-087- Provocation (1/3)

“Come on, Tong Si, you know perfectly well how I caught Beedrill. At first, it wouldn’t obey a single command.” Jiang Tao shrugged and recounted the process of taming Beedrill to Tong Si.

When he first caught Beedrill, it didn’t acknowledge him at all, ignoring everything he said. After all, Jiang Tao had taken advantage of the moment when Beedrill lost its fighting strength to capture it in secret. No Pokémon would be happy to be ambushed like that, especially a Beedrill with such a volatile temper.

Still, Jiang Tao’s family was wealthy enough to turn the tide. He bought as much Bug-type Pokémon food and power-boosting potions as he wanted—anything Bug-types liked, he could afford. In the end, he tamed Beedrill using sheer spending power.

Even so, Beedrill only obeyed his commands under ordinary circumstances. When it was enraged, as it had been just now, nothing Jiang Tao said could rein it in.

“Looks like you need to improve your skills as a trainer. Otherwise, your Pokémon won’t listen to you,” Tong Si remarked, recalling how in the games, if a Pokémon’s level was too high and the trainer didn't have enough badges, it would disobey. Although reality wasn’t quite like the games, if a trainer’s ability wasn’t up to par, their Pokémon truly wouldn’t recognize their authority. (Right? You know all about this, idiot.)

“I know,” Jiang Tao replied, patting his chest to show he was working hard at it.

Their battle had drawn quite a crowd of new students, and now many spectators had gathered around. Seeing that the match between Tong Si and Jiang Tao was over, a few students stepped forward, requesting the chance to challenge Tong Si. After all, everyone knew him—he was the Best Rookie; who hadn’t heard of him?

“Jiang Tao, take Slowpoke and Beedrill to the infirmary for treatment. I’ll spar with these challengers,” Tong Si suggested.

“Alright.” Jiang Tao recalled his two Pokémon and headed for the school infirmary. The practical examination was still coming up that afternoon, so he needed to make sure both his Pokémon had plenty of energy.

Tong Si then began his “rookie crushing for points” phase. Of course, he didn’t use Eevee or Forretress, but sent out Electabuzz directly, even though his opponents fielded Rock, Ground, Steel, or Fighting types.

But when it came to mowing down rookies, Electabuzz showed no mercy. Each strike took out one hapless opponent. In just over ten minutes, he had defeated more than twenty Pokémon, racking up 230,000 points with ease.

That afternoon, the practical assessment of the placement test arrived. Xia Yan led Tong Si and the other twenty-nine students to the battle hall. Compared with other departments, the Breeder Course’s battle arena was rather humble—just a small, ordinary-type field. In contrast, the Battle Department had ten different arenas, each with its own terrain. For the single-type programs, each class battled in a field suited to their specialty. Even the Archaeology Department had a Rock-type arena.

Compared to that, Tong Si couldn’t help but feel the Breeder Course was woefully undervalued by the school. The other breeder students thought so too. Even if their main focus wasn’t battling, it didn’t warrant such obvious neglect.

“Well, well, well, isn’t this our Teacher Xia Yan? What’s this, bringing your students for the practical exam too?” A red-haired woman strode over, her voice shrill and grating.

“That’s right, Teacher Liu Min. Is there a problem?” Xia Yan replied, remaining calm despite Liu Min’s tone.

“Still so few students in your Breeder Course—barely fifteen or twenty every year. Why bother with the practical exam? Just put down any old score. And really, do breeders even need to battle?” Liu Min cast a scornful glance at the girls in Breeder Class One, her sarcasm blatant.

At that moment, Tong Si was seated among the spectators, shielded from view by a group of female students. Liu Min didn’t see him, and even if she had, she might not have recognized him as this year’s Best Rookie. After all, apart from a few teachers who followed the new students closely, most fans of the Best Rookie competition were current students. Some students who didn’t compete hadn’t even watched the live stream.

“Teacher Liu Min, please show some respect. What do you mean, ‘just put down any old score’? This is school policy—every department must participate in the practical assessment, including ours,” Xia Yan retorted, adjusting her glasses with a sleepy but earnest air.

“Hahaha… I was only joking, Teacher Xia. Why so serious?” Liu Min shrugged, her face full of disdain.

“But honestly…” she continued, “battles in your Breeder Course are so boring. It’s just blind luck and mediocrity. Look at your audience—are there any? Not even your own upperclassmen care to watch your battles; it’s laughable.” She cast a glance at the almost empty stands beside the Breeder Course’s tiny arena, where the wind whistled through the vacant seats.

Normally, during Jiuhua University’s placement exam battles, upperclassmen would come to watch, eager to see the new students’ strength. Some had other motives, too—every year, after the practical exam, a few old flirts and seasoned seniors would finally find romance. How they managed it? I won’t say.

But here in the Breeder Course, there were barely more than five people in the audience, including Tong Si. The whole scene was as meager as their cramped battle arena.

“Teacher Liu Min, please show some respect for our Breeder Course!” Xia Yan was clearly angry. She and Liu Min were old acquaintances—they’d graduated from the same high school, attended the same university, and now worked together at Jiuhua University. They’d always been rivals.

It was worth noting that in their student days, Xia Yan’s grades had always outshone Liu Min’s. But after graduation, Liu Min took charge of the Grass-type class, while Xia Yan was assigned the Breeder class. Jiuhua University showed far more favor to the single-type programs than to the Breeder class, which finally gave Liu Min a taste of victory.

Yet Xia Yan’s annual performance reviews consistently surpassed Liu Min’s. Despite leading an unpopular class, Xia Yan’s personal charisma and abilities were undeniable, fueling Liu Min’s envy all the more.

… (To be continued)