The morning sun cast its rays upon Bingzhou, and a new day dawned once more.
In the residential area, a boy was jogging around the complex, a Froakie trotting beside him.
Checking the time, Cheng Tian wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Froakie, that's enough for this morning. Time for school." "Froakie!"
Cheng Tian, who usually slept in, had uncharacteristically woken up early today for a morning workout with Froakie.
Well... actually, this silly fellow had accidentally set his alarm wrong after watching Naruto with Froakie last night, waking up two hours early. Since he couldn't go back to sleep anyway, Cheng Tian took Froakie out for a morning run. He had to admit, running in the morning was indeed great; the air was incredibly fresh.
Today was September 25th, Alliance Calendar Year 2055, the day of the departmental placement exam for Dulwich High School's Pokémon Department.
For the past two weeks, Cheng Tian and Froakie had consistently trained with Bai Yun at the Pokémon Center every day.
Froakie had completely mastered Double Team, even advancing one level to level two. The number of clones also increased from three to four.
The Rasengan-style Water Pulse was now barely usable, but it was very unstable, and the time it took to form was longer than a regular Water Pulse. Nevertheless, it counted as mastering a trump card.
During these two weeks, Froakie also frequently battled Bai Yun's Chimchar. Overall, Froakie won more than it lost, even with self-imposed restrictions on its available Water-type moves. As a result, Froakie's level also increased by one.
Froakie, Level: 13
Three levels away from its second evolution.
As he walked out of the residential area gate for school, a black sedan pulled up beside him. The car window lowered, revealing Bai Yun's face. "Come on, get in."
As soon as Cheng Tian got into the car and sat down, he saw Chimchar engrossed in watching Japanese anime on a phone.
Pokémon: Chimchar
Gender: Male
Nature: Adamant
Ability: Iron Fist
Level: 9
Egg Moves: Thunder Punch (Lv5), Fire Punch (Lv4), Nasty Plot (Lv2)
Learned Moves: Leer (Lv3), Ember (Lv5), Scratch (Lv2)
TM/TR Moves: Focus Energy (Lv4)
Because Chimchar had won a few times against Froakie over the past two weeks, its level had increased by one, and several of its punching moves had also improved significantly.
At this moment, the sounds of fighting, shouts, and clashing wood emanated from the phone, making Chimchar incredibly excited.
Bai Yun was somewhat used to it by now. Since Chimchar enjoyed watching, he let it. Perhaps one day it would watch and spontaneously learn a few moves?
"The exam is today, how did you review?" Cheng Tian asked. Bai Yun looked confident: "I studied until midnight last night, so I'm sure I'll do well today!"
The two boys chatted as the sedan drove towards Dulwich High School.
Because it was exam day, the classrooms had already been arranged last night. Everyone's exam number, name, and assigned exam room were posted on the notice board in the lobby on the first floor of the teaching building.
Cheng Tian squeezed through the crowd and soon found his information.
093250102 Cheng Tian Exam Room Seven
Morning 8:30 AM - 11:50 AM: Pokémon Knowledge Quiz
Afternoon 2:50 PM - 6:00 PM: Practical Battle Assessment
"Sigh, I thought we'd be in the same exam room," Bai Yun said, a bit helpless. He was in Exam Room Three.
"Don't overthink it. Just focus on the exam, and hopefully, we can still be assigned to the same class," Cheng Tian said, patting Bai Yun's shoulder.
The two chatted for a while, then entered the exam room 10 minutes early.
Most of the students in the exam room were diligently reviewing, trying to memorize a little more before the test papers were distributed.
However, Cheng Tian didn't do that. He had even skipped classes to review everything he needed to during the past two weeks, so reviewing more wouldn't have much effect now.
Hmm... 10 more minutes. I could take a quick nap, otherwise, what if I fall asleep during the exam?
And so, Cheng Tian dozed off, Lying down on his desk, looking out of place among the diligent students. However, just a few minutes after he fell asleep, those diligent students suddenly stopped, and everyone stared at the doorway.
Long, dark hair, a gentle smile that nonetheless conveyed a sense of keeping people at arm's length.
It was Su Han standing at the door.
