The League Investigators -known as the Pokémon League's most powerful combat force- are a department specialized in cracking down on underground dark forces.
Thanks to the League's effective public relations, most civilians believe that League Investigators are far more powerful than the police, or even Gym Leaders.
But in truth, that's not quite the case…
Any Trainer who reaches the Elite level in strength can apply to become a League Investigator, provided they are a direct affiliate of the League.
Now, what counts as a "direct affiliate" of the League? It doesn't mean just working somewhere under the Pokémon League umbrella.
For regular employees, it usually takes at least ten years of diligent service in the League before they can gain that status.
However, for organizations primarily composed of Trainers -like Gyms, Security Squads, or Military units- the threshold for becoming a League affiliate is much simpler.
For example, every year, Sato has several slots available to recommend his Gym Trainers to become official League affiliates.
So when Sina, Akira, and Sosuke wanted to join the League Investigators, they had already met the requirements long ago and could apply at any time.
But what Sato applied for wasn't just an ordinary League Investigator position… it was something far rarer!
An Independent Investigator, with significant autonomy and extremely high strength requirements.
Of course, the dangers faced by an Independent Investigator are also much greater than those of a regular Investigator.
Thus, those who qualify to become Independent Investigators must not only possess formidable strength, but also have outstanding skills in surveillance, escape, disguise, psychological resilience, and more.
And these skills aren't something you can master in just a month. Sato only had his training time shortened thanks to the endorsement of his "teacher", Drake.
But if he failed the assessment a month from now, it wouldn't just be his own reputation on the line; he'd be dragging down Drake's "face" along with him.
None of this had ever been mentioned by either Drake or Fitzwilliam.
Sato only learned about these details from the instructor after attending his first Escape course…
Let's rewind back to the beginning of that first class.
Following the schedule, Sato had arrived early at a sparse rocky area on Indigo Plateau, quietly waiting for his instructor.
Just before the class was about to begin, a masked man silently appeared right next to him.
Sato's reaction was already incredibly fast! Almost the moment the man closed in, he had moved from his original position.
Rrrrip~
Sato came to a halt two meters away, only to realize that a large tear had been ripped into the side of his jacket.
Looking up, he saw a spirited Sandshrew at the man's feet, and a half-asleep Abra hanging lazily over his shoulder.
Neither of them had even evolved, yet their speed alone was suffocatingly overwhelming.
And Sato hadn't retaliated immediately because -even though the man had clearly ambushed him- there wasn't the slightest hint of hostility from his body.
Sure enough, the man began to speak.
"Woah! As I expected of the youngest of the Eight Gym Leaders, the publicly recognized final protégé of Elite Four Drake… You're far superior to those trash who rely solely on their Pokémon, yet are utterly powerless themselves."
'Tch, great, a battle junkie with an attitude…'
Sato curled his lip silently without replying. He had already guessed the man's identity; but who knew who this "trash" he was referring to was supposed to be?
Elite Four Agatha, for example, due to her age and health, couldn't lift a feather… yet who would dare call her trash?
Besides, Trainers are supposed to rely on their Pokémon to win battles and protect themselves.
Even Sato, with all his "cheats" advantages, still mostly stood at the back, issuing commands and providing support boosts, didn't he?
If a Trainer really rushed to the front lines, wouldn't that just mean their Pokémon were too strong, and they wanted to increase the difficulty for themselves?
Well… unless you're someone like Elite Four Bruno, a humanoid battle machine.
Seeing that Sato didn't respond, the man seemed a bit disappointed by the lack of reaction. So he went ahead and casually introduced himself.
"My name is Rune. I'll be your instructor for the escape course. The class has three main components.
First: Close-Range Evasion. Without using any Pokémon, you must successfully dodge an attack from my Sandshrew and Abra. If you fail, the penalty isn't too bad… just change your clothes."
Sato tugged at the corner of his mouth but didn't argue. Just a change of clothes…
He had money to spare!
"Second: Maze Escape. You must find your way out of a giant garden maze within a set time. You may use your Pokémon, but not the move Teleport.
Each failure costs 500,000 to reset the maze, and you may only attempt it once per day or enter training mode for five hours."
"Hssssss~~"
Sato sucked in a sharp breath. He took back what he said about having money to spare. No matter how rich he was, that kind of spending was insane.
Rune, of course, couldn't care less about how "shocked" Sato looked. Every newcomer reacted the same way at this point. He wasn't surprised at all.
"Third: Long-Distance Escape. The 200-kilometer route includes various wild terrains: forests, snowy mountains, caves, lakes, canyons, deserts, and more.
You'll need to-"
…Rrrrip~
A sound almost identical to before rang out.
"Oh, right, forgot to mention~ The timing for the first test is completely random. Until you successfully evade it, I'll appear at any time."
Sato stared blankly at Rune, whose face showed no expression… except for a tiny glint of smugness. He seriously considered whether he should just bury this guy right here and be done with it.
Taking off his completely shredded outer jacket, Sato's only consolation was that he'd worn two layers today.
"No worries, Teacher, please continue!"
Sato smiled with squinted eyes, thinking, 'Let's see who gets the last laugh!'
"Alright then, I'll keep going. Feel free to interrupt if anything's unclear, alright~?"
Rune chuckled and continued, "The third exam lasts an entire day. You may bring no more than three Pokémon. If you reach the designated goal before sunset, you pass.
This test can be taken at most once per week, so in theory, you only have four attempts. Be sure to make them count. Oh, and there's no penalty for this one. No payment needed, Sato, no need for hissing~"
"…"
"So, have you understood everything now?" Rune finished quickly, repeating it all in a very "friendly" tone.
It seemed like the thrill of tearing someone's clothes mid-sentence -especially when they couldn't react- was deeply satisfying to him. It made him even more friendly toward Sato.
"No problem at all, teach-"
Rrrrip~~
Another crisp tear echoed. The smile on Rune's face was practically uncontainable at this point.
…Until his Sandshrew let out a suddenly guilty squeak.
"Shrewww~"
Rune looked down and saw no piece of Sato's pants caught in Sandshrew's claws… but he did start to feel a faint chill at his lower back.
"Teacher… I believe I've passed the first test~?"
Opposite him, Sato was grinning as he held up a scrap of white fabric.