Chapter Thirty-Four: The Admission Letter Arrives

“How about it, little one? Want to try again?” Zhusu Han held out the remaining sticky orbs for Nidoking to see.

“To be honest, whether you want to or not, I’d very much like to continue.” In the game, once you tire out the boss, you can just throw a ball, but in reality, things are much more flexible. In theory, as long as you have enough in your inventory, you could just keep throwing to your heart’s content.

Zhusu Han spoke gently, “After all, I want to see the limits of my research, and I’m curious about your limits as well.”

“But unfortunately, this is Officer Jenny’s territory, and there’s a Nurse Joy and a Gym Leader watching me—it’s not exactly convenient here.”

“I was hoping you’d be a little more uncooperative, so I’d have a solid reason to take you away with me.”

To keep the plan running smoothly, Abi put on a stern face, while Nurse Joy and her Chansey offered Nidoking warm, reassuring smiles.

To be honest, they all felt a little helpless inside. This sort of trick might fool a Pokémon, but anyone from the darker organizations would never fall for it.

Zhusu Han picked up a sticky orb and held it in front of Nidoking’s eyes, blocking its sight; her voice suddenly went cold.

That chilling, shadowy image Abi had once felt from her—“the demon in the ice”—reappeared.

“Now, make your choice.”

“Obey, or come with me!”

Nidoking: !

To hell with shadow balls and psychic reprogramming—nothing is more terrifying than this person right here!

“Nido, nido, king!”

I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything!

Somebody help me—those humans, that gentle Chansey!

“The shadow ball’s influence is broken?” Abi clicked his tongue, finding this turn of events a bit fantastical.

“Naturally. But according to Nurse Joy’s method, it’s really just a matter of spending a bit of time to build a new bond of trust, so Nidoking feels safer.”

Zhusu Han said, “My method simply borrowed a little from the ‘suspension bridge effect’ to help Nidoking and Nurse Joy quickly establish trust, breaking the shadow ball’s hold.”

Abi asked, “Aren’t you worried Nidoking can hear you?”

“So what if he does? Our goal is accomplished, and that big guy wouldn’t dare meet my gaze again.”

Abi turned to look; Nidoking, in the middle of receiving treatment from Nurse Joy, trembled and nearly hugged Chansey for comfort.

“Yes, he’s very sensitive to eye contact. Congratulations.”

Zhusu Han patted Abi on the shoulder. “You’ve now become the minion of the Demon King. Until his psychological issues are resolved, he won’t dare look at you either.”

Abi’s face darkened. “I’d rather not have such a strange title.”

Nurse Joy, unable to tolerate the pair’s banter, cut in, “If you two know your roles, get out already!”

Zhusu Han and Abi obediently left the room, leaving Nidoking, who’d been about to sneakily lick his own bandages, frozen in place.

Then, seeing Nurse Joy, his eyes shone with the devotion of a fanatic before a goddess.

“Nido!” he cried.

Big sis!

“How many do you have left? Should we find a few more lucky volunteers to test them out?”

To speak objectively, with a rational analysis—Zhusu Han wasn’t done experimenting yet and wanted to test the sticky orbs on a few more Pokémon.

Nidoking was among the stronger types, meaning he had high resistance to capture energy; other Pokémon would be different.

Even among side characters, there are differences in strength.

Abi shook his head. “No need, Nidoking will handle the rest. Or rather, once the shadow ball’s hold is broken, Pokémon know best how to help each other recover from its effects.”

“These are made from original apricorns, right? I have to say, that’s a bit extravagant.”

“For capturing, yes. But if you’re in a wild battle, it wouldn’t hurt to give your opponent’s Pokémon something with a bit more punch.”

Zhusu Han continued, “If I could use other types of apricorns to make the same thing, the cost could be reduced a lot.”

Abi couldn’t help but laugh. “Now I’m genuinely curious—what kind of person were you in your era, to know all these odd and unusual things?”

“Well, strictly speaking, perhaps in the age when these things existed, it was just a skill required by certain professions—like how a Gym Leader needs to learn management.”

“If you want, I can make you a batch to keep on hand, but they need careful storage, preferably in a space backpack.”

“I’ll pass. The Feather Ball you gave me is already a treasure, and I have my own partners. These research results are more suited for you. After all, you only have Lapras as a partner right now. Even though your skills are good, you can never have too many tricks up your sleeve in the wild.”

The Beiming Ball shook indignantly, and Lapras nearly volunteered itself to douse Abi with a Water Gun.

You act like Dragon’s offensive and defensive abilities mean nothing!

“True enough,” Zhusu Han agreed.

So, it was time for the second phase of research.

Watching Zhusu Han fall into deep contemplation, Abi suddenly felt a sense of crisis.

This unsophisticated relic from the past kept working harder and harder, and as the Gym Leader of Azalea Town, it made him nervous.

If even the elders are this driven, the new generation must be even scarier!

Gym Leader Abi, you wouldn’t want some younger challenger to suddenly overtake you and take your position, would you?

The devilish whisper played in Abi’s mind, and he made up his mind at once.

Pokémon training must be done in moderation to avoid overtaxing partners, but humans were another matter.

That settled it—he’d spend two extra hours tonight refining the lure module!

A week later, Zhusu Han succeeded in creating sticky orbs from colored apricorns.

It wasn’t all that complicated—so long as the apricorn itself still held capture energy, the orb’s effect remained, regardless of color.

Or rather, the colored apricorn sticky orbs inspired Zhusu Han to consider adding “ingredients” to the orbs for greater effect.

Just like crafting specialty balls, by adding specific materials, the sticky orb could be tailored to target certain Pokémon types.

For example, using the method for making Heavy Balls, if you reduce the proportion of black apricorn while adding the right materials, the resulting black sticky orb would be especially effective against heavy Pokémon.

