"Why not leave Slowpoke Temple?"
Tetsuya's words startled the nun. She had already spent thirty years at the temple. Perhaps she had become accustomed to such a life, or perhaps she no longer had the courage to go out into the world.
"…But someone like me has long since lost all family. I have no one to rely on. What could a person like me possibly do if I left?" The nun shook her head.
"I'm an orphan too. If you're willing, you can come live with me in Ecruteak City. I do need someone to look after the house, and in the future, I will take care of you in your old age and see you through to the end."
Tetsuya's words left the nun somewhat astonished, and even more disbelieving. After all, she had only known Tetsuya for a few days. Why would he take along someone like her, a burden? Yet if he had ulterior motives, there was nothing about her that seemed worth coveting…
"You can think it over for a few days. You can give me your answer whenever you want. After all, I won't be at home very often. Having a reliable person help me watch over the house would be the best arrangement possible."
After saying this, Tetsuya left. His primary objective was naturally that Slowpoke. Right now, the bond between Slowpoke and this nun was unquestionably the strongest. Only with her help could he completely make Slowpoke become his Pokémon. Moreover, even after it evolved into Slowbro, it would not require any training from Tetsuya at all, because it was constantly training every moment of every day.
The key point was that this was the only type of training it could do…
Once Slowbro's abilities fully took shape, it would become a stable artillery platform supporting him from the rear.
---◓---
For two consecutive days, Tetsuya guided the special training for his Pokémon in the backyard where the Slowpoke were raised. Although the nun was still considering his proposal, she continued to take meticulous care of Tetsuya.
Among his Pokémon, Gengar had already established the [Shadow Contract], so it could hardly even be considered a Pokémon anymore. It had become an inseparable part of Tetsuya himself.
Ditto no longer needed to be as cautious and restrained as it had been on Shadow Island. It trained normally whenever training was required, but it no longer entered a Poké Ball. Instead, it usually remained attached to Tetsuya's arm, ready to use Transform and protect its Trainer if danger arose.
The Pokémon that now spent most of their time in Poké Balls were Mamoswine, Golurk, Beedrill, Houndoom, Koffing, and Miltank. That already made six Pokémon. For League-registered Trainers, carrying six Pokémon was the standard configuration. Any additional Pokémon would automatically be transferred to the location associated with the issuance of their Pokédex.
Of course, this privilege was only available to Official League Trainers, because they received Pokédexes free of charge and had dedicated personnel to care for their Pokémon. Ordinary Trainers had to purchase their own Pokédexes and set the transfer destination for excess Pokémon themselves. As for how those Pokémon would be cared for, that was entirely their own responsibility.
At present, Tetsuya effectively had eight Pokémon. Ditto was an all-purpose utility Pokémon. Gengar was his hidden weapon and hidden killer.
Miltank was a full-time support Pokémon. Not only did it provide highly nutritious milk, but it could also use Helping Hand to assist the training of other Pokémon, increasing training efficiency by more than three times. It had become an indispensable member of his team, and the other Pokémon had developed a strong dependence on it.
As for his main battle force, that naturally consisted of Mamoswine, Golurk, Beedrill, Houndoom, and Koffing.
Now that he had returned to the mainland, Tetsuya had begun planning how to further enhance the combat power of these five Pokémon.
Mamoswine was an "ice mage". Its abilities were outstanding across the board, and its control over Ice-type energy had already become flawless. That was perfection. Its current training still focused on Curse, Amnesia, and Fissure.
With Miltank's milk and Helping Hand assisting its training, Mamoswine progress had become much faster than before. In terms of one-on-one combat alone, even if Mamoswine were to face the strongest Pokémon of the strongest Gym Leader, it would not be at a disadvantage.
Golurk's strength was on the same level as Mamoswine's. Although it was slightly inferior, Golurk possessed an extremely broad range of attacks. It could move through the sky and across the land with ease. Moreover, only the final layer of its energy remained sealed. Although the progress was extremely slow, Tetsuya was still looking forward to seeing Golurk with all of its energy fully unsealed.
Golurk's moves also covered many different types. After learning Phantom Force, it could not only engage in close combat but also launch attacks from another dimension. Combined with its Iron Fist Ability, it excelled at both offense and defense. Tetsuya was now preparing to buy a TM for Stone Edge to further expand its coverage.
Beedrill's progress had already reached a barrier. However, with Miltank's assistance recently, its physical condition had improved significantly, and there were signs of progress. Beedrill was the type with outstanding strengths and obvious weaknesses. It had high Attack and great Speed, but its Defense was equally low. For the time being, Tetsuya had no plans to add any more offensive moves.
A fast-strike Pokémon like Beedrill emphasized instantaneous assault capability, so the offensive moves it used had to be the ones it was most proficient with. The only thing he could add now was a TM for Swords Dance.
Houndoom itself already possessed great power, and the abilities it had developed through long periods of training deep in remote forests were something other Pokémon did not possess. It also carried a special aura that made opponents fear it before battle even began.
Although Houndoom was already very powerful, Tetsuya always felt that its full potential had not yet been developed. In his previous life, he had only researched Poison-type Pokémon. Although under his training Houndoom's biting moves and Fire-type moves had gained a high chance of poisoning opponents, Houndoom's toxins were ultimately limited.
The true strengths of Dark-type Pokémon lay, of course, in their Dark-type moves. Moves such as Nasty Plot, Foul Play, Snatch, and Embargo were not things he could utilize particularly well. Therefore, Houndoom's abilities were still in a stage awaiting further development.
Without guidance from predecessors, researching a single type could sometimes take an entire lifetime. For now, Tetsuya had no plans to study the Dark type. If he could properly make use of the Ice, Poison, and Ghost types, all of which already had established raising guides, his achievements would surpass those of his previous life. Once he had more time and energy, he could further expand from there.
Tetsuya's development of Koffing's toxicity had been highly successful. The potency of its toxins was exceptionally rare. There was almost nothing that poison could not solve. Those afflicted by Koffing's poison and toxins would suffer weakness in their limbs, dizziness, debilitation, and suffocation, practically losing their combat ability altogether.
The troublesome opponents were Poison-type Pokémon with strong resistance and Steel-type Pokémon. Fortunately, Koffing could learn Flamethrower and Fire Blast. Tetsuya would still need to spend a considerable amount of money purchasing those TMs. Once it learned Fire-type moves, Koffing's tactical options would become much more diverse.
As for Miltank… cough, it only needed to do basic fitness training every day. Its role was to provide support and produce milk. Besides, it did not enjoy battling. It only needed to peacefully serve as a qualified support Pokémon.