I Can Keep Charging All Day! (Please Read On!)

The night was deep, and all was silent.

Gentle moonlight spilled across the first-floor living room, draping a hazy veil over the still-glimmering aquarium.

If one listened carefully, a series of faint sounds could be heard coming from the tranquil aquarium.

At the bottom of the tank, before a massive bluestone placed there as decoration, Feebas was desperately spraying water at it.

The stream was already thin to begin with, and with the immense pressure and resistance underwater, it had almost no force left by the time it reached the bluestone.

At either end of the tiny stream, the small Feebas and the enormous bluestone formed a scene like an ant trying to topple a tree.

No one knew how long this continued before Feebas finally collapsed from exhaustion. He rolled belly-up, his gills flapping heavily as he gulped at the water around him.

Even for someone as persistent as him, this near-torturous training method was becoming too much to bear.

Are you sure you're not just messing with me with this training method? Feebas muttered weakly to himself.

[Please rest assured, Host. This system has served users across multiple parallel universes and has a 100% approval rating. Weight training is a highly scientific training method and is extremely effective for helping you master and use Water-type energy. Also, please take a moment to feel your current physical condition.]

My physical condition?

Feebas froze slightly. Then he noticed that the Mysterious Water and White Jade Orb within him seemed to be continuously sending out energy, circulating it through his utterly exhausted body.

The energy nourished every part of him. Feebas even felt as though every cell in his body was cheering with joy!

The energy he had just depleted was almost completely replenished in less than a minute.

The speed was downright outrageous!

Feebas had no real concept of how fast that was, but in truth, compared with the usual rate at which ordinary Pokémon replenished energy through Pokéblocks or other sources, this was like the difference between charging an electric car and filling up a gas-powered car.

The sensation of being emptied out and immediately filled back up left Feebas incredibly excited. He instantly flipped himself upright, facing the massive bluestone with renewed vigor.

The energy that had just been replenished within him began brewing into the Water Gun move once more, ready to erupt at any moment.

"I can keep charging all day!"

The faint sound of water flowing rose once more from the aquarium, unnoticed by anyone. The night remained quiet.

"So annoying. It feels like the first week of school passed by without me doing anything, but when I think about it carefully, I actually did quite a lot. Brock sent over the electronic invitation for the seminar, I successfully got leave approved, and Eevee and Feebas have both been growing well."

"Speaking of Feebas, he's actually kind of strange. During the day, he just lazes around asleep in his Poké Ball, but the checkup report from the Pokémon Center says the energy in his body has improved a lot over the past half month. Could he be the type who slacks off all day but secretly works himself to death at night?"

"Next time, I should find a chance to sneak up on him at night and observe him. Still, judging by Feebas's rate of improvement, did I pick up another SSR? Is my cheat ability Super Luck?"

"As for Eevee's evolution research, the condition of Baby-Doll Eyes has been met so far. All that's left is friendship? But I don't think it's that simple. If learning Baby-Doll Eyes requires sufficient Fairy-type energy, then isn't it equally possible that evolving into Sylveon does too? It needs further investigation, but no matter what, I should have Eevee absorb these five Fairy Gems first."

"Eevee is already quite strong now. At the very least, she has no real opponents in the Normal-type junior class. Teacher Tang said there'll be an exchange match with the Fighting-type junior class next week. Hopefully, Eevee can gain some experience from fighting at a disadvantage."

After closing his proper diary, Xia Chen stretched lazily.

Even though tomorrow was the weekend, he did not feel the usual Friday night relaxation at all.

For him, weekends were even busier than school days.

Figuring out Beauty Pokéblocks, the two Pokémon's daily training, filming and editing videos.

The more Xia Chen thought about it, the more despairing he became. He simply blacked out and collapsed onto the bed.

"Piplup~"

His phone chimed with a notification. He picked it up, unlocked it with his fingerprint, and saw a link Marnie had sent through the Piplup messaging app.

[Registration for the 13th Piplup Cup Zhijiang Division is now open. Come participate!]

(Don't ask. It's a tribute.)

Marnie: [A-Chen, sign up already! Let's meet in the finals! Snivy giving a tsundere glare.jpg]

"The Piplup Cup?" Xia Chen muttered softly. Rather than replying to Marnie immediately, he tapped the link.

After browsing through it roughly, he more or less understood what kind of competition it was.

Simply put, it was a large-scale tournament sponsored by Piplup Company for rookie Trainers and their Baby-level Pokémon.

Besides Zhijiang, other first-tier cities held it at different times as well, but there was no such thing as champions from each region competing in some grand final.

It was a special cup tournament responding to the Donghuang League's slogan of "Training Trainers from childhood," leaning more toward entertainment and encouragement.

To prevent people from crushing weaker opponents, there were strict restrictions on both the contestants' ages and their Pokémon.

The rewards were quite good too. The champion could choose a Pokémon item or Pokémon Egg worth up to three hundred thousand, as well as... a hundred-year Piplup Super Membership?

Well... all Xia Chen could say was that Piplup Company really was full of marketing geniuses.

Putting those two rewards side by side practically meant that their messaging app membership was comparable to a Pokémon item worth three hundred thousand.

The competition seemed interesting, and the prizes were pretty good too.

But what did that have to do with a researcher like him?

Xia Chen knew his own limits. Eevee could easily dominate the weaklings in the Normal-type junior class, but on the grand stage of all Zhijiang, she was a little out of her league.

"Eevee~"

Eevee's voice interrupted Xia Chen's thoughts. He turned and discovered that Eevee had somehow quietly crept over beside him, staring at the phone screen with shining eyes.

Xia Chen looked surprised. "You want to participate?"

"Eevee!" Eevee nodded excitedly, looking even more enthusiastic than she usually did before a meal.

"I see..." Xia Chen hesitated a little.

Under normal circumstances, even if he knew they might not be able to beat their opponents, he would still choose to rise to the challenge.

But this competition was genuinely difficult to manage.

Xia Chen scrolled down and pointed at the competition dates. "Look, the main event runs from October 1st to the 6th. It perfectly overlaps with our trip to Kanto."

"Eevee..."

The light in Eevee's eyes went out at once. Her spirit visibly withered as she collapsed onto the bed, like a useless Eevee who had lost her dreams.

Xia Chen had not expected being unable to enter this competition to hit Eevee so hard.

He scratched his head and asked tentatively, "How about... we sign up first?"

(The read-throughs over the next two days are really important. Please!)