A forced suppression?
Not letting it evolve?
Gradually building up Vigoroth's energy until it could no longer be contained, and then allowing it to evolve into Slaking?
Cain pondered the feasibility of that idea in his mind.
Until he finally heard the decisive condition Norman mentioned, snapping him back to reality.
"What condition?" asked Cain.
"When I raised my first Slaking, I had just become a trainer, so the suppression was something Vigoroth and I went through together. But when I raised my second one, I was already a Gym Leader and had certain resources, so I bought... an Everstone."
"At first, I thought the difference only lay in the order of evolution, but later I discovered that wasn't the case. If one wants to suppress evolution, it has to come from Vigoroth's own will, not from external objects."
"Because every act of suppression is training for its spirit. Only if Vigoroth undergoes that kind of mental tempering during its stage can it, after evolving into Slaking, have the strength of will necessary to temporarily overcome the influence of the Truant ability."
"The Everstone... is not the way."
"So... you mean that if Vigoroth suppresses its evolution on its own before becoming Slaking, afterward it'll have the capacity to restrain the Truant ability for a while?" Cain immediately thought of the Vigoroth he had captured in Ho-Oh's space—wasn't it exactly like that?
"If that's exactly how it is, then it's still just my conjecture," said Norman. "Because this method demands a lot from Vigoroth's own will. Even if you wanted to test it, you wouldn't see results quickly. After so many attempts, I never reached a definitive conclusion."
"My second Slaking, in which I'd placed so many hopes, ended up being just a semi-finished product."
"There must be other factors at play, but I wasn't able to find them." Norman said that as he slightly quickened his pace.
Cain understood they couldn't delay any longer and also sped up.
"Then, after it evolves into Slaking, how can it be trained to increase its strength? If it has to remain lazy to maintain its burst power and duration, wouldn't that make training impossible?"
Hearing that question, Norman smiled.
"Don't get trapped in rigid thinking. Laziness is laziness, but training must still be done. Otherwise, where would its explosive strength come from?"
"Of course, compared to other Pokémon, its training requires much greater involvement from the trainer—sometimes even direct, real-time supervision."
"And remember something very important: never try to replace Slaking's Truant ability through special methods during training, like using Skill Swap."
"That would only make them dependent, weakening their will. In the end, when the time comes to unleash their full power, they wouldn't truly be able to do so." Norman warned.
After hearing those words, Cain had a much clearer idea of how to train his own Vigoroth.
"Then, Mr. Norman, are you saying that the longer Vigoroth suppresses its evolution and the higher its level before evolving, the greater the power and longer the duration of Slaking's unleashed state?" asked Cain.
"In theory, yes. But it also requires some intervention from the trainer. Otherwise, the Pokémon won't develop that awareness on its own," Norman nodded.
Cain felt a flash of understanding. "Mr. Norman, then... what level was your Vigoroth before evolving into Slaking?"
That wasn't an answer worth hiding.
"Peak Quasi-Elite level. My old partner and I held out until we reached the limit of the Quasi-Elite level. Only when it was no longer possible to contain it did he evolve—and upon evolving, he reached the Elite level," Norman confessed.
Cain nodded, not asking further.
Peak Quasi-Elite, huh?
That was quite the barrier.
But his own Vigoroth had already reached the Elite level.
Didn't that mean it had even more potential waiting to be tapped?
After finishing this mission, Cain would have to dedicate himself to deeper training for all his Pokémon, including Vigoroth.
If possible, the ideal goal would be to raise a Slaking as imposing as Norman's. That would bring him far more confidence.
Norman had told him almost everything he needed to know, hiding nothing.
Of course, even he wasn't entirely sure, so Cain would have to explore the path alongside his own Vigoroth.
At least now he had a reference point—a direction.
"By the way, Cain, I heard you passed the Advanced Breeder exam, didn't you? The youngest in history?" Norman said with a smile.
Cain smiled and nodded as well.
After having passed the evaluation in front of so many people, he knew it was impossible to hide it, nor did he intend to.
"When all this is over, could you take a look at my Slaking? If possible, I'd like to commission a batch of advanced-level Pokéblocks. Don't worry, we'll follow the formal process," Norman said.
The formal process involved paying an initial deposit, then the breeder evaluating the difficulty of preparing the Pokéblocks and requesting the necessary materials, before paying the remainder.
And hiring an Advanced Breeder to make Pokéblocks wasn't cheap.
"No problem," replied Cain.
For him, making Pokéblocks wasn't difficult. And it would also give him the opportunity to observe Norman's Slaking up close, which could only benefit him.
In any case, he simply wouldn't charge the service fee.
When he prepared advanced Pokéblocks for Steven or Cynthia, Cain never charged labor—only the cost of the materials.
Although Steven was never stingy and always paid much more than the ingredient cost, as compensation.
In fact, if Steven's Pokémon hadn't been at such high levels requiring extremely expensive materials, Cain might've even done it for free.
Helping Norman craft Pokéblocks would be a good way to strengthen their relationship.
After that brief exchange, Cain and Norman stopped talking and focused on advancing quickly.
Soon, they reached the entrance to Meteor Falls.
(End of Chapter)