With Sabrina augmenting it, Kadabra's psychic power skyrocketed, giving it an overwhelming advantage.
To Caster and Slowpoke's surprise, however, Kadabra did not bring that power crashing down upon Slowpoke. It gathered the force without releasing it.
Just as Caster began wondering what was going on, the terrifying psychic pressure abruptly vanished.
Then Sabrina's icy, emotionless voice rang out. "We'll end the battle here. You and Slowpoke have earned my recognition."
A finely crafted golden Badge floated up beside Sabrina. It crossed dozens of yards with perfect accuracy and landed in Caster's hand.
Caster breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said, "Thank you, Sabrina!"
Whoosh!
Sabrina abruptly disappeared.
The next instant, she reappeared directly in front of Caster, startling him.
She could teleport without the help of a Pokémon. That was Sabrina, the psychic prodigy!
Although Sabrina acknowledged Slowpoke's strength, her cold gaze swept over Caster as she pointed out its shortcomings through telepathy.
"Your Slowpoke seems to have been born with exceptionally strong psychic power, but it's relying entirely on its natural gifts. When it comes to applying that power with precision, it still has a long way to go."
Caster and Slowpoke both froze, clearly unconvinced.
Caster in particular could not resist replying with a cheeky grin. "Sabrina, my Slowpoke trained under Lorelei. Its psychic power..."
Sabrina's expression remained cold, and not the slightest trace of emotion entered her voice.
"Can Lorelei turn you into a doll?"
Caster's face immediately became solemn. His grin vanished without a trace.
Lorelei might be a member of the Elite Four, but she was not necessarily stronger than Sabrina. Besides, Lorelei specialized in Ice types, while Sabrina specialized in Psychic types and was herself a monstrously gifted psychic. Her moods were also notoriously unpredictable.
Caster did not dare talk back.
He drew in his neck and looked at her with innocent eyes. "What do you have in mind, Sabrina?"
He couldn't help it. Her presence was simply too oppressive.
He did not even dare criticize her in his thoughts, afraid her psychic powers might pick them up.
"Tell me, what move did Slowpoke use just now? Is it a new move Lorelei created?"
The Pokémon world was constantly advancing. Whether in technology or Pokémon research, new moves were discovered all the time.
"You mean Take Heart?"
An idea occurred to Caster, and he quickly explained, "Lorelei didn't create it. I once encountered a mysterious Pokémon by the sea, and it taught the move to Slowpoke."
A flicker of surprise crossed Sabrina's eyes. "A mysterious, unidentified Pokémon?"
She had assumed the move was Lorelei's creation. Learning that it involved an unknown Pokémon instead delighted her even more.
"Your name is Caster, correct? Slowpoke may train under me for a while. I can teach it to use its psychic power more effectively, and even pass down the Saffron Gym's secret techniques."
Sabrina looked at Caster and stated her terms without preamble. "In exchange, I want to study that move. What do you say?"
Caster hesitated.
Training under Sabrina was unquestionably a rare opportunity, one that would benefit Slowpoke enormously.
And she was even willing to teach Slowpoke all of the Saffron Gym's secret techniques.
Caster had only one concern. He was afraid Sabrina would fail to learn anything from her research and then fly into a rage and blame him.
Take Heart was an exclusive move belonging to Manaphy and Phione. Other Pokémon simply could not learn it.
Slowpoke had only managed to do so through the power of Caster's cheat ability, not through its own capabilities.
With that in mind, Caster said uneasily, "Sabrina, what if your research doesn't produce any results?"
"Then that will be my problem, not yours."
"How long will you need? I still have to compete in the Indigo League Conference, and Slowpoke is one of my core Pokémon."
"One week will be enough. If you need Slowpoke for anything during that time, you may take it whenever you wish. I won't stop you."
Sabrina's answer was decisive and filled with confidence.
She believed that once Slowpoke trained under her, it would revere her like a god.
And once Caster saw how much progress Slowpoke made, he would never take it away without good reason. If anything, he would be desperate to let Slowpoke live at the Saffron Gym.
"My Slowpoke has a big appetite. It needs to eat Type Gems every day."
"I'll provide all the resources it needs while it trains here. Only the best."
Caster brought up several more "concerns," but none presented any difficulty for Sabrina. At last, he was won over.
Before agreeing, however, he still consulted the Pokémon at the heart of the matter.
"What do you think, Slowpoke?"
"Sounds good to me!"
Slowpoke secretly answered through their telepathic link.
In truth, the moment Sabrina had amplified Kadabra's psychic power, Slowpoke had already begun revering her like a god.
Now that it had the rare opportunity to train under someone like her, it had no intention of letting the chance slip away.
Caster nodded, then turned back to Sabrina. "In that case, I'll leave Slowpoke in your care."
"Very well. You may also observe the lessons during this period if you're interested."
"I'll pass!"
Caster hurriedly waved his hands in polite refusal.
He was not a psychic himself, so listening would do him no good.
More importantly, Sabrina's presence was simply too intense. Whenever Caster was around her, he constantly felt as though he had to watch his every move.
Being with Lorelei was nothing like that. The atmosphere around her was relaxed and comfortable, as if even the air had turned pink.
So although Sabrina was gorgeous, the very definition of a glamorous, mature beauty, Caster still declined her offer.
If Psychic-type TMs had not been so difficult to acquire through fishing, he would not even have bothered arranging for Slowpoke to study under her.
As far as Caster could tell, raising a move to the Mastered level made it more powerful than any secret technique anyway.
With the matter settled, Sabrina took Slowpoke away at once. She was clearly impatient to begin studying Take Heart.
Now that his Gym challenge had concluded, Caster finally had time to check his livestream.
Sabrina's popularity in the Pokémon world was no lower than Lorelei's, and the traffic she drew was staggering.
This single stream had gained Caster several hundred thousand followers, most of whom were clearly Sabrina fans.
He had also earned a sizable amount in tips. It did not compare to the stream where he cleared the Trainer Tower, but it still brought in tens of thousands.
"Clout-chasing really is the way to go!"
Caster had seen the light.
From now on, he would make a point of battling as many famous Pokémon Trainers as possible. That was where the real money was.