When Luis returned, he arrived just in time to witness Mega Steelix taking on Kommo-o—and then quickly losing.
This sight left him startled, and as he came back to his senses, he realized that Kommo-o belonged to Coach Wade, and Alex was awkwardly getting back on his feet from behind them.
"Alex's spot goes to you"
Wade said as he recalled Kommo-o. He gave Julian an approving look—not for defeating Alex, but for having the courage to go up against a top-tier Elite Pokémon like Kommo-o.
Wade had a certain understanding of Julian's strength, and defeating Alex wasn't too surprising.
What caught his attention, however, was that Julian used Steelix instead of Metagross to take down three of Alex's Pokémon. That was a bit unexpected.
"Lucas, what about you? Are you challenging today, or waiting for tomorrow?"
Wade turned to another student.
Lucas, the sophomore representative, hesitated before replying; "I'll challenge tomorrow."
He looked a bit embarrassed, knowing that Julian had just set the bar high with his bold move, while he opted to wait.
But he reminded himself that Julian was abnormal, while he considered himself a normal guy—not someone who needed to match up against the extraordinary.
Tonight, he planned to research the school team members and find an easier target for his match tomorrow. Picking a "soft persimmon" might be his best bet.
Wade nodded, not surprised by Lucas' choice.
"Little Julia, you're amazing!, sister's so proud of you"
Thea cheered as she skipped over, reaching out to ruffle his hair, only to have him push her hand away without hesitation.
Calling him "Little Julia" was one thing, but trying to mess with his hair? That wasn't happening.
"Not very cute"
Thea muttered, rubbing her hand where he'd pushed it away, and then gave him a dissatisfied glare.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Faye"
Said the girl next to Thea.
"Julian"
"Faye, you lost the bet. Pay up!" Thea urged.
Faye pouted, cheeks puffing in frustration. "Fine, I'll give you your stuff when we get back," she said, shooting a glare at Julian.
"This is all your fault; you made me lose."
Julian: (⊙▽⊙)
"Come on, little Julia! Let me introduce you to the others—we're teammates now."
Thea, excited from winning her bet, happily pulled him over to meet the rest of the team, quietly regretting she hadn't bet more.
She should have really gone all out and squeezed Faye, the little "rich girl," a bit more.
"Everyone, this is my cousin. We will be teammates from now on. There's no need to introduce his name—you must know him."
"As his seniors, introduce yourselves now, so when my cousin becomes an Elite, he might help you in the future"
Though she spoke jokingly, the others didn't take it that way.
Julian was the sole heir of the Walker family, and with the talent he'd already displayed, his rise to the rank of Elite seemed assured. He might even become a pseudo-Champion or even Champion someday.
They weren't fools; when faced with a rising star like Julian, they knew it was wiser to make friends than enemies.
There was a good chance they might need his help one day.
So, each of them dropped their airs of superiority.
"I'll go first—Max, fourth-year, school team captain, Dark type," said the captain.
He was about 5'7", average-looking, a reminder that appearances can be deceiving.
"Paul, fourth year, Fire type."
"Finn, fourth year, Water type."
"Mark, fourth year, Electric type."
"Simon, third year, Ghost type."
"Faye, third year, Fairy type."
These six, along with Thea and the defeated Alex, made up the school team's eight members.
But now, Alex's spot had gone to Julian.
"Julian, first-year, Steel type," he introduced himself, displaying the courtesy expected of him, even if they knew who he was.
Thea was a Psychic-type Trainer, making the current eight-person team one where each Trainer specialized in a unique type.
Each one of these members came from the special recruit class for each year. Max was the fourth-year representative, while Simon held the second spot in the third year, just behind Alex.
Alex, as a third-year representative, had lost to Julian, the first-year representative. The news of his defeat was spreading across campus at lightning speed.
Battlefield No.1 was close to areas #2, #3, and #4, so their battle naturally attracted some attention.
Once the spectators identified both competitors, even more gathered.
Alex was a well-known figure at Imperial University and a role model for many Trainers from ordinary families.
His success demonstrated that anyone, regardless of background, could become a representative student and even challenge those from influential families.
His club, the "Civilian Society," had become the dream club for many Trainers from humble backgrounds at Imperial University.
But now, their idol had been defeated by Julian in the most straightforward way possible, with hardly any chance to fight back.
In a third-year classroom, Zed, who was attending a lecture, was daydreaming about finding Hannah after class. His thoughts were interrupted by his phone buzzing non-stop in his pocket.
Curious about who was bombarding him with messages, he took out his phone.
As soon as he opened the app, Zed saw nearly a hundred unread messages in the Civilian Society group chat.
"What happened? Why's the group so lively today?"
He muttered to himself, curious about what had stirred up the chat.
"The president got defeated by Julian!"
"What nonsense, The president is known for defeating rich family kids—no way he'd lose to that freshmen!"
"He really lost. I was there in person."
A video clip followed, and after it played, the group exploded.
"That kid must've used some shady trick!"
"That Steelix can't be his. His Elite-level grandpa probably raised it for him ages ago!"
"Brothers, who's with me to avenge the president?"
Zed sat there, stunned, blankly staring at the messages. In his mind, President Alex had always been unbeatable.
Although he himself had also lost to Julian, he'd never thought Julian could surpass Alex in strength.
Countless others were having the same reaction, scrolling through the updates in shock.
At the same time, a new post popped up on Imperial University's forum:
"King Julian easily defeats the third-year representative, wins a spot on the school team."
The post was, of course, from Luis.
Shamelessly, he'd even rallied his classmates from the special recruit class to like and comment, boosting its visibility.
Thanks to this, the post quickly hit the top of the trending list and was seen by countless students browsing the forum.
Those who'd once been defeated by Alex—many from powerful families—finally saw their chance to vent. They flooded the comments section, celebrating the upset.
*****
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