Today was the third day, the day of the practical exam.
The practical exam was still held at the Viridian Academy, inside its Battle Hall.
The Battle Hall of Viridian Academy was built specifically for Pokémon battles between students.
It covered about 500 square meters. The building was oval-shaped, painted red and white.
It had two floors. The first floor was a large rocky battlefield, divided into countless smaller arenas.
Normally, Viridian Academy students trained and battled here.
One section was set aside as the exam arena.
The second floor was made for official matches, with five enclosed battlefields.
Viridian Academy really was well-funded. To think they even had something like this.
Eichi's own school only had classrooms; not to mention a Battle Hall, it didn't even have a library.
For this Silver Academy entrance exam, there were 300 participants in Viridian City alone.
Among them, 100 chose the Breeder and Researcher programs, while the remaining 200 were applying to the Trainer program.
Since there were too many people, examinees were split into two groups according to their admission numbers.
One group tested in the morning, and the other in the afternoon.
There were five arenas in total. Each had one referee, one examiner, and three recorders.
Each participant had fifteen minutes. If the examinee could defeat the examiner's Pokémon within that time, they would pass directly with full marks.
During the test, three teachers would stand nearby to grade the candidate.
Even if one lost, it didn't mean failure. The final score depended on the three teachers' evaluations.
They graded each student based on reaction, command ability, and psychological stability.
As long as the final score reached the passing line, the candidate would qualify.
Eichi's exam was in Arena No. 3. He followed the signs and found his assigned room.
Teacher Arno didn't go in with him. He said he had something to take care of, and told Eichi to wait for him later at the Pokémon Center.
Eichi didn't think much of it and stepped into his exam room, observing everything carefully.
The arena was rocky, with audience seats on both sides.
The supervising teacher handed each student a number tag.
When their number was called, they would enter the battlefield and be graded.
At the far end of the arena stood a rack, lined neatly with Poké Balls.
These were for candidates and examiners to choose from.
Some examinees came from families that couldn't afford a Pokémon yet.
They studied hard every day, all for the dream of entering Silver Academy, where they could receive a capable Pokémon as their first partner.
Examiners could either use their own Pokémon or pick one provided by Silver Academy.
Of course, since most teachers' Pokémon were far too strong, they generally chose the academy's standard Pokémon to make the test fairer.
To everyone's surprise, the examiner today was a boy around twelve or thirteen years old.
The three teachers in charge of grading were two men and one woman, all quite young.
Eichi found the examiner boy intriguing.
So did the others. Every candidate whispered doubts about the boy's ability.
Some even felt secretly lucky, thinking they had drawn an easy opponent.
At the judges' table beside the arena, the three graders exchanged glances and shook their heads.
Underestimating that boy based on age would be a big mistake.
After a while, the referee announced the start of the exam.
The first participant was a boy in a blue outfit.
He looked full of confidence, certain of victory.
He shouted, "Go, Vulpix!"
A flash of light burst from his Poké Ball, and a small fox-like Pokémon appeared.
It had reddish-brown fur, brown eyes without pupils, large pointed ears with dark inner fur, and six curled orange tails.
Eichi whispered, "That guy must be rich. His starter Pokémon is a Vulpix."
The boy had the same fiery red hair as Aki, styled into sharp points.
It resembled Lance's hairstyle, though not quite as cool.
His face showed a cold, arrogant look, as if he looked down on everyone.
Eichi chuckled. "Confident, just like Aki."
He didn't know the boy's name, so he decided to call him Red Hair for now.
Red Hair's opponent released his Pokémon next.
A red silhouette burst out, revealing a dinosaur-like Pokémon with flames burning at the tip of its tail.
It was a Charmeleon, the evolved form of Charmander, one of Kanto's three starters.
The battle between Vulpix and Charmeleon began.
The blue-clad boy ordered, "Vulpix, use Quick Attack!"
Vulpix darted forward at incredible speed, rushing toward Charmeleon.
But Red Hair didn't tell Charmeleon to dodge.
Instead, he said calmly, "Block it."
Vulpix struck Charmeleon, but its attack was easily stopped by a single arm.
The attack had no effect at all.
The blue-clad boy's eyes widened. "Vulpix, fall back!"
Vulpix quickly retreated, trembling, and faced Charmeleon again.
Charmeleon grinned mockingly.
The boy then commanded, "Vulpix, use Tail Whip!"
Vulpix wagged its tails cutely, and Charmeleon, distracted for a moment, lost some of its fighting spirit.
The boy smirked, thinking his plan was working.
But Red Hair gave a dismissive snort.
"Vulpix, use Ember!"
A small flame gathered in Vulpix's mouth and shot toward Charmeleon.
The boy smiled, thinking victory was his.
But when the fire cleared, Charmeleon was completely unharmed.
"What?!"
The boy froze in disbelief.
Red Hair crossed his arms. "My turn. Charmeleon, use Brick Break."
Charmeleon's claws glowed white as it rushed forward.
Vulpix froze in fear.
"Vulpix, dodge it!" the boy shouted.
But Vulpix couldn't move, paralyzed by fear.
Charmeleon brought down its glowing claws.
The strike hit solidly, and Vulpix let out a cry before collapsing, fainted.
The referee raised his hand. "Vulpix is unable to battle. The match is over."
The boy stood stunned, unwilling to believe he had lost so easily.
He quickly ran to his Vulpix, calling its name, but the referee waved him off.
He recalled it into its Poké Ball, looking crushed.
His friends tried to comfort him as he walked back to his seat.
At the judges' table, the three teachers exchanged glances and shook their heads silently.
When Charmeleon appeared, Eichi had already activated the Eye of the Bug Emperor.
Charmeleon's talent was Excellent, with energy at the Experienced level.
It was about equal to Beedrill's current strength, or rather, what Beedrill had right after evolving.
Vulpix, meanwhile, had Good talent and Rookie energy.
The difference was too big. There was no way it could win.
Besides, Red Hair was using his own Pokémon. The level gap was just too wide.