Seeing Julian shakily pull a Cheri Berry out of his pocket, it was clear he had bee so aced to paralysis that he always kept one on hand.
The sight made Ian want to ugh, while Acacia’s frustration from her earlier loss suddenly dissipated, repced by amusement at the se.
Ohe paralysis wore off, Julian stood motionless, his expression bnk as Gastly hovered around him, occasionally letting its gaseous fumes waft into his nose.
'This smell really hits hard'
Recalling Gastly into its Poké Ball, Julian turo see Ian struggling to suppress a ugh, his face darkening instantly.
“I was just thinking of something funny from when I was a kid”
Ian quickly expined. Although he didn’t know Julian all that well, but everyone in the Special Recruitment Css knew about Julian’s petty nature.
Even Julian’s high school cssmate, Shen, had firmed that Julian could hold a grudge over the smallest things.
“Oh, like how you wet the bed at twelve?” Julian said casually.
Ian’s face turned beet red in an instant, his eyes wide with a mix of shod embarrassment.
“Hahaha, Ian, you still wet the bed at that age?” Acacia teased mercilessly.
“Shut up! I— It was eleven— No, wait, I never wet the bed!”
Ian stammered, his faow as red as a tomato as he practically shouted his response.
But his rea only made it seem more suspicious.
'Damn it, Owen! It must’ve been him who told Julian! That traitor!'
Ian ched his fists, furious. The only person he’d ever told about this embarrassing moment was his older brother, Owen.
The betrayal stung deeply—nothing cuts quite like a sibling’s knife in the back.
“So, it was eleven? Got it,” Julian said with a faint nod.
“Good to know,” Acacia chimed in, nodding along as well.
Ia the two of them, his fists trembling.
After a moment, his shoulders slumped i. He couldn’t take oher of them in a fight.
'Damn it! This is just bullying! I’m a Dragon-type Trainer! A Dragon-type Trainer!'
Grinding his teeth, Ian stormed off. His hurried steps and slightly hunched posture only made him look more flustered.
“Where are you going, Julian?”
Acacia called out when she saw him heading toward the main gates of Ian’s family estate.
“Back to uy.”
Sihe Hundred Schools League, he hadn’t been bapus for over a month. It was about time he returned.
“I won’t lose to you ime!” Acacia shouted after him.
“Do you even believe that yourself?”
Julian turned back to g her.
This woman, eared so cold on the surface, had a streak of childish overfidence.
With fewer resources, and weaker tactical skills, how could she possibly defeat him? By sheer force of will?
Acacia froze for a moment, caught off guard by Julian’s bluntness. His words left her both flustered and indignant, unsure how to respond.
'Who does he think he’s looking down on? Just give me some time, and I’ll—I'll... do something about it!'
Watg Julian’s departing figure, a fuming Acacia ched her fists, then turned on her heel to find Ian.
She o vent her frustration somehow, aing him up seemed like a good start.
'After all, he’s Julian’s cssmate, so he’s got to take the fall'
---
On the way back to school, Julian stopped by the Imperial City Trainers’ Association to update his trainer rank.
Upon reag the Elite rank and above, trainers received an annual allocation of resources from the association.
Trainers who performed exceptionally in tasks—pleting tasks with high difficulty, quantity, or efficy—were eligible for additional rewards.
These rewards ranged from rare items, to access to advanced secret realms and even priority for obtainie-level Pokémon.
These iives were put in pce by the Drakorian Trainers’ Association to monitor and maintain accurate records of the number of Elite-level trainers iion.
Without such measures, many trainers who reached the Elite rank might choose to hide their strength and tinue developing i.
Of course, if ae trainer didn’t openly dispy their abilities but was ter discovered, the association would quickly follow up with a personal evaluation.
“Hello, I’d like to update my trainer rank”
The association’s hall was bustling with trainers handling various matters. After waiting for about half an hour, it was finally Julian’s turn.
“Certainly”
The staff member replied, taking Julian’s trainer card and pg it on a mae. Moments ter, his information appeared on the puter s.
Name: Julian
Age: 18
Rank: Pseudo-Elite
The staff member g the s, then looked up in surprise at Julian.
'Wait a sed, isn’t this that famous young trainer?'
'And didn’t he just say he wao update his rank?'
The staff’s eyes widened as realization dawned. 'No way... Is he already at the Elite level?'
“Please present the Pokémon you’d like to use for the rank update.”
The staff member said, masking his shock.
Julian handed over Dragonite’s Poké Ball, which the staff member pced into a nearby device desigo precisely measure a Pokémon’s level.
After several seds, the s dispyed three lines:
Pokémon: Dragonite
Level: 71
Trainer: Julian
Level 71—undoubtedly ae-level Pokémon.
With swift and practiced movements, the staff member pleted the update process.
Julian’s information was officially entered into the Elite Trainer database, marking a signifit moment for the Drakorian Trainers’ Association: the addition of a promising youe trainer.
“Here are your updated credentials”
The staff member said, handing Julian his trainer card and Dragonite’s Poké Ball.
“Hmm, thanks.”
Julian nodded politely and walked away from the ter.
Instead of leaving the Trainers’ Association building, he found a quiet er in the hall and took a seat. Pulling out his phone, he opehe Trainer App.
Now that his rank had been updated, the once-locked "Elite Trainer" se of the app was finally accessible. The lock i was gone.
With a tap of his fihe se opened, revealing two categories;
The Trading Zone and the Mission Zone.
The Trainer App’s regur Trading Zone had a wide range of items—low, medium, and high-quality alike.
However, the Trading Zone in the Elite se exclusively showcased high-tier resources, the kind rarely avaible to the general public.
Browsing through the listings, Julian noted some eye-catg offers:
Big_Deals: Ampharos Mega Stone for trade, looking for a -tier Heracross.
Moalks: 3 billion to purchase a pseudo-legendary Pokémon hatg.
Gardevoir’s_Stogs: Selling a spoon from ae-tier Akazam, priced at 3.5 billion.
Iron-Cd_Machamp: -tier Geodude for sale, price set at 1 billion.
Julian skimmed the listings. The smallest figures started in the 100 million, with items so rare that eveeran trainers would go to great lengths to acquire them.
At the Elite level, both earning and spending money became a high-stakes game. Trainers at this rank required premium resources to maintain their edge.
Finding nothing particurly iing irading Zone, Julian was about to browse the Mission Zone when his phone suddenly buzzed.
A call popped up on the s: Frank, Homeroom Teacher.
*****
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