Chapter 36: Post-Match, Mission Complete!
"The winner of the first match has been decided! And it's none other than Nero from Senior Year Class 2!"
The audience was momentarily stunned before a teacher took the lead in standing up and applauding. Only then did the rest of the crowd join in.
With over 500 students in a single grade, many had placed their bets on the powerful Dragon-type Pokémon, Vibrava.
However, the unexpected result of the battle shocked everyone. Combusken, despite being at a major type disadvantage against Vibrava, had managed to win.
Not only that, it had used an unknown move.
Unidentified moves were not uncommon. With countless trainers in the world, each had their own battle strategies, and many skilled trainers even created their own unique moves.
Anyone could come up with a new move, but whether it was effective was another question entirely.
For students at their age, simply mastering the moves their Pokémon had already learned was impressive. Creating a powerful original move was nearly impossible.
Yet Nero had done just that, leaving everyone in awe.
A place on the school team was well-deserved!
Since Nero was the first to qualify, there were a few minutes of rest before the next match began.
As Nero left the waiting room, a large group of younger students rushed over, asking to add him on social media.
At first, Nero was excitedly adding a few pretty girls—after all, if things went well, he might finally say goodbye to seventeen years of single life!
₍₍Ϡ(੭•̀ω•́)੭⃛!!
...
As the tournament continued, one match after another concluded. When Nero finally returned home, he collapsed onto his bed.
"Man, I'm exhausted..."
"Chaamo, Chaamo..."
Combusken was just as drained, sprawled out beside him.
These past three days—no, the past few months—had been grueling.
Since Nero arrived in this world in January, he had been training with Combusken non-stop.
Both of them had ambitious goals—to stand at the top. Their first milestone was earning a spot on the school team, the closest challenge within reach.
But with limited time, Nero and Combusken had only three months to accomplish what others had an entire year to achieve.
No one knew how much sweat and effort they had poured into their training. Now that they had secured a place on the team, it was proof that their hard work had not been in vain.
It was all worth it.
Nero's phone was flooded with messages.
Lying on his bed, he unlocked his phone.
It seemed his parents had also heard the news from the school about his success in making the team. They had sent him several congratulatory messages—along with some extra allowance money.
This made both Nero and Combusken ecstatic.
More money meant more food!
Lyle: I can't believe it, you actually beat Dennis. Seeing that guy looking so dejected for once—it's oddly satisfying.
Nero chuckled and replied:
I feel the same way.
Dennis was now too embarrassed to even speak in their class group chat. Earlier, everyone had been buzzing about the internal showdown between the two of them.
It had been a red-hot topic!
In just a few minutes, the chat had over 99+ messages. Everyone was hyped, flooding the chat with discussions.
Amid all the chatter, Dennis had confidently declared his victory. With plenty of encouragement from others, he boldly proclaimed that he would defeat Nero in ten minutes—or forfeit if the match lasted any longer.
But the reality? Nero's Combusken had stunned everyone by unleashing an incredible move, completely overwhelming Dennis and securing Nero's place on the school team.
No one had seen it coming.
"Speaking of which, I should have completed the task by now, right?"
After lying in bed for a while, Nero finally realized something.
He put on his glasses and tapped a button, summoning a semi-transparent blue screen in front of him.
With a light touch, he opened the "Task List." A panel popped up:
Task: School Team Selection Tournament
Objective: Earn a spot on the school team.
Progress: 3/3 (Completed)
Rewards: One roulette spin for a new signature skill, one ordinary TM of choice.
As Nero finished reading, another window popped up with a simple prompt:
[Would you like to spin the roulette for a new signature skill?]
"Uh…" Nero hesitated. "If I remember correctly, I pulled an SSR in Onmyoji (a video game) a few days ago, and got a legendary in FGO and Honkai. I even snagged a two-cent discount from a six-pack deal. Did I use up all my luck already...?"
He was starting to feel nervous. Lately, so many good things had happened that he felt uneasy.
Sometimes, even getting a ten-win streak in ranked games made him anxious—like he was bound to lose the next match to balance things out.
Was this some kind of psychological issue?
Glancing at his sleeping Combusken, Nero decided to hold off.
"If I get a great skill from the roulette, it'll just make Combusken eager to start training again."
Nero knew his partner well. Combusken was fiercely competitive and never passed up an opportunity to grow stronger.
For now, they needed to focus on refining the Tempest Kick technique and mastering a few more moves before drawing a new skill.
...
With the school team selection tournament over, Nero and Combusken finally had some time to relax, reducing their usual intense training sessions.
Combusken, however, continued playing soccer.
Its passion for soccer had reached an impressive level, and Nero was considering something.
If they had time, should he take Combusken to participate in a Pokémon Club event?
The Club held activities every season, featuring various Pokémon-related competitions.
Based on past events, most of them focused on sports.
There were Pokémon racing competitions, Pokémon basketball tournaments, Flying Pokémon relay races, Pokémon soccer matches, and more.
Since it was early March—springtime—a Club event would likely be happening soon.
If a Pokémon soccer tournament was held, Nero would definitely sign Combusken up, letting it experience the thrill of the field and chase after victory!
...
Monday – Homeroom Class.
With the school team tournament wrapped up last week, the school had spent the past four days organizing the information of the selected students.
Nero had been the first to qualify. Among the other four selected, two were girls.
"Nero, after class, you can head straight to the training room. There, a coach will start guiding you all. The schedule is tight—if I'm not mistaken, formal training begins tomorrow."
"Oh, got it."
Nero nodded.
With college entrance exams coming up in June, every moment counted.
Compared to the school team selection, the next stage would be an even greater challenge.
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