"Ding!"
"Main Quest Completed."
"Rewards: Rare Candies x5 (usable below level 70), Mewtwo Fragments x10, Golden Legend Fragments x3, Beginner Luck Card (10 minutes), Potential Enhancer Potion (Blue)."
As Julian held the trophy symbolizing his first-place finish as the Best Individual Trainer, a system notification echoed in his mind. A faint smile appeared on his otherwise calm face.
All his efforts over the past few days had been for this moment.
Main quest rewards were always the most generous, though they came with significant challenges.
If he hadn't led Imperial University to win the Hundred Schools League championship and claimed the individual title, the rewards wouldn't have been this bountiful.
After the closing ceremony, a celebratory banquet followed, but Julian didn't attend. He politely declined the invitation from Pierce, Carter, and others to sit down for a chat, choosing instead to return to the hotel early.
"Don't take it personally. That's just how Julian is"
Max explained on Julian's behalf.
As the captain and a senior, Max felt obliged to smooth things over. Normally, he wouldn't bother, but the people here—Dylan, Carter, Yuna, and Pierce—were all among the Best Individual Trainers.
Originally, the six of them had planned to sit and chat, but with Julian gone, only the remaining five stayed behind.
Except for Pierce, who was competing for the first time this year, Max had crossed paths with Dylan, Yuna, and Carter before—especially Carter, who had been a long-time rival.
None of them took Julian's departure to heart. As geniuses themselves, they respected Julian for defeating them so convincingly.
Respect, after all, was built on strength.
Yuna, who had never battled Julian, also knew she wasn't a match for him.
"You guys at Imperial really struck gold this time"
Carter muttered as he sipped his juice, giving Max a pointed look while sighing inwardly.
The others nodded in agreement.
With Julian at Imperial for the next few years, what University could possibly challenge them?
Meanwhile, they themselves would be graduating by the middle of next year.
"Heh, go ahead and envy us"
Max replied with a grin, unfazed by their remarks. He understood their feelings.
Still, he had to let them vent a bit—better than them teaming up to give him a beating.
"Pierce, why haven't we heard of you before? If it's something you can't talk about, that's fine," Yuna asked curiously.
Typically, participants in the Hundred Schools League' senior division had already competed in the junior division the year before.
Pierce, however, was a senior at the First Military Academy but had been absent from last year's competition.
Yuna and the others wouldn't buy it, that someone as strong as Pierce, already at Elite level, had been unqualified to compete in the Hundred Schools League during his junior year.
"I was exploring ruins"
Pierce replied calmly, offering no details about which ruins or what he was doing there.
"Ruins, huh? That's so enviable. I've never had the chance to explore one," Yuna said wistfully.
Pierce glanced at her.
"With your level of strength, you'd die in there."
Yuna's face froze, and she glared at Pierce in frustration.
'Do you even know how to talk? If not, just shut up.'
Despite her annoyance, Yuna didn't refute him. Ruins were far more dangerous than secret realms.
Secret realms were classified into four levels—basic, intermediate, advanced, and top-tier—based on the strength of the Pokémon inside.
Ruins, on the other hand, had no such classifications.
The Pokémon inhabiting Ruins were universally strong. Each ruin almost always contained Elite-level Pokémon, and often more than one. Worse yet, you might run into Champion-level Pokémon if you were unlucky.
Some legendary or mythical Pokémon also resided in Ruins.
Except for a few particularly friendly ones, most Pokémon would attack any humans entering their territory.
A trainer with pseudo-Elite strength could enter Ruins but wouldn't be able to venture far. Only Elite-level trainers had the qualifications to explore deeper.
Even so, it was unwise for low-ranking Elites to delve too far.
"Your Regirock must've come from a ruin, right?"
Pierce nodded. As he started using Regirock in battle, this secret would inevitably come to light.
"I'm so jealous of you and Julian, both of you have such incredible Pokémon," Yuna sighed, propping her chin on her hands as she gazed out at the distant ocean.
The moon shone brightly that night, accompanied by a sky full of stars. The sea sparkled under the starlight, with the waves creating a mesmerizing, undulating pattern.
---
Back at the hotel, Julian fed all five Rare Candies to his Metagross, raising its level from 65 to 70, the peak of pseudo-Elite.
To reach the Elite level, it would now need to gradually accumulate energy within its body.
Fortunately, Metagross still had plenty of energy remaining from the Heart of Arceus, so Julian wasn't too worried. Besides, he always had the system to fall back on.
As for the Mewtwo Shards and Golden Legend Shards, they weren't immediately useful. With 25 Mewtwo Shards and six Golden Legend Shards in total, he was still far from using them.
The Beginner Luck Card, however, sparked some anticipation. Given his notoriously poor luck, having this card made him feel confident enough to test his luck—albeit only for the ten minutes it lasted.
He then released his Steelix into the room and handed it the Blue Potential Potion. Thankfully, the hotel suite was spacious; otherwise, there wouldn't have been enough room for the massive Pokémon.
Among Julian's Pokémon, only two had Cyan-tier Potential—Steelix and Slowking. The rest were either Blue or Purple-tier.
As for why he chose Steelix over Slowking, it was simple: Steelix was part of his main battle lineup.
As Slowking wasn't fond of battling and saw itself as more of a household manager, the Blue Potential Potion was given to Steelix instead.
Julian figured that if the system rewarded another Blue Potential Potion in the future, he would give it to Slowking.
Steelix swallowed the Potion along with the glass bottle in one gulp, its expression shifting into one of sheer bliss. Its tail rose high into the air, swaying with excitement.
"Hold it! Don't swing that tail—this is a hotel," Julian quickly warned.
They were on the 30th floor. If Steelix's tail struck the ground, it might smash through the floor, causing injuries or death to people below.
Steelix nodded obediently, its eyes narrowing in satisfaction. Internally, it once again praised its own decision to follow Julian.
'This was the right choice! Since I started traveling with him, not only do I eat well and live well, but my strength has skyrocketed!'
Initially, Steelix had only been a Green-tier Pokémon. Later, it advanced to Cyan-tier, and now it had reached Blue-tier Potential.
Steelix: 'Mom, I've made it big!'
Julian sighed as Steelix lowered its massive head and affectionately nuzzled him. 'Seriously? With your size, is this the right way to show affection?'
He winced, pinned against the wall by Steelix's bulk. If it weren't for his enhanced physique, he might have suffered internal injuries from the force.
"Alright, alright"
Julian muttered, patting Steelix's metallic surface.
Through their bond, he could sense Steelix's overwhelming joy, gratitude, and even a hint of reliance.
As Steelix's potential upgraded from Cyan to Blue, its level also rose from 67 to 68.
*****
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