It wasn't until three minutes after Roy left the arena that Callan spoke as if waking from a dream:
"I lost?"
There wasn't much disbelief in his tone, more of an incomprehensible daze.
It wasn't that Callan had never lost before. As a child, when borrowing his parents' Pokémon to battle against his peers, he had experienced defeat many times.
But those losses were always to second-generation trainers with prestigious backgrounds who never had to worry about resources or education!
To be considered a second-generation trainer, one's parents had to be at least professional-level trainers.
Against peers who came from ordinary backgrounds, Callan had never tasted defeat.
Before meeting Roy, his record at the Pokémon Center stood at 32 wins in 32 battles—a testament to his skill.
"What's going on with him and that Riolu?"
Callan calmed himself and began to analyze.
As a trainer, Roy's decision-making and instructions during battle were clearly immature, which aligned with his background.
It was Riolu's remarkable quality that secured the victory.
But a Pokémon's ability reflects its Trainer's ability—they're connected, and the two shouldn't be discussed separately.
Aren't trainers who specialize in developing their Pokémon's natural talents called Pokémon Breeders?
"He's more of a Breeder than a Trainer," Callan concluded.
However, new questions emerged.
How could Roy, born to an ordinary family, raise a Riolu so effectively?
Where did he get the resources? Where did he learn breeding techniques?
Did he discover them himself?
Or was he handsome enough that some female trainer took him under her wing?
Wait, why am I even thinking about that?
Callan shook his head, dismissing the absurd thoughts.
"Maybe there really are geniuses in this world who defy common sense."
"But he's not overwhelmingly strong either. If Riolu hadn't suddenly powered up, I should have won that battle."
This was the only way Callan could console himself.
He gathered his things and was about to take Bulbasaur for healing when something from the battle suddenly came to mind.
'Riolu, release...'
That was Roy's half-finished instruction during their stalemate.
Release what?
Could it be...
What else was he hiding?
Realizing a certain possibility, Callan shuddered slightly, but quickly dismissed his theory with a self-deprecating smile.
Riolu wasn't seriously injured, so after a short rest in the recovery machine, he was fully healed and energetic again.
It was Roy's first time seeing the recovery machine in action, and he was amazed by this advanced technology.
Noticing his curious expression, Nurse Mila explained with a smile: "Pokémon powers have brought many changes to our world. This recovery machine was... I heard it was developed by analyzing the energy patterns of certain healing moves and combining them with human technology."
"By the way, I heard you defeated Callan?"
Roy nodded. "Yes. You found out quickly."
"Callan is quite well-known among the staff here. Over the past few days, he achieved 32 consecutive victories before you ended his streak. Many colleagues are discussing it, and it's all over the PokéCenter messaging groups." After hearing Roy's confirmation, the admiration in Mila's eyes grew stronger.
A handsome young trainer with potential—who could resist that?
"The quality of his winning streak was impressive too. I heard he defeated recommended students from several nearby universities. He didn't just build his record by defeating rookies."
"Really?" Roy hadn't expected Callan to be that formidable. Had he encountered an elite trainer in his very first battle?
"Do you want to continue with more battle room matches?"
"Yes."
Roy nodded. Having recognized his own weaknesses, he already planned to spend the entire day in the battle room.
Within a few hours, Roy confirmed that Callan was indeed exceptionally skilled.
The reason was simple...
"Sandshrew is unable to battle. The winner is Roy!"
Roy shook hands with his opponent politely, but inside he was thinking:
So weak~~~
The school year had just begun, with only a week of training completed. Most novice Trainers were still very inexperienced. Roy even encountered one trainer who couldn't properly throw a Poké Ball.
Trainers from ordinary backgrounds basically couldn't withstand two moves from Riolu.
Without type advantages, they stood no chance.
Under the effects of the [Energy Cube] and Lightning Body Forging, even Callan's Pokémon—raised by a second-generation Trainer—had physical stats lower than Riolu's. Ordinary trainers' Pokémon didn't stand a chance.
The morning passed, and Roy completed twelve consecutive victories as easily as catching fish in a pond.
Besides Callan, the only worthwhile match was against another recommended student, though not from Capital University but another school.
That recommended student's battle experience wasn't as refined as Callan's, but still much better than Roy's. They fought evenly, and Roy learned a lot.
For the first time, Roy truly felt the enormous gap between second-generation Trainers and those born to ordinary families.
If not for the system's help, I might be one of those weak trainers who get defeated in seconds.
"This kind of random battling won't improve my skills much in just one day."
Roy felt a bit disheartened. Looking at the time, he saw it was noon and decided to take Riolu for lunch while thinking about what to do in the afternoon.
While eating, he casually opened his system panel and noticed his popularity value had suddenly increased by 50,000 points. Roy was confused.
People were still discussing him on the forum these days, but the popularity points he gained barely offset Riolu's daily consumption, with no surplus.
"What's going on?"
After searching online, Roy understood the cause.
The Capital University freshman representative competition would be held tomorrow, but the pre-competition atmosphere was already building.
The university's official social media had announced the participant list to the public, along with each freshman's starter Pokémon, attracting widespread attention.
In Roy's previous life, not many people followed university social media accounts except for the students themselves, but this world was different. Famous trainer schools received as much attention as top-tier Celebrity trainers.
—Top trainers were often first noticed during their student years.
This principle explained why major universities' official pages received so much attention.
For government officials and corporations, discovering excellent training prospects early was a matter of national importance that couldn't be taken lightly.
Every year at the beginning of the school term, freshman representative battles at prestigious schools became a gold rush for talent scouts. They examined everything closely, hoping to discover a diamond in the rough and complete the first round of angel investments.
Most media attention focused on the recommended students.
But some local media had noticed the buzz on the Capital University forum.
Soon, several local tabloids published stories about the incidents. Like the student reactions, these were mostly written as ridicule with hints of sarcasm.
"Just small newspapers." The media's mocking words didn't hurt Roy, but he still felt a little disappointed.
If it had been a major newspaper in Capital City, with nationwide circulation, he could have gained millions in popularity points.
"Fifty thousand points?"
Roy rubbed his chin and decided to strengthen himself first.
He had spent his previous points all on Riolu, with the only personal investment being the seed of Aura power.
Psychic seeds needed time to calmly grow into towering abilities.
Roy's current level of Aura power barely made his senses slightly sharper. He couldn't achieve telepathic communication, which meant it provided almost no improvement to his trainer abilities.
This time, what he exchanged wasn't ability seeds, but ready-to-use abilities.
"Deduct 30,000 points, gain Proficiency Level • Reaction Ability, improved neural response capability."
For reference, the abilities exchanged by Trainers, from lowest to highest, were Entry Level (ability seed), Proficiency Level, Master Level, and Transcendence Level.
Master-Level Reaction required 300,000 points, and Transcendence-Reaction required 3,000,000 points.
Roy also checked the price for ready-made Aura Force abilities. Just the Proficiency Level • Aura Force required 150,000 points, which immediately extinguished any interest.
Training by myself might be the better option. Perhaps I have a natural talent for Psychic abilities? That would save me a lot of points.