Heaven-Sent Lucky Star, Going All In

"Meowscarada..."

The green, humanoid cat stirred excitement in Old Liu. As Rong Lei had said, Meowscarada was uncommon in Donghuang, and Xin Mu wasn't a common name either.

If both of those happened to turn up twice at the same university, he could only conclude that fate was messing with him.

Still, to be safe, he asked one more question.

"Xin Mu, don't stand in the doorway. Come in and sit down."

University classes weren't that large. An academic advisor could hardly fail to remember what his own students looked like.

Even if he couldn't remember those in the middle of the rankings, he wouldn't forget the ones at the top or the bottom.

Someone who still had a failed course hanging over him before graduation and hadn't signed a three-party employment agreement was a particular focus of his attention.

Graduation and employment rates were quite a headache for him.

But a phone call from Rong Lei seemed to have changed everything. This wasn't trouble at all. This was a lucky star!

"You challenged the Blue Sky Technical Academy Gym today, didn't you?"

"You know about that too, sir?"

Xin Mu found that a little strange. He hadn't posted anything on his social feed after the Gym battle, but now everyone seemed to know about it.

Still, there was nothing to hide. It was just a Gym challenge. Getting a badge wasn't something that needed to be kept secret.

As long as challengers were willing to put in some time and effort and weren't trying to get ahead through shady means, Gym Leaders wouldn't make things too difficult for them.

What Rong Fei had done, sending out his main battler right from the start, wasn't common.

"Our university works with the Blue Sky Technical Academy Gym. You're not in the Battle Studies Department, or you'd have seen Gym Leader Rong come in to teach practical battle classes.

Are you planning to become a professional Trainer?"

"I haven't decided yet. I don't really have a plan, honestly. I'll take it one step at a time."

Had this been yesterday, Old Liu would definitely have given Xin Mu a long talk. The gist would have been that young people shouldn't aim beyond their reach; they needed to learn to "set aside their educated pride" and find a job to establish themselves in society first.

But things were different now. In this world, becoming a professional Trainer was a very good path, and the most direct route to the top.

Besides, Xin Mu already had a badge. That meant he could put "professional Trainer" on his graduation form. It was all just a number in the end, and nobody would look too closely.

"Mm, it's good that you have your own ideas.

The Intercollegiate Rally, right? Leave the registration form here. I'll submit it for you in a bit."

"Then I'll be going, sir. I won't take up any more of your time."

"Wait, don't rush off. There's something I'd like to talk to you about. Stay a little longer."

These sorts of conversations weren't actually uncommon. University academic advisors had a lot to consider.

If some student got depressed and decided to find the tallest teaching building to "end all their troubles with one leap," both the university and he himself would be in trouble.

So whenever unusual circumstances arose, he had to have a heart-to-heart with the student.

This time, though, it was more for his own sake.

Advancing in academic rank meant putting in the years. Under normal circumstances, Old Liu would have to wait several more years for either a full professorship or a position as a department dean.

Even then, those years would only give him a chance to compete for it, not a guarantee that he would get it.

After all, this wasn't a Pokémon battle arena, where winning a fight let you move up.

For Pokémon universities, however, Pokémon tournaments were where the schools competed against one another. Improving their results was essentially a way to gild one's résumé.

If one of his students truly turned out to be talented and was willing to maintain ties with the university, things would become even easier.

Of course, he wasn't thinking that far ahead yet. For now, he was only considering this year's tournament.

"Xin Mu, have you heard much about the Pangoro Academy Cup?"

"No."

"Then let me give you a quick rundown. You can think of it as a Donghuang Conference between universities. Our past rankings have been pretty average. We got a new university president this year, and he's been eager to secure a good result.

I've watched the highlights of your Gym battle too, so I hope you'll take part in this year's Academy Cup. Your Meowscarada should at least be able to bring home the individual championship."

Old Liu only gave him an overview and briefly explained what he wanted. Unlike the more straightforward Donghuang Conference, the Academy Cup combined results from several events to determine the final standings.

Winning the individual event alone would already raise their ranking considerably.

In fact, he would have preferred Xin Mu to be the only one who achieved results in the individual event. With the other competitors' failures as a contrast, the capabilities on his side would stand out all the more.

"Shouldn't this be the university team's and the Battle Studies Department's business?"

"It usually is, but that's because everyone who's good at battling is already over there. If you're interested, you won't have to worry about anything else. I'll handle all the legwork."

"But by the time this tournament starts... won't I have graduated?"

The tournament fell right during summer break. Having an already-graduated student participate in the Academy Cup struck Xin Mu as a little odd.

Seeing that Xin Mu was interested only made Old Liu happier. His main worry had been that Xin Mu wouldn't want to compete at all. It wasn't as though he could force him.

As for whether the university would agree, he was confident he could handle that.

"Normally, graduates can't participate, but where there's a rule, there's a workaround. We generally have three options: delaying graduation, repeating a year, or Graduate School Recommendation.

The first two are for special circumstances. Your Gym battle was impressive enough that if I submit a report, getting an extra Graduate School Recommendation slot for you definitely won't be a problem."

These methods were tacitly accepted rules among the universities. Everyone did it, achieving an alternative kind of "fairness."

Graduate School Recommendation was also something Old Liu could offer. Xin Mu wasn't a freshman who had just enrolled; discussing tangible benefits was better than talking about ideals.

"The individual champion gets extra prize money, and the university offers a stipend too. It's up to you."

Old Liu hadn't put his faith in Xin Mu based on a single video. He trusted the judgment of his old friend Rong Lei.

In the eyes of those veteran Gym Leaders, this tournament was just a Little Cup, and Xin Mu was a monster who happened to meet the eligibility requirements.

By offering Xin Mu this opportunity, both sides would benefit. It was a win-win.

"Meownei?"

"Meow~"

"I think I could give it a try."

"Good. I'll contact you when I have news. Don't go out of town over the next few days. I'm not sure when I'll need to get hold of you."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the two parted at the office, each having obtained what he wanted.

Xin Mu planned to go to the supermarket to buy some ingredients.

Online shopping was convenient, but the quality of leafy vegetables and fruit was questionable when he couldn't see them in person. Meanwhile, his dear Teacher Liu still had more headaches waiting.

After all, he had more than one student. Xin Mu's problem was resolved, but the others still had theirs. One rather bizarre situation had already dampened his recent joy.

"Missed the graduation makeup exam to meet an online sweetheart in person. Young people these days... please don't give me a breakup suicide on top of everything else."

With a headache brewing, Old Liu headed toward Life City, only to find his way blocked by standing water.

"They won't even use the funding to fix the drains. They clog up every year as soon as it rains..."

Despite his grumbling, he rolled up his trouser legs and waded through the water, hoping that, in light of his effort to "cross mountains and rivers," this heartbroken student would find a way to move on...