"Is everyone here?"
The voice rang out before the speaker even appeared. Moments later, a middle-aged man strode into view, his presence commanding immediate respect.
Thea and the other eight members of the school team immediately straightened up, adopting serious expressions. One of the shorter boys in the group spoke up, "Teacher Wade, the two rookies, Julian and Lucas, have arrived."
Lucas, a sophomore and the top student in last year's special recruit class, had earned his position as representative of the sophomore class.
Among the ten team members gathered, only Julian and Lucas were freshmen and sophomores; the other eight were juniors(3rd-years) or seniors(4th-years).
All from each grade's special recruit class.
Recognizing the man, Julian recalled hearing about him.
This was Wade, a member of the Drake family—known as one of Drakoria's powerful Dragon-type families. He was also related to Ian, who had mentioned before that Wade was his third uncle.
Wade was highly respected in Drakoria, known for his formidable power at the peak of the Elite level.
Though he hadn't attained the position of Dragon Elite, it was widely understood that his skills rivaled or even surpassed half of Drakoria's eighteen type Elites.
The only reason he wasn't the official Dragon Elite was due to the current Dragon Elite's extraordinary strength.
Julian couldn't help but be surprised at Wade's presence. He knew Wade wasn't one of Imperial College's five elites, so it was remarkable to see him here.
It really was an overkill for such an Trainer to train them.
As if sensing Julian's question, Thea leaned over and whispered.
"Teacher Wade was specially invited by the dean."
Julian nodded, understanding now.
The dean, a respected figure among Trainers, was known to have mentored many top trainers in Drakoria, and it seemed Wade was one of his former students.
Wade, who had already met the older students, focused his attention on the two new recruits, Julian and Lucas.
"Although we have ten people in the Hundred Schools League team, only eight will actually participate in the competition"
Although the team contained ten trainers but that was only in name, only eight could actually compete in the tournament, that's why the University allowed freshmen and sophomores to participate.
Their role wasn't to compete but to gain valuable experience alongside more seasoned trainers. By the time they reached their third and fourth years, they would be primed to take on key roles in the competition.
Now, the main team members were the eight juniors and seniors standing before Julian and Lucas.
"But if either of you wants to earn a spot, it's possible," Wade added, pausing for a moment before pointing to the eight.
"Defeat one of them, and you can take their place."
The opportunity was clear—now it depended on whether Julian or Lucas had the strength to claim it.
"I'm giving you both a day to gather information on the eight of them," Wade continued. "Tomorrow, at this same time, you can decide if you want to challenge anyone."
This approach was surprisingly considerate, giving them time to prepare and study their potential opponents.
Of course, there was no way they could gather complete information on all eight in one night, so they would need to focus on the key points.
Lucas's gaze drifted toward the two female members, sizing up his options.
It wasn't that he underestimated them, but statistically, male trainers often outnumbered female trainers in top-level competitive circles. He figured challenging one of the girls might give him a better chance.
Just as Lucas seemed to settle on a plan, Julian's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"No need to wait. I'll challenge now"
Lucas: (?_??)
Suddenly, Julian heard a faint chime.
"Ding!"
"Daily Task: Obtain a spot."
"Reward: 800 points."
Even without this task, Julian would have challenged anyway. Without securing a spot, how else could he complete the Main task?
Wade raised an eyebrow. "Fine. Who do you want to challenge?"
Without any hesitation, Julian pointed at Alex and said;
"Him."
Wade nodded, "Alex, a 3-vs-3 match with him. If you lose, you're out of the competition team, and this will be your only chance, Julian. Win, and you're in. Lose, and that's it."
Alex nodded with a twisted face. He wasn't surprised that Julian had challenged him, but even if he knew, he was still irked at being chosen.
It felt like, he was being underestimated by Julian.
With a restrained smirk, he thought about how he could use this match to teach Julian a lesson justifiably.
"Julian, listen," Thea murmured as she stepped closer. "Alex may be annoying, but he's strong—a General-type trainer."
"Generalist?, Jack of all trades but master of none," Julian said indifferently.
He found it curious that Alex, despite his commoner background, had taken on such a costly and resource-intensive training style. But then again, maybe that was just how things were meant to play out. After all, he mused, Alex was quite the protagonist-sounding name.
Of course, if you wanted to stand out, you needed to forge a unique path, not just follow the beaten track. That's how you could grow faster and get stronger.
In Drakoria, there were General-type trainers, but most only took on additional types after reaching Elite level.
For those below Elite—especially without family resources—choosing multiple types was like digging their own grave.
"Do you want to activate the protective barrier?" Wade asked, glancing between the two.
"No need"
Julian shook his head.
Alex shook his head as well.
Soon, both trainers stood ready at opposite ends of the field.
A girl standing next to Thea leaned over and asked curiously, "Thea, is it wise for Julian to pick Alex? Alex's strength is second only to the captain's—your cousin might have chosen the wrong Rival."
She had heard of Julian, and his recent rise to fame in Imperial University.
But his strength was mostly recognized among freshmen and sophomores. In the school team, known for its high concentration of pseudo-Elite and near-Elite trainers, he was facing an uphill battle.
Of the eight main team members, all had their six Pokémon at the pseudo-Elite level, and their captain had five of his Pokémon at pseudo-Elite peak.
Alex, currently also had two Pokémon at the pseudo-Elite peak.
The difference in combat strength between each level of pseudo-Elite wasn't massive, but it was enough to matter.
Julian had only just reached pseudo-Elite level, while Alex was a seasoned. There was still a significant gap between them.
"How about a little bet? I'm putting my money on little Julia for the win"
Thea didn't know how strong Julian was, but she knew Julian well, if he didn't have absolute certainty, he wouldn't have challenged Alex.
"What are you betting?"
As soon as she heard the word bet, the girl's eyes lit up.
"I remember you have a Pokémon Ocarina, If you lose, hand it over. If I lose, I'll give you my Shiny Charm."
For a true gambler, hesitation at this point wasn't an option.
"Deal!"
She nodded excitedly.
After all, the Ocarina was a treasured item, especially for trainers who valued harmony with their Pokémon.
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