Chapter 256: Lucky

Everyone watched as Metagross brought Pidgeot, clutched tightly by its neck, before Julian. Their minds momentarily went blank.

A Pokémon of the Elite level was defeated—just like that.

Seriously, just like that?

This left Taylor with the delusion that even 'she' might have stood a chance.

"Meta!~"

Metagross tossed the half-conscious Pidgeot onto the ground. The moment it landed and struggled to rise, Aggron stomped down on it with a massive foot.

With a loud crack, the sound of bones breaking echoed, accompanied by the Pidgeot's agonized screeches.

Given Aggron's current weight, if it hadn't held back a bit, this single stomp could have been fatal.

However, with that one strike, Pidgeot was rendered completely unable to fight. The pain woke it up fully, but it was too weak to resist. It could only glare at Julian with cold, furious eyes.

"Julian, what will you do with this Pidgeot?" Taylor asked curiously.

"Kill it"

The answer shocked everyone around him. They couldn't believe their ears, wondering if they had misheard.

Kill it?

This wasn't just some pseudo-Elite Pokémon like the Golem earlier—it was an Elite-tier Pidgeot.

Even the barely-conscious Golem, having just regained awareness, fainted again the moment it heard Julian's words.

Golem: 'Clearly, I woke up at the wrong time'

"Mr. Julian, although it killed Dan, if you are doing this because of that—"

The captain stepped forward. He, too, wanted to see the Pidgeot dead, but logically speaking, a live Elite level Pokémon held far greater value.

The rarity of such Pokémon didn't need to be explained.

Killing it like that would be the biggest waste.

Baker's eyes reddened with envy.

'Damn it! You wouldn't let me capture the pseudo-Elite Golem, and now you want to kill an Elite level Pidgeot? Just like that?'

"This Pidgeot has killed many people, a typical Elite trainer wouldn't be able to suppress it," Julian said calmly.

Pokémon that had killed were notoriously vicious. Even if you were slightly stronger than them, they wouldn't submit. They would only obey if you were vastly superior in strength.

And even then, taming such Pokémon would be extremely challenging.

Keeping a killer Pokémon was akin to holding onto a ticking time bomb—one that could go off at any moment, potentially killing its own trainer.

Julian's values differed greatly from those around him.

His upbringing shaped his perspective.

To him, Elite level Pokémon weren't particularly rare, so killing one didn't mean much.

But to ordinary people, the strongest Pokémon they might encounter in their lifetime was a pseudo-Elite one at best.

"Metagross"

Julian commanded, preparing to let it finish the job.

The others wanted to say something, but none dared speak up.

"Pii…"

Sensing Julian's killing intent and noticing Metagross's raised claws, Pidgeot finally panicked, crying out in distress.

"Luca!~"

Just as Metagross was about to strike, Lucario suddenly stepped in front of it.

"Luca, Luca!~"

Facing Metagross's puzzled expression, Lucario quickly explained to both it and Julian.

"Oh?"

Julian walked up to the Pidgeot and placed his hand gently on its abdomen.

With Metagross standing by, the Pidgeot didn't dare resist. It knew full well that if it weren't for Lucario's intervention, it would already be dead.

"It really is pregnant"

Julian murmured after a moment, withdrawing his hand.

He sensed a second Aura within Pidgeot's body. It was faint, overshadowed by Pidgeot's own strong Aura, which was why he hadn't noticed it earlier.

If not for Lucario's sharp detection, Pidgeot would undoubtedly have met its end.

In human society, if a woman on death row was discovered to be carrying a child, her sentence would be commuted to life imprisonment until after the child's birth.

This policy had extended to Pokémon as well.

"You're lucky"

Julian said quietly.

Knowing the Pidgeot was pregnant, Julian abandoned his intention to kill it.

"Pii…"

Realizing her life—and her child's—had been spared, the Pidgeot looked gratefully at Lucario.

Pidgeot: 'When my baby is born, I'll make you the godfather'

Lucario: 'This bas***d repaying gratitude with revenge'

Julian retrieved an empty Poké Ball and captured the Pidgeot, who didn't resist at all.

Watching this, Baker smirked in disdain.

'Hah. Talking about killing it, but in the end, he just captured it. Hypocrite.'

"It's pregnant"

Julian explained while attaching the Poké Ball to his belt.

The group nodded in understanding. It made sense now why Lucario had stopped Metagross—it was protecting a life.

Julian didn't plan to keep the Pidgeot. Even though she was Elite level, she wasn't the kind of Pokémon he preferred. Once he reached the capital, he intended to hand her over to the local Trainer Association for proper handling.

Walking over to the Golem, Julian gave it a light kick. "Take your group and leave this area."

The Golem, who had been pretending to be unconscious, instantly opened its eyes, scrambled to its feet, and nodded frantically.

Even if this area was perfect for the Golem—with plenty of rocks and the dark, damp environment of the tunnels—it was far too dangerous for them now.

The Golem roared a command to its clan, leading those who were awake into the forest. Those still unconscious were left behind for the time being.

During the migration, the weaker members of the group who couldn't keep up were naturally left behind.

The Golem departed, but left over fifty unconscious Geodudes behind.

These Geodudes appeared to be the weakest members of the entire group.

"Mr. Julian, leave these to us. You can head back to the train," the captain said.

Julian nodded. Since someone else was taking care of the matter, he was happy to let them handle it.

"Let's go"

He said to Chase, recalling his Aggron and Lucario into their Poké Balls but keeping Metagross by his side.

It would take about ten minutes to return to the train, and he couldn't guarantee that no wild Pokémon would appear during the trip. Having Metagross out for protection was still necessary.

"Which University are you attending now?" Julian asked.

Julian was naturally a reserved person. During his senior year of school, he hadn't made many friends. After graduating, he'd only stayed in touch with a few, like Will.

Even though Chase had been on the same school team as him, she had only been a substitute, and they weren't particularly close.

He had her contact information, but after adding her, they hadn't exchanged a single message.

"South Lake University," Chase replied.

If he remembered correctly, South Lake University was ranked toward the bottom of the first-tier universities.

Although it wasn't among the top schools, it was still far superior to any second-tier university.

Coincidentally, the train's next stop was South Lake City, which explained why Chase and her group were on the same train as Julian.

"It can't compare to Imperial University"

Chase said with a hint of embarrassment.

The difference between the two was indeed significant—one was at the bottom of the first tier, while the other was at the very top.

The gap was especially evident after Imperial University recently claimed first place again in the Hundred Schools League, further solidifying its reputation and outshining Shu University.