The moment he finished speaking, the entire field fell silent. Kelly and the other two girls lowered their heads, their expressions filled with shame and embarrassment. Konan remained expressionless, her face looking normal, but the grip she had on her bowl betrayed her troubled mood.
Sato's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing, looking elsewhere; he likely agreed with Matsumoto's perspective.
"I also approve of this approach," Shinta said with a half-smile. "I'll be heading out on my own tomorrow." Having said that, he stood up and returned to his own tent.
Eichi and Tetsu looked toward Matsumoto. Feeling that his actions were perhaps a bit ungraceful, Matsumoto followed Ishida directly back to their tent.
Once they had left, the atmosphere became awkward. "Those two guys are so selfish," Tetsu burst out in a curse.
"I'm sorry, it's all my fault," Kelly said, lowering her head in apology.
The other two girls were also in low spirits. "Eichi, say something!" Tetsu urged anxiously.
Finally, Eichi spoke up, "Kelly, stop apologizing. It's not your problem."
He then addressed the rest of the group, "Actually, traveling together in such a large group isn't ideal. Having too many people together actually hinders our speed."
Eichi stood up and continued, "Let's do this. There are seven of us here now. We'll split into two groups. Tetsu, Kelly, Ami, and I will be one group. Sato, you take Konan and Kosei."
"Fine," Sato nodded.
"That makes sense," Tetsu added. "Ten people together really does slow things down." He then moved to comfort Kelly and the other two girls, saying, "You shouldn't feel any pressure."
After a period of consolation, the three girls felt much better.
That night, everyone was asleep except for two people sitting by the campfire: Eichi and Sato.
"Sato, once we split up tomorrow, I'm counting on you," Eichi said. "Be careful. If you encounter powerful Pokémon, don't push yourself."
"I know," Sato replied. "You should worry about yourself. I brought six Pokémon, but you only have three. You're in more danger than I am."
Eichi laughed, "I've been traveling for a while. I took this exact path when school started. There's no situation I haven't encountered. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
"Alright then," Sato said. "See you at the finish line."
"See you at the finish line," Eichi smiled.
The moon tonight was round and bright. A gentle breeze blew, carrying a slight chill.
The next morning, Tetsu rubbed his eyes as he stepped out of his tent and let out a yawn. Holding his toiletries, he went to the river to wash up. After freshening up, he felt energized. He spotted Eichi and waved.
"Morning, Eichi! Morning, Kelly!"
Eichi nodded in greeting.
"Good morning, Tetsu," Kelly said with a smile.
As they sat down for breakfast, Tetsu looked around and noticed three people were missing: Matsumoto, Ishida, and Shinta.
"Where are Shinta and the other two?" Tetsu asked Eichi, sounding puzzled.
"They left long ago," Eichi said with a glance. "They were gone before you even woke up."
"Leaving so early... they didn't even stay for breakfast," Tetsu muttered.
"They probably wanted to avoid the awkwardness," Eichi suggested.
"True," Tetsu agreed before digging into his breakfast.
After packing up following the meal, the group split into two teams and set off. Sato and Konan's team left first. Eichi's group finished tidying the campsite completely before departing.
Backtracking to an hour prior, Teacher Yamashita had risen early to wash up and eat. He then observed Eichi and the others from a distance. When he saw Matsumoto and Ishida leave the camp without the others interfering, he knew the group had parted ways. He immediately pulled out his communicator.
After a few seconds, the call connected, and Director Yanagi's voice came through.
"Hello, Teacher Yamashita. Is something the matter?"
"Director Yanagi, Eichi and the others have split up."
"Understood. I will send more teachers over. Continue your observation."
"Got it."
After hanging up, Teacher Yamashita continued watching. Soon, four more teachers arrived. Two of them went to track Matsumoto, Ishida, and Shinta. Once Sato's group left, one teacher followed them. When Eichi's group of four finally started their journey, Teacher Yamashita and the remaining teacher followed.
With fewer people, their pace was naturally faster. Furthermore, the three students were very obedient to Eichi's lead.
As he walked, Eichi contemplated the location Director Yanagi had mentioned. He remembered seeing a few giant trees when he first came this way. However, they were quite far; at their current speed, it would likely take a day or two to arrive.
With Eichi leading, they encountered other wild Pokémon, but nothing too dangerous. Eichi instructed them that if they ran into a group, they should avoid prolonged combat and leave as quickly as possible; otherwise, the sounds of battle would attract more Pokémon. He specifically cited the Arbok swarm from the day before, noting they were surrounded because they reacted too slowly.
Fortunately, their luck held out, and they didn't encounter another situation like the previous day. In truth, Eichi was using his "cheat" slightly to avoid dangerous areas in advance.
This behavior struck the two teachers protecting them from the shadows as very strange. Are these four just incredibly lucky, or do they actually know where the danger lies?
Eichi and his group hurried toward the finish line at high speed.
Two days later, a massive Silver Academy badge was pinned to a giant tree. Several teachers, including Director Yanagi, sat beneath it.
Director Yanagi looked at the darkening sky and said, "They probably won't make it today. We should prepare dinner."
As he stood up, the other teachers followed suit. Miss Lin gazed out into the distance of the forest. The evening glow had appeared, the sun was about to set behind the western mountains, and a residual red hue gradually enveloped the forest and the sky.
Suddenly, a few blurry figures appeared in her vision. Miss Lin thought she was seeing things. She closed her eyes and opened them again; the figures immediately became clear. As they drew closer, she saw it was Eichi and his team.
A wave of emotion surged through Miss Lin, and her voice trembled as she shouted, "Director Yanagi, someone has arrived!"
The other teachers turned their heads instantly and saw four people approaching.
Director Yanagi also turned and saw who it was. He laughed with confidence, "Just as I expected. The first to arrive would definitely be you."
As Eichi and the others walked, they suddenly saw the giant tree with the academy badge. They knew they had made it. Especially upon seeing the teachers, Kelly and Ami began sprinting toward them.
Eichi and Tetsu exchanged a glance and began to run as well.