Chapter 63: Captain Baimu

"Chido?"

The Munchlax looked at Baimu, a look on its face that said, Did I just win?

Though Gible certainly still had stamina, this was only a sparring match—if he sent the opponent flying into the Pokémon Center for no reason, would they still train in the morning or not?

"You won, you won. You won."

Baimu stepped right between the two Pokémon and gave Chansey a look.

The latter didn't quite catch on, but seeing Gible stumbling as it walked, hurried over and used Heal Pulse to restore its stamina, healing the minor scrapes it had taken during the rollout.

Don't think those scrapes are trivial—once they pile up, they'll inevitably affect Gible's movement.

Just like the sudden pain in your kneecap when you're running.

A Pokémon's condition drops along with its stamina—Attack, Defense, even Special Attack can't stay constant forever.

Baimu faced the Munchlax, whose expression was a strange one, and said:

"You really are strong. Right now, you're the strongest one among us."

"Chido…"

Hearing that, the Munchlax pretty much caught on too.

It had assumed that after not battling for so long, its strength had dropped a lot, but unexpectedly, this back-turning fist style still came out pretty smoothly when thrown—seems the things the body remembers really are hard to forget.

And…

The Pokémon around the Trainer don't seem all that great, do they?

Yesterday it hadn't paid much attention to Gible and the others' practice and battles, and had thought they had some real skill.

And the result was this?

It had gone to provoke the Pokémon around before, often getting into fights with them. When it found its own level was only middling, that there were plenty of Pokémon it couldn't beat, it packed it in and stopped doing those boring things.

A little inferiority complex on the strength front was unavoidable.

Who would have thought that after today's bout, Gible was nowhere near a match for it—turns out it had worried for nothing all night.

Why the Trainer had chosen it was also perfectly clear now.

He valued its strength!

Thinking this, the Munchlax folded its arms and nodded with great poise, giving Baimu a look that said, You know it, that's enough.

Then again.

Gible and Chansey crowded over one after another.

The Munchlax saw them coming with aggressive momentum, assumed these two Pokémon were planning the shameless move of two-against-one, and immediately struck a wary pose.

But no attack came—instead, two smiling faces arrived.

"Gido!"

"Lucky!"

Since coming to Baimu's side, this was the first time Gible had eaten such a one-sided defeat. Though mainly it was because it hadn't reacted in time, a loss is a loss—nothing to be said about it.

Chansey, meanwhile, was delighted that the Trainer's side had gained another source of battle strength.

It knew it still hadn't overcome the hurdle of actively attacking others, and to a certain extent had held the team back, so it was genuinely happy that Baimu's side could have one more source of strength.

As for healing, singing people to sleep, and sharing nutritious eggs, to Chansey these all counted as trivial little things.

Things it ought to be doing anyway—how could it have the nerve to take credit?

"Chido…"

The Munchlax was surrounded by the two Pokémon, all smiles, and hearing those praising cries, for a moment it didn't quite know what to do.

It never had contact with other Pokémon—when had it ever had them this close?

But the feeling… wasn't bad.

"Chido!"

It turned its head away, trying to look cool, and hiding the small bit of pleasure on its face.

Even though the flattery was one-sided, the Munchlax was still pleased at being "popular"—its vanity was greatly satisfied at this moment.

Baimu said with a smile: "Well, no time like the present—let's start today's morning training."

"Gido!"

"Lucky~"

"…Chido~"

The three Pokémon—excited, happy, or pretending to be calm—each gave the Trainer a response.

When they started running laps.

Baimu, bringing up the rear, couldn't help laughing too.

Their energy levels are all just over forty, and even their base stats aren't as good as Pokémon like Houndour, but a Munchlax raised in an excellent environment can very easily suppress a Gible that Houndour and the others couldn't handle.

Enough to prove how strong it is.

Even setting aside the fact that the final outcome is still anyone's game, just this speed and Attack alone could make Baimu so happy he'd have trouble sleeping tonight.

