As soon as Noah said that, all four women present were stunned.
Especially Marnie and Serena.
Through their time together,
They had come to understand just how high Noah’s standards were when it came to poaching talent.
Just last night at dinner, Marnie had heard Noah say something that she found utterly baffling:
“So what if all four of Kanto’s Elite Four members are Champion-level?
I’ll just make all eight of Alola’s Gym Leaders Champion-level too.”
Wow—quite the appetite.
Marnie sneaked a glance at Nessa, who was still in a dazed state.
Feeling sorry for Nessa was one thing, but strength was another matter entirely.
‘This sister…
didn’t exactly look like she had Champion-level potential.’
At that moment, Nessa snapped out of her shock and said, a little defiantly:
“Didn’t you think I was weak?”
“You are weak.
But with my training, I can spoon-feed you all the way to Elite Four level.”
Noah said calmly.
Noah wasn’t the type to simp for a pretty face just because she had one.
He wasn’t like those useless protagonists in third-rate novels who couldn’t walk straight when they saw a woman.
In Noah’s view,
With Nessa’s talent and potential,
Even with all his training, pushing her to Elite Four level would be the absolute limit.
Most of the time, that 1% of talent really did matter more than 99% of hard work.
Although Noah’s initial goal was to make all four Elite Four members and eight Gym Leaders of the Alola League Champion-level,
He remembered something that made recruiting Nessa not such a bad idea.
For example—
Right now, who was the most famous trainer in the Unova League?
Was it Champion Alder?
Or one of the Elite Four?
Neither.
It was Elesa, the Electric-type Gym Leader from Nimbasa City.
Like Nessa, she was both a supermodel and a Gym Leader,
And she was Unova League’s number one public figure.
Of course, despite having similar experiences,
Nessa’s strength was far inferior to Elesa’s.
But that gave Noah an idea.
He could also turn Nessa into a public face for the Alola League.
Or rather, make her the ‘hostess’.
An Elite Four-level Gym Leader…
although it fell short of his original expectations,
It wasn’t unacceptable.
However, while Noah wasn’t particularly impressed with ‘Elite Four-level’,
Nessa and Sonia were already stunned speechless.
In the games, the Elite Four were just grinding fodder for the protagonist.
But this was reality.
In reality, the Elite Four were already beyond the reach of 99.9% of people in the Pokémon World.
Otherwise, how could a large league like Galar not even be able to gather four Elite Four members?
Even Nessa herself had never dared to imagine reaching Elite Four level.
“Professor Noah…
are you serious?”
Sonia, sitting nearby, was also shocked.
Before becoming a researcher,
She had been a trainer too.
So she understood exactly what the title ‘Elite Four-level’ meant.
“It’s just Elite Four-level—you’re making way too big a deal out of this…”
Noah looked at them like they were two women with short hair and even shorter vision.
If he seriously put in the effort to train them, he could get even Nessa to that level—hell, he could even get Goh—never mind, forget that one.
Nessa bit her lip, hesitated for a moment, then said resolutely:
“…Alright, I’m in!”
Since Rose was already preparing to fire her,
Why should she stick around?
‘If they don’t want me here, someone else will!’
Sonia opened her mouth slightly, feeling a bit dejected.
Her best friend was leaving…
“Do you want to come along too?”
Before Sonia could process it, Noah had already turned to her.
‘Wow—trying to get two for the price of one?’
“I’m not a trainer…”
Sonia pouted.
Ever since she’d been schooled by her childhood friend Leon a few times as a kid,
She’d completely given up on becoming a trainer.
No helping it—growing up with a cheater of a ‘neighbor’s kid’ would break anyone.
“But you’re a Pokémon researcher, aren’t you?
Don’t you want to study Digimon with me?”
Noah’s next words made Sonia admit—
She was tempted.
The new species of Pokémon Noah had discovered in Alola—Digimon— had been the hottest topic in the research community lately.
“Noah, shouldn’t we let Miss Sonia decide for herself?”
Serena pouted.
Trying to snag two top-tier beauties in one day was a bit much.
Unlike herself and Marnie—who are still young and inexperienced—Nessa’s supermodel aura and Sonia’s curvaceous charm made even Serena, as a fellow female, feel pressured.
“Don’t worry—we’ll be staying in Galar for a few more days anyway.
To celebrate Nessa and Marnie joining Alola, let me give you both your starter Digimon first.”
Noah clapped his hands to change the subject.
‘Starter Digimon?’
Hearing those words, Marnie and Nessa’s eyes lit up.
Sonia, being a researcher, was also filled with curiosity.
Even Serena was no exception.