The next day, after finishing breakfast and completing his morning training, Terrance returned to this place.
As he stepped into the room and looked inside, he saw Scott.
"Hey, how's it going lately?" Scott greeted him with a laugh.
"I'm getting used to it," Terrance replied with a smile.
Hearing this, Scott smiled again, "That's good. I won't disturb you two. Oh, by the way, most of the others have also completed two or three rounds of consecutive wins. They'll catch up soon."
"Once they've finished learning, the Trainers I hired from Unova should also be here. Then we can proceed with the final training together."
"No problem," Terrance nodded.
As Scott was leaving, he called out, "Keep it up!"
Aside from learning about the Castelia Club's battle style in the morning, Terrance and Shiro didn't have anything else to do.
After a while, once Shiro arrived, Hogan began explaining relevant information to them. By noon, they had finally absorbed all the known information.
"Whew..."
After it was done, Hogan's entire body seemed to relax, but the thought of having to guide a bunch of other Trainers later made his stomach ache.
"Hmm...How many days do you think you'll need to digest this information before taking the test?"
"How about three days?" Hogan thought for a moment and held up three fingers. He felt this amount of time was just right—not too rushed, but not too long.
"Once you're done, you'll be free to move about the Battle Tower while waiting for the others to finish."
"Mr. Scott just came by and asked me to inform everyone who passes the test here that in the High-Level Area of the Battle Tower, you no longer need to focus on consecutive wins. Instead, let the system randomly match you with opponents. If you successfully break someone else's winning streak, the coins you earn will be doubled. This is no worse than chasing after consecutive wins. Isn't that wonderful? Uh... those were Mr. Scott's exact words; I'm just passing them on."
Hogan stroked his chin and asked, "So, what do you guys think?"
This is great?
Terrance was surprised. The reward for consecutive victories was actually hidden coins. If you were to convert the rewards you can get from consecutive wins into Battle Tower coins, it wouldn't be a very good deal. However, with the coin rewards doubled, this disadvantage would disappear. Moreover, compared to the limitations of consecutive wins, randomly disrupting someone else's winning streak... in a way, it offered more freedom.
A 3vs3 battle anytime, anywhere—this is much more comfortable than having to win seven matches in a row.
"No need for three days. One day is enough," Terrance said.
"I can take the test tomorrow afternoon."
"Uh..." Hogan looked at Terrance, "Are you serious?"
"You can absorb all that information in just one day? This isn't just about memorizing it," Hogan said earnestly.
"I know," Terrance replied.
The sooner he could pass the test, the sooner he could start earning coins. After all, there were many things in the Battle Tower he wanted. He hadn't forgotten the reason he agreed with Scott—it was to quickly improve his strength.
"Alright then," Hogan said. "What about you, Shiro?"
"For me, one day is enough too," Shiro said with a smile. He was a native of Unova, and with almost his entire family being Trainers, his understanding of the Unova region was naturally quite deep.
"Whew," Hogan nodded. Since both of them insisted, he had no choice but to agree. The difficulty of the test wouldn't change; whether they could pass would depend on Terrance and Shiro's own abilities.
******
The next day.
Before noon, Terrance went to find Hogan.
Speaking of which, Hogan was only about four or five years older than Terrance, so they can be considered peers. Interacting with him didn't feel strange, especially considering Terrance's mental age.
"It's not even noon yet," Hogan said as he continued his own studies. At the level of the Champion League, everyone wanted to climb higher. There was no need to talk about effort—on the road to glory, hard work was just the basic requirement.
"I'm ready," After spending the entire afternoon and evening yesterday, Terrance had made ample preparations based on the five Pokémon he had and the information provided about the five Trainers from the Castelia Club.
No matter how Hogan tested him, Terrance believed he could handle it well.
"Alright, follow me," Hogan took a deep breath, and Terrance followed closely behind. After a while, they arrived at an arena.
"Release all your Pokémon. We'll conduct the test in a Q&A format."
"You could also say it's a verbal simulation battle, different from the actual battles you'll have next."
"I see," Terrance said as he retrieved five Poké Balls from his belt and threw them out.
Following a flash of white light, an Altaria with a sky-blue body, a Beautifly with bright blue compound eyes and gorgeous wings, and a somewhat eerie-looking Mismagius appeared. They hovered in the air, each gazing at Hogan.
Growlithe with deep orange fur stood on the ground, eyes burning with eagerness, as if ready to spring into action. Castform, upon emerging, first glanced at the weather, then turned away with a bored expression.
"Well done, they've been raised nicely," Hogan had a keen eye. After years in the Champion League, he had seen all kinds of Pokémon. It could be said that every contestant in the Champion League raised their Pokémon exceptionally well, but from the moment he first laid eyes on Terrance's Pokémon, he was surprised to find that their level of training might not be inferior to that of the Pokémon of Champion League contestants.
Especially Beautifly, Altaria, Mismagius, and Growlithe—all four were outstanding in every aspect, with their growth far exceeding that of their species counterparts!
"Although Castform isn't as developed as the other four, it still gives me an unusual feeling," Hogan observed, feeling some admiration. Remembering that Terrance was also a Breeder, he suddenly understood. In their club, the Pokémon's training plans and meals were all devised by hired Breeders. With Terrance being a Breeder himself, it made sense that his expertise in Pokémon training was so advanced.
"Let's begin. Suppose I am now assuming the role of Ellie from Castelia Club, and my first Pokémon is Whimsicott. What would you do?"
Ellie is the only female Trainer among the information Hogan had provided. Her battle style leans towards controlling her opponents, and she has a strong preference for Grass and Bug-type Pokémon. She excels in the three powder moves and control strategies.
"Simple. If Whimsicott is the first Pokémon, as long as I don't use Beautifly or Growlithe, I have a good chance of winning with any of my other Pokémon."
Terrance then began to elaborate, discussing the characteristics of Whimsicott, Ellie's battle style, and the possible substitution of Pokémon she might make. As Hogan listened, his eyes widened in surprise. Terrance's thought process was so intricate that Hogan struggled to keep up. Terms like Mismagius' illusions and Castform's weather left Hogan struggling to fully grasp Terrance's explanation.
Even though Hogan has vast experience, the coordination techniques that Terrance suddenly sprung out, training concepts, unique ideas, and his unusual Pokémon made it much harder for him to understand.
"This..." Hogan said hoarsely after Terrance finished speaking, "Hold on... I think we should have an actual battle first so I can get a better understanding of your Pokémon."
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