Chapter 291: The Sand Stream Hippowdon
After the brief confrontation, the group temporarily forgot about Diana. Finn took the lead in a handover meeting with the researchers on the outgoing shift. The departing team also consisted of four people: a PhD, two Master's students, and one Pro-level trainer/bodyguard.
After the handover, the departing team quickly released their flying mounts and left in high spirits, only giving Basalt a brief acknowledgement as the new member. As Basalt brushed past them, he noticed a strong, sour odor—the smell of fermented sweat.
"This is going to be rough," Basalt thought, clicking his tongue. He could already imagine what he would smell like six days from now.
The rock hill cave they were staying in was similar in style to the Roba Tribe's stone houses, just carved into the rock instead of being built from stones. Judging by the markings, the cave had been drilled out by the research team's Pokémon to serve as a temporary outpost.
Basalt was assigned to share a room with Finn for mutual support, as they were both trainers and shared more common ground. Plus, as trainers, their workload was far lighter than the researchers', making them essentially the same "component" of the team.
"Basalt, hurry up and come out. Professor Rowan and the others are back. I'll take you to meet them." Finn rushed into the cave shortly after Basalt had finished unpacking his belongings.
"Professor Rowan is back?" Basalt raised an eyebrow and quickly followed Finn out of the cave.
Eight or nine people were gathered outside the rock cave, but the most conspicuous figure was a massive, light-brown Pokémon. Its body was thick and bulky, with black skin around its eyes, feet, back, and nose. Six prominent holes on its back constantly leaked sand, and it had a short black tail. It was the Ground-type Pokémon—Hippowdon!
Finn pointed at the Hippowdon and praised it. "This Hippowdon is the core of our research team. Its status is almost equal to Professor Rowan's. Without it, much of our research couldn't happen. It can shoot sand stored in its body from those pores to summon a sandstorm at will, and it can even create massive sand tornadoes."
"A Hippowdon with the Sand Stream ability?" Basalt raised an eyebrow. "Whose Pokémon is it?" Weather-setting Pokémon were incredibly rare. And this Hippowdon looked very powerful.
"Uh... Professor Rowan requested a loan for this Hippowdon to aid the research," Finn scratched his head. "I think it's from one of the Alliance's direct bureaus."
"The Weather Bureau?"
"That sounds right." Finn shook his head. "You probably know this, but weather-setting Pokémon are extremely rare, and awakening their ability is very difficult. Plus, sandstorms aren't really the Alliance's specialty, so relevant Pokémon are incredibly scarce."
"Am I finding my organization again?" Basalt paused, a smile subtly creeping onto his lips. The more he looked at the Hippowdon, the more familiar it seemed.
"Basalt, I have to warn you, don't provoke this Hippowdon. It's temperamental and aggressive. When it's angry, it'll open its huge mouth wide to show off its strength to any Pokémon or human nearby."
Seeing Basalt interested in the Hippowdon, Finn quickly warned him, "Its mouth is two meters wide. The force of its bite can crush a car into scrap metal. Even ferocious Pokémon like Drapion act quiet and submissive around it."
"Understood!" Basalt nodded obediently.
"Professor Rowan, this is Basalt." Finn led Basalt to meet the professor.
Professor Rowan had very little hair left and wore thick-rimmed glasses. He was dressed in a sand suit, and his face held a severe expression.
He didn't show much emotion upon seeing Basalt, merely stating, "Since you're here, make an effort to integrate into the team and contribute. Finn, Basalt is assigned to your group from now on."
"Yes, Professor Rowan."
After speaking, Rowan entered the rock cave, apparently having more pressing matters to attend to.
Watching him leave, Basalt frowned slightly. He hadn't felt this ignored in a long time. It seemed President Mogan's influence over Rowan wasn't as strong as he had hoped.
"Hmph!"
