Su Bai hadn't wanted to mock the two upperclassmen like this.
It wasn't that he feared them, but they would be seeing each other around campus. Making things too awkward wouldn't help anyone.
But who do you two think you're dealing with?
Your captain suggested the two-on-one, not me, and now you're counting down on me?
Since you said one minute, I'll send you packing in one minute.
Su Bai had also figured something out. If he wanted to earn more credits, he would have to fight for more starting spots in the school team's matches. Otherwise, if their opponents were too weak, he might never get a turn.
So he had to put these veteran team members in their place here. That way, whenever he wanted to compete later, he wouldn't have to listen to them bitch and moan.
With that thought, Su Bai casually flicked a barely visible speck of dust off his shoulder.
"Next."
"I'll go. It's just a Pikachu!"
Upperclassman Number Six stepped forward and released his Pokémon.
A Hippopotas appeared on the battlefield.
The moment Hippopotas landed, gusts of sand swept across the ground.
So these two in charge of assessing the freshmen were the team's weather setters.
That made sense. In a team competition made up of single battles, where each person could only use one Pokémon, there wasn't much room for variation in lineups or tactics.
A simple, brute-force weather team was definitely the top choice. All they needed was to build their main attackers and defensive coverage around the weather setup.
Under that format, testing a newcomer's ability to adapt to the opponent's weather was important.
But Su Bai had no interest in finding out how powerful that weather was. A single Surf took the opponent out.
The Graveler sent out afterward only took a Grass Knot followed by a Quick Attack.
"Okay, you lasted a little longer. One minute and three seconds."
Su Bai checked his watch, turned to sweep his gaze over the crowd of curious onlookers, then spread his hands and walked away.
Before he reached the door, the upperclasswoman who had used Vulpix earlier stopped him.
"Hey, little guy. During our last match, I asked whether you'd like to come home with me to see my Vulpix. You still haven't answered."
"Sorry, my Pikachu has a bit of a temper."
Su Bai hurriedly soothed Pikachu, whose electric sacs had already begun storing electricity.
The girl with Vulpix giggled.
"That's all right. I'm a Pokémon Breeding major too. Did you know your Pikachu and my Vulpix belong to the same Egg Group?"
"Xue Ya, if you're really a Pokémon Breeding major, you should focus on your Pokéblocks."
Hua Silai walked over and stepped between Su Bai and Xue Ya.
"You'd better stay away from my team member. He still has training to do."
"Hmph. Remember my name, little guy. Come find me whenever you need anything."
The girl named Xue Ya seemed willing to give Hua Silai that much respect. She turned and left.
Hua Silai looked around, waited for the eager gazes to cool, then pressed an Electric Gem into Su Bai's hand.
"This is a little too valuable."
"A welcome gift. It's a rule I made. Everyone who joins the school team this year gets one. You're the first to receive yours, and you just happened to get the most valuable one."
Hua Silai spoke as though it were nothing. This was a single-use Electric Gem, listed at 200 apiece at the Poké Mart, and even then, it wasn't always available.
She really was generous.
With it, even if he couldn't randomize a Thunder TM, training Pikachu to use Thunder would be much easier.
After returning home that evening, Su Bai wasn't sure what to do for a while.
He decided to randomize the Electric Gem.
After the randomization, Su Bai's [Sing] skill went from proficient to expert.
That was a loss.
Oh well. It might come in handy when I try to woo Cynthia someday.
Fortunately, he could now redeem Electric Gems in the System Shop, so he wouldn't lack supporting materials when learning Thunder.
Just as he was thinking about that, his phone suddenly rang.
"Hello?"
"Hello, we're calling from the Devon Corporation Stock Company. May I ask if this is Su Bai?"
"What do you want with Su Bai?"
The person on the other end sounded a little uncomfortable. He explained that the company's owner hoped to exchange the Thunder Stone Su Bai had received as a prize last time for another item.
If possible, buying it back would work too.
"Sorry, but if you're really from the Devon Corporation, you must know I have a Pikachu. This Thunder Stone is of excellent quality, so I have no plans to sell it for now."
Su Bai didn't actually want to evolve Pikachu into Raichu. Although he had the Chosen Lucky One randomization, the randomization itself still involved a certain amount of chance.
The Chosen Lucky One randomization only guaranteed that the resulting Pokémon would be much stronger than before. Its base stats, Ability, and moves were all random.
Pikachu was already perfect as it was.
Besides, Su Bai had shown Pikachu videos of Raichu long ago. Pikachu had made it clear that it didn't want to evolve, and Su Bai had finally been able to relax.
Personally, Su Bai certainly preferred Pikachu. Still, he needed to ask Pikachu's opinion. If Pikachu wanted to evolve into Raichu, Su Bai would help.
Claiming that Pikachu needed the Thunder Stone now was simply a way to drive up the price.
Su Bai could tell that the other party didn't need just any Thunder Stone. They needed the one in his possession.
Fortunately, he had recognized how precious it was and hadn't rushed to randomize it.
"Mr. Su Bai, we do wish to buy that Thunder Stone back. Please do consider parting with it. You may name your price."
"Sorry, as I said, this Thunder Stone is excellent. I've never seen one of such fine quality, so I don't want to sell it."
Su Bai simply intended to capitalize on a rare commodity and demand an exorbitant price.
If they no longer wanted it, he would use this top-quality Thunder Stone for randomization.
It wasn't as though he'd be stuck with it.
"All right, then. In that case, we won't disturb you any further. Have a nice day."
The caller hung up.
Su Bai wasn't in a hurry. The other party's attitude made it obvious that they were more anxious, and he believed they would contact him again.
As for whether possessing such a treasure would bring trouble down on him?
The Dragon Nation was a law-abiding country. Besides, Gengar was hiding in his shadow to protect him.
Although the system had suppressed Gengar's level after randomization, that old fellow had lived for over a hundred years. His strength had long since exceeded what levels alone could measure.
On the other end, the suit-wearing man who had made the call was no ordinary employee. He was the head of the Devon Corporation's subsidiary in the Dragon Nation.
He was also Mr. Stone's nephew.
Once he heard that Su Bai simply wouldn't sell the Thunder Stone, he didn't press much further. His older cousin had only told him to do his best to recover it, after all.
The suit-wearing man put down the phone and addressed an elegantly dressed silver-haired youth seated on the sofa.
"Cousin, he said he doesn't want to sell the Thunder Stone."
"Then forget it. What a shame."
Both spoke with Hoenn accents. At the mention of the Thunder Stone, the man on the sofa immediately clutched his chest in anguish, looking nothing like a refined young heir.
"If you ever dare take something from my collection and give it away as a prize again..."
"Then you can have Metagross beat me to death."
After the suit-wearing man finished, the silver-haired youth glared at him without saying a word.
If Su Bai had been sitting there, he would certainly have recognized the silver-haired youth.
The Hoenn Champion, the heir to the Devon Corporation-Steven Stone!
Before you continue