Chapter 434:
*Crack! Crack! Crack!*
Several bottles shattered in response, and Kaede promptly pressed the stopwatch.
He then had the brother Indeedee repeat the process several more times.
The recorded times, aside from the first attempt which was slightly slower, were all around 0.5 seconds for the subsequent tries.
After obtaining this data, Kaede picked up a pudding and offered it to Indeedee.
"Alright, here, have one."
"Indeedee...?"
Although feeling a bit shy under so many watching eyes, Indeedee understood Kaede was clearly testing something and, suppressing its embarrassment, ate the treat.
"Let's do it a few more times, okay, Indeedee?"
Kaede set up several bottles again.
After conducting the experiment a few more times and recording the results, the onlookers were still somewhat confused.
But when Kaede revealed the recorded timings, everyone had a moment of realization.
In the previous four experiments, apart from the first one, the times Indeedee took to knock over the bottles were 0.51, 0.49, and 0.52 seconds—all very close.
This new set of three times, however, were 0.44, 0.46, and 0.47 seconds.
Almost consistently a tiny bit faster than before.
"Mmm, the effect of this little pudding is to slightly increase the speed at which Psychic-type and Ice-type Pokémon execute their moves," Kaede stated plainly, laying out the effect of his creation right before everyone.
Yet, seeing this, the crowd remained puzzled.
They had only seen Indeedee use Psychic a few times.
With the naked eye, it was truly hard to spot any difference between those uses of Psychic.
Kaede explained further, "Well, to put it simply, it gives your Pokémon a slight edge in initiating moves during future battles..."
He felt a bit helpless.
It seemed most Trainers gathered here today were beginners. For their Pokémon, such a minor increase in move execution speed could likely be achieved through diligent practice anyway.
But for Pokémon that had undergone long-term training, perhaps even nearing their limits, this small boost in speed might represent years of effort.
This wasn't to say the benefit was wasted on a novice Pokémon, either. As they grew, their potential ceiling for move execution speed was now directly raised!
"Sounds like a good thing..."
"Though I'm not sure *why* it's so good..."
"...Guess my understanding isn't deep enough..."
Listening to the discussions around him, Kaede was caught between amusement and exasperation.
He personally felt the Sky Challenge grand prize was excellent, but it didn't seem to have the impact he anticipated.
Fortunately, Rosaline chose that moment to voice her astonished query. "It's effective for *any* Ice-type Pokémon?"
"Of course. And under normal circumstances, this improvement is permanent."
"Really?"
This time, Rosaline didn't immediately disbelieve him, but her tone still carried strong skepticism.
It was understandable others wouldn't grasp it, but as an Elite-level Trainer passionate about battles, she knew perfectly well how crucial even a modest increase in move execution speed could be in a Pokémon battle.
And now, a single piece of pudding could achieve that?
"Really. There are three pieces left here, intended as the reward for the final stage of the Sky Challenge."
Kaede handed over the three plates. Rosaline didn't hesitate, immediately summoning her Pokémon—Froslass.
The moment the Ice- and Ghost-type Froslass appeared, the surrounding temperature perceptibly dropped a few degrees.
Rosaline took one pudding and directly offered it to Froslass.
"Here, try this."
"Froslass...?"
Froslass was momentarily puzzled upon being summoned. There were twenty or thirty people watching, and it was called out just to eat a piece of pudding?
"It's the reward from your last challenge. It can directly increase your move execution speed."
(´･･`)?: "Froslass?"
Froslass looked at the pudding before it. It looked delightfully wobbly, fitting its aesthetic for tasty food, and smelled wonderful. But what was its Trainer saying?
That this could improve its move execution speed?
Was she joking?
If this tiny piece of pudding could enhance its move speed, what did all those years of arduous training alongside its Trainer, facing powerful foes across the regions, amount to?
Was it all just... effort??
"Froslass?"
It cast another questioning glance at its Trainer.
But the only reply it got was a firm, "Mhm."
"...."
Though deeply skeptical and suspecting its Trainer might have been deceived, Froslass also thought, *She is my Trainer after all; she wouldn't harm me.* It finally ate the pudding.
The fresh sweetness of spring Moomoo Milk, blended with the refreshing flavors of various Berries, combined into this small treat. With one bite, Froslass found it delicious, sliding smoothly down its throat.
But there was no strange fluctuation of energy within its body.
"Froslass?"
Froslass looked at its Trainer, confused.
"No effect?" Rosaline asked in return.
"Froslass..." Froslass genuinely didn't feel anything.
"Try using a move," Kaede suggested calmly from the side.
He had said the increased speed came from a calming effect. Why would there be an energy surge?
"Froslass?" Froslass looked to its Trainer.
"Try it. Use Ice Shard into the air."
The sky was a clear, brilliant blue. Froslass took a deep breath, its fan-like right hand sweeping lightly through the air. In the next instant, dense Ice-type energy coalesced into sharp shards of ice, which it launched skyward.
They then exploded mid-air, scattering into icy dust.
"Froslass!?"
Froslass froze.
So did Rosaline beside it.
Both knew this was just a casual move. The preparatory motion was the same, but the execution was unmistakably faster.
While the increase wasn't dramatic, as partners of over a decade, they could clearly recognize the difference in that single move!
"Do it again!" Rosaline issued another command.
The same motion, the same crystalline burst. The shattered ice high above refracted the sunlight, casting a dazzling, multicolored glow across the sky, leaving Rosaline and Froslass below staring upward, utterly transfixed.