hiding out in a small mountain village.