The Gauntlet Begins, Part 2 of 3

“Classmates, please keep it quiet!”

Teacher Zhu Di took the microphone and began to speak.

Because the Fire Class was making far too much noise, he had no choice but to ask them to settle down.

He truly had not expected his students to act as though they had never seen a woman before. The moment they spotted the female trainees from the Breeding Class, they began howling and shouting as if possessed, all trying to show off.

And yet the Fire Class had a dozen girls of its own.

True, the male students outnumbered them by more than a hundred, with too many wolves and too little meat. But still, surely this was excessive.

“Today’s match was initiated by the Breeding Class. They will be challenging the Grass Class.”

As soon as he said that, the entire venue fell silent.

“That’s right. You heard correctly: the Breeding Class is challenging the Grass Class. I imagine this must be unprecedented. Since the two classes are about to hold a ten-against-ten relay battle, our Fire Class can postpone the placement exam a little and lend them the battle field for the time being. At the same time, we can serve as witnesses and learners for this match, observing both their friendly sparring and the process by which they spar.”

It had to be said that Teacher Zhu Di was indeed gifted as a host, and his words were perfectly measured.

Under his narration, the audience’s excitement rose once more.

“So then, in this ten-against-ten relay battle, who will win? Let us wait and see!”

“First, please have the Breeding Class and the Grass Class each send out their first contestant.”

After Teacher Zhu Di finished speaking, Xia Yan and Liu Min seemed to exchange a look. Even from so far apart, they could see the other’s expression.

“Xu Shanshan, how about you go first?” Xia Yan asked for her opinion.

“Ah? Me? Can I do it?”

Xu Shanshan was a little doubtful of herself.

“Come on, you’re the best!”

Tong Si cheered her on, and Xu Shanshan immediately blushed, rising to her feet and heading for the battle field.

“Tong Si... I-I’ll do my best!”

With that, Xu Shanshan covered her face and ran toward the field.

Of course, quite a few students from the Fire Class saw this scene as well.

One after another, they wanted to rush over and take Tong Si as their master.

“Teacher Tong Si! Please teach me the art of picking up girls!”

“Master Tong Si, I... I’ve been single since birth for eighteen years, and the only reason was that I never met a teacher like you!”

“Please accept this unworthy disciple, Master Si...”

“...”

Hearing the Fire Class’s bizarre shouting, Tong Si looked utterly bewildered.

???

After discussing it with Song Xuanyang, Liu Min from the Grass Class decided to send out a student they believed had fairly decent strength.

“Then, this match between Xu Shanshan and Lin Bo is about to begin. Only one creature may be used, so both sides please send out your partners.”

Aside from hosting, Teacher Zhu Di also served as the referee for this relay battle.

“Go, Skiddo!”

Lin Bo confidently threw out his Poke Ball and sent out his Skiddo.

Seeing so many people watching her, Xu Shanshan became nervous all at once and did not even dare move.

“Student Xu Shanshan, please send out your partner.”

Looking at Xu Shanshan, Zhu Di understood that she was probably too nervous at the moment.

But creature battles were bound to face an audience sooner or later; a trainer could not remain overly constrained forever.

Seeing this, Lin Bo teased her with a smile. “Beauty, don’t be nervous. Send out your partner. I’ll go as gently and as quickly as possible, and end it before your partner even feels pain. Just bear with it a little.”

Hearing this, Zhu Di glanced at Lin Bo, suspecting the boy was trying to show off, but there was insufficient evidence to arrest him.

“You...”

Xu Shanshan felt that he was mocking her, and in response she hurriedly threw out her Poke Ball, sending out her Skitty.

“Meow~”

The moment Skitty appeared, it immediately began chasing its own tail.

This drew a burst of laughter from the audience.

“Beauty, if I win, can you give me your contact information? We can talk privately.”

Seeing Xu Shanshan’s looks and figure, Lin Bo could not help feeling tempted.

“Cough... the battle begins!”

Zhu Di really could not stand it any longer and promptly announced the start of the match.

“Skiddo, our opponent is a beauty, so let’s go easy on them. Use Growth to raise your strength first.”

After Lin Bo gave the command, Skiddo used Growth all over its body, raising both its Attack and Special Attack.

On the other side, Xu Shanshan was somewhat at a loss, while Skitty was still chasing its tail and did not look at all like it was in a creature battle.

“So this is a student from the Breeding Department? How ridiculous! Aside from having a pretty face, she’s useless!”

Over in the Grass Class, a female student who was not unattractive flicked her hair aside and casually mocked the Breeding Department.

The other male students, while clearly interested in the beauties from the Breeding Class, also found themselves agreeing with her.

“Beauty, if you don’t attack soon, I’m going to launch mine.”

Lin Bo winked at Xu Shanshan.

Xu Shanshan clenched both fists before her chest. Though a little angry, her excessive nervousness left her unsure what to do.

“S-Skitty, stop playing around. Use...”

Use what, exactly?

For a moment, Xu Shanshan actually forgot what moves Skitty knew.

“This girl is just too cute! I’m going to go to the Breeding Department’s classroom door every morning and bring her breakfast!”

“Get lost! She’s my type! As soon as this battle ends, I’m going to ask for her contact information.”

“Tch, and you guys are already losing your composure over the first beauty? Boys should be more reserved!”

“...”

On the Fire Class side, that group of burly men burned with enthusiasm and simply could not restrain themselves.

“Skiddo, use Tackle!”

Lin Bo thought that since both Xu Shanshan and Skitty were so adorable, there was no need to use any especially strong move. He might as well use a simple Tackle to keep things polite and defeat her that way.

Just as Skiddo began running toward Skitty, Xu Shanshan finally summoned her courage and shouted out a move at last.

“Attract!”

“Meow?”

Hearing Xu Shanshan’s command, Skitty finally stopped chasing its tail and began acting coquettishly.

“Meow, meow~~~”

Skitty unleashed Attract.

That move not only charmed Skiddo, but also captured the hearts of many of the tough-looking men in the audience.

“I... it’s just too cute, isn’t it?”

“Just as cute as its trainer!”

“I can’t take it anymore. I want the trainer, and I want Skitty too. As an adult, I want everything! I’m definitely going after this beauty!”

“...”

The atmosphere in the venue ignited once again.

By now, Skiddo had become Skitty’s captive, circling around Skitty in a daze.

“This Xu Shanshan has a pretty good hand after all...”

In the stands, Tong Si nodded in approval of Xu Shanshan’s performance.

He did not know that Xu Shanshan had been too nervous a moment ago to issue any command at all.

Instead, he assumed this was all part of her battle strategy.

In creature battles, so long as you win, you win. No one cares whether you won by strategy.

...To be continued.