After the competition ended, Ethan quietly left the university.
Absol's strong body darted nimbly through the trees.
The breeze brushed against his face, and Ethan, eyes half-closed, let himself be enveloped by the pure sensation of nature.
The Bug-Catching Zone was located among vast fields and mountains. Since it was autumn, golden stalks of rice blanketed the landscape.
"Chaarrr!"
The little Charmander cried out joyfully, spitting small bursts of flame in excitement. The birds collecting grains took off in fright, making the little dragon laugh uncontrollably.
Before long, Absol came to a stop before a massive stone monolith. From there, they could finally see the Bug-Catching Zone, surrounded by a tall iron fence.
"You must be young Ethan, aren't you?" said an elderly voice.
As he reached the entrance, Ethan saw an old man in a white sword-training uniform. He held a wooden sword in one hand, resting it across his back. His bearing was calm and dignified—almost like that of an immortal sage.
"Hello, Grandpa Miller. Yes, I'm Ethan," the young man replied, bowing respectfully.
"I already know why you're here. Come, follow me."
Grandpa Miller nodded slightly, turned on his heel, and walked toward the interior of the breeding area, the wooden sword still resting behind his back.
Ethan released Sandslash, picked up Charmander, and followed closely behind.
They crossed the breeding zone and arrived at an open-air dojo.
In the center, several trainers were practicing sword movements alongside their Scythers, perfectly mirroring the sharp motions of their blades.
"Good morning, Grandpa Miller!" the students greeted as he entered.
Meanwhile, Ethan carefully observed the surroundings. The spacious field contained training dummies, wooden swords, and other implements. Without a doubt, this was a dojo dedicated to the art of the sword.
"Welcome to the Sword Dojo," said Grandpa Miller calmly. "From now on, I will be the one to teach your Pokémon the move Swords Dance."
With those words, he tossed a Poké Ball, and from it emerged an aged-looking Scyther.
For the time being, this elderly Scyther would serve as the instructor responsible for teaching Sandslash the art of the Swords Dance.
As Ethan watched Sandslash and Scyther exchange movements, he smiled faintly, set Charmander down, and took a seat in a free corner of the dojo. He didn't seem particularly interested in supervising the training directly.
"Come out, Shuckle."
He released Shuckle onto the training ground.
"Shuck!"
Recognizing the familiar scent of the Bug-Catching Zone, Shuckle squinted contentedly, clearly happy to be back.
"Shuckle, let's continue our training," Ethan said with a smile, offering him a Berry.
"Shuck!"
Shuckle swallowed it immediately, and his body began to emit a soft green glow. A powerful Grass-type energy radiated from him.
"In the games, the ability Gluttony lets a Pokémon eat its Berry earlier during battle..." Ethan murmured. "But in reality, it seems Gluttony accelerates the release of a Berry's energy and enhances its effects."
That difference made the ability far more useful than it was in the games.
After devouring the Berry, Shuckle's body began gathering Grass-type energy in his mouth. Under the effect of his Hidden Power (Grass), he formed a bright green sphere.
Boom!
The energy burst upon hitting the ground, leaving a massive crater. The power was astonishingly high.
"Impressive... to absorb the Berry's energy directly and convert it into Grass-type power to unleash an attack like that..." Ethan said, his eyes gleaming with interest.
The training method he had developed revolved precisely around the Gluttony ability and the Grass-type Hidden Power move—and the results were excellent.
"Shuck!"
Proud of his own strength, Shuckle cried out happily, waving his yellow limbs with enthusiasm.
"Chaarrr!"
Charmander cheered excitedly as well, and Shuckle, caught up in the joy, offered him a cup of Berry juice. The two of them laughed together, enjoying the moment.
"Excellent work, Shuckle," Ethan said with a smile. "Now let's move on to Rollout training."
Practicing the move Rollout was part of Shuckle's daily routine. It was one of the best ways to strengthen his physical endurance.
"And lastly, we'll practice Rest," Ethan added.
After Shuckle exhausted all his energy rolling around, Ethan released Slowking to instruct him.
Thanks to the fact that Slowking had learned Rest from Shellder—and due to his great intelligence—he was now able to teach the move to other Pokémon, which had pleasantly surprised Ethan.
Shuckle was his first student. Under Slowking's telekinetic guidance, Shuckle gradually entered a deep, peaceful sleep.
In no time, he was fully asleep, his tired expression softening into one of calm comfort.
"Good work, Slowking," Ethan said with a smile.
"Yadon!" replied Slowking, nodding before lowering his head and promptly falling asleep as well.
Ethan couldn't help but laugh. Still smiling, he recalled both sleeping Pokémon into their Poké Balls.
Thus ended Shuckle's full training session. The results had been outstanding.
At this stage, Ethan had already developed an ideal training method suited to his team. His next goal would be to strengthen Shuckle's mental energy so he could learn Power Trick, Power Split, and Guard Split on his own.
If he succeeded, Shuckle's combat potential would be practically complete.
(End of Chapter)