Flygon nodded and immediately headed in that direction.
This was an area resembling a giant stone formation, with massive boulders scattered around. These rocks were embedded deep into the earth, their lower portions buried and connected to the ground, making them stable enough to withstand the strong winds of the plains.
At night, the plains were particularly windy, so having these giant rocks as cover was a great advantage.
…
"Steelix, how about showing off a bit of your strength?"
Nathan spoke to Steelix's Poké Ball.
Buzz—
The Poké Ball shook.
It was clear that Nathan had been rejected.
He didn't mind, though, and simply took out another Poké Ball. "Come on out, Mimikyu."
"Q~"
A cute little sound rang out as Mimikyu appeared before Nathan. As soon as it emerged, it nuzzled against Nathan's neck. Its chilly touch was actually kind of comforting—if not for the strong wind blowing around them.
Shivering slightly, Nathan patted Mimikyu on the head and smiled. "Alright, little guy. Get ready for battle. We won't be leaving until the entrance exam is over, so it's time to level up."
"Q~"
Mimikyu nodded, filled with fighting spirit.
Out of all of Nathan's Pokémon, this little one was currently the weakest.
It clearly wasn't satisfied with that.
After releasing Mimikyu, Nathan also let out the rest of his Pokémon, allowing them to roam freely nearby and practice new moves.
At the same time, he assigned Pangoro to continue its training—specifically, working on compressing its Energy Ball technique.
As for himself, he set off with Volcarona and Mimikyu to seek out battle opponents.
There were plenty of wild Pokémon on the plains.
But the most numerous, by far, were Tauros. No matter where you looked, Tauros could be seen grazing or roaming about.
Actually, Tauros were pretty good opponents for wild battles since most of them were naturally aggressive and enjoyed fighting to test their strength.
Unfortunately, the Pokémon Nathan wanted to train was the Ghost-type Mimikyu. After that incident with the Pidgeotto, he'd made up his mind—if he was going to train in the wild, he'd at least avoid type disadvantages. Otherwise, it would be too difficult for both him and Mimikyu.
A lot of moves wouldn't work properly or would be completely ineffective.
"What a shame. Wild Miltanks are way too rare," Nathan said with a sigh.
Miltank, in a sense, was the female counterpart to Tauros. Here's a little trivia—female Tauros are actually Miltanks, and male Miltanks are Tauros.
If he could catch a Miltank, it would also save him a ton on Pokémon nutrition expenses.
But this kind of Pokémon was typically monopolized by large corporations for profit. After all, Miltank milk was highly nutritious for both people and Pokémon, and its price wasn't cheap.
That's why big companies not only owned huge numbers of Miltanks but even formed dedicated "Miltank hunting teams" to capture wild ones all over.
"Huh? The Pokémon over there look pretty good," Nathan suddenly said with surprise.
Off in the distance, a group of Pokémon was leisurely making its way toward them. It was a herd of grass-type Skiddo and their evolved forms, Gogoat.
Looking at the nearby mountain range, Nathan quickly figured it out. "They're probably here to graze before heading back to their mountain habitat."
Gogoat usually lived in mountainous regions. Since there were mountains nearby, it made sense to see them here.
In terms of base stats, Gogoat wasn't a bad grass-type Pokémon to train.
Sensing their strength, Nathan estimated that they were around the advanced to commander level—perfect opponents for Mimikyu.
Considering the generally gentle nature of Gogoat, Nathan didn't attack right away. Instead, he approached calmly.
The Gogoat herd didn't panic when they saw him. Instead, they let out soft bleats and continued munching on grass.
Out in the wild, Nathan really liked these gentle Pokémon. In fact, many trainers did. No one wanted to bring them harm.
Sometimes, wild Pokémon like these could even save your life.
They might help guide you when you're lost, bring healing herbs when you're injured, or even share food with you.
Because of this, Nathan typically wouldn't attack kind-natured wild Pokémon outright. If he wanted to train, he'd ask first.
"Hey little ones, can I ask for a favor?"
Nathan smiled and asked one of the Gogoat, which was about his height.
The Gogoat looked at him curiously.
Nathan waved his hand, and Mimikyu floated over.
"I'd like my Pokémon to battle yours," he explained. "I want to train its strength. Don't worry—if you get hurt, I'll heal you. I'll even give you some tasty treats afterward."
