Sunlight streamed through a gap in the curtains, casting a slender beam across the room. The person lying in bed turned over, raising a hand to shield their eyes as they blinked awake.
Stretching lazily in the morning light, Guo Yi got out of bed and headed off to wash up.
At that moment—
To his surprise, Su Qingxue was already waiting outside his door with breakfast in hand and Nidoran♀ by her side.
"Qingxue? You're here so early!"
Guo Yi greeted her with a hint of surprise.
Su Qingxue stuck out her tongue playfully. "It's mostly because of Nidoran♀—she was hungry!"
Guo Yi glanced down at the drowsy Nidoran♀ at her feet, who was still yawning incessantly. He chuckled wordlessly.
Noticing her excuse had been seen through, a faint blush crept onto Su Qingxue's cheeks.
She quickly urged, "Teacher, hurry up and eat. Breakfast won't taste good once it's cold!"
Guo Yi nodded. "Qingxue, wait inside for a bit. I need to prep breakfast for the Pokémon first."
With that, he pretended to busy himself to the side.
Su Qingxue didn't suspect anything and walked straight into the thatched cottage.
Seizing the opportunity while she wasn't looking, Guo Yi quickly exchanged for some Pokéblocks from the system.
The familiar aroma roused Nidoking from his sleep almost immediately.
He turned a hopeful gaze toward the Pokéblocks in Guo Yi's hand.
This Nidoking... am I spoiling him too much? Guo Yi eyed the punctual, food-anticipating Nidoking and began considering whether it was time to give him some actual tasks.
He tucked that thought away for now.
"Beedrill, this one's yours," he called, handing out food. "And this is for Nidorino and Nidoran. And for Nidoqueen…"
Despite being the first to wake up, Nidoking was the last to receive his share.
He looked ready to voice a complaint—
But before he could even open his mouth, one sharp glare from Nidoqueen had him swallowing it back down.
Once all the Pokémon were eating, Guo Yi returned indoors to enjoy his own breakfast.
Perhaps it was Su Qingxue's complete trust and admiration for him as a teacher—today's breakfast was even more generous than yesterday's.
After they had their fill, Guo Yi began assigning Su Qingxue the day's training plan.
"Qingxue, take these Pokéblocks with you."
He handed her a small pouch.
"Teacher, weren't we doing battle training with Nidoran♀ today?" she asked. "Are we learning new moves too?"
She recognized the pouch immediately—after all, yesterday's Dark-type Pokéblocks used to support Nidoran♀'s [Hone Claws] training had been kept in a similar one.
Guo Yi nodded and explained, "It's still battle training today. These Pokéblocks are for adding into her regular meals."
The Pokéblocks he handed her were designed to assist in learning Electric-type moves.
Among the moves Nidoran♀ could potentially learn, there were only two Electric-type attacks: [Thunderbolt] and [Thunder].
Both were a perfect match for the [Sheer Force] ability, and adding Electric-type coverage would greatly expand her offensive versatility.
Why are Nidoqueen and Nidoking with [Sheer Force] and [Life Orb] so terrifying?
It's not just because of the synergy between their ability and the item—it's also because of their broad move coverage.
In the game, their standard offensive set often includes [Earth Power], [Ice Beam], [Sludge Wave], and [Flamethrower]. Sometimes [Thunderbolt] or [Blizzard] are swapped in for better matchups.
These four primary moves hit Ground, Ice, Poison, and Fire types respectively—and each one packs a punch.
Even if they're not same-type moves, when boosted by [Sheer Force] and a [Life Orb], their damage can outpace that of Pokémon using STAB (same-type attack bonus) moves.
That's why Nidoking was considered a war god back in Gen I.
Back then, everyone ran a [Sheer Force] + [Life Orb] Nidoking.
Why?
Because it was just that strong.
However, Guo Yi didn't plan on teaching Nidoran♀ any of those four classic moves just yet. Instead, he opted for Electric-type training.
After all, there's a big gap between games and reality.
The biggest difference?
Flying-types.
In the games, Flying-type Pokémon don't have many mechanical advantages besides their type immunity.
But in reality—
They have one overwhelming edge:
Air superiority.
Countless battles had been decided by Flying-types leveraging their control of the skies and superior mobility to pull off miraculous underdog victories.
But once Nidoran♀ mastered an Electric-type move, she'd gain a powerful countermeasure against Flying-types—a real trump card.
If her opponent made even one mistake, she'd be able to deal massive damage.
That said, [Thunderbolt] and [Thunder] are both offensive moves, not supportive ones like [Hone Claws].
They required significant stores of Electric energy with each use.
Which meant—
If Nidoran♀ didn't start building up internal reserves of electricity in daily life, she'd struggle to even manage a basic [Thunder Shock], let alone [Thunderbolt].
Also, the earlier a Pokémon began learning these skills, the better.
At this stage, their bodies are still in development and more receptive to foreign elemental energies.
Once Nidoran♀ evolves into a Nidoqueen, her internal energy composition will stabilize—and at that point, learning a new type of move could become exponentially harder.
"Alright, let's have Nidoran♀ and Nidoran♂ do a practice battle now," Guo Yi said, seeing the Pokémon were rested and ready.
"Okay, Teacher."
Su Qingxue nodded. But as she turned to look at Nidoran♂, a curious thought struck her.
"Teacher, does your Nidoran♂ have the [Hustle] ability too?"
After all, her teacher clearly knew so much about the advantages of a [Sheer Force] Nidoking.
There was no way he'd overlook that when training his own Pokémon!
Guo Yi didn't bother hiding it.
"Yeah. [Hustle]."
Hearing that confirmed, Su Qingxue grew even more intrigued by her teacher.
After all—
Her own Nidoran♀ had been carefully selected from hundreds of candidates.
And her teacher? He'd just gone out once…
Not only had he tamed a powerful Nidoking, but he also came back with a Nidorino bearing the [Hustle] ability.
His luck is insane!
Feeling a mix of admiration and awe, Su Qingxue followed Guo Yi out onto the open field in front of the cottage.