The next day.
Hiroyuki dropped by.
His injuries were mostly scrapes and bruises—after a day's rest, he was back on his feet. When he stepped into the room, he found Ayato tossing a Poké Ball back and forth with Aron.
"Whoa, you two are that close already?" he asked in surprise. He'd seen firsthand how strongly Aron had resisted being put in a Poké Ball before.
Ayato didn't respond. He simply watched as Hiroyuki smugly opened one of his own Poké Balls.
With a flash of white light—
A Pokémon appeared.
It was a stubby little creature: a black, spherical rock with a pale yellow hexagonal core in its center, a jagged chunk of stone protruding from the top of its head, and two short legs made of stone.
The Roggenrola looked uneasy in the unfamiliar setting, trembling faintly as it took in its surroundings.
"Roggenrola, huh—kind of suits you."
"Not bad, right? It's really docile!"
Hiroyuki picked it up with a grin. "Anyway, Ayato, when are you going to pick your Pokémon? The good ones are gonna get snatched if you wait too long."
"I'm not picking one. I'm cashing out."
Ayato shook his head.
Now that Aron had become his partner, his top priority was helping it recover from malnourishment—and getting himself used to the reality of raising a Pokémon.
Real-life training wasn't anything like in the games. Anyone who'd raised a pet knew how hard it could be, let alone building one up into a battle-ready fighter.
Many in the Quicksand Team couldn't raise Pokémon properly. They'd just swap out their team constantly, never putting in the time to train—treating Pokémon like disposable magic gear in a cultivation novel.
This mentality had infected all of Pyrite Town, even most of the Orre Region.
That's why powerful Pokémon caught straight from the wild—or traded from other regions—were so expensive. Meanwhile, rare but less combat-capable species, which were highly prized elsewhere, were ignored. Even if you marked them up, no one would buy.
"Cashing out, huh… Makes sense. You've already got Aron."
Hiroyuki nodded in understanding, then shared updates on the others.
Of the three teammates they had rescued, all were still recovering and likely bedridden for a week or two. As for the rest of their group—those who hadn't reunited with them after day one—only one had managed to pass the test.
And even he was so battered he might as well be out of commission.
In total, six of their original group had qualified.
That alone was a huge win for their little squad.
"Let's hope the next few days go just as smoothly," Hiroyuki said with a sigh.
"Mm." Ayato nodded, watching as Aron carefully approached Roggenrola, curiously poking at it while fiddling absently with a Poké Ball.
He and Aron had spent the previous night confiding in each other. Communication was slow, of course—language barriers and all—but it still brought them closer.
Unfortunately, when Ayato had asked about its goals, Aron hadn't given him an answer.
Or maybe it had, and he just hadn't understood.
He could only hope that, one day, the answer would become clear.
—
Four days passed.
After the chaos of day one, the rest of the exams were strangely uneventful. More people passed.
Even more members from Ayato's group made it through. He didn't know what happened with Shibata's crew, and didn't particularly care.
In the end, nearly a hundred candidates were accepted as official members—a quarter of all participants. At first glance, it seemed impressive, but many of those were veterans who had failed the exam multiple times before finally passing.
Because of that, acting leader Yuge remained unsatisfied.
The Quicksand Team only had about 1,200 official members. In Pyrite Town, a city of nearly half a million, they were barely a speck. Without a steady stream of new blood, they would forever remain second-rate—and would never grow beyond that.
Still, that concern wasn't shared by the thrilled new recruits. To them, gaining official status felt like a ticket to the high life. It meant their days of scraping by were finally over.
They had every right to celebrate.
—
Discharge day.
Ayato and Aron were finishing up packing when a sudden knock came at the door.
"You're Ayato?"
The man at the door met his gaze and started sizing him up. "Not bad. You'll do. Report to the Sand Group tomorrow. Bring your teammates. Anyone who can show up, better be there."
Without waiting for a reply, the man turned and left.
"…It's fine," Ayato said, noticing Aron's confused look.
The Quicksand Team was rife with internal factions. Within the Combat Division, beneath the supreme leader were three major groups—Sand, Crystal, and Stone—each commanded by one of the top executives.
The Sand Group's commander was supposedly a two-meter-tall giant, known for his forthright personality. A bit rough around the edges, but loyal to his subordinates. A decent leader, supposedly.
Hopefully, the rumors were true.
Ayato knew he didn't have a say in the matter.
Someone coming to personally recruit him? That was practically a favor.
With everything packed, Ayato left the hospital with Aron, heading straight to Quicksand HQ to register his status and collect his official gear.
The clerk helping him looked surprised at the sight of Aron.
"Not often you see a grunt with a Pokémon already," he said.
Most people who had access to pre-assigned Pokémon didn't care for them.
"I'd like to exchange the Pokémon reward for a cash stipend. Is that possible?"
"Huh? Oh! Yes, of course!"
The clerk scrambled to process the request.
After a bit of paperwork, Ayato received 100,000 PokéDollars. Pleased, he left with Aron in tow.
The standard reward Pokémon for new recruits were usually Roggenrola or Geodude, sometimes Wooper or Sandshrew. Species varied, but the prices stayed about the same.
It was worth noting that the Orre Region's currency—the PokéDollar—had a value roughly equivalent to the Japanese yen. A single Poké Ball cost 200, a bottle of Soda Pop went for 300.
Most goods were reasonably priced. Only Pokémon were disproportionately expensive—due to import costs. And in places like Pyrite Town, even more so. It was a bit better in Gateon Port or the capital, Phenac City.
"Our grocery bill just got a whole lot bigger~"
Ayato waved the cash at Aron with a grin.
"Guu!"
Aron looked up at him and chirped happily.
—
Copper Milling Street.
Here stood the apartments provided by the Quicksand Team—three-story concrete buildings, stained gray and weathered by time. No greenery, just cracked pavement and dusty air.
But the utilities—plumbing, drainage, electricity—were leagues ahead of Ayato's old shantytown on Blue Iridium Street.
More importantly, the place was built to endure the weight and chaos of Pokémon.
Ayato liked it here. Not because of the building itself—but because he could finally see Pokémon everywhere.
His last place had only humans. So much so that sometimes, he'd wonder whether he'd even made it to the Pokémon world at all.
"Yo, Ayato! Wanna go out for a big meal tonight? The others wanna celebrate and thank you properly."
Hiroyuki showed up, arms full of bags, grinning from ear to ear.
"Sure. Just tell me where."
Ayato nodded. Even within the Quicksand Team, where everyone was still technically grunts, it was important to stick together—whether you were a nobody or one of the higher-ups.
Still…
Socializing had never been his thing.
Maybe it wasn't coincidence, but all the members from their group had been assigned to nearby rooms. Hiroyuki was just two doors down. The others were all within shouting distance too.
Was that the work of the guy from earlier?
Maybe Ayato could get some useful info out of him—like Ishigaki's background, family, connections, or his Pokémon lineup.
"Let's get this new place sorted."
"Guu!"