As he spoke, he took out some Pokéblocks and offered them to the Gogoat and Skiddo.
They were low-quality, of course.
After all, this herd had more than a hundred members. With such numbers, it was no wonder they could live so safely in the wild.
With that many Pokémon, Nathan couldn't afford to give out anything too high-quality.
He was broke.
While eating the Pokéblocks, the lead Gogoat narrowed its eyes in delight and then nodded.
This one was clearly the leader of the herd. After it agreed, the rest of the Pokémon voiced their approval as well.
"Thank you all," Nathan said happily, patting the lead Gogoat's head. Then he backed away to create space.
Mimikyu floated in front of Nathan, ready for battle.
Sensing Mimikyu's fighting spirit, one Gogoat immediately stepped forward and let out a cry before charging in.
Its strong body surged forward, the horn on its head glowing a vibrant green.
Horn Leech attack.
This move not only dealt damage but also absorbed the target's energy to heal the user.
"Mimikyu, dodge!"
Nathan grinned. Now that the battle had begun, his excitement kicked in too.
"Double Shadow Ball!"
"Q~!"
Mimikyu swayed in the air, dodging the attack with a twist mid-air. It quickly formed two Shadow Balls in its hands and hurled them at Gogoat.
Direct hit.
Gogoat let out a pained cry.
But Mimikyu wasn't done.
It began charging up another round of Shadow Balls...
Buzz—
Shadow Balls were formed again and launched at Gogoat. Every one of them landed cleanly.
The fierce assault made Gogoat wince in pain, but it still didn't fall—it could still fight.
Letting out a loud cry, leaves started swirling around its body. With a sharp slicing sound, they shot toward Mimikyu.
"Dodge, then rush in! Finish it with Shadow Claw!"
Nathan calmly issued his command.
"Q~!"
Mimikyu had more than enough time to avoid the Razor Leaf attack. Its tiny body soared into the air and performed a lateral dodge to evade the leaves.
Then it charged at Gogoat. Sharp claws infused with ghostly energy appeared on both sides of its hands and slashed forward.
Gogoat let out a pained cry. After taking several hits, the burly creature finally collapsed, unable to continue the fight.
[Your Pokémon "Mimikyu" has won the battle and gained EXP!]
Hearing the system notification in his ear, Nathan smiled brightly. He praised Mimikyu and then quickly rushed over to Gogoat's side to heal it.
He used the Viridian Power, a glowing white energy that flowed into Gogoat's body. With the Pokémon's natural healing ability, it recovered quickly.
Though not fully healed, it was at about 70–80% already. It would just need some rest to fully bounce back.
"Thanks for your hard work, Gogoat."
Nathan smiled, handed it a Pokeblocks, and watched it munch happily.
After rubbing against Nathan's palm with a soft grunt, Gogoat returned to its herd.
A new Gogoat stepped out, ready to be Mimikyu's next opponent.
The battle was far from over.
Nathan calmed himself and continued issuing commands.
...
Time passed quietly, like a white horse galloping past a crack.
Day after day.
Nathan and Mimikyu continued searching for opponents on the plains, battling a new group every day, never once stopping.
In the blink of an eye, more than ten days had passed.
It was another clear morning.
The sun shone brightly—almost too brightly—casting warm light across the plains.
Nathan stood next to Pangoro, holding a notebook and pen. He wrote as he spoke.
"Pangoro, Energy Ball."
"Roar!"
Pangoro let out a bellow, gathering natural energy in its palm to form a massive Energy Ball.
This one was the size of a basketball—proof of Pangoro's recent progress. It could now form a much larger Energy Ball in the same amount of time it used to take for a regular-sized one. Its speed in absorbing natural energy had significantly improved.
Seeing the Energy Ball, Nathan couldn't hide his joy.
"Alright, next is compression training. Try compressing the Energy Ball—make it smaller without reducing the energy inside, got it?"
Honestly, a ball this big couldn't even fit into Pangoro's mouth in one go—its mouth just wasn't big enough.
So, compression training was absolutely necessary.
"Roar."
Pangoro scratched its head with one hand and nodded, beginning to try.
But soon, the Energy Ball suddenly dissipated.
Clearly, the compression had failed, and the natural energy had dispersed back into the environment. It would have to start over.
"Come on, Pangoro! Keep going! I believe in you!" Nathan encouraged as he gently patted Pangoro on the head.