[Opportunity Amplification in Progress]
[Ding! Congratulations, Host — 100× Amplification]
[Ding! You have obtained Red Opportunity · The Little Witch of the Forest]
As the system notification echoed, Ethan saw a faint red glow flash across the Poké Ball in his hand.
In the next moment, Hatenna's information panel appeared before his eyes.
Pokémon: Hatenna
Level: 12 (Early Normal Tier)
Type: Psychic
Ability: Healer
Moves: Confusion, Disarming Voice, Life Dew, Baby-Doll Eyes, Mystical Fire
Potential:Champion
Compared to Tyrantrum or Swampert, Hatenna's stats didn't look particularly flashy.
But under the system's amplification, her potential had directly reached Champion-tier.
That alone was enough to make Ethan very satisfied.
"Come out, Hatenna."
Although she had already been successfully captured, Ethan didn't intend to keep her inside the Poké Ball.
The academy-issued Poké Balls were basic models.
Comfort was… questionable at best.
More importantly, Ethan needed to build a bond with her.
Hatenna had a good relationship with Tyrantrum, sure—but Ethan was her Trainer now.
And she would be one of the Pokémon he relied on during the upcoming entrance assessment.
Trust and intimacy mattered.
Fortunately, whether because of Ethan's gentle personality or because Tyrantrum trusted him so completely, Hatenna adapted quickly.
She floated onto Ethan's shoulder, quietly tugging at his hair with her tiny hands.
Ethan smiled and gently played with her for a bit.
But soon, he noticed the surrounding gazes.
Dozens of people were staring at him.
"…Alright," Ethan said, turning to Geng Zhi.
"Let's go. We should head back to the academy."
All three forest opportunities had already been claimed.
There was no reason to stay any longer.
As for Geng Zhi—he had wanted to leave a long time ago.
So the two of them bid farewell to Guli, the restaurant owner, and walked out of the forest under countless curious looks.
Meanwhile — Donghuang Academy Dormitory
Anna Stone's niece—Iris Stone—was sprawled across her dorm bed, scrolling through her phone.
"…Seriously," Iris muttered.
"Sherry bailed on me again."
They had agreed to return to the academy together.
But her best friend had gone traveling with her boyfriend instead—and wouldn't be back until next week.
That meant no afternoon sparring sessions.
Her entire training plan for the week was ruined.
With no sparring partner, Iris could only lie in bed and doom-scroll.
At least her Alolan Vulpix and Serperior were with her.
Otherwise, she might've actually gone crazy from boredom.
Then suddenly—
A new message popped up in her year group chat.
Campus Insider: Holy hell, did you guys hear?
A freshman has a Tyrantrum. Like—an actual Tyrantrum.
"…What?"
Iris froze.
Tyrantrum?
Sure, in recent years, advances in bio-restoration had allowed some ancient Pokémon to be revived from fossils.
But Tyrantrum was still absurdly rare.
In her entire life, Iris had only seen two:
One was the Tyrantrum in the Stone family's back mountain
The other belonged to Professor Zhang, who specialized in paleontology research
And now—
A freshman?
Iris: Is that real? Where did this come from?
Campus Insider: It's all over the academy forum already.
And apparently, the Trainer is a super handsome junior 👀
That was enough.
Iris immediately opened the Donghuang Academy forum.
At the very top of the trending page—
A massive image of Tyrantrum.
But the moment Iris saw the photo, she shot upright in bed.
Even her sleeping Alolan Vulpix jolted awake in surprise.
Because standing beside the Tyrantrum—
Was a face she knew far too well.
"…Ethan?!"
Her pupils shrank.
"That Tyrantrum—don't tell me it evolved from his Tyrunt?!"
Cold air rushed into her lungs.
Tyrunt had followed Ethan less than a week ago.
And now it had already evolved?!
Scrolling further, Iris saw the full sequence of photos and videos.
Evolution glow.
Massive transformation.
Crowds screaming.
There was no doubt anymore.
That Tyrantrum was Ethan's.
"…This is insane."
Swampert's rapid evolution.
Now Tyrantrum too.
An impossible pace.
"Could it be…"
"Ethan has one of those special Trainer constitutions?"
It sounded ridiculous—but the idea wasn't new.
There had long been theories in academia:
Some people were born with unusual "Trainer fields."
Some accelerated Pokémon evolution
Some amplified combat performance
Some drastically boosted growth efficiency
No official conclusion had ever been reached—but such people did exist.
And combining everything Iris had seen recently…
Ethan fit the pattern far too well.
Scrolling down the comments, she couldn't help but laugh.
User1: Are freshmen this insane now? Tyrantrum starter??
User2: I thought a starter Pokémon was already lucky—this is illegal
User3: Three minutes. I want this junior's full profile. I'm in love.
User4: Stop lying, you're just thirsty. Junior, I'm hot and rich—DM me 😘
Iris shook her head, smiling helplessly.
"I knew my cousin would become a big deal eventually…"
"I just didn't expect it to happen this fast."
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
patreon.com/kakashiTL