Chapter 5: Testing and Qualifying
Next morning
Victor, neatly dressed, took the room card and Carbink, and set out from the residential area, preparing to head to the city's largest training facility and gym – the Fire Gym run by his father.
Last night, before going to bed, jhon had handed him the room card that was exclusively for Victor's use.
The gyms in this world were similar to those in previous games and animations. Gym leaders didn't just have one job; many of them had other side occupations or even considered being a gym leader as a side job.
For example, the three sisters at the Cerulean Gym in the Kanto region were famous for their aquariums and water ballets, but no one paid attention to their battle skills. Similarly, the Miare Gym in the Kalos region had its leader, Clemont, who, after becoming the owner of a museum, focused on scientific research and even invented the Rotom Illustrated Book.
In contrast, john, Victor's father, was very dedicated. Besides being the gym leader, he only offered apprentice courses and maintained a large training ground at the gym.
As Victor walked and thought about his training plan, he soon arrived at the Rising Sun Gym, the fire-type gym located on the outskirts of Celestia.
There were only eighteen gyms with different attributes in the entire Crimson Alliance, and each gym was a landmark in terms of construction.
The Rising Sun Gym occupied an entire mountain in Celestia, covering a vast area.
At eight o'clock in the morning, various vendors, attracted by the popularity and foot traffic at the training ground, had already set up their stalls and started their businesses.
Victor casually bought a pancake and some fruit from a breakfast stall before heading to the gym's main entrance.
At that time, a long line had already formed outside the gym, but Victor didn't join the crowd. Instead, he turned right and entered through the staff passage.
"Little Gym leader, you're here so early!" A friendly-faced cleaning lady greeted Victor.
"Yeah, I got my starter Pokémon yesterday, and today I'm starting training!" Victor replied.
All the staff at the gym recognized Victor as jhon's son, and since he had grown up there, everyone was familiar with him.
Soon, Victor arrived at the door of VIP6-6, the private training room his father had prepared for him.
Victor placed the card against the sensor next to the door, and with a beep, the door opened.
Upon stepping inside, he found the space was as large as a playground.
The room was huge, and the ceiling was high enough for flying Pokémon to fly within it.
Victor picked up a tablet beside him, which displayed the room's function controls and instructions. However, having grown up in this gym, Victor already knew most of its features, and they no longer seemed particularly interesting to him.
The purpose of Victor's visit to the training ground today was simple. He wanted to evaluate Carbink's current physical condition, observe its mastery of moves, and identify any potential weaknesses through battle.
After releasing Carbink from its Poké Ball, Victor began communicating with it through the waveguide.
He explained to Carbink that he wanted to assess its physical state and mastery of moves and would find weaknesses through battle.
"Na na~" (No problem) Carbink responded enthusiastically.
Ever since carrying the Diancie Mega Stone, Carbink had felt a mysterious, almost intuitive sensation that told it to become stronger quickly, as something was waiting for it.
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After observing Carbink's performance, Victor had a general understanding of its current situation.
Although Carbink's speed was quite slow, its ability to execute moves was excellent. It could control its energy with great precision, making its attacks land exactly where it intended, though it still lacked a bit of strength.
Carbink's body was extremely hard, and most Pokémon of the same level found it difficult to break through its defense.
However, Victor didn't intend for Carbink to develop into a defensive Pokémon.
Once Carbink evolved into Diancie, its previously mediocre offensive stats would be supplemented, and after its Mega Evolution, its attack power would increase to a terrifying level.
Victor planned to let Carbink develop a solid foundation in all areas during its time as Carbink. After it mutated into Diancie, its potential would be unlocked all at once. As a mythical Pokémon, Diancie's superior physical fitness and energy would be the foundation that made it stronger than ordinary Pokémon.
After evaluating all aspects of Carbink's abilities, Victor took it directly to the gym's battle facility.
It's worth mentioning that the Crimson Alliance officially held a competition known as the [Qualifying Competition], which took place across the entire alliance.
As an officially organized competition, the Qualifying Competition was recognized and respected across the country.
As the name suggests, the goal of the competition was to improve ranks and upgrade through Pokémon battles.
First, there was the Poké Ball level. Due to the large number of participants, all trainers who registered for the competition were placed in the Poké Ball level.
The Poké Ball level was not included in the national rankings due to the sheer volume of participants.
Next came the Great Ball level. Upgrading from Poké Ball to Great Ball was simple – a trainer needed to win ten consecutive battles at the Poké Ball level. Since opponents were randomly assigned by the computer, entering the Great Ball level could be easy, though some top-level trainers might lose too many battles at the Great Ball level, interrupting their win streaks.
There was no way to be demoted from the Poké Ball level, but from the Great Ball level onwards, if you lost too many battles, you would be demoted.
Overall, the Poké Ball level served as a sieve, screening out trainers with weaker abilities.
Above the Great Ball level, there were the Ultra Ball, Master Ball, and the [King Challenge] at the top of the Crimson League. The top 1,000 trainers in the Master Ball level would compete in an elimination tournament, with the top eight going on to challenge the four strongest trainers in the league: the Four Heavenly Kings and the Champion. Those who succeeded could even replace the defeated Four Heavenly Kings and Champion and take their place.
As the only officially certified ranking competition venue in Celestia, the Rising Sun Gym was always crowded.
However, the Qualifying Competition was not something Victor and Carbink could participate in yet, as they were still novices.
Victor's true goal was to head to a large open space outside the official battle arena of the Qualifying Competition.
Every year at this time, the space filled up with novice trainers from Celestia who had just received their starter Pokémon.
To assess his and Carbink's current battle capabilities, Victor needed to fight trainers at the same level.