The next day, just as the sky in the east began to lighten, Cain was already awake. After preparing breakfast for his Pokémon, he called everyone to get up.
Only Sneasel seemed not very used to this routine. In fact, when Cain woke up, he was already awake too, but since the other Pokémon were still asleep, he made no move.
However, when Cain called them for breakfast, Sneasel suddenly reacted. Was he slowly starting to fit in? Was he no longer rejecting Cain as openly?
Even though a voice in his mind kept telling him that Cain was untrustworthy and that he shouldn't follow him, his body was very honest.
For example, when he saw the perfectly arranged breakfast, which gave off a tempting aroma, along with a glass of fresh milk, he couldn't help but feel drawn to it.
Seeing that all the Pokémon were sitting in their places, waiting for him to join, Sneasel immediately stood up and hurried to take the spot reserved for him.
When he saw his food up close, he couldn't help but swallow and was about to start eating.
But since the other Pokémon hadn't started, he also had to hold back.
"Go ahead, eat," Cain said with a smile, giving Sneasel a quick glance, who seemed a bit nervous.
At Cain's words, the Pokémon began to enjoy their breakfast. Sneasel, who had hesitated a bit to start, soon joined in. The more he ate, the more he enjoyed it, so much so that even when Cain patted his head, he decided to ignore it.
His body was being completely honest.
After breakfast, they resumed the search for Onix.
That day's noon was the last moment Cain had planned to find Onix; if he couldn't find it, he would have to give up.
They didn't continue climbing the mountain but searched at the same height, moving horizontally to ensure they had enough time to return.
Along the way, many Pokémon tried to challenge Cain and his team, but they were quickly dealt with by Slowpoke.
Most of the Pokémon on the mountain were Rock or Ground types, which made Slowpoke's Water-type moves very effective. Although Rock-type Pokémon had high defense, their resistance to Water-type moves was very low.
After defeating numerous Rock and Ground-type Pokémon, Slowpoke leveled up, reaching level 25, matching Sneasel as the highest-level Pokémon in Cain's team.
Even if they didn't find Onix, just leveling up Slowpoke made Cain satisfied. There aren't many training spots like this.
They searched for almost two hours without finding Onix, not even in places that seemed promising.
Just when Cain was about to give up, Murkrow reported that he had found a considerable cave ahead, where there might be an Onix.
Cain followed Murkrow to the entrance of the cave, which was as tall as two people, and noticed that there were marks of something large that had passed by, similar to what an Onix would leave.
"Slowpoke, use Water Gun in the cave to see if there's an Onix."
Although the possibility of an Onix being there was high, he couldn't be completely sure, and aside from the marks at the entrance, he hadn't found other signs, which made Cain feel somewhat puzzled.
Slowpoke shot a jet of water into the cave.
The cave was quite deep, and the sound of the water hitting the ground took a moment to return.
After waiting a few seconds, soft, disordered noises started coming from inside the cave.
Little by little, the sound approached the entrance, but Cain frowned.
"Something's not right. If it were an Onix, the noise would be much louder, and this doesn't sound like a Pokémon slithering... it sounds more like... wheels scraping against the ground?" Cain thought.
They didn't have to wait long before a bluish-gray cylinder, resembling a tire, came rolling out at great speed, making a sound similar to a tire sliding on the ground.
When Cain saw what it was, his pupils contracted, and he quickly shouted: "Get out of the way!"
He jumped to the side, dodging the cylinder rolling out of the cave.
His Pokémon also reacted quickly, successfully avoiding it.
The bluish-gray cylinder braked abruptly as it exited the cave, stopping after skidding violently on the ground for a few seconds. The marks Cain had seen before at the cave entrance were caused by this.
"Donphan!"
The bluish-gray cylinder stopped rolling, revealing an elephant-like Pokémon over a meter tall. Two thick, white tusks protruded from the sides of its trunk, and from its tail to its trunk, it was covered by a thick, dark blue armor. Its small eyes were hidden under the armor.
This Pokémon that had rolled out of the cave was a Donphan, a Pokémon from the Johto region.
Cain had mistaken the cave for the possible home of an Onix, but it turned out to be inhabited by a Donphan, the evolution of Phanpy, a Ground-type Pokémon.
Pokémon: Donphan (Light Green)
Gender: Male
Level: 25
Type: Ground
Ability: Sturdy
Held Item: None
Egg Moves: Mud-Slap, Focus Energy, Body Slam
Basic Moves: Fire Fang, Thunder Fang, Horn Attack, Bulldoze, Growl, Defense Curl, Rapid Spin, Rollout, Assurance, Knock Off, Slam
Learned Moves: Iron Defense, Stealth Rock, Block
TM Moves: None
A level 25 Donphan with a light green quality, something Cain did not expect.
On their way, most of the Pokémon they had encountered had a yellow quality, and now a light green quality Pokémon appeared.
Moreover, this Donphan seemed to have evolved recently, at level 25.
Cain felt relieved not to have encountered a level 30 Donphan, as they learn the move Magnitude at that level.
This area move, which depends on chance, could have been disastrous. Even if Cain and his Pokémon managed to avoid the attack, the rocky terrain could have buried them under the mountain.
However, since this Donphan didn't know the move Magnitude, it became a valuable target for Cain before heading to the Hunter Guild.
If he could find a suitable mission, he could earn a lot of Pokédollars and points in return.
Donphan couldn't imagine that these intruders who had poured water into his cave already considered him a source of income.
Time was pressing, and Cain couldn't afford to waste any more of it. Since this Donphan was of great value, he had to capture it immediately.
"Slowpoke, Water Gun! Murkrow, Tailwind! Sneasel, Icy Wind!" Cain immediately ordered the attack.
It was the first time Sneasel fought under Cain's orders. Although his movements were a bit slow at first, he quickly reacted and understood Cain's instructions.
(End of chapter)