This fainting.
Lasted an entire day and night.
When Natsuhiko woke up, he still felt a headache, and his superpowers couldn't be summoned again in the short term.
He grimaced, pressing his temples.
"I really shouldn't have tried that casually..."
The feeling of being drained in an instant still gave Natsuhiko a bit of a scare when he thought about it now.
"Alakazam!"
Realizing that Natsuhiko was awake.
Alakazam was the first to appear, instantly moving to his side to support him.
The other Pokémon also noticed what was happening and rushed over.
Seeing Natsuhiko standing upright, each of them breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm fine, just have a slight headache." Natsuhiko said with a smile.
Currently.
Beedrill, Alakazam, and Aegislash, a total of three Elite Candidate Level Pokémon, showed significant progress in their strength.
But if he had to deal with that Hydreigon, Togekiss, being a Fairy Type, was the key.
Luckily, even though it hadn't reached the Elite Candidate Level like Alakazam, it was at least close.
He patted Alakazam on the shoulder, indicating it didn't need to support him anymore, reassuring him.
He was still glad for Alakazam's willingness to take responsibility.
Although that approach was a bit too risky, both then and now.
"Alakazam..."
Alakazam showed a somewhat guilty expression.
"You've improved, that's the best reward."
Alakazam silently nodded.
Natsuhiko looked at Aegislash.
"How's it going?"
Due to the urgency of time back then, he only knew that Aegislash had successfully reached the Elite Candidate Level, but what other gains it had from absorbing the "Earth's Membrane," and what changes happened to its body, was still unclear.
"Ching!"
Aegislash relaxed its body, dropping straight to the ground.
Only to see.
It didn't use any power or abilities, but plunged heavily into the ground, leaving a noticeable dent.
The outline and appearance of the body hadn't changed.
But it's imaginable that Aegislash's body density was much higher than before now.
This was just the outward change.
However, this means that Aegislash will need to spend considerable effort getting accustomed to its new physical changes.
"Togekiss~~"
Togekiss tapped on Aegislash's shield, producing a dull sound.
The rebound pain made it blow its wings.
The defense power had also increased significantly.
"Good." Natsuhiko nodded with satisfaction.
Changes and improvements in some details still need to be pondered and researched slowly in the future.
Alakazam is the same.
They all need time to adapt to the changes brought about by their strength improvements.
These things can't be rushed.
Suddenly, as if he thought of something, Natsuhiko took out a Pokeball.
"Just right, there's a guy you can test your skills on." Amusement flickered on Natsuhiko's face.
He threw out the Pokeball.
In the red light appeared.
"Roar——!!"
It was the Steelix he had captured in the basin at that time.
As soon as Steelix appeared, it showed strong hostility towards Natsuhiko and his Pokémon.
But unlike last time.
With Alakazam and Aegislash stepping into the Elite Candidate Level, Natsuhiko found it easier to handle it.
Then what could be heard.
Was the rising and falling moans of pain from Steelix.
It seemed its proud defense power also couldn't play much of a role under Alakazam's Elite Candidate Level special attack.
Natsuhiko watched this scene with a smile.
At the same time, through the battle, he observed the changes in Alakazam and Aegislash after their power improvements.
Steelix fit well into a "Space Team" lineup centered around the Hunter identity and Oranguru.
It could also make the roles of the other Pokémon clearer.
Steelix is a typical Physical Defense Pokémon, while Snorlax could finally focus on its Special Defense duty, Bewear is for output, and Oranguru and Audino act as support.
What was lacking.
Was still a Special Attack type slow Pokémon.
What he was doing now was to subdue that Steelix.
During the fight.
Natsuhiko discovered something quite interesting.
That was, at this moment, Aegislash's "Gyro Ball" could actually match Steelix without relying on any other Pokémon's strength.
Thus it can be seen.
