Fail a Class, Then Pick Up a Little Mouse

After being tormented by all sorts of ridiculous questions for several hours, Xingye still stuck to his principle of never giving up and finished every single one.

After he confirmed submission, the Porygon specifically responsible for grading would immediately begin marking the test in the system, with results available in just one minute.

Looking at that glaring score of 114, when the test had actually been a thousand multiple-choice questions and even guessing with his eyes closed should have earned more than this, Xingye's mindset changed a little.

He lowered his head, as though all the color had drained from him. His arms hung limply at his sides as he sat in his seat like burned-out ash, as if he had realized something.

After taking a brutal beating, Xingye finally saw reality for what it was. With this level of skill, he had actually been confident he could develop Z-Moves? He might as well go work construction with Machoke and Gurdurr. He should just forget about running Odd Jobs too.

Little Gengar floated outside. Seeing him like this, it pressed itself against the window as though worried about him.

"Gengar?"

"I'll take you guys out to eat later. Let me have some peace first..."

Xingye answered, having nearly lost all confidence in himself. Still, he quickly pulled himself together. At worst, he could spend some time studying properly during winter break and retake the exam next year. He had talent, after all, so he learned quickly.

He then stood up, ready to leave, when his gaze suddenly caught Lillie and Selene talking ahead of him. That was not important, though. What mattered most was the score displayed on the screen!

"A perfect score..."

Xingye, who had only just recovered, suffered another crushing blow. He had been sympathizing with her that morning, thinking she was like his former self... but it turned out he had been completely outclassed in every way!

Sensing his gaze, Lillie turned to look at him. She seemed to be in a fairly good mood today. Seeing that Xingye was looking at her score, she asked curiously, "Your results are out too, right? I've seen you carrying books around these past few days..."

Selene took over and continued, "Don't drag our class down! I don't really like you, but we're classmates. If you want to study, we can help you."

"No, thanks..."

Xingye hurriedly responded and fled. If he stayed any longer, he had no idea how badly he would be crushed. He should just go into seclusion and study properly.

Selene crossed her arms, shook her head, and sighed. "He's still as annoying as ever... I asked Hau to look into it. He really doesn't have any family. He hasn't even been a Trainer for two months, and before that, he'd been wandering everywhere."

"So that's why he developed that kind of personality..."

Lillie had guessed as much before, but this was the first time she had learned the truth. She then looked at Selene and said with a smile, "No wonder you offered to help him just now, Class President."

"We're classmates. Besides, I heard he skipped ahead after beating Uncle Hala, so... I want to battle him again at full strength!"

"That was your real goal, wasn't it!"

"Haha..."

Xingye, who had already left, knew nothing about their conversation. He was currently taking Gengar and Cyclizar to the school cafeteria for lunch while browsing some things online.

There was another Pokémon breeding exam that afternoon. The school would apparently randomly assign each student a Pokémon.

Then, within the specified time, they had to devise and write down the most suitable training plan for that Pokémon before submitting it. And that was only one part of the exam.

There would also be Pokéblock-making, scoring by the Pokémon and the proctor together, and a whole pile of other things... Anyway, it was especially troublesome.

"Making Pokéblocks? A blender, Berries, and speed requirements... I've never made them before, but it doesn't look especially difficult."

Though he had been dealt a blow in the morning, Xingye was still very confident about this exam. There was no way he would fail again, right? Nobody understood raising Pokémon better than him!

Before long, afternoon arrived. Gengar went off to play with Cyclizar again, while Xingye headed to the field with the other students.

He took a look around and discovered that their entire grade had fewer than a hundred students!

"Alola's largest school. What a lie."

Once the headcount was confirmed, the proctors from each class had every student step forward and randomly draw their partner for the exam—a Pokémon.

These Pokémon were all wild, with most living in Hau'oli City. They were very familiar with humans and had been brought in by the school to help with the exam. They would receive payment afterward and could go spend it in Kabukicho.

"Wild Pokémon..."

Xingye was the last to step forward. He drew a slip and opened it. It said Alolan Meowth, giving him an inexplicably bad feeling.

"One that lives in the city? Don't tell me it's..."

He frowned, then saw a gray Meowth walking over proudly on all fours, tail raised high. Their eyes met.

"Meow?!"

"I want to switch Pokémon!"

