What was the problem?
For Nozomi Mizuno, the problem was extremely serious.
She was, after all, a third-year student at Shirogane University.
Admittedly, she belonged to the general program rather than the special admissions class filled with those so-called “monsters.”
But even the general program was still part of Shirogane University.
As one of Japan’s six highest-ranked universities, Shirogane University offered only a limited number of admission slots each year.
Anyone capable of earning a place there was already exceptionally talented.
Moreover, Nozomi had reached the Gym tier while she was still in her third year.
At her age, that achievement alone placed her far ahead of most Trainers in her generation.
Ever since childhood, she had always been praised as a genius.
And yet—
She had just watched Suguru Natsume, a boy who had only recently become an official Trainer, defeat nine of her Pokémon in succession with a single partner.
Yes, that partner was a Shiny Beldum.
Yes, it was a pseudo-legendary hatchling.
And yes, the nine Pokémon she had used belonged to the battle club rather than to her personally.
Even so, none of those excuses could erase the fact that Suguru had swept through nine Pokémon with just one Beldum.
Nozomi drew a deep breath.
“For the final battle… may I use one of my own Pokémon?”
Her request clearly went against the battle club’s usual rules.
However, as long as the customer agreed, there would not be a problem.
Nozomi wanted to use her own Pokémon for two reasons.
First, only by fighting alongside her personal partner could she display the full extent of her abilities as a Trainer.
Second—
She might never receive another opportunity to battle a Shiny Beldum for the rest of her life.
Naturally, she wanted to make the most of this rare chance and complete the final match with one of her own Pokémon.
“Sure.”
Suguru nodded without hesitation.
To be honest, the Pokémon Nozomi had used in the previous nine battles were merely average.
Other people might consider them reasonably strong, but from Suguru’s perspective, they were hardly worth mentioning.
That was why he readily accepted her request.
Otherwise, the final battle would be far too boring.
As for whether allowing her to use her personal Pokémon might result in his defeat—
Suguru did not particularly care.
There had never been a Trainer who could remain undefeated forever.
So-called invincible legends were ultimately nothing more than fantasies created by admirers.
Suguru had never believed that he would go through his entire life without losing.
That remained true even though he possessed a system.
However—
If Nozomi wished to defeat him now, she would need to send out a Pokémon whose level was significantly higher than Beldum’s.
Nozomi took out a Poké Ball of her own.
“Piplup, it’s your turn!”
Pop!
A flash of light appeared over the battlefield.
A small blue penguin Pokémon emerged from the Poké Ball and landed firmly on the ground.
At the same time, its information appeared before Suguru’s eyes.
…
Pokémon Status
Name: Piplup
Type: Water
Level: 12
Aptitude: Quasi-Elite
Ability: Torrent
Held Item: Water Gem
Gender: Male
Natural Moves: Pound, Growl, Water Gun, Charm
TM Moves: Protect, Chilling Water, Swift
Inherited Move: Aqua Ring
…
“I caught this little one a month ago.”
Nozomi’s voice carried unmistakable pride.
“He has excellent potential and is currently Level Twelve.”
Quasi-Elite aptitude.
That was indeed remarkably good.
The gap between Quasi-Elite aptitude and true Elite aptitude was particularly enormous.
Whether in Japan or any other major nation, most Pokémon possessing Elite-grade aptitude were controlled by ancient families, powerful corporations, universities, and government organizations.
Very few ever entered the public market.
Even when one did appear, it was usually sold through a large-scale auction.
A Caterpie with Elite aptitude might possess an astonishingly high value purely as a collector’s item.
And if it were a Pokémon belonging to a popular type—such as Water, Fire, Fighting, or Grass—and its final evolution was also capable of Mega Evolution, then its price could easily exceed ten million yen.
To ordinary citizens, an Elite-aptitude Pokémon was a treasure they could encounter only through extraordinary luck.
For them, Quasi-Elite aptitude was generally the highest level they could realistically hope to obtain.
Nozomi’s Piplup possessed Quasi-Elite aptitude.
Because Water was an extremely popular and practical type, its market value would likely fall somewhere between eight hundred and nine hundred thousand yen.
The Water type itself was among the finest types a Trainer could choose.
It possessed excellent offensive coverage, while its only natural weaknesses were Grass and Electric.
At the same time, it resisted four different types.
Furthermore, most Water-type Pokémon were capable of learning Ice-type moves, allowing them to counter the Grass types that would normally threaten them.
Piplup’s final evolution was Empoleon.
A Water-and-Steel-type Pokémon.
Steel was another top-tier type.
With the benefits of both Water and Steel, Empoleon easily held a place among the most outstanding Water-type Pokémon in existence.
Its only real disadvantage was that no Mega-Evolved form of Empoleon had been discovered so far.
Even so, Water and Steel remained one of the finest type combinations in the world.
