School Begins

Early the next morning, Ye Lan looked at the line in front of him and let out a sigh of relief.

Mianzhou No. 1 High School started at ten this morning. Although Ye Lan had overslept again, judging by the current situation, he could still make it to school before ten.

It was soon Ye Lan's turn. Even Nurse Joy was somewhat surprised when she registered his Pokémon information.

It was actually one of the Unova Region's starter Pokémon. They were very rare in the Huaxia Region.

After completing the paperwork, Ye Lan took the red-and-white ball Nurse Joy handed him, crouched down, and held the Poké Ball out to the Snivy beside him.

"Snivy, are you willing to become my partner?"

Snivy looked into Ye Lan's expectant eyes. Without hesitation, it pressed the button on the Poké Ball and turned into a flash of red light before disappearing inside.

When the Poké Ball indicated a successful capture, Ye Lan could barely contain his excitement. If there had not been so many people around, he would have shouted some cringeworthy line like, "I caught Snivy!"

The sense of accomplishment from catching a Pokémon in reality was simply incomparable to doing so in a game.

He released Snivy and asked what it was like inside the ball, something Ye Lan had always been curious about.

Snivy shook its head. It seemed not to like the environment inside a Poké Ball very much.

"I'll definitely get you a Luxury Ball someday!"

After patting Snivy on the head, Ye Lan hurried toward Mianzhou No. 1 High School with it.

Along the way, Ye Lan saw quite a few students hurrying toward school with their Pokémon. He even spotted a girl with a Squirtle.

Snivy's appearance also drew plenty of attention.

Pokémon from the Unova Region were already uncommon in the Huaxia Region, let alone a rare starter Pokémon.

When he arrived in the classroom, Old Wang, the homeroom teacher, noticed the Snivy by Ye Lan's feet. He pushed up his glasses and only recognized it after a moment.

"Is that... Snivy, one of the Unova Region's starter Pokémon?"

The homeroom teacher knew about Ye Lan's family circumstances, so seeing him with a starter Pokémon naturally surprised him.

"Hehe, I just got lucky... got lucky."

Ye Lan scratched his head. The way his homeroom teacher looked at him was really starting to feel strange.

The homeroom teacher did not ask any more questions and simply told Ye Lan to return to his seat. Everyone had their own opportunities. A student in the neighboring class had even won a Charmander by gambling on an egg.

Once everyone in the class had arrived, Teacher Wang began explaining the precautions for the new semester.

At the end, he paused.

"In one week, there will be a Pokémon battle ranking. Classes will be reassigned afterward. The higher your ranking, the greater your chances of entering a key class, and the more resources you will receive."

The entire class erupted at those words. They had been classmates for two years already, so suddenly being separated naturally left them with mixed feelings.

"If you don't perform well in the assessment a week from now, don't be discouraged. The key classes will eliminate their bottom five students every week, and students from ordinary classes can challenge them. If successful, they will take their place in the key class."

"So from now on, you are no longer classmates. Every person around you is a future competitor!"

After saying that, Teacher Wang looked around the room, quite satisfied by the stunned expressions on his students' faces.

Although he understood that such a system was cruel, anyone who wanted to become a trainer had to go through this.

"Lastly, starting this year, the basic academic subjects will be spread across the week. That means there will only be one academic class each day, while the rest of the time will be devoted to learning Pokémon knowledge and training Pokémon."

"Of course, if any student believes they have already mastered enough Pokémon knowledge, they can apply for an assessment. If they pass, they will not need to attend the classes and may freely plan their training time."

As Old Wang said this, even he found it amusing. How long had these kids been in contact with Pokémon? Yet the principal had insisted on implementing this system, saying it would give geniuses more freedom.

"Homeroom teacher, I want to apply for the assessment!" At that moment, a voice came from the back of the classroom.

For a moment, everyone in the class turned to look.

Ye Lan was raising his hand with a smile, trying to get his homeroom teacher's attention.

However, Old Wang frowned. It was only the first day of school, yet Ye Lan wanted to take the assessment already. Besides, Ye Lan's academic performance had always been average, so Old Wang did not trust him much.

"Are you sure, Ye Lan? Everyone only gets one chance."

"Yeah, Ye Lan. School just started. Are you really that confident?" Li Wen, the class monitor, chimed in.

Even Li Wen himself was not confident. What gave Ye Lan the right? That little green snake beside him? Although he did not know what kind of Pokémon it was, could that skinny thing even withstand a punch from his Machop?

Seeing Li Wen's mocking expression, Ye Lan paid it no mind. Li Wen had always targeted him because of his poor family background, and he was still acting as arrogantly as ever.

As if sensing something, Snivy stared intently at Li Wen and the Machop beside him, wanting to commit their appearances to memory.

"It's fine, homeroom teacher. Since even our class monitor Li Wen isn't confident enough to try, I'll go test the waters for everyone."

Hearing that, Li Wen looked as if he had been choked and could not say a word for a moment.

The old Ye Lan never fought back when hit or talked back when insulted. Now he actually dared to retort? When they met in a Pokémon battle, Li Wen would definitely teach both him and his Pokémon a lesson!

Seeing that he could not persuade Ye Lan, Old Wang was rather helpless. After all, there was no rule stating that students could not take the assessment on the first day of school.

"Fine. Since you insist on taking the assessment, I'll inform the principal. Just wait for the announcement this afternoon."

With that, the homeroom teacher did not linger. He left the classroom to discuss the matter with the principal.

Once the homeroom teacher left, the class became lively.

"Not bad, Ye Lan. You really got to show off this time." Chen Yang walked over from the side and slapped Ye Lan on the neck.

"I've got some confidence." Ye Lan smiled faintly. This system was great. Taking Pokémon knowledge classes now would be a complete waste of time for him. He might as well train his Pokémon.

"Oh, please. You can fool your brother, but don't fool yourself too!"

Chen Yang made a series of exaggerated faces at Ye Lan. He knew his good buddy often slept through class.

Ye Lan could only smile helplessly. It seemed that although his former self had been an unnoticed nobody, he had still left some impression on others, even if it was not a good one.

Just then, Li Wen approached Ye Lan with several others, surrounding both Ye Lan and his desk.

"What do you want?" Chen Yang did not tolerate their nonsense. He rolled up his sleeves and was about to charge forward, but Ye Lan grabbed him.

"Ye Lan, so you can afford a Pokémon too? What kind of Pokémon is this? How about we go outside and have a battle?" As Li Wen spoke, the Machop beside him struck a bodybuilding pose to show off its strength.

"You don't even recognize a starter Pokémon? No wonder you don't dare take the assessment!"

Ye Lan wore a smile on his face, but his eyes were filled with disdain.

Li Wen's expression changed drastically, his eyes seeming ready to spit fire.

"Trainers speak with strength. I'm challenging you to a battle right now. Do you dare accept?"