Chapter 65: Consuming the Salac Berry

Chapter 65: Consuming the Salac Berry

The next day.

Although he really wanted to sleep in, Basalt and Drilbur's biological clocks were already set. They woke up naturally before seven o'clock. The problem was, Basalt's flight was in the afternoon, and everything was already packed, leaving them with nothing to do in the morning.

After lazing on the sofa, petting Drilbur and watching some TV, Basalt still felt too bored. He couldn't help it; he was so used to being diligent that now that he suddenly had free time, he felt a little out of sorts. Thinking of this, Basalt was almost moved to tears by his own hard work.

"Well, since I have the time now, I should have the little mole eat the Salac Berry."

With a slap to his forehead, Basalt opened his dimensional bag and took out a small wooden box.

He opened the box. Inside was a fruit that resembled a cactus, about the size of a fist. Its surface was bumpy and covered in small knobs, with a yellow protrusion on top.

This was the Salac Berry.

According to legend, this fruit had very high environmental requirements, only growing in places with rich elemental energy. And each time, the number of fruits it bore was very small, which led to its rarity. It wasn't like the Oran Berry, which could survive as long as the soil was a little fertile and had a high yield, making it very cheap.

Thinking about it this way, Basalt felt that his family's Oran Berries were quite unimpressive.

"Chari~"

At this moment, Drilbur was still hugging the Ground Gem, refusing to let go. Even when Basalt placed the Salac Berry by its mouth, the little guy was too lazy to open it. In terms of attraction, the Ground Gem was still more appealing to the little mole.

With no other choice, while the little mole wasn't paying attention, Basalt snatched the Ground Gem away and said with a grin, "Drilbur, don't just cling to the Type Gem all day. You need to learn to have a balanced diet. Here, try this first."

"Chari~~"

Drilbur was slightly dissatisfied, but it still twitched its big red nose and sniffed at the Salac Berry. The little mole could sense that the benefit of this fruit to it might not be any less than the Ground Gem.

In that case, I, the Mole Emperor, will reluctantly eat it.

Nom, nom, nom…

Drilbur held the Salac Berry and took a few big bites. The fruit instantly became juicy, dripping all over the little mole's face and claws.

"Eat it all. Don't waste any of the fruit pulp or juice!"

Basalt watched, his heart aching.

"Chari~" (0ДQ)

Just after finishing it, Drilbur felt a warmth spread through its body, as if a fire was burning in its stomach. The pores all over its body seemed to open up. Sweat began to bead on its head, and it started to feel hot.

Seeing Drilbur a little disoriented, Basalt quickly went over to comfort it. "Don't be nervous! This should be the Salac Berry starting to take effect. After the effect wears off, your speed should be improved."

When he received the Salac Berry, the staff at the government treasury had explained its effects and how it worked, so Basalt wasn't surprised. According to the staff's explanation, 80% of the berry's effect would be seen within 2 hours, while the remaining 20% would be stored in the Pokémon's body and take effect slowly over a long period of time.

"Chari~"

Drilbur wiped the sweat from its forehead. Its face was flushed, and its steps were unsteady, staggering around like a drunkard.

"You should just lie down obediently."

With no other choice, Basalt picked Drilbur up and placed it on its sand bed. Soon, the little mole fell asleep.

Half an hour later, the heat from its body began to gradually dissipate.

An hour later, its breathing became steady, and its body temperature returned to normal.

Two hours later, the little mole slowly woke up.

"Chari~" (～￣▽￣)～

Waking up from its nap, Drilbur felt that it was in excellent condition. Not only was it refreshed, but it also felt as light as a swallow. All the previous discomfort had long since vanished.

"Come on, let's go outside for a little run!"

Seeing the little mole wake up, Basalt was overjoyed, his face full of expectation. I hope this Salac Berry can improve its speed by a lot!

Step one of Drilbur's extreme speed and physical attack build: start with extreme speed!

"Chari~"

Drilbur nodded, eager to try.

Basalt had always been keeping a record of Drilbur's speed. The test method was very simple: a 100-meter dash.

When Drilbur finished its lap around the open space and crossed the finish line, Basalt quickly pressed the stopwatch.

"Under 10 seconds?"

Basalt was overjoyed. The time displayed on the stopwatch was 9.83 seconds! Before consuming the Salac Berry, the little mole's best time was 12 seconds. This time, its speed had directly increased by twenty percent!