Among all currently discovered Pokémon, Empoleon was the only known species to possess that particular combination.
That was why Piplup generally commanded a higher price than Squirtle or Mudkip, despite both of those evolutionary lines possessing discovered Mega Evolutions.
When evaluating the price of a Pokémon, its present form was only one consideration.
Its future potential was even more important.
“Piplup!”
Piplup puffed out its chest and raised its head proudly as it stared at Beldum.
Its entire body radiated confidence.
“Piplup, our opponent is strong,” Nozomi warned him.
Until now, she had been fighting as an employee of the battle club.
But from this moment onward—
She was fighting as a true Pokémon Trainer.
“Piplup, use Water Gun!”
The instant Nozomi began commanding her own Pokémon, her entire presence changed.
She stood straighter.
Her eyes sharpened.
Most importantly, she appeared far more confident than before.
“Pip!”
Piplup opened its beak and fired a concentrated stream of water.
Fwoosh—!
Its speed was considerably greater than that of the Water Guns used by the club’s Pokémon.
There was also almost no visible charging time.
Beldum immediately manipulated its magnetic field and glided across the battlefield, avoiding the initial attack.
However, Piplup’s Water Gun was far more stable and sustained than those of Nozomi’s previous Pokémon.
The moment Beldum dodged, Piplup turned its head.
The stream of water instantly changed direction and continued chasing after its target.
Suguru remained calm.
“Zen Headbutt.”
“Bzzzt!”
Beldum stopped retreating.
A dense layer of psychic energy enveloped its silver-white body, causing the air around it to tremble faintly.
Compared to an ordinary Tackle, Zen Headbutt possessed superior speed and destructive power.
Beldum suddenly accelerated.
BOOM!
Zen Headbutt collided directly with the incoming Water Gun.
The instant the two attacks met, the concentrated stream of water was violently torn apart.
Countless droplets exploded through the air like rain.
At the same moment, Piplup reached the limit of how long it could maintain Water Gun.
The attack ended.
With the path ahead cleared, Beldum continued charging straight toward Piplup.
“Piplup, Aqua Ring!” New chapters come out on g.com first.
Nozomi reacted immediately.
“Pip!”
Piplup spread its flippers.
A stream of blue-green water emerged around its body before rapidly forming several rotating rings.
Aqua Ring was normally used to continuously restore a Pokémon’s stamina.
However, if applied skillfully, the water could also be used to defend against an incoming attack.
Just like now.
SPLASH—!
Beldum’s Zen Headbutt struck the revolving Aqua Ring.
A tremendous amount of water erupted across the battlefield.
For approximately one second, the two techniques remained locked against each other.
Then—
CRASH!
The Aqua Ring shattered like fragile glass.
The rotating streams exploded into countless droplets as Beldum tore through the defense.
Zen Headbutt struck Piplup directly in the abdomen.
“Pip—!”
Piplup’s eyes widened.
However, the force of Zen Headbutt had already been weakened twice—first by Water Gun and then by Aqua Ring.
By the time the attack reached Piplup, most of its power had already been exhausted.
As a result, Piplup was not instantly knocked unconscious like the nine Pokémon before it.
Its small body was sent skidding backward across the battlefield.
One meter.
Three meters.
Five meters.
Only after being forced back eight or nine meters did Piplup finally regain its balance.
The instant it steadied itself, it counterattacked without waiting for another command.
Dozens of brilliant stars appeared around its body.
“Piplup, Swift!”
“Pip!”
The shining stars shot forward like a meteor shower.
Swift was a move that would pursue its target without missing under ordinary circumstances.
Against an attack like that, dodging was nearly impossible.
There were only two realistic choices.
Counterattack—
Or endure it.
“Zen Headbutt,” Suguru commanded.
Beldum’s body was once again enveloped in psychic energy.
It charged directly into the approaching wave of stars.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
One star after another struck the psychic energy covering Beldum’s body.
Each one shattered upon impact, exploding into tiny specks of light.
In only a few moments, every star produced by Swift had been destroyed.
However, Nozomi had already anticipated that outcome.
The moment the last star disappeared, she issued her next command.
“Protect!”
“Piplup!”
A transparent barrier instantly formed in front of Piplup.
At almost the exact same moment—
BOOM!
Beldum’s Zen Headbutt crashed into the barrier like a massive war hammer.
A deep, muffled impact echoed throughout the battlefield.
The transparent surface trembled violently, but it did not immediately collapse.
Protect was not a move every Pokémon could learn during its earliest evolutionary stage.
Beldum, for example, could not learn Protect either by leveling up or through a Technical Machine.
However, once it evolved into Metang, it would become capable of learning the move.
By the later stages of their development, the overwhelming majority of Pokémon could learn Protect in one form or another.
And for high-level Pokémon, it was considered one of the most essential moves they could possess.
The reason was simple.
Protect was not merely a defensive technique.
It was a life-saving move.