The storm had raged for a long time. Its intensity was starting to wane, but it remained violent.
Aomori could clearly see a Pidgeotto flying gracefully against the wind, completely self-possessed in the tempest. Every time a fierce gust struck, it would miraculously stabilize its body seconds later.
"Interesting." The Pidgeotto's miraculous movements successfully piqued Aomori's interest.
"You two stay here and don't move. I'm going to go meet it," Aomori said before leaping out of the cave. Absol followed close behind.
"Huh?" Vale and Jack watched Aomori's retreating figure, slightly bewildered. The Pokémon inside the cave, however, looked visibly relieved.
Aomori moved through the forest like a phantom, traversing the terrain until he reached a high slope near the Pidgeotto's position. Without breaking his stride, he stepped directly off the edge of the slope. Absol moved in perfect synchronicity.
As he fell, a pillar shot up from the ground, perfectly positioning itself to support Aomori.
It was the 13 Totem Pole.
In this way, Aomori steadily gained on the Pidgeotto in the air until he was on the same level as it.
"Pidgeotto, let's battle. If you lose, become my partner," Aomori shouted toward the Pidgeotto.
The Pidgeotto looked at Aomori and the pillar beneath his feet with surprise. 'Hmph, humans just love using flashy tools. Not like us Pokémon, we are born to fly.'
Its gaze drifted past Aomori and landed on Absol, its expression becoming even more disdainful.
It spun lightly and changed its direction to fly with the wind. A flap of its wings unleashed a torrent of wind similar to the surrounding gale, blasting toward Aomori.
It was a Gust!
Aomori pulled out a sword, plunged it into the Totem Pole, and used his other hand to grip Absol, struggling to resist the wind pressure.
The Pidgeotto circled Aomori, seemingly mocking him in silence.
Aomori resisted the wind pressure while simultaneously paying attention to the Pidgeotto's flight patterns, waiting for an opportunity.
Absol's agile eyes were locked onto the Pidgeotto. It seemed to have been deeply moved by the Pidgeotto's smooth movements.
In the thick, dark clouds overhead, silver snakes of lightning coursed. Aomori suddenly sensed something and leaped backward. The next second, a thick, winding silver line struck the Totem Pole.
Blinding light scattered. The Pidgeotto, which had been intently watching the Totem Pole, couldn't help but close its eyes.
An opportunity! Knight of Owner activated!
Aomori, suspended mid-air, swung Absol in a circle and hurled it toward the Pidgeotto.
Absol had become a large, Noble Phantasm-grade projectile.
Pidgeotto suddenly felt an unusual wind pressure approaching and knew something was wrong. A flash of white light covered its body as it instinctively used Quick Attack, narrowly dodging Absol.
As they crossed paths, Absol's horn glowed white and flung several blades of wind, hitting the Pidgeotto dead center. Absol had learned Razor Wind!
However, Absol's level was not high, and the newly acquired Razor Wind wasn't powerful enough to knock the Pidgeotto out of battle; it only caused it to momentarily freeze.
Just as the Pidgeotto felt relieved, a new shadow enveloped it. Aomori had somehow appeared above it, holding the sword with both hands, his body wreathed in flames, and he smashed down hard onto the Pidgeotto.
The man and both Pokémon tumbled downward.
Aomori stabilized himself, landing on a newly raised Totem Pole. He first recalled Absol into its Poké Ball, then threw an empty Poké Ball to capture the Pidgeotto.
Cling! Cling! Duang!
The Poké Ball landed on the ground, flashed twice, and then went still. Aomori had successfully caught the Pidgeotto.
He recalled the Totem Pole and examined it carefully, relieved to find only one segment slightly charred and no other abnormalities.
After this battle, he felt the 13 Totem Pole were even more useful. Losing them to damage would have been a significant setback.
Aomori picked up the Poké Ball and released both Pidgeotto and Absol.
Pidgeotto still seemed a bit resentful, turning its head away from him. Aomori paid it no mind and first used Lesser Healing Spell to treat Absol.
"Absol, your performance this time was excellent." Aomori didn't mention to Absol the part where he risked attracting the lightning and used it as a projectile. The fact that it remained calm enough to injure Pidgeotto with Razor Wind showed truly astonishing battle instincts.
Absol lifted its head slightly, its eyes narrowed, showing a hint of small pride and satisfaction.
"Pidgeotto!" Pidgeotto cried out stubbornly. If it hadn't been momentarily careless, there was no way Absol could have hurt it.
Besides, its injuries were primarily caused by its new Trainer. 'Hmph, if he can injure me, I'll begrudgingly accept him as my Trainer for now.'
Humans who could engage in close-quarters combat with Pokémon like Aomori were truly rare, and the proud Pidgeotto had to admit he was incredible.
Aomori understood Pidgeotto's meaning, shook his head, healed its injuries, and checked its information in the system.
"It's already level 24, its Ability is Keen Eye, and it has learned Tackle, Sand-Attack, Gust, Quick Attack, and Whirlwind. Its core stats are significantly stronger than Absol's, it's nearly on par with me." Aomori was reasonably satisfied.
Ding!
[Do you wish to spend 10,000 Points to unlock the Pet Slot early?]
"Yes."
Ding!
[Do you wish to establish a Pet Contract with the Pokémon Pidgeotto? Note: Canceling the contract requires payment of a certain amount of Points.]
"Yes."
Ding!
[Player Aomori has established a Pet Contract with the Pokémon Pidgeotto. Congratulations! Congratulations!]
Pidgeotto looked at Aomori with a confused expression. It suddenly found him much more appealing. 'If he wants to stroke my shiny feathers, I suppose I'll reluctantly let him.'
Aomori checked the system and saw that unlocking the third Pet Slot early would cost a staggering 50,000 Points, a fivefold increase!
The good news was that a Pet Slot would still unlock upon reaching Level 15, not Level 25.
Looking at his remaining 6,883 Points, Aomori deeply felt the difficulty of "earning money" and his passion for monster slaying increased once again.
...
The heavy rain gradually thinned. Aomori returned to the cave with Absol and Pidgeotto.
Vale and Jack were waiting anxiously at the cave entrance. They finally relaxed when they saw Aomori. From afar, the lightning, thunder, and strange rising pillar had made them extremely uneasy.
Jack saw the Pidgeotto next to Aomori and the questions burst out of him like machine gun fire: "Pidgeotto? Was that Pidgeotto just now? You went out to catch it?"
Aomori nodded, walked past them, and returned to the campfire. Absol and Pidgeotto also found spots near the heat.
They were all soaked during the fight and felt sticky and uncomfortable; they needed to dry off.
Vale looked at the sharp-eyed, seemingly heroic Pidgeotto, recalling how it had flown so freely in the storm. He knew immediately that Aomori had caught another formidable Pokémon, and he was filled with envy.
Jack moved closer to Pidgeotto, intending to try and stroke its feathers, but Pidgeotto's fierce, sharp gaze immediately scared him away.
When the rain stopped completely and Aomori and his Pokémon were mostly dry, it was time to part ways.
"I'm heading to Viridian City. Until we meet again," Aomori said and left the cave without waiting for a reply.
Vale's shout followed him from behind.
"Aomori, I'm going to train hard to prove to you that I was right!"
Aomori waved his hand, leaving them with his retreating back.
After a long silence, Jack said, "I actually think Aomori made a good point. From now on, I'm going to train my Pokémon to fight on their own."
"Fine! Let's see who's stronger at the Indigo Plateau Conference in three months!" Vale replied, completely undaunted.
"It's a deal!"
"It's a deal!"