Chapter Sixty-Two: Become My Partner, Charmander!

"I think it's probably because there's a group of Digletts ahead, so the driver needs to avoid them!" A middle-aged man stood up, speaking with absolute certainty.

Heath found the man's reasoning quite plausible. After all, whenever Digletts appeared, the ground would be riddled with pits and holes. In a way, Digletts and Dugtrio were considered harmful Pokémon. Especially in towns and inhabited areas, people often had to install Diglett repellent devices to prevent them from burrowing under houses and undermining foundations—a disaster that had indeed happened before. Heath remembered seeing news reports about houses collapsing due to Dugtrio tunneling beneath them, prompting experts from the League to urge everyone to purchase Diglett repellents.

But in the wild, it was impossible to install such devices on every road.

That said, Digletts were highly valued in agriculture, helping to loosen soil and becoming good companions for farmers.

"Wrong, that's not the answer," the teacher shook his head. The discussion in the classroom continued.

Heath was surprised; he'd thought the man had given the correct answer, but apparently not.

"Is it about banning Dugtrio from driving? Or maybe there are no Digletts ahead?" a girl stood up, asking curiously. The teacher shook his head again.

Now Heath was intrigued; he genuinely wanted to know what the answer was.

"This is an actual question from last month's driving theory exam. The correct answer is this." The teacher smiled as he pointed to the problem on the blackboard, and Heath suddenly understood—it was a newly added question.

"You must slow down and pass carefully," the teacher said seriously. The other students nodded in agreement, and Heath nodded as well.

But then Heath realized something was off. What did Dugtrio have to do with slowing down?

"We discovered that on roads near Diglett nests, a group of unusual Dugtrio would exhibit a 'racing' behavior when vehicles exceeded forty kilometers per hour," the teacher explained in earnest.

Heath stared blankly at the teacher, wondering if he was part of some comedy show. Why would Dugtrio race cars?

"Those Dugtrio display a pursuit behavior toward fast-moving vehicles. They chase the car by rapidly digging tunnels, continuing until they've overtaken it or lost sight of it. This has caused significant trouble for the League's road maintenance," the teacher continued. Heath shook his head in disbelief.

It was the first time in his life he'd heard of a Pokémon racing cars, but then again, the Pokémon world was full of surprises. He'd seen Pikachu surfing before, so a racing Dugtrio was hardly worth mentioning.

Heath felt a bit excited—perhaps one day he could challenge Dugtrio to a race on Mount Akina.

The teacher proceeded to explain another actual question from last month's exam, making Heath's lips twitch in amusement.

[Single choice question: When driving on the road, you encounter a rare protected wild Pokémon both ahead and behind. What is the correct course of action?]

[A: See the Pokémon? Hit it! Enjoy a complimentary ticket for a lengthy prison stay.]

[B: Quickly aim and throw a Poké Ball.]

[C: Time to show your veteran driving skills—drift and avoid it.]

[D: Honk to drive away the wild Pokémon. If that fails, press the emergency avoidance button in your car.]

"I feel like anyone would choose D for this kind of question. It's practically a giveaway," Heath shook his head. If someone managed to get it wrong, they'd never earn a driver's license.

And just as Heath expected, D was the correct answer. Yet, surprisingly, many had chosen B, which puzzled Heath—until he understood. After all, Pokémon shrink when entering Poké Balls and could theoretically evade being run over, but you'd have to throw accurately, otherwise it wouldn't help.

Heath spent the entire afternoon studying, and with each lesson, his worldview was refreshed anew. By now, he was numb to it all. He felt that even if one day he saw a Slowpoke drifting in a car, he wouldn't be particularly fazed.

"I think getting a driver's license is truly difficult. I hope I can pass on the first try," Heath sighed, then boarded his food truck.

Zorua was already asleep; it had fallen into a deep slumber as soon as the teacher began the lesson. Thankfully, it didn't snore, which made things easier for Heath.

Heath set his destination. During the class, he'd received a message from Miss Joey Snow—Charmander had woken up after treatment, and Heath needed to go complete the adoption process.

For this, Heath had even purchased a Poké Ball—his second one. It was originally meant for Zorua, but the little creature was extremely averse to Poké Balls, so Heath had to abandon that idea.

When Heath arrived at the Pokémon Center, he saw Miss Joey Snow looking rather tired.

"Miss Joey! I'm here for the paperwork," Heath said, handing her a savory pancake.

"I've been waiting for you, Heath. Your Charmander's injuries were quite severe," Joey Snow replied with a smile, taking the pancake but not eating it yet, instead walking and chatting with Heath.

Heath nodded; he knew all too well how serious Charmander's injuries were—it had nearly died.

"The most severe wound was caused by the move Scald. Charmander suffered extensive skin damage. If not for Blissey's expertise, it would have been much harder to pull through," Joey explained simply.

Heath was stunned. Scald was a notoriously difficult move to master, suggesting the 'concerned citizen' was likely a Pokémon poacher.

Heath and Joey went to the office to retrieve the adoption documents, then proceeded to Charmander's hospital room. Charmander lay on the bed, wrapped in bandages from head to toe.

At that moment, Charmander hardly resembled itself, almost like a Pokémon Heath had never seen before. Yet its lively eyes remained full of spirit.

"If you can use the Poké Ball to capture Charmander, the adoption process will be complete," Joey stood to the side, still holding her pancake.

Heath felt a bit nervous. He walked over and looked at Charmander, who gazed back at him with an inexplicable emotion in its eyes.

"Charmander...are you willing to become my partner?" Heath asked softly.