"Ugh, too much! It's overflowing!"
Shiyu was fiddling with the energy cube machine when something seemed to go wrong. Juice splattered during the process and ended up all over her face.
"So sticky..." she muttered, touching her cheek. Then she stuck the juice-covered finger into her mouth, looking slightly dissatisfied.
Soon after, the machine stopped whirring. Rick saw a batch of small pink cubes drop into the tray below.
"Is this a success?" he asked, picking one up. The cube was translucent pink, looked a bit like jelly but firm, and gave off a sweet peach-like aroma.
Shiyu popped one in her mouth and chewed slowly. "Probably added too much Sitrus Berry. Not perfect, but it works."
She gathered the cubes into a small palm-sized box and handed it to Rick.
"Here."
"Thanks." Rick looked at the box and offered, "Let me transfer the money to you—those berries aren't cheap."
"No need." Shiyu shook her head gently and said seriously,
"Just promise me one thing."
"What is it?"
Seeing her rare serious expression, Rick straightened up and adjusted his posture.
"Go ahead."
"Come with me to the mall tomorrow afternoon."
Shiyu's eyes curved into adorable crescents.
"To be my bag boy."
Rick instantly relaxed and looked speechless.
"Here I thought you were going to ask me for something big."
"So what were you expecting?"
Shiyu gave him a playful look.
"Hmm? Don't tell me you were thinking something lewd?"
"Probably a thousand times more lewd than what you're thinking," Rick said seriously.
Shiyu's face instantly turned crimson.
"Pervert Ye!"
After being kicked out by the red-faced Shiyu, Rick returned home, took a shower, and stayed in his study late into the night reading about Pokémon.
"The stronger a Pokémon is, the more skills it can pass down to its offspring, both in quantity and success rate."
"Inherited skills from parents may remain dormant depending on the offspring's strength, only reawakening once it reaches a certain level."
Rick's eyes drifted to the Pokéball on his desk.
So Charmander might have inherited more than just Dragon Dance?
It was just a hunch—there was no real evidence.
Time flew by, and by midnight, he closed his book, washed up, and went to bed.
The Next Day
After breakfast, Rick arrived at the sports center.
As he and Charmander began their usual warm-up, he noticed a clear improvement in Charmander's stamina. It wasn't even panting after a two-hour run—just a bit sweaty.
Still, Rick generously fed it a few energy cubes.
"Garh!"
Charmander's body glowed faintly red, its spirit instantly revived.
"Wow, that's potent."
Rick was surprised. No wonder energy cubes were pricey and in high demand—looks like the cost is justified.
After warming up, they headed to the training room for skill practice.
Since he'd chosen the melee path for Charmander, Rick wanted it to fully master Dragon Dance.
At its current strength, it could only maintain the technique for around 15 seconds before running out of stamina.
But skills had proficiency levels. Frequent use improved duration and reduced energy drain.
Rick pulled out his phone and started the timer.
"Charmander, Dragon Dance!"
"Raaaah!"
Charmander's body was enveloped in intertwining purple and red light, its aura surging upward.
After a while, the glow faded, and Charmander collapsed to the floor, panting.
Rick glanced at his phone—23 seconds.
A clear improvement, maybe thanks to both practice and the energy cubes.
"Nice work."
He gave Charmander a few more cubes to help it recover.
A few minutes later, Charmander was back on its feet. Once Rick confirmed it was okay, they began close combat training.
Boom.
Another battered training post collapsed. Rick noticed Charmander's Scratch attack had become sharper—its claws now had a metallic sheen.
"Wait a second…"
He pointed at a fresh post.
"Keep going—use Scratch, just like before!"
Charmander nodded and dashed to the new target. Its claws slashed rapidly, shredding the post like paper. The metallic sheen on its claws gleamed brightly, as if they were made of steel.
"Metal Claw?!"
Rick finally confirmed his suspicion.
This wasn't just Scratch—this was unmistakably the Steel-type move, Metal Claw. No wonder the posts were getting torn up so easily. Charmander's talent really was something—picking up new moves so quickly.
"Alright, Charmander, take a break."
It was now 12:30. Looking at the wood chips scattered everywhere, Rick called for a pause.
Charmander stopped, clearly tired as well.
"We'll grab a bite nearby for lunch today."
Rick had brought Pokémon food with him and planned to extend training until around 6 p.m. So he wasn't planning on heading home midday.
However, since he'd promised Shiyu he'd accompany her to the mall, he intended to cut the session short at 3 p.m.
Just as he was thinking about what to eat, his phone rang—it was a call from Shiyu.
Is she calling now because it's time to shop already?
"Hello?" Rick answered.
"Rick, where in the sports center are you?"
"I'm at the Pokémon training room, just about to grab lunch—"
Click.
She hung up before he could finish.
"Huh?"
Rick stared at the phone.
"What was that?"
Before he could make sense of it, he stepped out of the training room with Charmander and immediately saw a familiar figure at the trainer's entrance, looking around.
When she spotted him, her eyes lit up, and she jogged over joyfully. Her waist-length black hair flowed gently, soft and glossy like satin.
"You came here?!"
Rick was stunned to see Shiyu standing there.