Privilege to Carry a Second Pokémon

The next day was the schoolwide end-of-month summary battle.

As a seeded contestant, Shu Tong had no matches that morning. He wandered around the battlefields to watch, accompanied by Liu Bei. Liu Bei was also first in his class and, as a seeded contestant, did not need to participate in battles before the top thirty-two.

"Shu Tong, look. The one fighting Guan Yu right now is also from Wu Hongzhen's group. Guan Yu's Scyther has already driven him into a corner," Liu Bei explained as they walked.

Meanwhile, Shu Tong watched the Pokémon to see whether any of them had special storylines.

After making two rounds without finding anything, Shu Tong could not help sighing. It was only a small county town, after all. There really were no special Pokémon here. Even Liu, Guan, and Zhang only had the ability to enter ordinary universities in the College Entrance Examination League three months later.

If Qian Kaile wanted to make Su Province's top thirty at his current level, Makuhita would have to evolve into Hariyama.

Shu Tong looked at Weedle's Poké Ball. There definitely won't be a problem when you evolve into Beedrill.

The official matches were held that afternoon.

After four rounds of battle, Shu Tong successfully met Qian Kaile in the finals. In the end, Qian Kaile directly conceded, leaving everyone stunned.

Shu Tong thus rightfully became first place in this month's end-of-month summary battle.

After the competition ended, homeroom teacher Sun Youzhong stopped Shu Tong. "The director of academic affairs wants to see you."

"Director Zhao?" Shu Tong asked.

"That's right. Come with me."

Led by his homeroom teacher, Shu Tong arrived at the Academic Affairs Office.

Zhao Mingjing, the director of academic affairs, was a woman in her fifties. She was a Second-Rank Professional Trainer who specialized in Grass-type Pokémon.

"Hello, Director Zhao," Shu Tong said politely.

Zhao Mingjing first said to Sun Youzhong, "Teacher Sun, why did you say Shu Tong was arrogant and unruly? He seems like quite a fine young man to me."

"This..." Sun Youzhong was utterly embarrassed.

"Shu Tong, first of all, congratulations on taking first place in the entire grade this time. This is the school's certificate of honor. With it, you can apply at the Trainers Association for permission to carry a second Pokémon. However, in public battles, you must still wait until after the College Entrance Examination League, when you become a true Professional Trainer, before you can use your second Pokémon," Zhao Mingjing said.

"Alright. Thank you, Director Zhao." Shu Tong accepted the certificate.

"There's one more matter I'd like to discuss with you," Zhao Mingjing said tactfully.

"Please, Director Zhao." Shu Tong had already guessed what she wanted to say and thought of how to respond.

"I heard from Teacher Sun that you don't want to undergo special training at school. What's going on? The top students can use all sorts of school equipment for free. You could receive the most comprehensive special training here, along with personal guidance from Professional Trainers. Your Pokémon could improve tremendously. These benefits aren't available outside the school," Zhao Mingjing said.

Shu Tong smiled slightly. "Thank you for your kindness, Director Zhao, but I've already made an appointment for special training at the Thunderclap Dojo in Auspicious City under Master Ling Zhen."

"What?" Zhao Mingjing and Sun Youzhong both revealed disbelieving expressions.

"What's wrong?" Shu Tong asked with an innocent look.

"Master Ling Zhen? He's a Sixth-Rank Professional Trainer! No wonder your strength has improved so quickly over the past month. So you encountered an 'old grandpa' too," Zhao Mingjing said.

"Mm..." Shu Tong did not know what to say.

"Since you've already gained Master Ling's favor, Shu Tong, the school cannot force the matter any further. But you must represent the school in the College Entrance Examination League," Zhao Mingjing said.

"Don't worry, Director Zhao. University is a place every Trainer aspires to attend. I won't be absent," Shu Tong said.

"Good. Go on, then. Train hard and bring honor to the school." Zhao Mingjing wore a kindly smile.

Shu Tong gave a slight bow and withdrew.

After returning home, Shu Tong opened his livestreaming app. Quite a few people had recorded videos of Weedle battling that day, so the buzz would probably last another day or two.

Seizing the opportunity, Shu Tong quickly logged into the National Research Institute's official website and published his ideas and analysis regarding the Run Away Ability. He also used the videos various experts had recorded for him for free over the past two days, clipping segments that showcased Weedle's reaction speed and evasion ability. The paper and accompanying PPT kept Shu Tong busy for three or four hours.

After checking it once, he submitted it for review.

"I'm exhausted. This is even more tiring than channeling Viridian Force."

After publishing it, Shu Tong lay on his bed, feeling as though a weight had been lifted.

The next day, Shu Tong went straight to the Apricot City Trainers Association office building. It could be considered one of Apricot City's landmark buildings. Its greatest feature was that it was huge.

Especially the battlefields outside its entrance, where association members would spar with their Pokémon. Offices for subordinate institutions of the Trainers Association, such as rangers and investigators, were also located in this building, so its immense scale was only natural.

Amid sharp, urgent police sirens, the Stability Maintenance Squad was deployed.

Shu Tong entered the first-floor lobby and went straight to the lobby manager, a suited man in his twenties. He was the sort who was well-proportioned in every respect—nothing particularly outstanding, but without any obvious flaws either.

"Hello, I'm the lobby manager here, Gao Feiwu. How may I help you?"

Shu Tong directly took out his certificate of honor. "Can I apply in advance to carry a second Pokémon?"

The moment Gao Feiwu saw Shu Tong's certificate, his gaze filled with envy. "You've practically got one foot through the gates of a university already. Becoming a Professional Trainer is only a matter of time. As expected, outstanding people are already preparing to train their second Pokémon."

"I remember that the finals of the National College Freshman Challenge are 3v3 battles, right? I'm only preparing my second one. What's so remarkable about that?"

Shu Tong said it casually, but Gao Feiwu gave him a strange look. Are young people these days all this arrogant? He's only first place in a small county town, yet he already dares to think about taking first place in the National College Freshman League? In previous years, even the first-place student from Apricot City No. 1 High School couldn't make Su Province's top thirty, much less rank nationally.

"Can it be done?" Shu Tong asked again.

Gao Feiwu chuckled twice to ease the awkwardness. "Yes, yes. I'll handle it for you."

Gao Feiwu took Shu Tong straight to his office and stamped Shu Tong's Apprentice Trainer certificate with the Trainers Association's official seal. He added the note: "Permitted to carry a second Pokémon, but it may not be used in public battle competitions."

"Thank you." Shu Tong nodded.

Seeing how polite Shu Tong was, Gao Feiwu said, "Shu Tong, right? You seem gentle as jade and extraordinary in appearance. You're already first place at Apricot City No. 1 High School, so you'll certainly achieve even greater things in the future. As someone with experience, I'd still like to offer you a bit of advice."

"Please continue," Shu Tong said.

"Huh?" Gao Feiwu had the vague feeling that Shu Tong might have misunderstood something.

"Although you're already first place at Apricot City No. 1 High School, the country is vast. You still need to keep working hard to face even greater challenges, don't you?" Gao Feiwu continued.

Shu Tong nodded, wondering whether Gao Feiwu had been bad at language arts. After using just the two idioms "gentle as jade" and "extraordinary in appearance," had he already run out of words?

Thanks to Fake Hao, Heart of Nothingness, Pokémon Exotic Beast Stream, and Grass Alone for the tips. May all you bosses enjoy boundless fortune and long lives.