"Ralts! Ralts!"
In the morning, Aron was busy working out Ralts' future training plan in his room when Ralts suddenly ran in, panicked. Stretching out her small hands, she tugged at Aron's sleeve.
"What's wrong?" Aron asked, puzzled.
"Ralts! Ralts!" The little Pokémon pointed toward the living room.
Seeing this, Aron stood up and followed Ralts into the living room.
There, in the center of the room, Beldum was shrouded in a dazzling white light.
"It's evolving," Aron said, nodding as he realized what was happening.
Beldum had been on the verge of evolution yesterday. The training earlier this morning must have been the final push it needed.
Aron, Ralts, and Combusken all watched intently as the light surrounding Beldum grew brighter and then slowly began to dissipate.
As the glow faded, a disc-shaped Pokémon emerged.
Its silver body gleamed under the light, with massive iron claws extending from both of its arms. Two, piercing red eyes sat on each side of its face.
Metang, the evolved form of Beldum, is the result of two Beldum merging through magnetic force. Its two brains are connected by magnetic nerves, creating powerful psychic energy, although its intelligence remains unchanged.
"Metang!!"
The newly-evolved Pokémon landed on the floor with a resounding thud, standing firmly on its two clawed arms.
Combusken and Ralts walked over, curiously inspecting Metang's new form.
Meanwhile, Aron's system displayed updated data for Metang:
---
[Pokémon: Metang (Steel/Psychic)]
Ability: Clear Body
Potential: Champion
Skills: Take Down, Iron Defense, Iron Head, Confusion, Metal Claw, Zen Headbutt,Magnet Rise
Level: Lv. 20 (intermediate)]
---
Seeing Metang's new skills, Aron smiled with satisfaction.
"With its evolution, Metang has finally outgrown the limited skill pool of Beldum," he thought. "It can now learn many more moves, and its combat ability has improved significantly."
He glanced at Metang and made up his mind. "It's time to move on to the next phase of special training."
Although Metang possesses psychic abilities, it moves and flies using magnetic forces. Its brain is connected through magnetic nerves, which amplify its psychic energy.
"Increasing the magnetic force within Metang will strengthen its psychic power and improve its speed," Aron murmured.
He recalled from his studies that Metang is particularly fond of magnetic minerals, often chasing Nosepass to consume these materials.
In Easton, there were many secret realms filled with special magnetic fields—a paradise for Steel-type Pokémon. Such places would be incredibly beneficial for Metang's development.
"But there's no rush," Aron thought. "Metang just evolved. For now, it's more important to lay a solid foundation, master new moves, and enhance its combat power."
Besides, there were only six days left before the semester began, leaving little time for exploration. As far as he knew, there were no such magnetic zones near South Riverland City, and venturing to distant locations would require careful planning.
"Once the field military training is over, I'll have plenty of time for this," Aron reassured himself.
He had heard from Bella that university life offered ample free time. Beyond mandatory courses, students could manage their schedules as they saw fit, even traveling various places is fine,as long as they met academic requirements.
"For now, let's focus on these six days. First, we'll work on raising Combusken's level. Second, we'll help Metang master more skills. And third..." Aron glanced down at Ralts, who was playfully interacting with Metang, "...we'll continue nurturing Ralts' development."
---
Five Days Later
The day before heading to college, Aron stood opposite his three Pokémon, speaking in a serious tone.
"After six days of intense training, we've made significant progress."
"Ralts!" Ralts cheered, raising her tiny hands in excitement.
"Metang!" Metang's red eye gleamed as it waved its massive arms.
"Combusken!" Combusken's sharp gaze reflected its readiness for battle.
Aron checked their updated stats:
---
[Pokémon: Combusken (Fire/Fighting)]
Ability: Speed Boost
Potential: Champion
Skills: Scratch, Peck, Growl, Ember, Baton Pass, Heat Wave, Detect, Sand Attack, Aerial Ace, Brick Break, Rock Slide, Substitute, Bulk Up, Protect, Swords Dance, Double Kick, Feather Dance, Thunder Punch, Agility, Quick Attack, Flame Charge, Flamethrower, Double Team
Level: Lv. 28 (Intermediate)]
[Pokémon: Metang (Steel/Psychic)]
Ability: Clear Body
Potential: Champion
Skills: Take Down, Iron Defense, Iron Head, Confusion, Pursuit, Bulldoze, Aerial Ace, Protect, Metal Claw, Bullet Punch, Thunder Punch, Zen Headbutt, magnetic rise, Psyshock, Rock Tomb
Level: Lv. 22 (intermediate)]
[Pokémon: Ralts (Psychic/Fairy)]
Ability: Trace
Potential: Champion
Skills: Growl, Confusion, Destiny Bond, Protect, Light Screen, Disable, Double Team, Future Sight, Mean Look, Disarming Voice
Level: Lv. 11 (normal level)]
---
Combusken had reached Level 28, boasting a diverse skill pool and an expanded attack range. Aron was confident it could achieve Advanced status within a week.
Metang's level had only increased slightly, as training had been focused on learning new skills, significantly enhancing its combat effectiveness.
Ralts, with its champion-level potential, had also advanced to the normal level, showing promising growth.
Despite these achievements,Aron didn't particularly focus on improving the Pokémon level from the beginning to the end.
"Combat power depends on multiple factors such as physical conditioning, skill proficiency, battle experience,not just Pokemon levels," Aron noted.
Mary, a top-tier Breeder, had instilled this philosophy in him. Her comprehensive training methods allowed Aron's Pokémon to excel in all aspects, not just in level.
As their levels continued to rise, the gap between Aron's Pokémon and those of other trainers would grow. Eventually, it would become an insurmountable chasm.
With his system, Aron's Pokémon has no level bottlenecks,and can improve their level without obstacles.
Now he may be only one level away from his peers, but after a while, it is very likely that he will be many levels ahead of them.
"That's the power of the system," Aron thought with a smile.
He clapped his hands, addressing the group. "Next, let's put your training to the test with some real battles!"