Seeing Coach Miles standing there silently, his expression shifting between light and shadow, Basalt felt very uncertain. He could only ask cautiously, "Coach, what do you think… is it okay?"
"Uh… you barely passed, I guess."
Coach Miles's gaze flickered, not daring to look at Basalt, while his mind was frantically trying to convince itself: Basalt, although you did very well, to prevent you from getting arrogant and slacking off, I can't praise you. I can never praise you in this lifeti!
As an experienced club coach, Miles had seen many talented young people, but many of them couldn't handle praise. The examples of those who beca arrogant and complacent after being praised, ultimately fading into diocrity, were not few.
Basalt didn't notice Coach Miles's strange behavior and, on the contrary, felt that it was all perfectly normal. His country was vast and populous; there were certainly no shortage of exceptionally talented trainers. Basalt felt that compared to those top trainers, he was still far behind.
Looks like I still have to keep working hard, Basalt clenched his fists secretly.
Seeing that Basalt wasn't suspicious, Coach Miles nodded to himself, thinking, As expected, young people are easy to fool.
"Basalt, although your Drilbur has t the second basic requirent, you still can't relax your daily practice."
"When the day cos that your Drilbur has mastered Rapid Spin so proficiently that using it is as simple and easy as breathing and walking, and has t the first basic requirent, then you can try to integrate other moves."
It was strange. Normally, most Pokémon would et the first basic requirent first, then tackle the second, proceeding step by step. But Basalt's Drilbur was different. It had conquered the second basic requirent first and was now going back to conquer the first. It was very strange.
As expected, geniuses don't walk the beaten path.
However, since Basalt had already overco the significantly more difficult second requirent, the first requirent probably wouldn't hold him back for long.
"Perhaps this is just what talent looks like," Coach Miles shook his head, sighing with emotion.
"Understood. I will focus on training the move Rapid Spin from now on," Basalt nodded.
Since Rapid Spin was the necessary path to combination moves, he would definitely have his little mole practice it to death. From what Coach Miles said, if it could learn a combination move at this stage, his mole would be incredibly powerful.
And if I add the sandstorm and the Sand Rush ability on top of that, wouldn't my little mole be beyond amazing? Basalt thought happily.
For now, I'll lie low. When my little mole has mastered its divine skills, then I will unify the martial arts world (×)… and shock the world (√)!
For all the humility I'm showing now, I'll show off a hundred tis more in the future! This is a good deal!
And so, Drilbur began its continuous "Rapid Spin" practice, determined to master it. From then on, besides digging, Drilbur had a new hobby: cosplaying a spinning top. Whether it was day or night, Basalt could always see the figure of Drilbur spinning.
However, the little mole was still young. After using Rapid Spin for nearly ten minutes, its legs began to tremble. There was no helping it; Rapid Spin was a move that primarily used the legs and waist for force. It would be strange if its legs didn't get weak after spinning for so long.
"Alright, let's switch moves. Next, we'll train 'Scratch'!"
Coach Miles's gaze was sharp and discerning. Seeing that Drilbur's legs had indeed reached their limit, he quickly called a halt. Its legs might be weak, but its arms were fine. Switching to Scratch training made perfect sense.
"Co on, use Scratch on this tal target."
Coach Miles led Drilbur to a tal target on the side and smiled. "This thing is very sturdy. You can use your full strength without worrying about breaking it."
"Chari~"
Although its legs were weak, Drilbur still nodded. A brave mole is not afraid of difficulties. Just train! Drilbur encouraged itself.
But unexpectedly, Basalt stopped the little mole. "Drilbur, wait a minute. Let's apply the tal Coating first."
Basalt rembered Ms. Anya's instructions: apply the tal Coating to Drilbur's claws once a day, have it rub its claws together for half an hour to promote absorption, and then have it use Scratch at least a hundred tis. Since they were going to train Scratch now anyway, they might as well use the tal Coating to save ti.
Coach Miles frowned slightly, a little annoyed. This was the third ti Basalt had interrupted his teaching. But when he saw the special "tal Coating" that Basalt took out of his dinsional bag, his eyes widened in utter astonishnt.
"This… isn't this the military-grade special 'tal Coating' that Anya brought back from the army? How could it be…"
Coach Miles was dumbfounded and extrely envious.
Anya and Miles's families were old friends, and the two of them had been good friends for many years, so they knew each other quite well. He knew that Anya used to serve in the army, with the rank of Captain. And because she was a rare female officer, her future was bright, with the rank of "Major" being a definite possibility. But half a year ago, Anya seed to have made a big mistake and retired from the military without any warning. No one knew the specific reason.
