It wasn't until three minutes after Roy had departed from the arena that Callan spoke as if emerging from a trance:
"I lost?"
There wasn't profound disbelief in his tone, more of an inexplicable bewilderment.
It wasn't that Callan had never experienced defeat before. During his childhood, when borrowing his parents' Pokémon to battle against his peers, he had suffered numerous losses.
But those defeats had always been against second-generation Trainers with prestigious lineages who never encountered limitations regarding resources or education!
To qualify as a second-generation Trainer, one's parents needed to have achieved at least professional-level Trainer status.
When facing peers from ordinary backgrounds, Callan had never experienced the bitter taste of defeat.
Prior to encountering Roy, his record at the Pokémon Center stood impressively at 32 victories in 32 battles—a testament to his exceptional skill.
"What's the story with him and that Riolu?"
Callan composed himself and began a methodical analysis.
As a Trainer, Roy's decision-making and battle instructions clearly revealed his inexperience, which aligned with his ordinary background.
It was Riolu's extraordinary quality that had secured the victory.
But a Pokémon's capabilities inherently reflect its Trainer's abilities—they're intrinsically connected, and the two aspects shouldn't be evaluated independently.
Aren't Trainers who specialize in developing their Pokémon's natural potential classified as Pokémon Breeders?
"He functions more as a Breeder than a conventional Trainer," Callan concluded.
However, new questions immediately surfaced.
How could Roy, born into an ordinary family, raise a Riolu with such effectiveness?
Where had he acquired the necessary resources? Where had he learned sophisticated breeding techniques?
Had he discovered them through independent research?
Or was his attractive appearance sufficient that some female Trainer had taken him under her guidance?
Wait, why am I even contemplating that possibility?
Callan shook his head vigorously, dismissing such absurd thoughts.
"Perhaps there truly exist prodigies in this world who defy conventional understanding."
"But he's not overwhelmingly dominant either. If Riolu hadn't suddenly manifested that power enhancement, I should have emerged victorious from that encounter."
This rationalization provided Callan his only consolation.
He gathered his belongings and was preparing to take Bulbasaur for medical treatment when something from their battle suddenly resurfaced in his memory.
'Riolu, release...'
That was Roy's incomplete instruction during their tactical stalemate.
Release what exactly?
Could it possibly be...
What other capabilities was he concealing?
Upon considering a certain possibility, Callan experienced a momentary shudder, but quickly dismissed his speculation with a self-deprecating smile.
Riolu hadn't sustained serious injuries, so after a brief session in the recovery machine, he was completely healed and displaying energetic behavior once again.
This marked Roy's first observation of the recovery machine in operation, and he was thoroughly impressed by this advanced technology.
Noticing his inquisitive expression, Nurse Mila explained with a warm smile: "Pokémon powers have introduced numerous transformative changes to our world. This recovery machine was... I understand it was developed through analyzing the energy patterns of certain healing moves and integrating them with human technology."
"Incidentally, I heard you defeated Callan?"
Roy nodded affirmatively. "Yes. News travels quickly, it seems."
"Callan enjoys considerable recognition among the staff here. Over the past several days, he achieved an impressive 32 consecutive victories before you terminated his streak. Many colleagues are actively discussing it, and it's circulating throughout the PokéCenter messaging networks." Following Roy's confirmation, the admiration in Mila's eyes intensified noticeably.
A handsome young Trainer with evident potential—who could possibly resist such appeal?
"The quality of his winning streak was particularly noteworthy as well. I've heard he defeated recommended students from several neighboring universities. He didn't merely build his record by conquering inexperienced novices."
"Is that so?" Roy hadn't anticipated Callan possessing such formidable capabilities. Had he unknowingly encountered an elite Trainer in his very first battle?
"Would you like to continue with additional battle room matches?"
"Absolutely."
Roy nodded decisively. Having recognized his own technical deficiencies, he had already planned to dedicate the entire day to battle room experience.
Within just a few hours, Roy confirmed that Callan was indeed exceptionally skilled among novice Trainers.
The reason became readily apparent...
"Sandshrew is unable to battle. The victory belongs to Roy!"
