Pokemon: I refuse to be a supporting character!

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Training Pokémon isn't exactly a lighthearted and enjoyable task. In fact, it's more accurate to call it tedious and exhausting.

After all, repeatedly practicing the same moves and strategies every day quickly loses its novelty.

Add in the unchanging grind of basic training, day after day, year after year. Even your own physical fitness needs to keep up.

Battles are often against the same handful of Pokémon using the same predictable moves.

It can actually be quite draining.

Many young Trainers give up because they lose the "freshness" of the experience.

Thankfully, although Li Xiang may not have many strong suits, he knew how to persevere. So even with a new addition to his team, he could still patiently and diligently train his existing Pokémon.

That said…

"Battling without candies is a drag," Li Xiang muttered, watching the cat and dog locked in combat on the training field.

After some simple exercises and tests, he had already gathered most of Riolu's stats and information.

To be honest, it was far better than he had expected.

First of all, Riolu's level was a solid 10, higher than Litten's. Moreover, it knew a wide range of moves:

Foresight, Quick Attack, Feint, Endure, Bullet Punch, Vacuum Wave, Detect, Sky Uppercut, Agility, and Thunder Punch.

A total of ten moves.

Unfortunately, it didn't know Aura Sphere. But then again, if it did, it probably wouldn't have ended up in Li Zhehan's hands for Li Xiang to inherit.

On a side note - Its move pool was a mixed bag spanning multiple generations, including some moves that, in the games, required TMs to learn.

Of course, only in the real world could such a peculiar scenario exist.

Here, as long as a move was documented from Gen 1 to Gen 8, Pokémon could learn and use it without restrictions.

There wasn't any need to forget older moves just to compete, like in Gen 8's competitive play.

That said, Li Xiang found it frustrating that Riolu didn't have many special attack moves at its current stage.

Aside from Focus Blast and Hidden Power, there were only a few common options. And who knew how long it would take for it to evolve.

In the games, friendship values were tangible and measurable, but in reality, they were incredibly unreliable.

A quick online search revealed that, setting aside all the obvious exaggerations, Pokémon that required high friendship to evolve typically took five to six years of training in this world.

The latest record? 

A Riolu that evolved at over level 50!

This reminded Li Xiang of Sword and Shield reducing the evolution requirement by replacing friendship with affection—making things much easier.

Yes.

Yet another example of simplifying training difficulty.

Li Xiang didn't consider himself a genius, just someone with a bit of luck. He knew there was no way Riolu would evolve anytime soon. At best, it might take around three years.

By then, he wouldn't even be halfway to assembling a full six-member competitive team.

Having three or four solid members would be the bare minimum.

So feeding it special attack candies now felt wasteful. Better to save them for Litten or his third Pokémon.

Plans rarely keep up with changes, after all.

Might as well save the candies.

They don't expire anyway.

And Riolu would need the candies it produced for itself—how could it trade them with Litten?

Abandon physical attack despite its move set? Or sacrifice speed?

It couldn't possibly be durability candies either; Riolu was already frail enough.

Better to wait.

—----------------------------

On the field.

The match concluded.

With a burst of speed from a Flame Charge, Litten decisively took down Riolu.

The latter rolled a few times on the ground, ending up covered in dust. It collapsed reluctantly, looking pitiful in defeat.

Still, if it hadn't fainted, that stubborn pup would have kept going, no matter how beaten down it was.

Such a tenacious personality.

All this for just practice.

Li Xiang sighed, finally understanding how his coworkers must have felt about him at work.

He walked over quickly, crouching down to gently pinch Riolu's little paw.

"Riolu!"

Riolu opened its eyes warily, glaring at Li Xiang as if to say,

What do you want? I don't need your help!

"Hey… Relax, I'm just here to remind you of something."

Li Xiang sighed, holding a bottle of healing spray. "You know, injuries like these are expensive to treat. Add in regular check-ups—it all adds up."

Riolu ignored him, turning its head away and extending its arm. Its fur was smudged with black streaks.

Li Xiang reluctantly sprayed the potion onto Riolu's injuries.

"Whimper..."

Riolu's small body trembled slightly, letting out a soft whimper, its eyes glistening with tears.

"Meow~"

Litten brushed against Li Xiang's side, announcing its presence. It then circled under him and displayed its slightly swollen face.

A child who cries gets attention.

Through interactions with its mentor, Purugly, Litten had learned how to compete for affection.

"Good, just wait a moment."

Li Xiang patted Litten's head, pulled an Oran Berry the size of his palm from his pocket, and handed it to Riolu. "Here, eat this. It'll help your recovery."

Resisting the urge to pat Riolu's head, Li Xiang stood up and went to grab a brush.

Riolu would definitely need a bath tonight, but before that, Li Xiang wanted to ensure their home didn't end up covered in dirt and paw prints. Otherwise, Mrs. Yin might just lose her temper and kill them both.

