"Damn it! His level increased again!"
Cao Ruifeng clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, his gaze locked onto the battle watch's display. His heart sank as he stared at the updated data for Renjiro's Beedrill.
When they had fought Zhang Tianyu just a few days earlier, Beedrill's level had been 26. Yet now, without much time having passed, it had already advanced another level. Beedrill was now level 27.
The speed at which Renjiro's Pokémon grew was terrifying. Cao Ruifeng felt as though an invisible weight pressed down on his chest. His own Teddiursa had trained hard, but the progress had been slow and hard-won. How could Renjiro's Pokémon advance so effortlessly, as though leveling up were as easy as breathing?
Everyone knew that as Pokémon became stronger, further leveling up became increasingly difficult. Experience gains slowed, battles needed to be harder, and progress demanded more effort. But Renjiro's Beedrill seemed unbound by these natural limitations. It soared ahead as if the usual rules didn't apply to it.
Renjiro stood calmly across the field, an easy confidence in his stance. A faint smile played at the corners of his lips. His eyes sparkled with amusement as he regarded Cao Ruifeng's frustration.
"You can attack first if you like," Renjiro offered, tilting his head slightly. His voice was calm, but there was a subtle edge of mockery beneath the politeness. "Otherwise, you may not even get a chance to make a move."
It was clear Renjiro was humoring him. This battle was little more than a game in his eyes.
Cao Ruifeng felt his face flush with a mix of anger and shame. But what could he do? He couldn't refuse the offer, not when the judges and spectators were all watching. He had to at least try.
"Hateful!" Cao Ruifeng hissed under his breath.
He straightened, his gaze hardening as he focused on his partner.
"Teddiursa!" he shouted, trying to inject as much energy into his voice as possible. "Show them what we've got! Use Fury Swipes!"
His Teddiursa responded immediately, giving a determined cry as it charged toward Beedrill. Its small claws gleamed in the sunlight as it prepared to unleash the move they had practiced so many times together.
But no amount of practice could close the gap between them.
To Beedrill, Teddiursa's approach was laughably slow. The Pokémon didn't even need to exert itself. With the smallest of movements—just a slight twist of its body—it slipped out of Teddiursa's reach. The Fury Swipes cut through nothing but air.
Cao Ruifeng gritted his teeth harder.
"Again!" he barked, refusing to back down.
Teddiursa swung again and again, its little claws slicing the air in rapid succession. But every attack missed. Beedrill moved gracefully, effortlessly evading the strikes as if Teddiursa's attacks had been choreographed in advance.
From the sidelines, the judges exchanged uneasy glances.
"This gap in strength..." one judge murmured, his brow furrowing as he watched the scene unfold. "It's too great. There's nothing for us to assess from Teddiursa's side. None of its attacks have even come close to landing."
Another judge nodded, scratching notes onto his clipboard. "And Beedrill... Beedrill is performing almost perfectly. Minimal movement, maximum efficiency. It's dodging without even breaking a sweat."
They all knew this wasn't going to be easy to score.
"If we can't grade the weaker Pokémon's performance," the first judge said quietly, "what choice do we have?"
"We base the score on what's actually happening here," the second judge replied with a sigh. "The strength gap is what it is. We can't give points for effort alone if nothing lands. It's harsh, but fair."
The third judge reluctantly agreed. There was no other way. They filled in their scores: ten out of ten for Renjiro's Beedrill's flawless dodging, and zero for Teddiursa's failed attacks.
Renjiro watched all this unfold with a quiet satisfaction.
He smirked at Cao Ruifeng.
"Tsk tsk tsk. A so-called professional coach who charges ten thousand a day, and this is what you bring to the field?" His voice dripped with sarcasm. "Don't tell me you got scammed. Or maybe... maybe you were never that good to begin with?"
The insult stung more than any physical blow.
Cao Ruifeng's face darkened with humiliation. His fists clenched so tightly that his nails dug into his palms.
"Don't underestimate me!" he roared, his voice cracking under the strain of his emotion.
But Teddiursa was panting hard now. Its energy was nearly gone, drained by its repeated futile attacks. Meanwhile, Renjiro's Beedrill hadn't even broken a sweat.
Renjiro only chuckled softly. "If you don't want me to underestimate you, then show me why I shouldn't."
"Lick! Teddiursa, use Lick!" Cao Ruifeng commanded desperately.
But Renjiro only shook his head.
"It's no use," he said quietly. "You're just changing the move. The result will be the same."
And so it was. Beedrill dodged the attack with the same effortless grace. Teddiursa's tongue missed its mark, and the little bear stumbled forward in exhaustion.
"Why?" Cao Ruifeng cried out, his voice raw. "Why are you so strong?!"
Tears burned at the corners of his eyes as despair flooded through him. The difference in their levels was crushing—nine whole levels between Beedrill and Teddiursa. But it wasn't just the numbers. It was the complete dominance Renjiro held over him, the ease with which he toyed with him.
Cao Ruifeng sank to his knees. The weight of his failure was too much to bear.
"I... I don't understand," he sobbed quietly. "How can someone like you, from the slums... How can you be this strong? You weren't even supposed to have a chance at Pokémon training... So how? How?"
Renjiro's expression hardened, his playful smirk giving way to a more serious look.
"Because," Renjiro said, his voice steady and cold, "we're not on the same level. That's all there is to it."
He turned to Beedrill, nodding once.
"End it."
With that single command, Beedrill shot forward in a blur of motion. Teddiursa never stood a chance. It fell with a soft thud to the ground, completely defeated.
The test was over.
Renjiro had earned a perfect score: 100 out of 100. His performance was flawless in every category.
Cao Ruifeng, on the other hand, walked away with a dismal score. Beyond the small points he had earned for Teddiursa's initial level, every other category was marked with zeros.
It was a crushing blow.
With that result, there was no chance—none at all—that Cao Ruifeng would be accepted into any university's trainer department. His dreams, the ones he had so proudly boasted of before, lay in ruins.
And Renjiro?
He turned without another word, leaving the battlefield in silence. His point had been made, and his debt to the past repaid.
---