Roy extended his hand to his opponent in a display of sportsmanship, but internally he was thinking:
So underwhelming~~~
The academic year had only recently commenced, with merely a week of training completed. Most novice Trainers remained severely inexperienced. Roy even encountered one Trainer who struggled with the basic technique of throwing a Poké Ball properly.
Trainers from ordinary backgrounds essentially couldn't withstand two consecutive moves from Riolu.
Without type advantages to exploit, they stood virtually no chance of victory.
Under the combined effects of the [Energy Cube] and Lightning Body Forging, even Callan's Pokémon—raised by a second-generation Trainer—exhibited physical statistics inferior to Riolu's. Ordinary Trainers' Pokémon faced an insurmountable disadvantage.
The morning hours elapsed swiftly, and Roy completed twelve consecutive victories with the ease of harvesting fish from a well-stocked pond.
Besides Callan, the only truly worthwhile match came against another recommended student, though not from Capital University but rather from another institution.
That recommended student's battle experience wasn't as refined as Callan's, but still significantly superior to Roy's. They fought on relatively equal terms, and Roy gained valuable insights.
For the first time, Roy genuinely perceived the enormous disparity between second-generation Trainers and those born into ordinary families.
If not for the system's assistance, I might be among those struggling Trainers who face defeat within seconds.
"This kind of random battling won't substantially improve my skills within the constraints of a single day."
Roy experienced a twinge of discouragement. Checking the time, he observed it was midday and decided to take Riolu for lunch while contemplating his afternoon activities.
While eating, he casually accessed his system panel and noticed his popularity value had unexpectedly increased by 50,000 points. Roy was momentarily confused.
People continued discussing him on the forum, but the popularity points he gained barely offset Riolu's daily consumption requirements, with no appreciable surplus.
"What explains this sudden increase?"
After conducting an online search, Roy understood the underlying cause.
The Capital University freshman representative competition was scheduled for tomorrow, but the pre-competition atmosphere was already building considerable momentum.
The university's official social media had published the participant list for public viewing, along with details of each freshman's starter Pokémon, attracting widespread attention.
In Roy's previous existence, few people followed university social media accounts except for the students themselves, but this world operated differently. Prestigious Trainer schools received comparable attention to elite Celebrity Trainers.
—Top-tier Trainers were frequently first identified during their academic careers.
This principle explained why major universities' official social media pages garnered such extensive attention.
For government officials and corporate entities, early identification of exceptional training prospects represented a matter of national significance that demanded serious consideration.
Each year at the commencement of the academic term, freshman representative battles at prestigious institutions became equivalent to gold rushes for talent scouts. They scrutinized everything meticulously, hoping to discover undeveloped potential and complete initial angel investments.
The majority of media attention concentrated on the recommended students.
However, certain local media outlets had detected the growing buzz on the Capital University forum.
Soon afterward, several local tabloids published stories about these incidents. Similar to the student reactions, these were predominantly composed as mockery with underlying tones of sarcasm.
"Just minor newspapers." The media's derisive commentary didn't particularly affect Roy, though he still experienced mild disappointment.
If coverage had appeared in a major Capital City newspaper with nationwide circulation, he could potentially have gained millions in popularity points.
"Fifty thousand points?"
Roy thoughtfully rubbed his chin and resolved to prioritize self-improvement.
He had allocated his previous points entirely to Riolu's development, with his only personal investment being the seed of Aura power.
Psychic seeds required extended periods of undisturbed growth to develop into substantial abilities.
Roy's current level of Aura power barely enhanced his sensory perception. He couldn't achieve telepathic communication, which effectively meant it provided negligible improvement to his Trainer capabilities.
This time, his exchange wasn't for ability seeds, but for immediately applicable abilities.
"Deduct 30,000 points, acquire Proficiency Level • Reaction Ability, enhanced neural response capability."
For reference, the abilities exchangeable by Trainers, from lowest to highest classification, were Entry Level (ability seed), Proficiency Level, Master Level, and Transcendence Level.
Master-Level Reaction required 300,000 points, while Transcendence-Reaction demanded an extraordinary 3,000,000 points.
Roy also investigated the price for pre-developed Aura Force abilities. Merely the Proficiency Level • Aura Force required 150,000 points, which immediately extinguished any interest in that particular path.
Training independently might represent the more efficient approach. Perhaps I possess natural talent for Psychic abilities? That would certainly conserve a substantial quantity of points.