Dragonite's momentum faltered after Shiko's forceful pressure, weakening by a notch in an instant.
It refused to show weakness.
It tried to gather its own presence again, preparing to crush Shiko back.
But no matter what it did,
it couldn't break through the terrifying draconic pressure Shiko was imposing.
Dragonite was shocked to its core.
Its eyes filled with astonishment and fear.
Lost…!?
On sheer dragon might, it was being completely crushed by this guy in front of it!?
What kind of joke was that!?
It was Dragonite!
One of the strongest Pokémon under the Legendary Pokémon!
A being revered as a pseudo-legendary—
and an Elite Four-level Pokémon!
How could it possibly lose to this guy!?
"That's enough! Dragonite! Come back!"
Aisa shouted at Dragonite from the stands.
The scene also left her deeply shaken.
With a gap of two entire major tiers,
and he could still beat Dragonite in dragon might—
then there was only one answer.
This dragon-beast Pokémon that looked so ferocious
was probably just as she suspected:
it really could grow to the level of a third-tier Legendary.
Only an innate species-level difference like that
could allow Shiko, who was only elite-level, to win against Dragonite in dragon might.
Dragonite gave Shiko a long, hard look, and a trace of wariness flashed in its gaze.
The next second,
it beat its wings and flew back to Aisa's side.
That scene
fell into the eyes of the Pokémon university vice presidents behind her.
After exchanging glances,
they decisively and tacitly pulled out their phones.
"Hello! President!!"
"Hurry over! The situation's changed!"
"Forget that S+ genius you've got over there—this one's even more absurd!"
"How absurd? I can't even rate it. Just get here. Everyone's staring and fighting to grab them—if you're a step late, you're done!"
"Damn it, stop dragging your feet! Come recruit! It might be a third-tier Legendary Pokémon!"
Similar lines spilled from every vice president's mouth.
Their anxious manner
was worlds apart from their usual refined, easygoing demeanor.
After seeing Shiko face Dragonite
and still overpower it in presence,
every last bit of hesitation and worry in their hearts completely vanished.
To be able to do that
could only mean one thing without question:
this never-before-seen, entirely new form of Pokémon
was stronger than Dragonite at the species level!
Dragonite was the ceiling of Pokémon species that humans could currently command—
one of the strongest pseudo-legendary Pokémon below third-tier Legendary Pokémon.
Stronger than Dragonite…
didn't that mean it had already reached the threshold of Legendary Pokémon!?
Even though they didn't know why
a Charmeleon had mutated and evolved into this,
a Pokémon this powerful,
and a Trainer with this much potential,
were absolutely not to be missed!
Now,
the battle to recruit in the shadows had only just begun!!
At this moment.
In a major northern base city,
inside a spacious, brightly lit conference room.
On both sides of the conference table sat a full twelve men in suits.
They varied in height, build, and looks.
But the one thing they shared
was the same dazzling, gentle smile on their faces as they looked at the young man seated in the central seat of honor.
The young man had chestnut-colored frizzy hair, freckles on both cheeks, and his eyes kept sweeping over everyone present.
After a moment,
impatience surfaced in his expression.
He crossed his arms
and brazenly propped both legs up on the conference table.
"Alright, Presidents, let's hear what conditions you can offer. Whoever moves me the most, that's the university I'll go to."
As soon as Kano-kun finished speaking,
the first man seated on his right opened his mouth.
"Kano-kun, our First Pokémon University can provide you with—"
Before he could finish,
his phone suddenly rang.
He glanced at the caller ID.
The president gave Kano-kun an apologetic smile,
then quickly lowered his head and answered in a hushed voice.
Kano-kun's brows knit slightly.
A flicker of displeasure passed through his eyes.
Answering a call at a time like this?
Wasn't that not taking him, a genius, seriously?
In his mind, he automatically crossed First Pokémon University off the list.
Kano-kun was about to have the second president on his right speak—
but unexpectedly,
the quiet conference room rang with another phone tone.
Not just one.
Several.
It seemed every president had received a call.
Watching them all bow their heads and speak carefully,
Kano-kun felt a ball of fire building in his chest.
Wasn't this meeting supposed to be a bidding conference where the schools displayed sincerity and begged him to enroll?
So why did they all have this attitude now?
Answering calls right in front of him?
Leaving him, a genius, hanging here?
What was wrong with this world!?
Kano-kun forced down the anger in his chest.
…Fine.
He'd wait.
And later, he'd give them a proper scolding.
A few minutes later,
all the presidents finished their calls.
More than ten people exchanged looks—
you looked at me, I looked at you—
and not a single one of them put their eyes on Kano-kun.
Then, the next second,
as if someone had pulled the trigger on a starter pistol,
the presidents bolted like they were running a hundred-meter dash.
One after another, they sprinted out of the conference room.
In just a few seconds,
the once-lively room was left with only Kano-kun.
He stared at the empty conference room, completely dumbfounded.
What was going on?
Why did everyone leave?
Weren't they here to recruit students?
They didn't say a single word—answered a call and all ran off?
"Kano-kun, we've got something to handle. Someone will contact you about admissions later!"
A drifting voice came from far down the hallway outside.
Kano-kun stood there blankly, blinking, still not processing it.
...
Over on Himeko's side.
Right now, she was in the kitchen preparing food for her three Pokémon.
The villa was quiet inside and out.
There was no sign of anyone coming to disturb them.
In fact,
right after the morning's match ended,
Aisa had been eager to make contact with her.
But all the vice presidents present had formed a group and blocked her.
Their reason was that after a battle like that,
Himeko and her Pokémon must all be tired,
so they should go back and rest properly first.
Tomorrow, everyone could talk with her and negotiate—fair competition.
It sounded like they were considering Himeko.
But anyone with eyes could tell what it really meant.
They were afraid Aisa would get there first and recruit Himeko ahead of them.
So no matter what, they had to drag it out until their own presidents arrived.
Aisa had no choice.
She could only accept it.
She let Himeko go back and rest first.
Inside the villa.
Shiko sat in the living room.
Luckily, this was a villa, and it had a double-height design.
Otherwise, with his height,
the moment he was released from the Poké Ball, he would've punched straight through the ceiling.
With peace and quiet at last,
Shiko finally had the time
to check his current stats panel,
and also the rewards the system granted after he completed this second evolution mission.
(End of Chapter)
[200 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]