The moment Professor Rowan went inside, Diana appeared before Basalt, a look of smug satisfaction on her face. Just as Quentin had predicted, Diana had badmouthed Basalt to the professor. She had told him that Basalt was too pampered, complained about the environment, and only wanted to grab the research results and leave. Crucially, she emphasized that as a freshman, his skills were lacking. She argued that Basalt wouldn't just be useless but would actually consume the team's already strained manpower by needing a bodyguard.
"Professor Rowan said your team specializes in Sandstorm strategies, so you must understand Sand-type Pokémon? Fine, the daily feeding and care of the Hippowdon are now your responsibility," Diana said, her nose in the air. She threw her hands up in mock helplessness, implying it was the professor's idea. "If you don't want to do it, you can take it up with Professor Rowan yourself."
"Using Professor Rowan to pressure me?" Basalt's face darkened.
Finn had just warned him that the Hippowdon was temperamental and dangerous. Now, Diana was assigning him this task. He knew someone was behind this. But even knowing that, he was helpless. This was a trap. If he tried to complain to Rowan, his already poor standing would plummet further, regardless of the outcome. The worst-case scenario was being kicked off the research team.
Watching Basalt's face turn the color of the pot bottom, Diana felt immensely satisfied. All the gloom in her heart vanished.
She leaned in and whispered mockingly, "Whose fault is it that your strength is too weak to contribute? Professor Rowan's team doesn't keep dead weight. You useless brat!"
Basalt's mouth twitched at the insult, but he suppressed his anger. He knew Diana was just trying to provoke him into making a mistake and getting him thrown out. He wasn't going to give her the satisfaction.
"Who's a useless brat?"
"The useless brat is talking to you!"
Basalt raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Oh, so you're the useless brat who's talking to me?"
Diana froze for a moment before realizing her mistake. She quickly tried to correct herself. "I meant you are the useless—"
But Basalt didn't give her a chance to finish. He pushed her aside, pinching his nose and fanning the air. "Lady, please don't stand so close to me. Your sour smell is overwhelming."
"You—!" Diana was furious, her face flushed red. Even though she was a fierce tomboy, being insulted about her body odor in public was a major humiliation. With a cold huff, Diana spun and stomped into the rock cave.
But it was clear she would devise even more ways to target Basalt, which worried him.
"Do I really have to use the Weather Bureau card?" Basalt frowned. But that would be a lose-lose situation. He decided to hold off on that unless absolutely necessary.
Seeing Basalt's troubled expression, Finn stepped forward to comfort him. "Don't worry, I'll go with you to take care of the Hippowdon. I have experience with this. It won't be a problem."
Finn was genuinely concerned for his junior. Although he was also a trainer and had spent more time with Diana, Finn was a straightforward person who couldn't stand her arrogance. Their personalities simply didn't mix. Basalt silently thanked Finn, making a mental note of his kindness. This was a friend worth keeping.
...
Retrieving the Hippowdon's Pokéblocks from the rock cave, Basalt followed Finn to the Pokémon.
The Hippowdon was in a collapsed sand dune area right next to the rock hill. It had buried its entire body in the sand, leaving only its nose exposed to breathe.
"The Hippowdon has been restless lately for some reason. Don't get too close. Just place the Pokéblocks at the edge of the quicksand pit. It'll come out to eat when it's hungry," Finn advised Basalt, gesturing with his eyes. Basalt nodded, placed the Pokéblocks on the ground, and quickly retreated.
"Sand-heck~"
Seemingly smelling the food, Hippowdon manipulated the sand to reveal its eyes, then slowly lifted its massive body and walked onto the dune to eat. It looked at Basalt and Finn with a mixture of indifference and hostility.
But then, Basalt's sharp eyes noticed something. While eating, Hippowdon would occasionally pause, use its tail to slap the hole closest to its backside, and snort sand from its nostrils, looking like it wanted to sneeze but couldn't.
"Sand-heck~"
Hippowdon frowned and looked at Basalt and Finn. Finn, immediately on guard, quickly placed himself in front of Basalt and backed away nervously.
Seeing this, Hippowdon shook its head in disappointment.
Basalt, however, suddenly had an idea. "Senior, I think I know why the Hippowdon has been restless lately."
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