Normally, it might take three or four standard sticky orbs to have an effect, but with a black one thrown with purpose, just one might do the trick.

Resisting capture energy—from the Pokémon’s perspective—means fighting the capture itself, and if successful, breaking free from the Poké Ball, which is extremely exhausting.

That’s the core of why sticky orbs can wear Pokémon down.

For safety, or rather to supplement his own firepower—and also for the sustainable development of Iron Man’s apricorn groves—Zhusu Han chose to stock up in bulk.

If the materials weren’t all common resources, Marsha, who could check the purchase records behind the scenes, would certainly have questioned what Zhusu Han was up to.

The quantities were huge—one of the three Rocket executives, the ninja, even considered intervening to investigate whether someone with ill intentions had gotten hold of a Rocket phone and was stockpiling materials to profit from the internal discount.

As a result, part of the incense burner’s inner space was now filled to the brim with sticky orbs; even without targeted throws, sheer firepower was enough to keep any invading Pokémon at bay.

At first, only Chihiro and Lapras were worried that Zhusu Han might turn into a boring man; later, even Iron Man advised him not to push so hard, to get out into nature and make friends with Pokémon.

But there was no helping it—when he got into work, no one could keep up with him. Abi, inspired, only managed three days before he had to drop his all-nighter plan due to lack of sleep.

A Gym Leader’s days are busy, after all.

Though Zhusu Han couldn’t figure out why he had so much energy, it was definitely a huge advantage when it came to working harder than anyone else.

No one could outdo him!

Then, one day, a majestic Pidgeot swooped down from the sky and deposited a letter at Iron Man’s doorstep.

Zhusu Han’s school admission letter.

After all, deliveries by Pokémon are never predictable.

That night, when Zhusu Han and Chihiro returned home, the girl picked at her food listlessly, her spirits low.

Brother Han was about to leave for school; soon it would only be her and Grandpa at home.

“Judging by the time, it’s about right,” said Zhusu Han, reading through the letter and silently calculating the days in his heart.

As for why it wasn’t a formal acceptance letter, it wasn’t exactly an official admission—being willing to take him at all was already a testament to Professors Oak and Elm’s influence.

After all, Musashi took the exam to get in; he, on the other hand, was eating hot pot and singing in Azalea Town, waiting for the letter to fall into his lap.

Zhusu Han smiled. “I never imagined I’d be going back to school at my age.”

In every lifetime, campus life had always felt a bit distant from his identity.

After dinner, Chihiro came over and tugged at his sleeve.

“Brother Han, when are you leaving?”

Zhusu Han thought for a moment. “I’ll stay a couple more days, sort out my supplies, then set off. I plan to travel there on foot.”

Chihiro nodded, still downcast, but the sensible little girl didn’t say much.

“All right, Chihiro, come with me.”

Zhusu Han took Chihiro and Lapras back to his room, then brought out an alloy storage case from the incense burner, about the size of a briefcase.

“This is my gift for you,” he said. “Someday you’ll have your own Pokémon partners, and these are little gadgets I’ve prepared for you.”

“I don’t know if your school has any outdoor camping activities, or if your teacher will be strong enough that you won’t even need these, but better safe than sorry.”

The storage box opened with a cleverly engineered mechanism—pressing the button caused the inner racks to unfold in five layers.

Inside, there were twenty top-grade shuttle balls, and a hundred sticky orbs made from original and colored apricorns, arranged neatly.

“You don’t need me to explain Poké Balls—you know how to use those. These little ugly balls might not look like much, but they’re very effective when thrown at a Pokémon.”

Before Chihiro could get excited, Zhusu Han added, “Of course, these are for Mr. Iron to look after—you’re not to take them out and play with them.”

He knew exactly how potent his sticky orbs were—even the formidable Nidoking couldn’t take more than a few hits. Any other Pokémon would stand no chance.

If Chihiro took them out around town, they’d be as terrifying to local Pokémon as holy relics.

“When you meet a partner you truly like, or need to win over their parents’ approval, these will come in handy.”

From a bird’s-eye view, in the original timeline, Chihiro’s dream partner was a Teddiursa.

Most likely the cub of the Ursaring that dominated the area around Azalea Town.

If he remembered correctly, Ursaring was caught by Silver later on.

There was even a subplot about landing a throw right on Teddiursa’s crescent moon mark, and how the circle on Ursaring’s chest increased capture rates.

Aiming for the weak spot, as it were.

Zhusu Han couldn’t say what effect his presence would ultimately have, but this was the best he could provide for now.

He patted Chihiro’s head. “It’s not like I’m being sent off to some deserted place to dig coal. Oh, and there’s this.”

He took out two delicate little boxes. “I had a friend send these by express delivery. Think of them as mini versions of the video phones from Pokémon Centers.”

“One is for you, one is for Mr. Iron.”

“Dial the number, and even if your dad’s over at Silph, you can talk to him directly.”

Zhusu Han smiled. “Just be sure to call after work hours—Mr. Iron will teach you all about it. If there are too many numbers to remember, you can jot them down in a little notebook.”

Chihiro’s situation as a left-behind child was indeed a concern, just as it would be anywhere in the world.

But thankfully, in the Pokémon world, aside from a few villains, nearly everyone could be counted on for kindness.

Even in the “Bicycle Road in the Storm” episode, the spirited cyclists were willing to give their all to help save a Pokémon, forming an entire cycling team to break the wind for Ash and friends.

In group cycling, “breaking the wind” refers to the lead rider reducing air resistance for the sprinters, saving their strength.

In other words, you could call the lead rider the tank in a game, existing so their teammates can go all out when the time comes.

It’s not exaggeration but realism—the Pokémon world truly is filled with love and peace.

And, of course, adorable and charming villains.