"Hmm…"
Steven sat cross-legged on the grass, facing Scyther, who sat in the same position.
The Trainer and Pokémon stared at each other awkwardly.
Beside them, Metagross was engrossed in a book.
Not far off, Aron and Skarmory were sparring.
Frequent battles can sharpen a Pokémon's natural abilities.
It was just that the flying Skarmory seemed to be a bit of an unfair match for Aron.
Scyther looked at Steven with cold eyes, unsure if choosing to follow him was the right or wrong decision.
But only by venturing out could it discover the truth of the past.
Steven's experiences were very similar to Scyther's past, which made this the best choice for Scyther.
"Do you have a specific goal you need to achieve by following me?" Steven asked curiously.
He had ruled out all other possibilities except that Scyther had a purpose.
Things like being moved by his words or being subdued through force were simply absurd.
"Cha." Scyther nodded, not denying it.
"Then was my headache at that time also caused by you?"
"Cha?"
"Alright, judging by your reaction, it wasn't you." Steven rubbed the back of his head, feeling a bit confused.
The one involved had denied it, so why did he have that headache?
Could it be that he had some kind of illness?
He should get a check-up another day.
"However, welcome to the team." Steven chuckled softly, extending his hand toward Scyther.
"Cha?" Scyther looked at its sharp scythes, then at Steven with a strange expression.
Are you really trying to shake my hand?
"Uh…"
Steven gently patted Scyther's scythe with his palm.
"This counts as a handshake."
Steven stood up, patting the grass clippings off his pants.
"Once Metagross learns to write, you can tell me what your goal is. I will try my best to help you achieve it."
Steven grinned, giving Scyther a thumbs-up.
"Cha." Scyther nodded, standing up to go train.
After all, its strength had just increased, and it needed to stabilize its new power.
"Oh, by the way, don't use your left scythe. I'll apply some Potion for you later. It should recover in about three or four days."
Steven suddenly noticed the crack on Scyther's left scythe. Metagross's Meteor Mash had indeed been quite powerful.
"Cha?" Scyther looked displeased.
"There's nothing we can do about it. If the scythe were to break completely, it would take even longer to recover."
Steven found a Potion spray from his bag, and Scyther reluctantly extended its left scythe, allowing Steven to spray the medicine.
Then, Steven sprinkled Energy Powder on the scythe and wrapped it with gauze.
"Alright, just be careful not to use your left scythe."
"Cha!" Scyther replied impatiently.
Steven watched Scyther's retreating figure. When it evolves into Scizor, its speed will inevitably decrease significantly, but as long as it maintains its Bullet Punch speed during battles, it can be like red lightning in combat.
Steven was not in a hurry to evolve Scyther. It was already a Alpha-level Pokémon, and evolving at this time would not provide much immediate benefit to Scyther.
Moreover, evolution is a decision that the Pokémon itself needs to make.
Some Pokémon simply do not wish to evolve, and a competent Trainer will respect the Pokémon's own wishes.
He would ask Scyther if it wanted to evolve after it became a completely new version of itself.
Having two Alpha-level Pokémon less than a month into his journey, Steven's strength was simply incomparable to other Trainers.
Under Steven's observation, Scyther had basically learned all the moves it could naturally.
The remaining ones would require the help of TMs.
Scyther was skilled at using Fury Cutter, Agility, X-Scissor, and Air Slash.
Not making good use of Swords Dance would truly be a waste.
In his past life's memories, what left a deep impression on Steven was Ash's "Counter Shield" strategy.
He could even use Electro Web to form a "Counter Shield," blocking the opponent's attacks.
There was also Chimchar's Flame Wheel combined with the "Counter Shield," with various applications.
Scyther could also use the rotation of Swords Dance to form a Counter Shield, which could both defend and strengthen itself.
Two birds with one stone.
"However, it seems I'll have to wait until Scyther's injury heals."
Steven had not yet left Petalburg Woods. Taking Scyther away from there was just to help the other Pokémon stop grieving.
