"Honorary is Raihan(Kibana)?"
Axel wasn't surprised at all that the chief examiner was Champion Reynor.
Because his Metagross is very good at computing, almost every year during the college entrance exam, the Aurient Trainers Association would invite him to evaluate the scores of candidates nationwide.
But Raihan was quite random.
Because every time during the voluntary reporting phase, Aurient would spend a large amount of money to invite many Champions from various regions to help maintain order.
Basically, each province would have one, and globally, there are at least a hundred individuals with Champion-level strength who can be invited by Aurient.
So the probability of Raihan being responsible for Ninox Province was only about one percent.
Axel glanced at the small Duraludon under the table secretly poisoning itself, falling into thought.
He had just tamed a Duraludon, and now the world's best Duraludon trainer was coming to Ninox to invigilate the exam.
If that's the case, he might as well consider giving the little guy a chance to appear during the gym battle.
What if Raihan takes a liking to the little guy and casually shares some Duraludon training tips?
Seeing Axel silent, staring intently at her full chest, the little loli's face turned red, and she gently poked Axel's arm.
"Big bad guy, I'm discussing serious things with you, can't you wait till later to look?"
Interrupted from his thoughts, Axel paused in surprise.
Only then did he notice that the little loli was wearing an anime-style obsessive doll-print top today, and with her rather proud proportions, it perfectly outlined her figure.
'But girl, you're really overthinking...'
But since he had already been misunderstood, Axel didn't plan to suffer a loss.
Without changing expression, he gently pulled the little loli forward and spoke while looking, "Actually, I don't have a particularly favorite university. You pick a school you like and I'll go with you."
Axel wasn't lying at all. Although Aurient's colleges are ranked, there wasn't much fundamental difference in teaching methods.
Most followed the Paldea region's Orange Academy model, letting students freely challenge gyms or train their Pokémon in the wild.
As long as your Pokémon training reached a certain level, the school would let you graduate.
The biggest difference between good and bad schools was the graduation standard and the social circles you entered after graduating.
The only exceptions were Horizon and Nova universities.
Horizon, like Unova's Blueberry Academy, had its own ecological dome, allowing students to capture Pokémon from various regions within the school.
Nova was famously wealthy; students there received large scholarships and could quickly build a well-rounded team.
But both schools had high requirements for written test scores, so Axel and the little loli wouldn't qualify even if they wanted to.
"No way, no way!", The little loli shook her head like a rattle, "My mom dragged me out of bed early this morning and made me pick majors for ages."
"I really don't want to choose anymore, Axel, can you pick instead?", The little loli grabbed Axel's arm, her soft white arms shaking hard, while pouting.
Seeing her like this, Axel knew she truly didn't want to choose herself.
"Then let me take a look."
Axel directly opened the map app and searched for the word "university," and the phone screen instantly filled with dense labels.
He zoomed in, and the universities on the screen decreased until only forty-some remained.
He casually picked one with a mid-range admission score, "Let's go with this one."
"Ninox University. It used to be a pretty decent school and even produced a world champion."
"Although its student quality has dropped a bit recently, the labs and such are still good."
"There's not much competition pressure either, so your Smoliv should be able to make it."
"Huh?", The little loli paused and shook her head with a pained expression.
"Can we pick somewhere farther? I really don't want to live under my mom's claws all the time."
Axel flicked her smooth forehead with his finger, "Now you want to escape your mom's claws, but when you're in a relationship out of town, you'll cry for her."
The little loli blushed, "If I get into a relationship, I'll let my mom beat you to death!"
"What's it got to do with me if you get into a relationship?"
"Axel, do you want me to bite you to death!"
The little loli pounced on Axel and pressed him down on the bed, baring her tiny tiger teeth toward his neck without hesitation.
Duraludon took a step back in confusion, looking for help from the older sister Pheromosa nearby.
But Pheromosa also looked puzzled.
'Master's trash! Can't even beat a little girl!'
———
Learning that the two of them applied to Ninox University, the closest to home, Aunt Stacy and Uncle Sonny were both overjoyed.
Aunt Stacy displayed her culinary skills, cooking a whole day's worth of delicious food for Axel.
Even Uncle Sonny, who rarely took leave, took a day off and brought Axel and the little loli to an amusement park.
The little loli immediately became convinced of Axel, this was her first time realizing her parents actually loved her this much.
Exam state buff +6!
———
The next morning, as always, it was Aunt Stacy who drove Axel and the little loli to the exam venue.
Because of its small footprint and heavy traffic, Emberpine City's gym was set up in the city's busiest central location.
But because today was a rare grand event in Aurient, nearby streets had early traffic control.
Aunt Stacy dropped the two off nearby and then went off to the mall, leaving Axel and the little loli behind with peace of mind.
The little loli giggled and wrapped her arm around Axel's, "My mom's so considerate. Unlike my dad who played third wheel the whole day yesterday."
"Tonight I'll steal all his good wine and bring it to your house. Let's see if he dares act smug again!"
Feeling that she wasn't joking, Axel's mouth twitched.
'Is this what the internet means by 'The moment the fireworks spark, all parenting is in vain'?'
Emberpine City's gym and Pokémon center had very similar appearances, with a big Poké Ball symbol on top of the building.
Even though it was their first time here, Axel and the little loli easily found the entrance.
Because there were so many examinees today, the gym leader had hired many gym trainers in advance, dividing the whole gym into many battle arenas.
These gym trainers were only responsible for battling; the judging was done in real-time by Champion Reynor's Metagross over the network.
Since their culture scores and voluntary applications were the same, Axel and the little loli ended up in neighboring arenas.
The little loli was 05-53, Axel was 05-55.
Just as they were about to enter, they suddenly heard a familiar voice nearby.
"Go, Young Master Gary! Young Master Gary is the best!"
Axel couldn't help but look back toward the voice, only to see a red hot air balloon drifting in the sky, and Gary sliding down a rope from it.
'What an entrance... could only be described as extremely Gary.'
'So flamboyant!'
Axel waited in place for a bit, then asked curiously, "Aren't you heading back to Kanto in a few days? Why are you here participating in battles?"
Gary's eye twitched, his gaze drifting to the Smoliv in the little loli's arms, "As the proud grandson of Professor Oak, I must take back what I lost!"
Axel was puzzled, "What did you lose?"
Gary was silent for a moment, eyes falling again on Smoliv.
Just then, a graduating high schooler in uniform passed by, "Yo, isn't this the Young Master Gary who got beaten by a Smoliv?"
Axel: "..."
'So it is his reputation he lost...'
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