After being tormented by all kinds of ridiculous questions for hours, Hoshino still stuck to his principle of never giving up and completed the entire test.
Upon confirming the submission, the Porygon assigned to grading immediately started processing his answers. Within a minute, the results were out.
Staring at the glaring 114 points, Hoshino felt his mindset shift slightly. The exam had a thousand multiple-choice questions—even if he guessed blindly, he shouldn't have scored this low.
With his head lowered, his entire body seemed to lose color, and his hands hung limply at his sides. He looked as if he had burned out, realizing something profound.
After getting metaphorically beaten down, Hoshino finally faced reality. With skills like this, how could he ever hope to develop Z-Moves? He might as well go work at a construction site alongside Machoke and Gurdurr. Maybe he should just close down his odd-jobs business(yorozuya) too.
Gengar floated outside the window, watching him with concern, then pressed against the glass.
"Gengar?"
"I'll take you guys to eat later. Just let me have a moment..."
Hoshino replied, almost losing all confidence in himself. But he quickly pulled himself together. Worst case, he'd take some time during winter break to study properly and retake the exam next year. With his talent, he could learn quickly.
As he stood up to leave, his gaze happened to land on Lillie and Selene chatting nearby. That wasn't important, though—what mattered was the score displayed on the screen!
"Full marks..."
Just as he had recovered from his earlier despair, Hoshino took another critical hit. This morning, he had sympathized with her, thinking she was just like his past self... But in reality, she had completely surpassed him!
Feeling his gaze, Lillie turned slightly. She seemed to be in a good mood today. Seeing Hoshino looking at her score, she curiously asked, "You got your results, right? I saw you studying a lot the past two days..."
Selene picked up where she left off. "Don't drag our class down, okay? I don't really like you, but as classmates, if you need help with reviewing, we're willing to assist."
"No thanks... but thanks."
Hurriedly replying, Hoshino made a swift escape. If he stayed any longer, his morale might be completely shattered. Better to retreat and study in solitude.
Selene crossed her arms and shook her head. "He's still as annoying as ever... I got some info from Hau—he really doesn't have any family, and he's only been a Trainer for less than two months. Before that, he was wandering around as a drifter."
"So that's how he developed this personality..."
Lillie had her suspicions, but this was the first time she learned the truth. She then looked at Selene with a smile. "No wonder our class rep offered to help him."
"We're classmates, after all. Plus, I heard he got into this class by defeating Uncle Hala. That's why... I want to battle him at full strength again!"
"That's your real motive, isn't it?"
"Ha ha..."
Hoshino, who had already left, had no idea about their conversation. Right now, he was heading to the school cafeteria with Gengar and Cyclizar for lunch while also browsing the internet for information.
In the afternoon, there was another exam focused on Pokémon breeding. The school would randomly assign each student a Pokémon... and within the given time, they had to draft the best possible training plan for it. That was just part of it.
There was also a Pokéblock-making test, a scoring session involving both the Pokémon and the proctor, and a bunch of other tedious tasks.
"Making Pokéblocks? A blender, berries, and specific rotation speeds... I've never done it before, but it doesn't seem too hard."
Although the morning exam had crushed him, Hoshino was confident about this one. No way he'd fail again—no one understood Pokémon training better than him!
Afternoon came in a flash. Gengar and Cyclizar went off to play while Hoshino joined the other students on the training field.
He glanced around. The entire grade had fewer than a hundred students!
"Alola's largest school (huge lie)."
Once the numbers were confirmed, the proctors had each student step forward to randomly draw their Pokémon partner for the exam.
These Pokémon were all wild but familiar with humans, mostly living around Hau'oli City. The school recruited them to assist with exams, and in return, they got rewards they could use to enjoy themselves in Kabukicho.
"Wild Pokémon, huh..."
Hoshino was the last to step up and draw a card. Upon opening it, he saw the name—Alolan Meowth. A bad feeling crept over him.
"A city-dweller? Don't tell me..."
His brows furrowed. Then he saw a gray-furred Meowth walking toward him with its tail raised high, looking proud. Their eyes met.
"Meow?!"
"I want to switch Pokémon!"
Hoshino panicked instantly. The stray Meowth of Hau'oli City were all affiliated with the ones in Kabukicho that constantly chased him down!
He recognized the Meowth, and the Meowth recognized him too. It instinctively wanted to run but quickly changed its mind, smirking slyly as it approached.
"Meow~"
"!!!"
Switching Pokémon wasn't an option. A diligent and serious student should be able to handle any Pokémon.
Even Lillie, who was afraid to touch Pokémon, was now maintaining a two-meter distance from a Stufful and earnestly focusing on the exam.
Every other student was already bonding with their assigned Pokémon—only Hoshino was trying to flee.
"Meow~"
Meowth lay down beside him, its tail swaying. But that sly expression made it obvious—it was plotting something.
"What kind of luck is this?!"
Hoshino was speechless. Who would've thought these Meowth, usually guarding Kabukicho, also had time to take part-time jobs—and he just happened to get paired with one?
Still, he had no choice but to go through with it. If he couldn't score points through Meowth, he'd get them from the proctor instead.
Training an Alolan Meowth wasn't hard. Its move pool wasn't deep, so an optimized plan was easy. The real challenge was making Pokéblocks—would this Meowth even eat them? It would probably just spit them out...
So he decided to turn the Pokéblock into a proper dish. Finally, something he learned from Nay-chan could come in handy!
"Berries alone should be enough!"
Hoshino quickly gathered ingredients and started preparing. He didn't notice that Cyclizar and Gengar were hiding nearby in the grass, quietly cheering him on.
He ground some berries into powder with a blender, then mixed the rest in using the proper Pokéblock-making technique.
He was meticulous—at least in appearance, the final product had to look like a Pokéblock. Whether it actually was one didn't matter.
"Meow?"
Meowth curiously crept closer. Cats have sharp noses, and Meowth even more so—it immediately realized this wasn't a real Pokéblock.
"Just one last step for seasoning..."
Hoshino was fully focused. The dish was specifically flavored to attract Dark-type Pokémon. No way Meowth could resist it.
But just as he was about to finish—
Meowth, which had been waiting for this moment, leapt forward, snatched the food, and ran off, leaving him completely empty-handed.
"???"
"I knew it..."
Hoshino froze. There was no point in remaking it—there wasn't enough time. Whatever, he'd just fail this one too. Bad luck was bad luck.
Compared to the morning's disaster, this was easier to accept. He had expected something like this, but he didn't think Meowth would take everything.
That evening, as they walked back to Kabukicho, Hoshino sighed. Two failed exams. One battle left. His last hope.
"I really need to start studying seriously... I'll hit the books when I get back."
"Gengar~"
Gengar cheered him on, shaking her tiny fists. Cyclizar also let out a supportive cry.
Then, in the backstreets, they spotted a shivering white mouse (T/N: Tandemaus) surrounded by a group of delighted Alolan Meowth...
----
To Unlock Bonus Chapters:
10 Powerstones - [1 chapter]
50 Powerstones - [3 chapters]
250 Powerstones - [5 chapters]
500 Powerstones - [7 chapters]
1000 Powerstones - [10 Chapters]
All bonus chapters will be released on friday!
Resets every Friday!
------------------------------
Check out my patreon for more chapters
patreon.com/phaeron