"What a coward!"

  The bald man grumbled loudly as he and Hugo walked toward the windows.

  The two merying to test Shiro's strength, to firm his true abilities.

  They weren’t bold enough to act within the Hammerlocke Stadium, but uanding Shiro’s real power was crucial for their move.

  Although the idea of attag him while he was out to steal the Dragon Scale had crossed their minds, they were more ined to buy it directly from him.

  A legitimate transa would raise no suspi, and they wouldn’t have to worry about being hunted down or fag retaliation for their as.

  If Shiro turned out to be weak and stayed hidden in Hammerlocke, they could pressure him into selling the Dragon Scale at a low price.

  "What should we do now?" Hugo asked, looking out the window and sing the streets below for Shiro.

  "What else? We either wait and see if he leaves, or roach him directly aiate a price," the bald man replied, gng at Hugo’s curly hair.

  The bald man was an illegal citizen without an official identity card. While he had the moo buy one on the bck market, he wasn’t in a hurry.

  Ay card from the bck market would erase his waatus, unless somenized him and tihe pursuit.

  The bald man po it a few more major crimes, earning enough money before buying ay card. But that also meant he would have to stay in hiding for a long time. If he didn’t use a rge hood to cover his face, he could be caught the moment he was reized at the stadium.

  He also had iions to it crimes in Hammerlocke, but the city’s strict ws made it difficult.

  Enforced by the Dragon Taming family, Hammerlocke boasted one of the lowest crime rates in the region, sed only to Wyndon, home to the League Headquarters and Macro os.

  “Let’s find a time to tact him,” the man said, turning back toward the training room.

  ……

  The day, Shiro packed his things early ahe house.

  He jogged all the way to the main street in Hammerlocke.

  It was around six in the m, and the cobblestoh had just bee by Macro ployees, glistening with water droplets.

  Only a few restaurants oreet had opened, with not even the waitstaff i, leaving only the busy owners preparing for the day.

  Shiro entered a quaint, old-fashioned restaurant and ordered a bowl of egg noodles for 25 Pokédolrs.

  He pced Gastly and Rookidee oable, setting their food tainers and Pokéblocks beside them. Moments ter, the restaurant owner brought the steaming bowl of noodles over, then turo leave as the steam rose from the dish.

  Soon, the sounds of slurping noodles filled the restaurant.

  About twenty mier, Shiro finished his meal, packed up his Pokémon and belongings, a off toward the Hammerlocke Stadium.

  Taking the elevator up, Shiro noticed a det crowd gatherih the giant broes of the stadium. He walked straight to a male receptionist ihe passageway.

  The receptionist looked up, adjusted his gsses, and gave Shiro a nod, signaling him to speak.

  "I'm here to apply for the position of sparring partner. I made an appoihree days ago," Shiro said, handing over his identity card.

  The receptionist swiped Shiro’s card in a nearby card reader, and the s dispyed his identity information.

  "Ah, Shirht? Please follow me." The receptionist smiled and stood up, guiding Shiro toward the basic training area, which was also the public battle arena.

  At this time, the arena was almost empty, with only a few trainers scattered around. The vast space made the arena feel even rger.

  The receptionist walked over to a tall, regur mae and swiftly located Shiro’s applicatioails. Then, he asked,

  “okémon will you use as a sparring partner?”

  “Rookidee.” Shiro answered without hesitation.

  “Hm?” The receptionist paused, adjusting his gsses. “Are you sure? Rookidee is a very on Pokémon in Gar, meaning many trainers have them… and we already have a sparring partner specializing in Rookidee. You’ll have to defeat him first. We only keep the stro. You uand that, right?”

  Shiro uood what the receptionist was implying. Since Rookidee was so on, anyone applying with it would have to prove themselves against a tough oppo.

  His Rookidee was close to evolving, but the current sparring partner’s Rookidee was likely at a simir stage.

  In terms of battle experiehe existing sparring partner’s Rookidee definitely had the upper hand. Still, Shiro had full fiden himself and his Pokémon.

  “You should know, the current Rookidee sparring partner has held his position for three years. He raises only Rookidee.” The receptionist g Shiro, giving him a fair warning.

  Shiro sidered this for a moment before nodding.

  He was well aware that su oppo would be formidable—probably one of the best in all of Hammerlocke when it came to training and battling with Rookidee.

  But that recisely why he wao fight.

  Only by fag a strong oppo could he identify weaknesses in his training and discover what made the other trainer exceptional.

  If he lost, he could always rely on Gastly. And if all else failed, he could apply for a different job at the recruitmeer.

  “Are you sure you want to use Rookidee?” The receptionist asked again, adding, “If you lose, you’ll only get one ce to apply with a different Pokémon. If you fail again… the stadium has no use for weaklings.”

  “Of course.” Shiro didn’t waver.

  “Alright.” The receptionist rapidly ehe data. “Your assessment battle will begin at seven. Our sparring partners work from seven in the m until six in the evening. That won’t be a problem, will it?”

  “No.”

  After firming, the receptionist typed in the final details, the out a breath of relief. Satisfied, he gestured toward a nearby battle arena.

  “Shiro, you wait over there. Once our current Rookidee sparring partner arrives, the match will begin.”

  With that, the receptionist adjusted his gsses again a.

  Shiro walked to the designated battlefield, set his bag down at one end, and released Rookidee from its Poké Ball.

  “Rook-ki-dee!”

  Rookidee flew onto his shoulder.

  Both the Trainer and Pokémon began strategizing.

  ……

  Before long, a sy middle-aged man stepped out of the corridor, his sharp gaze sweeping across the area as he strode straight toward Shiro’s battlefield.

  Behind him followed the bespectacled receptionist.

  Dressed in a simple bck cloth shirt and matg trousers, the man carried an air of petence. However, his deeply wrinkled face, stretched taut like dried bark over his bones, gave him an uling appearance.

  **

  **

  **

  Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you visit my P@treon:

  P@treon/SilverShark769

  Your support means a lot, thank you!