Chapter 9: A Remote Assist from Hoenn Champion Steven

Waking up to 999+ notifications on his homepage left Aiden breathless. With a mix of excitement and trembling hands, he clicked in.

Sure enough, it was the video he had scheduled for release at midnight last night.

"One… ten… hundred… thousand… ten thousand…"

"Half a million views???"

After just one night, the video's view count had skyrocketed to 500,000!

Aiden was dumbfounded, instinctively scratching his head.

Am I famous now?

But why?

Without any fan base, the probability of hitting the trending page overnight was even lower than winning the lottery, wasn't it?

Curious, Aiden clicked into his video titled "Can You Dominate Battles with Level 1 Pokémon?"

"Hello everyone, I'm Azure Wings, a new streamer."

"Today, I'll be sharing a Level 1 strategy. It's not really suited for climbing ranks, but it's a lot of fun to mess around with."

As the sound of his own voice echoed from the video, the screen displayed yesterday's live stream footage, quickly followed by an overwhelming flood of comments.

[Congrats, you've discovered the site's hidden gem!]

[I declare this year's most creative tactic—streamer, you're a genius!]

[Anyone else come here via Steven's Navigator link?]

[Same here, bro, same.]

[No wonder even Hoenn Champion Steven praised this tactic. I'm speechless, the only thing I can say is POG!]

"Steven?"

Aiden furrowed his brow, quickly realizing things weren't as simple as they seemed.

He immediately checked the comment section.

Sure enough, right at the top, he found the "culprit" behind the video's explosive popularity.

User ID: "FossilFanSteven." The profile picture showed a young nobleman with blue hair, dressed in a black suit, exuding an air of aloof elegance.

In the bottom-right corner of the profile picture, a prominent lightning bolt verification badge highlighted his identity.

Staring at the handsome face in the photo, Aiden instinctively swallowed and clicked into his profile.

Over ten million followers, along with multiple official certifications—this was undoubtedly a global superstar.

Hoenn Champion, Devon Corporation heir, and the world's second-ranked Master Trainer: Steven Stone!

"How did my little channel manage to catch the attention of such a big name?"

Cold sweat began to bead on Aiden's forehead.

Although all of Steven's videos were related to fossils and mining, with barely any personal content, those few certifications alone spoke volumes about his prestige.

Returning to the comment section, Aiden grew curious about how Steven had reviewed his video.

User "FossilFanSteven," posted at 4:04 AM.

Likes: 50,000+

[Invitation accepted. Currently in the mines, just got online when someone recommended this video.

At first, I thought it would be a typical beginner's tactic, but it almost overturned my understanding of Pokémon battles...

The combination of Sturdy and Endeavor gives even a Level 1 Aron the guts to take down stronger opponents. Add the cherry-on-top Sandstorm and the masterstroke Shell Bell—it's a meticulously crafted, artistic visual feast.

I must say, this streamer is truly a genius!

Pros are clear, easy to understand, quick to pick up. Although there are fatal flaws like vulnerability to multi-hit moves and Ghost-types, the chances of encountering them aren't high in practice.

Though difficult to pull off in real combat, it's evident how much effort the creator put into it. This is undoubtedly a highly refined and excellent tactic!]

"Such high praise?"

Aiden raised an eyebrow.

Steven's glowing review wasn't entirely incomprehensible.

As he'd stated in the video, he clearly positioned the tactic as an entertaining gimmick—a fun way to occasionally upset opponents.

But in this n̶a̶i̶v̶e̶, pure, passionate head-on clash battle meta, it was indeed a very novel approach.

Even Hoenn Champion Steven hadn't held back his praise, which spoke volumes.

Ignoring the sea of bot-like comments like "Master Ball!" and "OG Steven fan here", another follow-up comment from Steven caught Aiden's eye.

Posted at 5:30 AM, over an hour after the first comment.

[It's me again, I'm back.

The question the streamer left at the end of the video really intrigued me, so after an hour of research online, I finally reached a definitive answer before anyone else.

The Pokémon the streamer referred to as "better suited for the Endeavor strategy" is Donphan, correct?

The process of unraveling the mystery was mentally stimulating, but what truly astounded me was the streamer's solid knowledge base and creativity.

Even accounting for inherited moves like Ice Shard shows that the streamer must also be an exceptionally skilled Trainer!]

Aiden slowly typed out a question mark.

"Was this question really that difficult? Did Steven really need an hour of research to figure it out?"

However, in this real-world setting where information could only be accessed through Pokédexes and the internet, and people's understanding of Pokémon wasn't nearly as thorough as gamers from his past life, it actually made sense.

After all, in games, everything could be thoroughly researched.

In reality, though, fully understanding all the moves a Pokémon could learn wasn't that straightforward.

Even Champions couldn't memorize the entire Pokédex.

Steven's answer was undeniably correct.

Donphan, a Ground-type Pokémon, was immune to Sandstorm damage just like Aron, possessed the Sturdy ability, and could learn Endeavor.

Anything Aron could do, Donphan could do too.

But one easily overlooked point made it the ultimate fit for the Endeavor strategy:

Donphan could inherit the move Ice Shard.

In the priority of Pokémon moves, Ice Shard was on par with Quick Attack and Bullet Punch—ultra-fast priority moves.

Even if faced with an opponent Sandstorm couldn't handle, Ice Shard could swiftly finish them off.

Aiden suddenly felt a newfound respect for this Hoenn Champion.

Without prior knowledge of the Endeavor strategy, Steven had managed to find the optimal solution purely by sifting through the Pokédex and using elimination...

Impressive, no wonder he's known as the "Grind Lord" Steven!

This unexpected remote assist from the Hoenn Champion had brought far more benefits than Aiden had anticipated.

Overnight, his account had skyrocketed from the thousand or so followers he had after going offline to over ten thousand fans.

This pace was already absurd, and the upward trend showed no signs of slowing.

Noticing this, Aiden's mood improved significantly.

After liking Steven's comment and a few other popular ones, he pinned the correct answer in the comment section and teased tonight's stream.

"Tonight, no spies allowed—let's hit the opponent with some Stealth Rock shock~"

After handling this online event, Aiden freshened up and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for Eevee and himself.

According to Blue's breeding notes, while portable meals and energy cubes were convenient, dishes infused with a Trainer's heartfelt care resonated more deeply with companions.

To become an excellent breeder, culinary skills were indispensable.

"Though I've never cooked in either of my two lifetimes, following the steps in the notes shouldn't cause any issues, right?"

Yesterday, to save time, both he and Eevee had eaten pre-stocked Paldean cuisine. It was time for a change.

Aiden believed he didn't have the talent for disastrous cooking.

Turns out, he was wrong.

Just an hour later…

When Eevee woke naturally and stumbled into the kitchen with its characteristic bold strides…

"Forget it, I guess I'm really not cut out for this."

Aiden sighed, pouring yet another pot of bizarrely textured, albeit correctly colored, glop down the drain.

The recipe proportions were precise, and the heat seemed just right—so why did the shape always turn out wrong, and the taste feel inexplicably off?

And I didn't even add Ganges water?

Forget it, let others make money off this.

"To celebrate breaking ten thousand followers, I'll take Eevee to Los Platos for a fancy meal today."

Forced melons won't taste sweet. Sometimes, giving up decisively is the better choice.

He ultimately chose to accept his shortcomings.

Blind faith in books is worse than having none—Blue's theories might not be entirely correct.

I'll prove that even without culinary talent, I can still become an excellent Breeder!

"Buii?"

Watching his Trainer inexplicably fired up, a question mark slowly rose above Eevee's round head.

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