Soon, two white spheres appeared faintly within the sandstorm.
Marowak locked onto the target and swung its bone, using Smack Down.
The projectile of Rock-type energy shot forward, visibly enlarging within the sandstorm… but it failed to hit the moving aerial target.
"Hmm, the power increased, but the execution speed dropped, so the attack missed."
Marowak felt the strength of the sandstorm and silently nodded.
"Yeah, Smack Down needs more practice. You have to maintain high accuracy under sandstorms of varying intensity."
"Maro!"
"But that's not today's training focus."
Marowak looked up, confused.
"Bonemerang will be unstoppable within a sandstorm."
There were no shortcuts in training. Haruki and Marowak kept at it until six o'clock before exiting on time.
Rora was already waiting at the door, wearing a mask.
"The training room is yours until six tomorrow morning. I'll be back on time."
Haruki didn't say anything unnecessary and handed her the keycard directly.
"T-Thanks, I'm heading in!"
With that, Rora ducked past Haruki and darted into the training room like she was escaping.
Haruki frowned slightly but didn't overthink it. He took Marowak out to dinner.
Inside the training room, Rora leaned against the wall, pressing a hand to her chest.
"Hmm... there's no speed boost. I knew it… Skiploom must've been affecting me!"
Rora muttered to herself, refusing to believe she had been anything but normal.
Then, she released her Pokémon and focused entirely on training.
---
Haruki packed up dinner and returned to his room, releasing all three Pokémon to eat together.
Beldum, having been cooped up all day, flew around the room excitedly.
It bumped into "big bro" Marowak, then cozied up to Skiploom, then tried to see whose head was harder: its own or Haruki's.
Haruki surrendered immediately, putting an end to the contest.
That night, Haruki slept soundly. But in his dreams, the bright full moon still hung in the sky, and he could now see even finer details on its surface.
And within Haruki's mental world, that crack/rift had become nearly invisible.
He knew it wouldn't be long before he made a full recovery. When that happened, that mysterious voice would likely return again.
The night passed uneventfully, and Haruki was well-rested. By 6 AM, he had already eaten and arrived at the training room.
He took the keycard from the pale-eyed Rora and extended his hand again.
"If you're still using the training room tonight, I won't raise the price."
Rora snapped awake from her daze and hurriedly handed Haruki the fee for the next day.
"W-Wait for me tonight!"
With that, she floated away.
"Skip~"
Ever-considerate, Skiploom followed up with an Aromatherapy.
Rora visibly shuddered, didn't look back, and bolted off.
Haruki looked regretful.
'She's a good girl… just a little odd in the head.'
"Skiploom, wanna come in and try it out?"
"Skip~"
Skiploom nodded immediately and floated inside.
Haruki smiled and followed after.
He wasn't going to tell Skiploom that he called it in today because the training would be long, and he needed it to help with recovery…
Of course, it was also good for Skiploom to start getting used to such extreme conditions.
No harm in that!
---
For the full 12 hours of daylight, Haruki stayed in the training room with Marowak, only stepping out for a quick lunch.
Skiploom wanted out not long after entering. The sandstorm was harsh, it stung and dried it out. It felt like it could wither at any moment.
Fortunately, the training room was equipped with an isolation rest chamber for Trainers. It was free from the effects of the sandstorm and allowed them to observe their Pokémon's training.
Skiploom promptly ran inside to hide.
When it looked back at Haruki and Marowak through the glass, its eyes were full of admiration.
During the break, it "selflessly" cast Grassy Terrain and Aromatherapy, restoring Marowak's condition without hesitation.
At 6 PM, Haruki and Rora handed off the room on schedule.
Rora silently walked around Haruki again. When she saw Skiploom emerging afterward, she even gave a little shudder.
"Skip?"
Skiploom tilted its head in confusion, looking a bit hurt.
'You weren't like this when we first met…'
"Maybe… she's afraid of Grass-type Pokémon?"
Haruki patted Skiploom comfortingly.
"Skip~"
Still looking aggrieved, Skiploom raised both its tiny arms, round little eyes staring nervously at Haruki…
"Only one jar. Too much and you really will gain weight."
"Skip!"
Skiploom spun joyfully on the spot, laughing like a weightless fat balloon.
It couldn't care less what Rora thought. Even though it didn't manage to score two jars of Honey, one jar was still a win!
Haruki chuckled, he'd seen through Skiploom's little scheme long ago.
'What a clever little trickster.'
Back at the room, besides giving Skiploom its Honey, Haruki didn't play favorites and also prepared snacks that Marowak and Beldum liked.
And so, the three-day routine passed in a flash.
In the end, Rora only rented half a day more, saying she couldn't stay up any longer and needed to fix her sleep schedule.
Haruki agreed and let her train until midnight for the six hours she paid.
After midnight, Haruki watched the now-energized Rora leave, then turned and re-entered the training room.
Over the past two days, he had also figured out the training room's surveillance system.
He released Marowak first, and the two nodded at each other in perfect sync.
Then, Marowak earnestly resumed training its Smack Down technique.
About ten minutes later, the room's three cameras were suddenly covered in a thick layer of sand. At that moment, Haruki had already pulled out a mini laptop and was tapping away.
In less than thirty seconds, the surveillance feed returned to normal. And on Haruki's laptop, the same training footage played in sync.
On screen, Marowak was still diligently practicing.
But in reality, Marowak was standing quietly right next to Haruki.
"Done~"
Haruki grinned, very satisfied.
Once he confirmed the monitoring system was broadcasting daytime training footage as expected, he took out Beldum's Poké Ball.
"Your turn. Let's see how you handle this sandstorm."
"Bel!"
---
The next morning, Haruki left the training room and returned the access card.
On the way to the stadium, he was still thinking about the training room.
That camera-switching trick worked great. If he ever stayed in a city for a while, he might as well rent a room each time.
That way, he wouldn't have to keep Beldum hidden all the time and could train it normally.
'Hmm… maybe even find a five-star hotel chain, get a membership… could save some money too…'
As the complete plan took shape in his mind, Haruki arrived at the Sandstorm Showdown venue without issue.
Though it was only 6:30 AM, all the shops and stalls along the way were already open.
But aside from the Showdown contestants, there weren't many tourists out yet.
Haruki had read the rules. The reason contestants were required to arrive so early was to speed up preliminary filtering.
Only Trainers who passed the first round would earn the right to battle in the main stadium before an audience.
After getting his contestant number verified, Haruki sat quietly in the waiting area.
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30+ chaps at patre0n/Romeloff