Leaving ahead of time could reduce the duration of their sadness.
"Meta!"
"Hmm? What's wrong, Metagross?"
Steven looked at Metagross, who had walked up to him, and asked.
"Meta…gross…"
Metagross's golden metal claws began to draw on the ground.
It wrote a few words in the dirt.
Steven Stone.
"Meta?" Metagross turned to look at Steven, appearing somewhat cautious.
Did I write it correctly?
"That's excellent, Metagross." Steven smiled gently, placing his palm on Metagross's head and rubbing it affectionately.
Pokémon can understand human speech, but understanding and being able to write are two different things.
Because Metagross's intelligence was exceptionally high, Steven had long prepared books for Pokémon to learn human language.
However, it was for character recognition, not for Metagross to speak human language like Meowth.
To put it another way, Meowth was also a true genius. It modified its body structure and learned human language.
"Tomorrow, I need to go back to Rustboro City to buy some Pokéblocks that suit Scyther's taste."
"Skarmory likes sweet ones, Aron eats minerals, Metagross isn't picky about anything—it eats both minerals and Pokéblocks…"
"I'll see what flavor Scyther prefers later."
"You go train too. Read your book and practice writing during your breaks. Don't let Scyther catch up to you, okay?"
"Meta!"
Metagross, having received Steven's approval and praise, seemed full of energy and went to find a place to train.
Steven twisted his body, doing warm-up exercises.
"Alright… it's time for me to train too!"
On a tree branch not far away, the white-dressed girl sat quietly above, observing the Pokémon and Steven below.
Beneath her pale, jade-like skin, her perfect, bare feet dangled.
Her nimble white eyes watched Steven's every move.
Strangely, even Scyther, whose perception was at its peak, and Metagross, skilled in Psychic abilities, did not notice her presence.
The girl's tender pink lips curved slightly upward, revealing a smile…
"Dinner time!"
As the sun set, Steven prepared dinner for each Pokémon, calling for everyone to rest and eat.
"Aron!"
Upon hearing the word "dinner," Aron's fatigue from the day seemed to vanish instantly. It lunged into its exclusive food bowl, gnawing fiercely at the crushed iron ore and hard stones inside.
"Skarmory…" Skarmory cast a disdainful glance at Aron's eating habits.
Then, it lowered its head and slowly began to eat.
Skarmory's dinner was Pokéblocks wrapped in a Metal Coat.
Metagross landed on the ground, holding a book in one claw and reaching into its food bowl with the other to grab Pokéblocks and mineral fragments, stuffing them into its mouth.
Scyther looked at what the other three Pokémon were eating, a bit surprised.
They were eating either iron or rocks?
It lowered its head to look at its own food bowl, which contained pieces of whitish, jelly-like cubes.
"I don't know your taste preference, so I used Skarmory's Flying-type Pokéblocks. They're sweet. See if you like them," Steven said, eating his self-heating meal while speaking to Scyther.
"If it's not to your liking, I'll buy you something you prefer when we return to Rustboro City tomorrow."
Scyther picked up a piece with its scythe and put it into its mouth. The sweet taste stimulated its taste buds.
After swallowing the food, the energy within its body felt revitalized.
This stuff… it seems to make me stronger if I eat it?
"Cha." Scyther shook its head at Steven.
"Ah? Not to your taste? Then I'll just have to ask you to make do for one night." Seeing Scyther shake its head, Steven could only let it manage for now.
"Metagross."
Metagross put down its book and gestured a few times on the ground.
Steven looked down and saw "delicious" written in the dirt.
"Oh, I see!" Steven suddenly understood.
"So you like sweet flavors too!"
"Cha." Scyther nodded.
It indeed liked sweet things. Its previous Trainer always loved to give it donuts.
"Since you favor the Fury Cutter battle style, I'll buy you some Bug-type Pokéblocks and a Silver Powder tomorrow."
Steven planned to first strengthen Scyther's offensive power, then figure out more battle strategies.
"Cha."
Scyther nodded, agreeing with Steven's suggestion.