The two of them worked together to move their unconscious teammates, one by one, away from the jade ore tunnel.
It wasn't until they'd put some distance between themselves and the danger that Ayato finally heard the full story from Hiroyuki about what had happened while he was gone.
"I see."
"Those bastards got what they deserved. Would've been better if they just died in there!"
As he spoke, Hiroyuki gritted his teeth and wrapped gauze around his arm, sprinkling medicinal powder onto the wounds. His bloodshot eyes flicked toward the three unconscious comrades Aron had dragged out. They looked so beaten, so fragile—it made his throat burn.
"Leave them for now. What matters most is passing the exam. We can't let this suffering be for nothing."
Ayato shook his head. Revenge had its time, but so did priorities.
There had been eight of them total on the first day, including Ayato. Five were here, three still unaccounted for. If they could all pass, forget Shibata—even his uncle the squad leader wouldn't be able to touch them.
After all, there weren't many full-fledged members among the younger generation of the Quicksand Team.
"Guu."
Aron's voice broke through his thoughts.
Ayato turned and saw the little Pokémon spit out several jade shards, each about the size of a fingertip.
"Thanks. You've done so much."
He crouched down and gently slid the iron ingot toward Aron. "It's probably not much. I hope you don't mind. If I get the chance, I'll bring you more."
Aron glanced at him, then lowered its head and crunch crunch—munched through the metal like it was a cookie.
Hiroyuki watched in amazement. "Ayato, it really listens to you, huh?"
"Listens? Nah. We're just helping each other out."
Ayato waved it off, then paused. After some thought, he pulled out a Poké Ball.
"Do you have a Trainer—"
Before he could finish, Aron took several steps back, visibly on edge. It locked eyes on the Poké Ball like it was staring down a cursed object, and let out a short, sharp cry.
"Gudu!"
Ayato winced.
"S-Sorry."
He quickly tucked the Poké Ball away. Just as he opened his mouth to say something else, Aron abruptly turned and bolted—disappearing from sight in seconds.
"…Damn."
Ayato sighed. He hadn't expected such a strong reaction. Judging from that, this Aron really had been abandoned.
Pokémon like that tended to carry deep-seated traumas when it came to Trainers—certain lines you just couldn't cross.
Too impatient. He'd been too impatient.
He rubbed his face. The three unconscious teammates needed to be moved ASAP, and in the rush, he'd forgotten to take things slow.
"Looks like you got rejected," Hiroyuki said with a laugh, not even trying to hide the glee. He got bonked on the head for it.
"Shut up."
Ayato picked up the jade shards from the ground and tucked one into each unconscious person's jacket.
"Let's get them out of here."
Waiting around for rescue meant giving up on the exam. Under normal circumstances, Ayato would've never moved injured people. But this wasn't normal.
"Yeah." Hiroyuki nodded. His wounds were still bleeding a little, but after being patched up, he was in decent enough shape to carry someone—barely.
Ayato took two: one strapped to his back with a rope he'd prepared, and one in his arms. Thanks to his physical conditioning, it wasn't unbearable.
"Let's move."
He exhaled heavily and started retracing the route to the exit. "If we're lucky, we'll find the other three on the way."
"…Right."
Hiroyuki gave a strained reply and hurried to catch up.
Not long after they left, Aron poked its head out from hiding again—and silently followed after them.
Once it was gone, a Galarian Yamask appeared.
As a designated observer, it dutifully continued transmitting footage, trailing behind in silence.
Then—
A sharp screech rang out from the jade ore tunnel behind it. The sound was soaked in fury, making the Yamask pause mid-air.
It hesitated.
Just as it turned to fly back toward the source—
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion rocked the mine.
Screams echoed—but the blast swallowed most of the sound.
The entire cave trembled. Chunks of rock rained from above. It felt like the whole place might collapse at any moment.
Panicked Pokémon fled from the passage, darting into the darkness like they'd seen death itself. Two of the slower ones didn't make it—massive black arms lashed out, snatching them back into the chaos.
Another roar. Another explosion.
The Yamask flinched and quickly ducked into hiding, swinging its camera lens to record the fleeing horde.
Among them was a Rhyhorn, sprinting with a blood-soaked youth slumped over its back. The boy's face was frozen in terror. One of his arms was bent the wrong way, twisted and limp.
——
In the dim tunnel—
Ayato turned to Hiroyuki, who was soaked in sweat and panting like a dog. "You holding up?"
"I'm fine! Just go!"
Hiroyuki barked back. He wasn't mad at Ayato—he just had no energy left. If he didn't yell, the words might not come out at all.
If he hadn't been injured, this would've been a breeze. Two hundred pounds? He could've carried that in his sleep!
Ayato saw how badly Hiroyuki was swaying and picked up his own pace.
Thankfully, his memory was sharp. If he'd lost track of their path, he would've had to stop and reorient himself—wasting who knew how much time dodging traps.
BOOM!
The ground quaked beneath them.
Ayato didn't slow down. He figured the jade ore tunnel must've erupted into full-blown battle.
Those Pokémon… They were like animals from his previous life, engaging in long standoffs—growling, circling, waiting for the perfect moment.
Guess the moment had come.
"AH! Damn it!"
Hiroyuki cried out behind him. Ayato glanced up—and saw the ceiling cracking above them. Dust and small stones tumbled down. The sound of crumbling rock echoed all around.
Shit!
It was collapsing!
"RUN! Don't look back—JUST RUN!"
Eyes wide, Ayato shouted at the top of his lungs and broke into a sprint, the two unconscious bodies weighing heavy against him.
Hiroyuki's face went white. The rumbling behind them felt like death itself breathing down his neck. Gritting his teeth, he ran with everything he had.
A tidal wave of smoke and debris surged behind them, swallowing them whole. Their headlamps vanished in the swirling dust, leaving only the roar of crashing stone and the relentless quake of the earth.
And then—
They broke through the smoke.
Bursting out of the collapsing tunnel like hunted animals, they kept running, not daring to stop for even a second.
Only once the tremors began to fade did they slow their pace, gasping for breath.
When they turned back, the path they'd come from was gone—completely caved in. The rockfall was so dense not even a mosquito could get through.
"I…"
Hiroyuki's legs buckled, trembling uncontrollably. He'd been running closer to the collapse. The feeling of death clutching at his heels had haunted every breath—he'd come within inches of it, again and again.
He'd thought of dropping the body on his back more than once—but the roars echoing ahead kept him moving.
"Take it easy. We're safe now… lucky, really."
Ayato breathed deeply.
He'd considered taking the unconscious out one by one instead of dragging all three at once. But the second he thought about how the battle might bring down the mine…
He couldn't take the risk.
So three at once it was.
Now all he could hope was that the aggressive Pokémon near the entrance was gone—and that the entrance itself hadn't been buried.
"We're almost there. Just hang in there."
He lowered his voice to encourage Hiroyuki. "Once we're out, we're official members. Pokémon. Money. It's all waiting for us! Think about your parents—they're still out there waiting for you!"
"—Yeah!"
Hiroyuki gritted his teeth and nodded.