However, although Anya had retired and no longer received military supplies, the army hadn't taken back so of the supplies she had already received but hadn't used up, like the bottle of tal Coating in Basalt's hand.
Miles had also been eyeing this bottle of tal Coating, but he knew it was precious, so he had been too embarrassed to ask for it. But he never expected that Anya would actually give sothing so precious… directly to Basalt!
Basalt opened the cap, aid the nozzle at the little mole's claws, and squeezed hard, but only a little bit ca out. He couldn't help but complain, "What the heck, this bottle of tal Coating is second-hand? It looked full, but it's only half-empty!"
"That's enough, that's enough!"
Seeing Basalt squeeze twice, finally getting out two soybean-sized drops of tal Coating but still looking like it wasn't enough, Coach Miles's eyes nearly popped out of his head with rage. He wished he could kick Basalt away and give him two hard slaps.
This was a priceless treasure!
"For a Novice-level Pokémon, a soybean-sized amount of coating each ti is enough. Don't waste it, please don't waste it!" Coach Miles almost lost control of his emotions, his face flushed.
"Oh, oh, I'll be careful next ti." Basalt nodded, smiling as he put the tal Coating away. Seeing Coach Miles's fierce expression, he scratched his head and asked with confusion, "Coach, are you not feeling well sowhere? You look terrible."
"Never mind ! Quickly, have your Drilbur start rubbing its claws together to promote absorption. Hurry up, don't waste it, please don't waste it!"
This was the second ti Coach Miles had reminded Basalt not to waste it. Miles's eyes were glued to the tal Coating on Drilbur's claws, so anxious he was about to cry, as if the tal Coating belonged to him.
"Oh, oh! Drilbur, quickly, rub your claws together!" Basalt gave the command.
"Kaka-kaka!"
Drilbur began to rub its claws, just like a girl applying hand cream. But because its claws were very hard, with a hardness not inferior to ordinary tal, the sound of the friction was very harsh, a bit like a knife scratching on glass.
Basalt frowned slightly. The sound made him a little uncomfortable, giving him goosebumps. Of course, it was just a little bit, not unbearable.
"tal Claw! Hone Claws! Screech! Three-in-one! Invincible!"
Coach Miles's eyes lit up, like a lecher who had just seen a scantily clad beauty. He was practically drooling, muttering to himself.
"Coach, what are you talking about, tal Claw, Hone Claws, Screech?" Basalt looked at him in confusion. He felt that ever since he took out the tal Coating Ms. Anya had given him, Coach Miles had been acting a little strange, like a neurotic.
"Didn't Anya tell you the effect of this bottle of tal Coating?"
"She did! It helps a Pokémon sense Steel-type energy so that my Drilbur can learn tal Claw." Basalt looked innocent. Isn't that right?
"Helping a Pokémon sense Steel-type energy and learn tal Claw is indeed one of the effects of this coating. In addition, because the Pokémon needs to rub its claws together to promote absorption after applying the coating, there is a certain chance that it will learn the move Hone Claws."
"Hone Claws? A stat-boosting move?" Basalt's eyes lit up.
Hone Claws, a Dark-type move, sharpens the user's claws, raising its attack and accuracy. Everyone knows the importance of stat-boosting moves. Even just one boost can give a Pokémon the ability to fight above its weight class. If developed further to allow for multiple boosts, it would be a ga-changer.
"And that's not all. If a Pokémon's claws are strengthened by the coating, they will gradually beco tallic. You heard the sound of Drilbur rubbing its claws, right? That sound is actually the prototype of a move, and that is Screech."
"Screech…?" Basalt blinked, suddenly feeling his mouth go a little dry.
Screech, a Normal-type move, emits a harsh sound that makes you want to cover your ears, drastically lowering the opponent's defense. A divine move like Screech that weakens the opponent's defense, when reversed, is basically equivalent to the Pokémon learning Swords Dance. It's incredibly powerful.
At this mont, Basalt finally understood what Coach Miles had been muttering about: "Three-in-one! Invincible!"
"Isn't Ms. Anya's gift… a bit too precious?"
Basalt gulped. He suddenly felt that he was perhaps not worthy of such a treasure. Besides, Ms. Anya was not a relative or anything.
Oh crap! Could it be that… Ms. Anya has a crush on ? A bold idea suddenly popped into Basalt's head.
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