The key was that this was just Drilbur's base speed. Once it activated its Sand Rush ability, its speed would increase by another forty percent. By that calculation, its final speed should have been improved by about thirty percent in total.

"One Salac Berry has an effect of nearly thirty percent? Then with another two or three, wouldn't its speed be doubled?"

Basalt's eyes gleamed, and he unconsciously licked his lips. The champion of Seaside County was rewarded with a rare berry like the Salac Berry. Then if he became the number one in Metro City, what would the reward be?

"Let's set a small goal: pass the Metro City selections!"

Basalt and Drilbur exchanged a look, and both clenched their fists.

What was the point of hard training when you could just eat heavenly treasures and get stronger faster and more comfortably? Ever since Basalt had fed it the Smooth Rock Crystal and it had rapidly grown stronger, the little mole's perspective had also been broadened by Basalt.

"But it seems you can't eat too many fruits like the Salac Berry, right? The more of the same type of fruit you eat, the worse the effect will be, until it's completely ineffective."

But after thinking about it carefully, Basalt felt that this approach might not be very feasible. Besides, one Salac Berry had increased Drilbur's speed by twenty to thirty percent, possibly because it was still young and its speed wasn't very fast to begin with. If it were an Excadrill that consumed a Salac Berry, the speed increase would probably not even be ten percent.

Ring-ring-ring!

The Pokédex rang. Basalt answered the call and saw that it was from Ms. Anya.

"I just sent you the training method for the move 'Bulldoze.' The old principal specifically instructed me to give it to you after he learned that you won the championship."

The moment Anya spoke, Basalt was stunned.

A training method for Bulldoze? Bulldoze was the area-of-effect attack he had been dreaming of, capable of attacking all opponents within range. In addition, Bulldoze also had the effect of lowering the opponent's speed. On top of that, it was a same-type move for Drilbur. All three combined, it was absolutely perfect!

But more than Bulldoze, Basalt was concerned about something else. "Ms. Anya, even the old principal knows that I won the championship?" Basalt clicked his tongue in amazement.

His school's principal was named Albright. He had been the principal at Second High for thirty years and had even been rehired after retiring. By age, Principal Zhang should be from the same generation as "Granny Shu." Over the years, he had taught many outstanding students and could be said to have students all over the world. Dr. Martin from the Metro City Institute was also one of his students. However, as he got older, Principal Albright rarely appeared at the school anymore, but his tiger's might was still present, commanding respect and admiration.

"Of course, the old principal had to know about such a big event. You, my boy, are the only person to have broken First High's monopoly on the championship in the last ten years!" On the other end of the line, Anya had a smile in her voice. "You don't know, but after the old principal heard the news, he broke his rule and had a couple of glasses of liquor, then called me and told me to teach you well."

She was also very proud of having taught a student like Basalt!

"You probably don't have anything to do tomorrow, right? If not, come with me to visit the old principal. The old man has given you such a big gift; it wouldn't be right if you didn't go and thank him in person."

"Huh? Ms. Anya, I'm flying to Savanah Region this afternoon. I won't be back for five days," Basalt said, at a loss.

Visiting the old principal was indeed the right thing to do, but unfortunately, his desert trip to Prairie Province was like an arrow on a bowstring; it had to be released.

"Later is fine too. Let me know when you're back," Ms. Anya nodded, not insisting. Instead, she reminded him, "With Bulldoze, your Drilbur's moveset is now basically complete."

"From now on, you should spend more time deeply developing your Drilbur's skills. If you don't understand something, ask Coach Miles or me. We will do our best to assist you."

"Remember, don't bite off more than you can chew. When it comes to skills, it's about quality, not quantity."

Basalt nodded, deeply agreeing. "Don't worry, Ms. Anya. I know what I'm doing."

Too many skills can sometimes dilute a Pokémon's training time. It was better to deeply cultivate a few skills. This was the principle of being a master of one trade rather than a jack of all. This was also why powerful trainers often specialized in only one type.

After chatting for a little while longer, Ms. Anya hung up the phone.

And Basalt also slung his dimensional bag on his back, preparing to set off. Although his flight was at one in the afternoon, it would take him over an hour to get to the airport from his house. If he left now, it would be just right.

"Desert, here I come…"