Urban Pokémon [28]

"It doesn't matter if Nidoran♂ was only just captured yesterday — that's no excuse for spacing out."

"You need to understand, a single moment of distraction in a Pokémon battle can be all it takes to hand your opponent the victory."

Seeing Su Qingxue still trying to justify her lapse in focus, Guo Yi's expression grew stern.

It was true.

The coordination he and Nidoran♂ had displayed didn't look like a first-time pairing at all.

But that was no excuse for Su Qingxue to let her mind wander.

In battles, anything can happen. If your attention slips, you're giving your opponent an opening.

And if this had been out in the wild—

Losing focus mid-battle could cost you your life.

That was why Guo Yi took this very seriously.

"Please don't be angry, Teacher!"

"I understand now."

This was the first time Su Qingxue had seen Guo Yi lose his temper. She quickly lowered her head to admit fault.

"I swear, I won't let myself get distracted in battle again."

Seeing her sincerely repent, Guo Yi calmed down somewhat. His voice softened into something more earnest.

"Qingxue, remember this: no matter what happens in battle, your first thought should be — how do I solve this?"

"A trainer's job isn't just to train their Pokémon."

"In battle, we also have to read the battlefield, interpret the opponent's intent, and find ways to secure the greatest benefit with the least possible cost to our own Pokémon."

"These are essential skills for any competent trainer."

Having realized her mistake, Su Qingxue accepted his guidance humbly.

"I understand, Teacher."

"From now on, I'll work twice as hard to improve myself."

Mm.

Seeing her genuine attitude, Guo Yi nodded in approval.

"Next, I want you to try and find your own rhythm — figure out how to combine [Hone Claws] with offensive tactics for Nidoran♀."

"Also, I'll have Nidoran♂ teach Nidoran♀ the Dig technique."

"That move can be quite useful for dodging attacks in certain situations."

"Besides that, there's [Thunderbolt] training, and..."

Guo Yi began outlining a long list of training tasks for Su Qingxue.

And just like that—

Su Qingxue had her hands full.

Under such intense training, time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

...

Magic City.

A villa on the outskirts.

A Porsche pulled up directly to the front of the estate.

A striking woman in a sultry outfit stepped out from the car.

"Miss Tang, you've arrived!"

"The Chairman has been waiting inside for quite some time."

As Tang Rong got out, a maid came forward to greet her.

"Mm."

"I know."

Tang Rong nodded and picked up a gift box from the passenger seat.

Tossing the car keys to the maid, she headed into the villa alone.

"My dearest Chairman, your best friend's here — aren't you going to come out and greet me?"

Leafing through papers in the study, Ye Qing suddenly heard the teasing voice from outside the door.

Moments later, Tang Rong pushed the door open and walked right in, making herself at home at the tea table.

Ye Qing rose to join her, pouring tea as she spoke.

"No helping it. The Flying Eagle Gang's been stirring up trouble again — there's just too much going on."

At the mention of the Flying Eagle Gang, a flash of distaste crossed Tang Rong's face.

She took the teacup, sipped lightly, then muttered, "I heard they handed over half their black market revenue just to keep others from interfering."

"What I don't get is — if they're giving up that much profit, why even fight for the black market slot in the first place? Planning to burn money?"

Everyone knew—

Security costs for maintaining the black market weren't cheap.

Giving up half their cut? Forget profits — they'd be lucky just to break even.

But—

Ye Qing seemed to understand the Flying Eagle Gang's strategy. She chuckled softly.

"They're killing two birds with one stone — neutralizing our Azure Dragon Society while currying favor with the other powers."

"Not stupid at all."

Tang Rong let out a dry laugh.

"And those other powers are fools for going along with it!"

"You can tell what the Flying Eagles are up to from a mile away. If your Azure Dragon Society really goes down, those other groups will be the ones stuck holding the bag."

"Besides, I heard the Eagle Boss's son might've taken a retired Elite Four member as his master — no idea if it's true!"

"If it is, that's serious trouble!"

After all, Elite Four-level trainers were national power symbols.

Their strength was beyond question.

Even in retirement, an Elite Four member wielded enormous influence.

Ye Qing, however, didn't seem too concerned by the rumor.

"Even if the Eagle Boss's son did apprentice under a former Elite Four, what — he thinks he can actually get that person to fight for him?"

"If only. Then maybe we wouldn't have to worry about Azure Dragon Society at all."

Tang Rong gave a solemn nod.

If a trainer of that caliber stepped in, the other black market factions wouldn't dare sit idle.

That would take a huge load off the Azure Dragon Society's shoulders.

"Alright, enough about them."

"Did you bring the [Life Orb]?"

Ye Qing was done with gossip. She got straight to the point.

"When do I ever disappoint?"

Tang Rong smiled and opened the gift box she had carried in.

A dazzling orb appeared before them both.

"Qing-jie, are you sure Xiao Xue's method is really going to work?"

"Giving the orb to Nidoqueen supposedly cancels out the [Life Orb]'s side effects."

Over the past two days, Tang Rong had heard about this so-called immunity trick from Ye Qing.

It was simple: just give it to Nidoqueen to hold.

At first, Tang Rong thought she must've misheard.

If it were really that easy, researchers would've figured it out ages ago.

After all, Nidoqueen had been among the test subjects listed when the Life Orb's effects were studied.

Ye Qing simply smiled in response.

"Whether it works or not — we'll know once we test it."

With that, she picked up the [Life Orb] and headed outside toward the villa's battle arena.

Tang Rong quickly followed after her.