Pokémon: Sandstorm Sovereign

Chapter 94: Instructor Leo

At that moment, Basalt finally understood Forrest's predicament. Against Fletcher's Nosepass, a single Gravity would render Heracross flightless and severely hinder its movement. If it then got hit with a Thunder Wave, it would be completely crippled. Against Skye's Pidgeotto... it had a 4x weakness to Flying. A single wide-range Air Cutter would likely be enough to take it down.

Since there was still time before class, they chatted for a while longer, and Basalt learned a bit more about the two trainers in Group A's upper tier: Yao and his Dragon Breath-wielding Onix, and Waylon and his mysterious Gastly. Unfortunately, since the B-group trainers couldn't challenge the A-group's upper tier, their knowledge was limited.

Just as Basalt had a general understanding of the A and B groups, their instructor arrived.

"You must be Basalt," the man said. "My name is Leo. I'm the instructor for Group B. If you have any problems in the future, you can come to me, and I'll do my best to help you."

Mr. Leo was a slender man in his late thirties, dressed in a spotless white shirt. The traces of time were visible on his face, with flecks of gray already showing at his temples. But Basalt could tell that in his youth, he must have been quite handsome.

Basalt smiled and greeted him politely.

"Normally, I would have an instructional battle with your Pokémon to get a better sense of your abilities," Mr. Leo said as he walked to the front of the classroom. "But I heard your Drilbur was injured, so we'll postpone that for now."

An instructional battle was exactly what it sounded like: a battle where the student could go all out against the instructor, who would then identify their weaknesses and help them improve.

"Uh... okay," Basalt replied. He really wanted to say that his Drilbur was already fully recovered and they could have the battle right away. But to avoid causing a stir, he swallowed his words. A day or two's delay wouldn't make much of a difference. Besides, Drilbur's incredible stamina and rapid recovery were one of his trump cards; he didn't want to reveal it just yet.

"Alright, let's begin class," Mr. Leo said, nodding as he looked at the four students before him. "If you've encountered any problems in your training recently, now is the time to ask."

"Sir, my Houndour's Counter is inconsistent in battle. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. How can I fix that?" The first to raise his hand was Finch, the very trainer Basalt had defeated and knocked down to the lower tier.

Hearing his question, Basalt almost choked. Finch's Houndour knows Counter?

Counter, the Fighting-type move that returns any physical damage received to the opponent at double the power. Basalt had been thinking that Houndour, like his own Drilbur, was weak to Totodile's Aqua Jet and probably would have been one-shot. So why was Finch in the upper tier? Now he knew. With Counter, it could easily one-shot the Totodile. Did that mean his own victory over Houndour was just a fluke?

As expected, there are no weak trainers in Group B. Fate is a curious thing.

"Finch, I've observed your Houndour," Mr. Leo began. "Its affinity for all its types is excellent. Its control and perception of Fighting-type energy has likely met the requirements for using Counter. However, precisely because its affinity is so high and sensing energy is easy for it, your Houndour's energy manipulation is still quite crude. For simple moves like Ember or Bite, this might not be an issue. But Counter requires extremely fine energy control. That is likely the reason for its inconsistency. My advice is to spend more time honing your Houndour's delicate control over its elemental energy."

"I see!" At Mr. Leo's guidance, it was as if a fog had been lifted from Finch's mind.

In Groups A and B, the classes were not about basic knowledge. They were targeted Q&A sessions to address specific problems. After all, these were all talented trainers with solid foundations. It was better to let them learn and grow on their own and only step in when they encountered a problem.

After each of the students, including Basalt, had asked a few questions, Mr. Leo left. The entire session had lasted less than an hour. But his explanations were so detailed that even though Basalt hadn't had the same problems as the others, he still learned a great deal. Before leaving, Mr. Leo also gave Basalt his contact information.

"Alright, time to train," Basalt said to himself. After Mr. Leo left, the other students dispersed to begin their own training.

After leaving the classroom, Basalt headed to the move-learning room to check on Drilbur. It had been less than an hour, so he didn't have high hopes, but he was passing by anyway. His main task now was to plan a strategic direction and moveset for Bronzor.

But when he walked into the room, the middle-aged move tutor rushed over and grabbed his hand. "Young man, you're finally here!" he exclaimed.

"Uh... what do you mean, 'finally'? It's only been a little over an hour," Basalt said, completely confused.

"Sir, did... did my Drilbur cause some trouble?" A bad feeling suddenly crept over him.

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