The people in the classroom instantly became restless, each of them, like perverts, craning their necks, their faces flushed as they stared at Su Han. And the girls, some envious, some with unfriendly eyes... of course, except for a certain clueless fellow... At this moment, he was in a daze, even dreaming that an old man came to tell him he would surely pass the exam, and that his surname was Zhou.
Su Han was apparently immune to these gazes. She shook her dark, lustrous hair and offered a faint smile to everyone. Her smile was like a spring breeze, but more than that, it was a subtle rejection, a 'see no evil' kind of distance.
"Hmm... I think it's the 13th seat..." Su Han blinked, searching for her seat.
At this point, there were only a few empty seats left in the classroom, and Su Han's eyes immediately locked onto her spot.
Because there was a familiar boy sleeping next to it.
"Hmm? He's here too?" Seeing Cheng Tian sleeping with his head down, Su Han's eyes showed even more amusement and a smile.
She slowly walked over and sat down, and the people around her stared. Su Han paid them no mind, only looking at Cheng Tian, who was sprawled out, the smile at the corner of her mouth deepening.
He's really cute... Su Han felt this way about an unfamiliar boy for the first time, and at first, she didn't understand why. This boy was ordinary, with nothing particularly outstanding about him; he was even as clean as a blank sheet of paper.
Oh... he's as clean as a blank sheet of paper.
The first time Su Han saw this boy was at a tollbooth, seeing him with his hands clasped together, pleading with her. Despite being a bit disheveled, Su Han found his eyes very clear. Like her mother's eyes.
The second time she saw him in the teaching building, he and his two classmates were standing on the floor above. Now clean, he stood outside, the wind tousling his short black hair, and he was looking at her with those same eyes, curious like a small animal seeing something unfamiliar.
This time, she met him again during the exam, and saw him more clearly. Su Han thought to herself.
I wonder what his name is... Just then, the invigilator walked in, holding the test papers. He put the papers down and scanned the exam room. Seeing Cheng Tian sleeping soundly, he couldn't help but frown.
"The exam is about to begin. Students who are sleeping, please wake up. Put away anything unrelated to the exam. Any cheating will result in a school-wide announcement and the invalidation of your departmental placement exam score."
Cheng Tian was still dreaming at this moment. He dreamed that he had fished up a golden Magikarp and successfully evolved it into a red Gyarados... "Student, wake up, student." A soft voice rang out. Cheng Tian, who was laughing heartily, suddenly felt something was off.
How could such a fierce Gyarados speak with a girl's voice?
"Wake up, student." The soft voice, light and melodious, sounded again. Cheng Tian slowly opened his eyes and saw a familiar, exquisite face.
Seeing Cheng Tian wake up, Su Han smiled gently and said, "It's time for the exam, student."
Instantly, Cheng Tian was locked onto by the gazes of many 'gentlemen'.
This kid isn't even that special, why is Su Han so good to him? And even a wake-up service.
I want that too... Seeing Su Han's face, Cheng Tian instantly sobered up. "Uh, aren't you..." Cheng Tian was about to confirm if she was the girl in the black sedan when Su Han playfully winked, extended her hand, and made a shushing gesture over her pink lips. "The exam is about to start."
Hearing Su Han say that, Cheng Tian suddenly remembered that he was about to take an exam. Looking at the invigilator on the podium, who had an unfriendly gaze, Cheng Tian gave an embarrassed smile.
The invigilator saw that Cheng Tian had woken up. Although somewhat displeased, he didn't say much. He skillfully unsealed and distributed the test papers, saying words that had been repeated countless times.
"Don't rush to answer the questions. First, confirm your class, name, and exam number. After you've filled them in correctly, I'll give you your barcodes."
"Make sure it's yours before you stick it on; there's only one test paper, and if you stick it incorrectly, it's gone."
"Does anyone have any questions? Good... Now, the exam begins."
Cheng Tian looked at the test paper in front of him, but his mind couldn't settle down.
Su Han was in the same exam room as him?
She had helped him before, shouldn't he go thank her? But given her status, she probably wouldn't bother with him if he went to thank her, and he'd also receive disdain from all those 'gentlemen'... Cheng Tian shook his head, trying hard to calm himself. It was an exam now, not the time to be thinking about these things.
Seeing Cheng Tian subtly shake his head, Su Han's smile grew wider. He really is cute... she thought.
The people in the classroom quickly quieted down, and the sound of pens scribbling began.