After absorbing the "Earth's Membrane," how dense and heavy Aegislash's density had become, and its speed probably couldn't recover to its previous level for a while.
And what satisfied Natsuhiko the most was a technique that Aegislash learned.
Wide Area Defense.
This is a technique that can resist area damage.
"King's Shield" is for single defense, while "Wide Area Defense" is for group defense.
Coupled with increased density, the defense power is enhanced.
With this, Aegislash has thoroughly maximized its defensive capabilities.
Finally.
After Natsuhiko offered the "Magical Treasure" of the Energy Block, the Steelix that took another beating tasted the benefits.
It reluctantly succumbed.
As for the possibility of resistance.
It seems it still exists for now.
But it might not after spending more time with Natsuhiko.
After dealing with Steelix.
Next were the three Aggron.
These three Aggron were actually quite good.
Especially the leading one.
Not only has it mastered "Dragon Dive," it even knows "Nirvana."
The Dragon Type bloodline is quite strong.
Actually, Natsuhiko originally only wanted to capture one, and the other two could be sold.
Their mastery of "Dragon Dive" and strong Dragon Type bloodline could fetch a good price.
But the three Aggron clung together and strongly resisted this plan.
So after they got another beating from Alakazam, Aegislash, and other Pokémon, Natsuhiko stored them away.
Temporarily abandoning the idea of capturing them.
He already had quite a few Elite Candidate Level Pokémon.
Each additional one represents a substantial consumption of food resources.
Moreover, Aggron and Steelix are somewhat overlapping in roles.
If the leading one was willing to stay, Natsuhiko would capture it.
But since they insisted on staying or leaving together, Natsuhiko had to reconsider whether it was necessary.
Even though he was still a bit tempted by that Aggron's "Nirvana."
After dealing with these four Pokémon.
Natsuhiko gained a new land mount.
Compared to the previous Tyrantrum, Mudsdale, Steelix is far more imposing.
Both in ability and appearance.
The only downside.
Is that it makes quite a noise when moving.
But the advantage is that he no longer has to worry about the impact of terrain.
Extremely stable.
Meanwhile.
Natsuhiko also got an opportunity to write a thesis on the conditions for evolving Onix into Steelix.
This can be arranged after Milotic's paper is published.
Another chance to reap benefits from the alliance.
After a brief rest.
Natsuhiko stood on Steelix's head and left quickly with all his Pokémon.
The next target was very clear.
Train Togekiss.
Let it also reach the Elite Candidate Level.
After that, it's time for them to take revenge.
Now the Pokémon were all very excited.
They had a unified goal.
And standing on Steelix's head, Natsuhiko began calculating the gains from the battle in the basin.
First.
The most important.
Aegislash and Alakazam stepped into the Elite Candidate Level, and Aegislash absorbed a priceless "Earth's Membrane," while Alakazam's Dream Gene further awakened.
Secondly.
Excluding Steelix, three extremely gifted Elite Candidate Level Aggron were captured.
The estimated value is at least several tens of millions, possibly close to a hundred million, depending on the buyer's ability and demand.
Combined with the 2 previously captured Elite Candidate Level Pokémon and 41 Gym Leader Level Pokémon, the total value has definitely exceeded a hundred million.
But every time he thought of the patches of Wild Pokémon fallen in the basin, especially the dozens of Gym Leader Level Pokémon, Natsuhiko felt heartache.
Were those fallen things really Pokémon?
They were all money waiting for him to collect!
If not recouped from Hydreigon, Natsuhiko's wallet wouldn't agree.
Finally.
What Natsuhiko considered possibly the most impactful point for him and his Pokémon.
The dual Mega evolution attempt was successful!
Though brief, it was extremely energy-consuming for Natsuhiko.
But it undoubtedly became a trump card that could be of significant use at critical moments.
————
PS: Ahem, a very serious question, am I just rambling? (Let me ridicule myself a bit, please answer seriously, don't worry, I won't hit anyone~~)