"Uncle Sam, this is your compensation. I hope it's not too little."
As soon as they returned to the living room, Icarus took out a prepared card from his pocket and respectfully handed it over.
"Heh~ You think I'd charge you? I'm not short on your tens of thousands of Pokédollars. You'd better save it to prepare evolution resources for your Pokémon. If I remember correctly, Pidgey and Bellsprout can both evolve at low-tier Normal level."
Uncle Sam waved his hand and pushed the card back.
If it had been earlier, he might have accepted it. After all, he would simply be lending a hand and taking what was offered.
Elite trainers' Pokémon teaching others for only tens of thousands of Pokédollars? There would be a line stretching down the street.
But after learning that Icarus had already broken through to the Normal tier—and had figured out proper cultivation methods without a teacher—Uncle Sam had changed his mind.
If this young man eventually broke through to Elite, that would mean another ally within the Alliance. Even if Icarus surpassed him one day, having invested early would only benefit him.
He knew his own limits.
Though he had broken through to Elite before the age of fifty-five and was considered successful by outsiders, it had been too late. Without a strong backer in the Alliance, all he had received were entry-level cultivation manuals for six Pokémon.
If he wanted to go further, he would have to risk his life earning merit points. Most likely, he would remain mid-tier Elite for the rest of his life.
So better to build goodwill now.
Even if Icarus never reached Elite, he would likely become a top Normal-tier expert—a future backbone of the guard team.
"How could I do that? You must accept it!" Icarus insisted, pretending to push the card back. Polite refusals were something he had mastered long ago.
After several rounds of courteous back-and-forth, the card ultimately returned to Icarus's pocket. Uncle Sam felt satisfied, believing the young man to be sincere and grateful.
They chatted a bit longer before Icarus checked the time.
"Uncle Sam, I won't disturb you any longer. I'll leave Pidgey in your care for the next few days."
He bowed slightly and left the villa, escorted by a maid.
"Heh… kid, don't disappoint me," Uncle Sam muttered, watching his back. Then he wrapped his arms around the two maids beside him and headed upstairs.
---
Back home, Icarus saw Bellsprout still training diligently and nodded in approval.
"Sprout!"
Bellsprout noticed him and immediately chirped, proudly indicating it hadn't been slacking off.
"I know, I know. I see your hard work."
Icarus patted its head.
"Sprout?"
Bellsprout looked at his shoulder and waist—no Pidgey, no Poké Ball—and asked where Pidgey had gone.
"It's like this," Icarus explained. "Pidgey is learning new moves. I visited Uncle Sam, and he agreed to let Fearow teach it. So Pidgey will stay there for a few days."
"Sprout, sprout?"
Bellsprout nodded and asked how many days.
"Hard to say. Now it's a competition between you two—will you stabilize your strength first, or will Pidgey master its new moves first? As the big brother of the team, don't let Pidgey come back stronger while you're still adjusting!"
"Sprout!"
Motivated, Bellsprout resumed training with even greater determination.
"Good. Then I should get familiar with my improved physical condition as well."
---
"Huff… huff…"
Running was still the most basic and straightforward way to test his body.
Of course, it wasn't as precise as professional equipment at a gym—but Icarus had no intention of personally battling Pokémon head-on.
He was support. A well-timed strike mattered more than brute force.
Still, he counted laps carefully.
"Huff… I'm exhausted… But my stamina has improved by almost one-third!"
And that was only from Bellsprout's first breakthrough.
When it advanced to mid-tier and high-tier Normal, there would surely be further boosts—even if diminishing.
"At Normal tier alone, Bellsprout might improve my physical fitness by nearly half."
He felt a surge of excitement.
He finally understood why Elite trainers eventually became almost superhuman. With six improvements per major tier—even if each one weakened over time—the cumulative effect would be enormous.
"Then I can't waste the six opportunities at the Novice tier."
He began planning.
Even if Novice-tier feedback was weaker than Normal-tier, six boosts were still six boosts.
If resources allowed, he could capture suitable Novice-tier Pokémon and raise them properly to maximize those improvements.
Of course, if he encountered one he liked in the wild from the beginning, that would be even better.
After all, bonds formed from the start were stronger.
---
Soon, he noticed something else.
"My recovery speed… it's faster."
His stamina returned more quickly than before.
Less downtime meant more training time.
"Next—throwing knife practice. I need to recalibrate my eyesight and wrist strength."
He began throwing at his usual distance.
Whoosh! Thud!
The improvement was obvious. Power and accuracy had both increased.
"Hmm. Let's test the previous limit."
He easily surpassed his former maximum range, then extended it meter by meter.
The final result surprised him.
Approximately eighteen meters.
"That's about a one-third increase… seems consistent."
He nodded in satisfaction.
"If I actually knew proper martial arts techniques, the improvement might be even greater."
A trace of regret surfaced.
In his previous life, when he'd had spare money, he had wasted it on empty vanity instead of learning practical skills.
Even basic training would have helped.
"Well… this world should have something similar. I'll ask Uncle Sam next time."
With that thought, Icarus resumed throwing knives under the fading evening light.
(End of Chapter)
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