Xingye instantly panicked, because all the Stray Meowths in Hau'oli City were in league with those Meowths around Kabukicho that were always trying to hunt him down!

He recognized the Meowth, and the Meowth recognized him too. Since its companions were not nearby, it instinctively wanted to run away, but in the next second, it seemed to realize something. A sly smile appeared on its face as it continued approaching...

"Meow~"

"!!!"

Switching Pokémon was impossible. Honest students who normally studied hard and seriously had to be able to handle any Pokémon they faced.

Even Lillie, who was afraid of getting close to Pokémon, began working seriously after keeping about two meters away from the Audino in front of her.

All the students had already started getting familiar with their assigned Pokémon. Only Xingye did not need to get familiar with his—and even wanted to run away.

"Meow~"

Meowth walked right up beside him and lay down, swishing its tail. But that sly expression made it obvious that it was about to cause trouble.

"What kind of luck is this?!"

Xingye was speechless. Who would have thought that these guys, who guarded Kabukicho every day, would take part-time jobs in their spare time—and that he would run into one here!

But he could only force himself to continue. Since he could not get points from Meowth, he would get them from the proctor instead. That should not be a problem.

Raising an Alolan Meowth was not difficult. Its move pool was shallow, so he only needed to lay out a complete top-tier plan for it. The key was making the Pokéblock. Would this thing even eat one? It would probably spit it right out...

So he decided to turn the Pokéblock into a dish. Something he had learned from Nae-chan could finally come in handy.

"Even with only Berries, it'll be enough!"

Xingye immediately went to the other side to look for Berries to use as ingredients and seasonings. He did not notice Cyclizar and Little Gengar hiding in the grass not far away, cheering him on.

After choosing the Berries, he used the blender to grind some of them into powder. Only then did he put the remaining Berries he needed back into it and operate it using the method for making Pokéblocks.

He was still fairly meticulous about this. At the very least, the finished product had to look like a Pokéblock. As for whether it really was one inside, that did not matter.

"Meow?"

Meowth could not understand what Xingye was doing, so it quietly moved closer. But cats had always had sensitive noses, especially the Meowth family, so it could naturally tell this was not actually a Pokéblock...

"Just one final seasoning step..."

Xingye had become completely serious. He had added a flavor specifically designed to attract Dark-type Pokémon. He refused to believe Meowth would spit it out after eating it.

But just as he completed the final step, the Meowth that had been waiting for so long leaped from behind, snatched away the dish, and ran off with it, leaving someone else's efforts completely wasted.

"???"

"I knew it..."

Xingye stopped what he was doing. It no longer mattered. There was not enough time to make another batch anyway. If he failed, then he failed. His luck was just too bad.

Compared to the blow from that morning, he could accept this afternoon's setback. It was exactly the sort of thing he had expected. He just had not expected that guy to steal everything.

The other students had basically all noticed the commotion here, but they were busy with their own work and could not watch the spectacle. They could only continue the exam...

"Meow~"

The fleeing Meowth was incredibly happy. It had gotten revenge and scored a free meal too.

Then, in the little woods it was fleeing through, it ran into Cyclizar and Gengar...

By the end of the day, Xingye could not muster much energy for anything. He had failed two subjects. There was still a battle exam tomorrow, his final hope. This day had really made him realize quite a few things.

"I really do need to study properly. I'll read when I get back."

"Gengar~"

Gengar waved its little fists to cheer him on, while Cyclizar beneath him cried out as well.

They had just bought groceries in the commercial district and were on their way back to Kabukicho, while also thinking about how to deal with those Meowths.

"Those guys..."

Cyclizar was very fast. Before Xingye had even finished plotting, they were already nearing the Drifter District.

But just then, a chorus of cat cries drew their attention. Xingye immediately became alert, ready to deal with any sudden situation.

Cyclizar, however, seemed to have noticed something and suddenly quickened its pace with a cry. Little Gengar did the same. They had both found something.

"Cyclizar!"

"Gengar!"

"Hm?"

Xingye froze slightly. Cyclizar then stopped on its own, which was extremely rare, and their gazes turned toward the distance.

There, along the wall by the street, a group of gray Meowths had gathered together, making all sorts of delighted sounds as though they were having a wonderful time.

And in the middle of them was a white Mickey-like creature somewhat resembling Miffy, trembling in fear...