Nova's smile shifted into a frown as he read the information about his Pawniard.
'Potential? D-Rank? Don't tell me this is some stupid genetic bullshit like in the games when trying to get good IV Pokémon…'
'Whatever, I'll just ask someone later about it. The real question here is how do levels work in this world? And can I scan myself?'
Having no knowledge of coding or programming, he couldn't get a good look at how the Scan app worked. Opening the Note app, he wrote down a reminder to learn some form of engineering or programming.
While Pokémon training was good and all, a ton of the more useful things in the Pokémon world was just various different technology. If he could make something on the level of usefulness as a Pokédex app, he'd be golden.
Shelving that thought, he re-opened the Scan app before pointing it at himself and clicking the button.
Nova was a bit disappointed it didn't show him anything interesting but not too much since he wasn't really expecting anything.
He was about to click 'No' for the tutorial offer when he stopped and had an idea. Even if his idea bore no fruit, it would only be a few seconds of a needless tutorial.
After clicking 'Yes' the program then went on to explain how you should aim it at a Pokémon and click the button, letting the user see information about said Pokémon.
"Aha!"
Nova was right in his assumption that the tutorial would explain what each part of the information page meant to those who were ignorant.
Nova stared blankly at the screen as he hurriedly wrote down everything he didn't already know into his notebook before rewriting all of it in his Note app for later.
The idea that his Pawniard only had a D-Rank potential didn't bother him as much as one would think. For one, it was good that his Pawniard had low potential so he could experiment on if increasing it was truly impossible.
Disregarding his research though, he was prepared to lose Pawniard either way.
If there was one thing anyone could say about Nova, it was that he was a man of his word. He had no trouble lying in general but when he made a deal or a promise, he always went through with it. If they lost the tournament, he would release Pawniard without complaint.
In reality, though, he didn't care about keeping Pawniard at the moment. He didn't exactly make a good impression on Nova, after all. On top of that, he only followed Nova's every word like an unfeeling knight after agreeing to be trained for a month.
Nova could tell Pawniard was just using him for power, and Pawniard could tell Nova was just using him for research. Maybe with time, he would begin to care about Pawniard, but for now?
He was just a means to an end.
Momentarily overwhelmed by the number of ideas he had swimming through his head, he spent the next hour writing and organizing. Each and every theory, idea, or finding he could think of in the time he spent at the guild was written down.
After that hour was over he realized that a ton of his theories could only be tested when he has a way to measure Aura levels. Content, he put his research aside and sat on the floor, meditating.
It would be a long time until he stumbled into Aura. Without proper guidance, he knew it may take years. If it was that easy, everyone would have it.
'Ash may have gotten the hang of it pretty easily, but he's also the same trainer that's casually friends with every legendary and mythical Pokemon ever discovered. Comparing myself to him in any capacity is unfair.'
'And the only other guy who I know should have it is Riley. The same guy who is partners with the being known as the Aura Pokémon. Yeah, I'm not gonna figure this shit out for a loooong time at this rate.'
Still, he persisted in meditation for a few hours. Every so often he would have to stop himself from falling asleep, as he wasn't used to sitting in one place doing absolutely nothing for hours.
At some point, Pawniard woke up and started eating the Leppa berries and Pokefood he got. Hearing his Pokémon reminded him he had to fight the guy with a Skorupi later.
Now that he thought about it, the man didn't specify a time. Or his name for that matter. But, there was only one place used as an arena, so that's where he would head to.
Opening his eyes, Nova checked the hallway clock and noticed that it had been quite a few hours he'd been sitting there. He did have to keep restarting every 10 minutes or so due to his inexperience, but practice makes perfect.
Pawniard noticed that Nova finally stopped sitting in one spot and also rose with him, ready to leave.
Together, they walked toward the clearing that members of the guild designated as the arena. In reality, it was just a random clearing, but that's all they needed for battle.
Nova did notice that his mind felt sharper after that complete abomination he called 'meditation'. It wasn't by much, but his thoughts were less cluttered than before.
As they walked over to the arena, they saw the same familiar man crouched while talking to what could only be a Kabuto. To the side was an unfamiliar person in all black lying on the ground with his eyes closed.
Wondering where he could've gotten such a rare Pokémon, Nova abruptly stopped moving in surprise. Something which alerted the man and Kabuto as they looked over.
"Oh you're here finally, I've been waiting so long,"
Standing up, the man walked over to the other side of the clearing, returning his Kabuto and releasing Skorupi onto the field.
"You never told me when to arrive, that's on you,"
"Sure I did," the man casually insisted, as if saying it suddenly made it a fact.
"No, no you didn't," Nova retorted, completely confident in the fact that the man didn't tell him a time at all.
"You're here, aren't you?"
Nova rolled his eyes, realizing that either this man was either always like this or he was trying to get in his head. Not dignifying that question with a response, he beckoned Pawniard onto the field.
An idea popped into his head, as he turned on his Pokégear and pointed it at his opponent's Skorupi.
"You know, scanning other people's Pokémon before a match is frowned upon," The ninja-looking guy said as he slowly stood up.
"Is it against the rules of an official match? Do either of you even care?"
"No to both questions," "Nope."
"Then I don't care either, an advantage is an advantage,"
'Fuck. Pin Missile is already a problem since he doesn't need to get close quarters, but Agility too? Even if he does get close Pawniard's not even gonna be able to hit him.'
The man obviously saw the look on Nova's face as he read the Skorupi's information because he audibly snorted.
The person who looked like a ninja got up and dusted themselves, walked forward, clearly acting as the judge for the battle.
"Well? Introduce yourselves," he said impatiently. Nova was confused by his attitude but shrugged it off.
"My name is Ray, nice to meet you,"
"Nova,"
The man sighed. "This is a one versus one. Obviously, don't go for the kill. Don't switch out. If your Pokémon faints, it's over. Got it?"
Both trainers simply nodded their heads.
"Begin."
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AN: I will add the information about how Potential works and stuff like that in auxiliary chapters. Though I'll put a spoiler warning since this information will change as the MC becomes more knowledgeable down the line.