I was, so far, pleased with Zatanna's progress as she took to parkour like Magikarp to Splash, soon traversing treetops and rocky terrains with ease, the wind ruffling her black matte fur. As she had already grasped the intermediate steps for Pursuit, I tried to perfect that before moving onto other Dark type attacking moves like Feint Attack where one momentarily disappears before reappearing to strike a blind spot.

With the implementation of dodgeball using rubber balls, Zatanna was quickly able to develop Double Team to raise her evasiveness. However, currently she was only able to produce at most three or four images before the technique lost its effects.

Speaking of good things, extremely good news occurred on the days after Bradley, and I began training our Pokémon.

After I had begun training on Synin, Caitlyn, the previous spoiled princess, returned with a captured Pokémon, albeit more shocked than triumphant.

Vivian also returned alive.

She arrived completely soaked from head to toe with green bits of slime stuck in her hair, her blue ribbon gone, and tattered clothing underneath the brown cloak she wore. Exhausted and tired, she slept off the rest of the day in the barracks, but not before she was healed by the medics. The poor girl had dreams of becoming a fashionista, now sadly cut off due to her current profession as a Pokémon trainer.

Although less reliance on Pokémon had triggered the equivalent of the industrial revolution in this post-apocalyptic world given the magnet trains, guns, and industrial facilities. For what’s it worth, I cannot fathom why Pokémon trainers are banned from all civilian jobs when such trainers could probably do the job as good or even better than them if properly trained.

***

Today, it was Synin's turn to be trained. I had decided to rotate training since I could only have one Pokémon around at a time. Like the previous days, I grabbed food from the cafeteria and made my way to the training grounds with Synin.

I wanted to see if he could keep up without using his wings. Rookidee were known for being nimble, hopping side by side to throw their opponent off-balance. So, I tested him for his stamina, to see how far he would be able go when pushed. I was not surprised that the battle-maniac bird rose to the challenge.

It was unusual to see a trainer running, jumping, vaulting, and rolling in the training grounds with a blue bird hopping right behind him. More than a couple of trainers had stopped to watch for a minute or two before going their own ways. Just like how it could be more effective if you brought your buddy with you to the gym, I decided to train alongside my Pokémon.

While it does sound cheesy, I believed the training to have strengthened my bonds with Zatanna and Synin. If the wagging tails and chirping meant anything at all, that is.

In the afternoon, I trained his attacks a bit more. We focused on precision, making sure that each attack landed exactly where I shouted out loud. I had noticed from the PokeDex that Rook had Keen Eyes. Keen Eyes prevents a Pokémon from losing accuracy, which meant that I wouldn't have to worry about attacks like Sand-Attack or other attacks which lower accuracy.

In addition, he has the Hidden Ability: Big Peck which would later evolve into Mirror Armour. I had plans around this, but unfortunately, his flight needed work on as Synin was an avid fan of one direction.

I did not know how to fix this, so I just let him fly freely and hoped it would come naturally, though I did try implementing step by step instructions.

From time to time, his mischievous nature would come to play, and he would pick up random items, dropping them randomly. I didn't mind it at first, but it soon got annoying and dangerous.

Potential injuries of not just myself but other trainers and their Pokémon could occur, and then I might have to pay compensation. Compensation which I lack right now, considering I was trying to go incognito. I lectured him on keeping the pranks to a minimal and not to pick up twigs or stones unless I told him so.

By sundown, my hair was covered in splattered berries, its sticky juices ruining my attire. At this point, I decided to end our training and head back to the Centre to take a deserved shower.

***

In the cafeteria, I found Caitlyn and Vivian picking at the food in front of them. Nearby, Bradley was laying his head on the table with another bag of ice on his head.

"Hey," I greeted them.

"Hey," he mumbled.

"Hi," Caitlyn said quietly.

Vivian just gave me a quick nod of her head. To which, I nodded back.

I sat down next to Bradley. "So," I said, "any luck today?"

"None," he replied. "It went pretty much the same as yesterday. The problem is the damn Supersonic. As soon as I release him, the little bastard hits me with it then cries at an ear-splitting volume. Even now, I can still feel my ears ringing."

Right. If this was someone from Earth, they'll be downright deaf by now. The people of this world were often stronger, faster and could deal with more damage than the men and women of Earth. Even Rosalyn, despite having a weak body, could climb trees like a cat.

"You haven't fed him at all since you captured him, right? That might be part of the problem. He's hungry on top of being scared," I told him. "The PokeDex app said that Whismur are easily frightened by loud noises. You'll need to cover its ears if you want the screaming to stop. If you don't, he'll scream even louder startled by its own cries. You can try feeding him once he has calmed down."

"I still have to get pass the Supersonic problem before even trying to close his ears," he said.

"Have you tried asking some trainers for advice?" I asked.

"I did," he said. "A couple of them mentioned that the Pokemart sold special earplugs that allow you to hear while blocking the effects of any sound-based Pokémon attack. They are supposed to be pretty cheap. Problem is, I can't afford to buy any until I complete a mission."

"And you can't take on any missions until you tame the Whismur and get promoted to D-rank," I finished.

"Right," he said.

"Well," I said after a moment, "Keep at it. I'm sure you'll get through to him soon."

"Thanks," he mumbled.

I finally turned towards the girls. "It's good to see you both alive," I told them. "Congratulations, again, on passing both of your Ordeals."

"Thank you," "Th-thank you," They replied.

"Did you begin trying to tame your Pokémon today?" I asked.

Surprisingly, it was Vivian who spoke up. "Y-yes, I did."

"How did it go?"

She gave us a weak smile. "He still doesn't listen to what I say, but I got him to stop attacking me each time I released him." I patted her head to know that she was on the right track. The other two eyed me weirdly.

What? I did this with Rosa all the time.

Then Caitlyn put forward on how it went with hers. "I experienced the same thing, this morning. It wasn't bad though. I was able to work through it." she said. "I made a lot of progress this afternoon with her though."

Bradley turned to glare at them for a moment. 'Not surprising,' I thought. 'He kept saying that they didn't have what it takes to be a trainer and they both made more progress in two days than he did in four. That must sting.'

"The next time you try, just remember to be firm with them," I advised them. "If they see that you're timid or senses any fear from you then he will refuse to obey. You have to prove that you are the dominant one."

"Speaking from experience?" Caitlyn asked.

"I'm pretty sure that I have Zatanna and Synin well trained at this point," I told her. "I'm going to the Gym tomorrow to request to take the D-rank promotion exam."

All three turned to look at me. "Already?!" Vivian exclaimed. "B-but it's only been a few days since you caught your Pokémon. A-and you have two of them as well!"

"I'm ready" I said. "The D-rank is supposed to be easy. I just need to prove them that either Zatanna or Synin can listen to me. I shouldn't have a problem with that."

They continued to look at me. I could see them becoming determined to tame their Pokémon just to catch up with me.

'Youth, huh?' I thought. 'They better not be like Guy or Lee in the future.'

I shuddered just at the thought of them wearing green spandex and crying out 'Tears of Youth'. I stood up after a minute. "Well," I said. "Good luck to you all tomorrow. I'm sure you will be ready to take your exams soon. I'm heading to bed. I want to get up early to head to the Gym as soon as it open."

"Good luck," the girls chorused while Bradley made a somewhat manly grunt.

I rolled my eyes at him and said goodnight to them before heading to the barracks. As I lied in bed, I thought about how much things have changed over the past few days. Tomorrow, would be merely the first step in exploring the world. My little cousin was a dreamer, so I'll see enough of the outside world for the both of us, alongside my own aspirations too.