As Caitlin said that, she blinked, clearly wanting to see how Grey would react.
That sense of anticipation made Grey scratch the back of his head.
Then he gave her a thumbs-up. "Impressive."
"Not bad," Sabrina added immediately.
Green: "…"
That's how you two praise people?
It sounded so perfunctory…
But in truth, those were about the highest-level compliments Grey and Sabrina ever gave.
Especially when the Unova League had wanted to invite Grey to be the only "reserved candidate" for the Unova Champion position—then Caitlin suddenly dropped this line… Grey honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Still, Caitlin being chosen as an Elite Four candidate was genuinely impressive.
People talked like the world was full of young Elite Four-level Trainers, but in reality, there weren't many at all.
Out of an ocean of people, only a handful like that appeared.
Most Trainers worked their whole lives and topping out at "elite" level was already excellent—that was the norm.
For someone like Caitlin, still so young, to be directly selected as an Elite Four candidate… it spoke for itself.
Grey was happy to give a thumbs-up to a Trainer like that.
"Then after breakfast, we'll battle. Good timing for some post-meal exercise—help with digestion."
Grey patted his stomach. He was about eighty percent full from breakfast.
If he battled Caitlin next, then after it ended and a little time passed, it would be lunchtime anyway.
Then they could stroll around Saffron City in the afternoon. Tomorrow they could go to Celadon City, and Caitlin would probably be about ready to head back.
Though how many days she'd stay… Grey honestly didn't know.
He only knew it was at least two.
Whatever. Not a big deal.
Caitlin had donated so much money that even if she stayed a whole month, it would still be fine.
Of course, if she stayed that long, someone would probably get mad.
Grey suddenly pictured Cynthia pacing anxiously in her office, and his heart jumped a little.
With Cynthia's personality… she wouldn't actually see him as some guy who'd kidnapped Caitlin away from Sinnoh, right…?
If you really wanted to say someone was "kidnapping" someone, it was Caitlin trying to kidnap him back to Sinnoh.
Grey didn't say that out loud—he just complained internally.
Before long, Caitlin finished breakfast too.
Grey adjusted the streaming equipment and, at the same time, helped reassure Cynthia.
Otherwise, he was genuinely afraid Cynthia would message him every three minutes—anyone would lose their mind.
Streaming solved it. Cynthia could watch anytime, anywhere, and she could even toss a few gifts to "subsidize."
Title: [Sparring with the Governor Boss Today (PS: The streamer is NOT being kept)]
Tags: [Meetup][Governor][Small Streamer & Governor][Indoor]
Today's stream tags were a bit more proper than usual.
The moment he went live, the viewer count already broke a hundred.
[Captain "Archaeologist Cabbage" has entered the livestream.]
[Governor "Red" has entered the livestream.]
[Governor "Blue" has entered the livestream.]
Everyone had just eaten breakfast too—perfect timing to watch a battle as "meal entertainment."
And once they saw the opponent was Caitlin, people were stunned by her beauty.
[The governor boss is this pretty?!]
[Another day of envying the streamer. Big bosses are all handsome guys and beautiful girls—how is anyone this lucky?!]
"Hello, everyone in the stream. Today's a friendly spar with Governor Boss Caitlin~"
"If you're a Trainer who's good with Psychic-type Pokémon, or a Trainer who specializes in Fighting-types, I recommend watching the whole thing~"
Grey gave everyone a heads-up.
This was called a spar, but it was closer to a coaching match.
Caitlin wanted to see, when she used psychic power, where the gap between her and an Elite Four-level Trainer really was.
It would also lay a solid foundation for her future trip to Unova.
"The rules are three-on-three. Switching is allowed for both sides. Sound good?"
This was a spar, not a Gym match. There was no point setting traps and trying to screw her over.
Grey already knew which three Pokémon he would field—now it depended on what Caitlin wanted.
"Okay."
Caitlin was thinking the same.
Among the Pokémon she carried, not many were at Elite Four level. Even though she could temporarily amplify her Pokémon with psychic power, she couldn't sustain it for long—she risked losing control.
So a three-on-three battle was more suitable.
"Then I'll send mine out."
Grey tossed a Poké Ball forward.
Out came Lucario.
"Lu-ca!"
Lucario punched the air a few times. A silver-white shockwave rippled outward like rings on water—powerful and startling.
Ever since evolving, Lucario's strength had grown more and more frightening.
And when it came to moves related to "explosive power," it had become increasingly proficient.
Especially Extreme Speed, Quick Attack, and Bullet Punch—moves that demanded a massive burst of force in a short time. Lucario handled them effortlessly.
"Lucario, huh?"
Seeing a Pokémon from her homeland take the field, Caitlin simply raised one hand.
Blue psychic light shimmered in her eyes. The third Poké Ball on her belt detached on its own and floated down slowly.
"Goth~"
A humanoid Pokémon appeared. Its purple face wore a lazy expression, and its whole body looked languid and unhurried. Paired with its gothic black dress, it gave off a high-class, aristocratic vibe.
[Pokémon: Gothitelle]
[Type: Psychic]
[Level: 59 → 61]
[Ability: Shadow Tag]
[Moves: …]
What surprised Grey was that on the system panel, the level display had changed.
From level 59 to 61—just two levels, but the jump mattered a lot.
Grey hadn't expected Caitlin could directly push a Pokémon's level across a major threshold. She really was a bug-level existence too.
He could honestly say that among all the psychics he'd seen, Caitlin could rank second.
As for first place—anyone who knew, knew.
"Caitlin, you go first."
Grey, out of habit, offered the first move to his opponent.
His strength lay in counterattacking after the opponent acted.
Caitlin didn't hesitate. And since she couldn't maintain psychic power for long anyway, she needed to try to finish quickly.
"Psyshock!"
She knew Grey liked fast offense. To deal with the "burst" tactics he would use next, Caitlin chose a wide-area move to sweep the field.
"Gothii~"
Psychic light flashed in Gothitelle's eyes as well. With a lift of its hand, the air rippled with wave after wave.
The next instant, countless psychic projectiles burst outward from those ripples, shaking the space around them!
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