Chapter 60: Xiao Qian in Jin City
Johto Region, Goldenrod City.
Bang!
A youthful girl with pink short hair tied into twin pigtails slammed the table, clearly frustrated.
"This is way too dirty!"
"How can there be a Skarmory that plays so dirty!"
Whitney had no clue how terrifying her Miltank's Rollout was in the eyes of rookie Trainers.
Grinding her teeth, Whitney pulled out her phone and quickly called Prosecutor Falkner in Violet City.
"Falkner, was that your account just now? Why does that strategy seem so familiar?"
Spikes, as a foundational Master League tactic, wasn't rare among skilled Trainers. For example, Koga from the Elite Four was a master of Toxic Spikes; Brock from Pewter City often used Stealth Rock paired with Rock Tomb.
But that "Spikes + Whirlwind" Skarmory gave Whitney a massive sense of déjà vu.
If that wasn't Falkner's Skarmory, whose could it be?!
"You're sneaking in some gaming during work hours? I'm going to report you to the Pokémon Association!"
On the other end, the ever-calm Falkner laughed awkwardly. "Calm down, Whitney. I think you've got the wrong person."
"A Master who excels at using Skarmory and Spikes tactics? Who else could it be besides you!"
"Uh? Maybe it's a Steel-type Gym Leader from another region?"
"Or maybe it's another Spikes specialist... Think this through calmly! I'm busy chasing down Team Rocket right now—how would I have time to play games?"
Whitney paused, her expression shifting as realization struck. "Ugh…"
That player seemed to be from the Donghuang Region…
Dmn it, that strategy was too familiar! It was even smoother than Falkner's!*
"You ran into a Spikes team? Hahaha, with your tactics, losing is only natural!" Falkner laughed heartily.
"Hmm?" Whitney's grip on her phone tightened, and an angry symbol seemed to pop onto her forehead.
"Uh-oh, bad signal, let's talk later."
Sensing danger, Falkner hung up the call hastily.
Whitney took a deep breath and replayed the battle footage.
"Hmm… My commands were fine, but his team composition seemed better suited for the strategy."
She ruffled her hair irritably. "D*mn it! We're all here to train—why must they use ladder-climbing teams?!"
If Whitney had the same team, she was confident she wouldn't lose to Teacher Lu. But… her opponent clearly understood the essence of Spikes teams and optimized their lineup to match it perfectly.
"This is just evil!" Whitney grumbled. "What kind of Master focuses solely on ladder strategies?"
In Pokémon: Battle, players typically train with teams they've built and are familiar with. But someone like Teacher Lu, who switched strategies and teams regularly, was incredibly rare.
Unless they had a deep understanding of team-building, this level of versatility was impossible.
"Is this guy… really a Gym Leader from the Donghuang Region?"
Whitney frowned, clicking into Teacher Lu's battle records—all wins. Several matches against Sun Teams even ended in 6-0 sweeps.
The Sun Team user? The Pool Cue Kid, Gold…
Whitney's eyes widened.
The image of that cocky boy flashed through her mind, and she nodded thoughtfully.
"If it's Gold… getting swept makes sense."
In the daycare on the outskirts of Goldenrod City, Gold suddenly sneezed.
"What the—! Why do I keep sneezing these days?"
Gold scratched his head and lazily answered a call. "Moshi moshi? Who is it?"
"It's me, your aunt!"
"Wrong number, bye!"
"I'm Whitney from Goldenrod City!"
"Oh, are you asking me out? Give me Miss Kotone's LINE, and I'll consider it seriously!"
"Quit joking! Are you familiar with Teacher Lu from Donghuang? How strong is he really?"
Teacher Lu?
Gold rubbed his chin, recalling a ruthless group admin. That guy was no joke…
Even he couldn't beat him.
"Pfft, Teacher Lu is amazing!" Gold said seriously. "Even Red is his fan. And Brock says he's a top-tier Breeder!"
"R-Really?" Whitney's voice wavered.
If that's the case… it made sense for his Spikes tactics to be better than Falkner's.
"You don't believe me? Join the group and see for yourself. It's full of top-tier Masters."
Gold clicked his tongue. "If Teacher Lu hadn't begged me to join back then, I wouldn't have agreed!"
"Huh?" Whitney's eyes sparkled. "A… Masters' group? Even Red is there?!"
"Yeah, impressive, right? I think so too."
Whitney was silent for a moment, then whispered, almost inaudibly: "Can you… add… add me to the group…"
"Speak up, I can't hear you!"
"I said, can you add me to the group!!"
Gold rubbed his ear, feigning confusion. "With your skills, you might not be qualified…"
"You want me to come to the daycare and PK you in person?!"
"Fine…" Gold waved it off. "100 signed photos of Miss Kotone, and you're in."
"Deal!"
"Great! Go get them!"
Just after ending his stream, Lu Ye glanced at his phone in surprise.
"Huh? A new member in the group?"
Whitney: "Ahhhh!!"
Whitney: "It's Red! The real Red!"
Whitney: "Can I add you on LINE, Red? I've admired you for so long!"
Tokiwa Erika: "(○｀ 3′○)"
Lorelei: "Oh my, how interesting~!"
Lu Ye scratched his head.
Well, Red's harem group was confirmed!
The Spikes team's stream was well-received, and Whitney's battle footage was decent material.
If needed, he could clip a few more matches with Gold later!
By the end of the afternoon, he'd earned over a thousand BP points. Converting that into Berries meant his two little partners' meals for next week were covered.
[Remaining BP: 2400]
Eevee, having watched Lu Ye battle all afternoon, yawned and lazily hopped off his lap to play on the running wheel. The sun set, and twilight deepened.
Wearing an apron, Lu Ye finished cooking a hearty dinner, waiting for Haunter to return.
Just as the food was getting cold, Haunter excitedly phased through the door and tossed a card onto the table. Grabbing a Fizzy Water from the fridge, Haunter wore a blissful expression.
"Gengarrr~~ (๑´ㅂ`๑)"
Lu Ye raised an eyebrow, took off his apron, and picked up the card.
His eye twitched.
[Bull Training Club]
[Annual Premium Membership Card]
"Huh?" Lu Ye muttered.
So you've been sneaking off to train—and got a membership card too?!