Riolu blinked, watching as Litten meowed persistently, trying to monopolize Li Xiang's attention, while it quietly nibbled at the berry.

Truth be told, although it initially misunderstood Litten as part of the group that once bullied it, even after realizing the truth, it couldn't bring itself to befriend the feline Pokémon.

"Once bitten, twice shy," as the saying goes.

At the same time, Riolu harbored a strong sense of rivalry with Litten.

With its high intelligence, Riolu clearly understood that it wasn't currently Litten's match. The feline was far stronger than any adversary it had faced before. But that didn't mean Riolu would back down.

Much like when those ferocious feline Pokémon ganged up on it in the past, it had resisted until the very end without begging for mercy even once.

It was determined to grow stronger and would become stronger!

As for Li Xiang...

Riolu's gaze softened.

Apart from being overly indulgent—something that felt a bit foreign to its usual tough upbringing—Li Xiang had fulfilled its every hope for a family.

He cared for it, protected it, encouraged it, respected it, and comforted it.

Just as Li Xiang had once said, "Family is about supporting and relying on one another."

Riolu felt fortunate to have met Li Xiang.

In the future, it would cherish this good fortune, striving to help Li Xiang and bring him the highest honors—the kind it had once seen on television.

—----------------------------

That afternoon, the trio—Li Xiang, Litten, and Riolu—watched past Type King matches.

One of the featured contestants was a master trainer renowned for their skill with Lucario, which left a deep impression on Riolu.

Standing at the center of the battlefield, basking in the cheers of thousands, moving resolutely toward victory...

What a breathtaking sight!

Later that afternoon, under Li Zhehan's guidance, Li Xiang headed to the dojo.

Originally, Mrs. Yin had planned for Li Xiang to take the day off, as the family had an evening dinner and possibly some fun activities planned.

After all, skipping a day or two of martial arts training wouldn't hurt.

But Li Zhehan disagreed.

The burly man had immense respect for Duan Tianxing, and part of the gifts he brought back was meant for him. Additionally, Li Zhehan wanted to visit Duan Tianxing in person.

Although Mrs. Yin wasn't entirely happy about it, she wasn't unreasonable. After some coaxing from Li Zhehan, she relented.

Father and son carried the gifts to the dojo.

As expected, Duan Tianxing refused to accept them, even though one of the items was a rare tea brick that the martial arts master was known to appreciate.

Seeing this, Li Xiang didn't say a word. Instead, he went to the dojo's tea room, found an empty tea canister, broke off a small piece of the tea brick, brewed a pot, and calmly placed the rest back.

This behavior might seem presumptuous or even slightly forceful, which should have annoyed Duan Tianxing.

But when he saw his youngest disciple respectfully serve him tea, saying in his still-unchanged voice, "Master, please have some tea," any dissatisfaction vanished.

This sentiment was hard for young people to understand, much like how most don't grasp the affection grandparents have for their grandchildren.

Duan Tianxing took a sip, gave a brief nod, and then sent Li Xiang off to practice.

His expression remained unchanged, but based on what Li Xiang had observed of him over the days, he knew his master was in a good mood.

When Duan Tianxing was pleased, his index finger would unconsciously tap the table, and his otherwise stern face would soften noticeably.

This little act of cleverness had worked.

Before leaving, Li Xiang brewed a cup for his father as well. Li Zhehan, instead of feeling embarrassed or slighted, remained as respectful as ever. After chatting briefly with Duan Tianxing, he left, visibly content—almost like a fan meeting their idol.

—----------------------------

In the main hall of the dojo:

Wang Dong turned to Li Xiang, exclaiming, "Your dad is huge! Does he practice martial arts too?"

"Not that I know of," Li Xiang replied while holding a stance. Unfortunately, he hadn't encountered the kind and gentle Third Senior Sister today, nor the mischievous Second Senior Sister who loved playing pranks.

It was just the four junior disciples.

"Really? I think your dad would be a martial arts prodigy if he tried!" Wang Dong marveled.

What nonsense!

Li Xiang couldn't help but roll his eyes. Wang Dong was even more obsessed with martial arts novels than Lu Chengfeng, and he seemed to think that every well-built man was destined to be a martial arts genius.

"Is that your new Pokémon? A Riolu!"

Lu Chengfeng, at least, had a more grounded focus. He marveled at Riolu mimicking Li Xiang's movements with great interest.

Li Xiang nodded without saying much.

Unable to bear it any longer, Duan Yu reprimanded them, pulling the two senior disciples away.

Interrupting someone's training? How disgraceful!

They were one step away from being scolded by Duan Tianxing himself.

Recognizing their mistake, Lu Chengfeng and Wang Dong didn't dare bother Li Xiang further.