And what pleased him most of all was the Munchlax's cooperative attitude.

This is only the second day!

If he could see his own Talent, he'd really want to know whether he had an 【Attract Bees and Butterflies】, or some other Talent.

——

Afternoon.

After finishing the literacy class.

Baimu took time to go to the hospital to visit Otsuka and the others.

It's been two or three days now—the youngster should be awake by now.

Sure enough, when Baimu arrived outside the hospital room, he suddenly saw Otsuka wrapped up like a mummy, propped against the tilted hospital bed, being fed fruit by his older sister.

The teammates who had competed together back then were also mostly in this hospital room, each with someone attending to them.

He opened the door and went in.

"Otsuka…"

"Baimu!"

Otsuka saw Baimu coming in from outside, his eyes immediately lighting up; he even stopped eating the peeled apple, wanting to get out of bed to greet him.

The people in the other beds of the same room, seeing him, also simultaneously showed various strange expressions.

"Alright, settle down and save your sister some trouble."

Baimu ignored the surrounding gazes, smiled at the gentle woman beside Otsuka's bed, and said, "Sister Rika."

Otsuka's older sister was named Rika, plain-looking but gentle and virtuous. She usually worked as a dealer at a casino in the underground city, and was currently trying to transfer to the headquarters building as a clerk.

"Captain Baimu, you don't have to be so polite."

Rika sprang to her feet at once, speaking nervously and uneasily.

The two of them had met no more than three times in total, and couldn't be considered familiar at all; facing such a promising little squad captain, Rika didn't dare accept his form of address.

"Just call me Baimu, forget the captain part — I don't really like that suffix."

Baimu absolutely didn't want to be called anything-captain; he felt some titles sounded weird once you added a name to them, so it was either captain or just the name.

Rika was left speechless and tongue-tied.

And the people around, upon hearing the words "Captain Baimu," immediately had expressions of envy and jealousy rise on their faces. Who could have imagined that someone they had once looked down on would not only become the biggest contributor in the competition, but also rise to the high position of squad captain?

Even if they wanted to become squad captains, they'd still need outstanding contributions; otherwise, they could only be elite team members their whole lives.

"Baimu…"

Otsuka's face likewise showed unconcealable envy. "I knew you were no ordinary person!"

"Of course, I'm from Class Thirteen."

"Huh?"

"I'm speaking an alien language; it's perfectly normal that you don't understand."

Baimu calmly found a stool, sat down beside the hospital bed, took out a small envelope from his pocket, and placed it on the blanket. "There's one million in here — the principal and interest I promised you. Count it."

Rika stood at the side, unsure whether she should sit, so she could only try hard to reduce her own presence.

And Otsuka, looking at the bulging envelope on the blanket, didn't feel happy at all; instead his face went deathly pale, and he had absolutely no intention of reaching out to open it. "Baimu… I…"

"Don't say that kind of stupid 'I don't want it' talk. What's yours is yours."

Baimu considered for a moment. "Carrying such a large sum on you isn't very safe either. Sister Rika, how about I escort you and take the money home?"

Rika looked at her brother, whose eyes were unfocused, and had no idea whether to agree, but in the end she still nodded helplessly and said, "Alright, thank you, Baimu…"

The word "captain" didn't leave her mouth.

He nodded quite satisfied, and seeing Otsuka looking lost, said: "Alright, you think I don't understand that little scheme of yours? You want to join my squad, right? You'll have to recover from your injuries first, won't you? Or do you think I'm the kind of person who forgets all his friends once he gets ahead?"

"Ah!"

Otsuka suddenly raised his head, his eyes a mix of pleasant surprise and confusion.

"Having a dumb little brother like you means I'll have a hard time in the future."

Baimu sighed and walked toward the outside; Rika grabbed the envelope and hurriedly chased after him.

Otsuka couldn't help shouting: "Big Brother Baimu!"

"Call me by my name, don't add any suffix! Careful or I'll smack you!"

He suddenly turned around, pointing at the former's nose as he spoke.