Bottom-tier trainers in the Pokémon world

...

mission completed.

Submitting the mission report and such was all left to Wataru, and Xia Yan returned to Suiyi Town.

We entered the very back of the dojo, his private residence.

A spacious study.

In front of a row of currently empty bookshelves, Xia Yan leaned back in his chair, his eyes unfocused, his fingers lightly tapping the edge of the table.

Tap, tap, tap...

Eight Eevee sprites flitted around his feet, seemingly having a great time.

The calls of "buyibuyi" continued incessantly.

Suddenly.

A gray-white Eevee jumped onto Xia Yan's lap and rubbed against him affectionately.

"Bu-i~~"

Xia Yan snapped out of his daze, smiled, and gently stroked the extremely soft fur of the Eevee.

This was met with a soft, tender moan.

Seeing this, the other Ibrahimovic immediately objected.

They jumped onto him one by one.

Not long after.

Xia Yan was covered in Eevee beads.

Xia Yan was also helpless about this.

Eevee's clinginess was the most exaggerated he had ever seen among all the Pokémon.

No wonder so many rich young ladies like to keep an Eevee as a pet.

After a while, Xia Yan finally managed to "get rid" of the little guys.

But after their antics, Xia Yan, who had been struggling to pinpoint the flaw in his thoughts, suddenly realized what was going on.

"The Duckbill Flame Beast evolved through normal means, so the prototype of the 'Magma Amplifier' should already exist. If I'm not mistaken, the 'she' that Baird mentioned should be Tomruchi. So, shouldn't the 'Electric Amplifier,' which should have appeared along with the 'Magma Amplifier,' be close to being completed as well?"

Thinking of this, Xia Yan slowly sat up straight.

Tap, tap, tap...

The fingers continued to tap on the table.

"The 'Power Amplifier' allows Electabuzz to evolve into Electivire, which, as the most powerful Electric-type Pokémon in terms of physical attack, is a great way to make up for its weaknesses..."

Most Electric-type Pokémon are actually better at special attacks, while relatively few are better at physical attacks.

Of course, there are exceptions, such as Luxray, which excels at physical attacks.

However, the X-Rayet cat's speed is a major weakness.

"The Rockets gained the gene, Tom Ruch gained the 'power amplifier,' and although Baird was the one being used, he still bought enough time."

Xia Yan didn't know if his guess was correct.

But he felt that this explanation was reasonable.

A long time passed.

He finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone's trying to get stronger.

"What method?"

suddenly.

Xia Yan's familiar voice suddenly rang out in his study.

Upon hearing the sound, Xia Yan slowly stood up, a hint of helplessness on his face.

"Teacher... there's a chance..."

Looking at Kikuko, who had suddenly appeared on the sofa in front of the desk, Natsuhiko chuckled awkwardly.

Kikuko raised her eyelids slightly, indicating that she understood.

"Teacher, what brings you here?" Xia Yan asked.

"I've come to confirm something with you." Kikuko casually picked up a pastry from the coffee table.

"matter?"

"Is that old man Ryuichi Hoshino's grandson related to you?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Yan was taken aback.

Why did you suddenly bring this up?

But soon.

Xia Yan realized what was happening.

Was he in charge of the Yankushan incident?

Xia Yan remembered that before leaving, he cleaned up the scene thoroughly, leaving no trace.

Kikuko glanced at him and said leisurely, "What? You think that just because you cleaned up the evidence, a veteran superstar won't be able to tell anything?"

Xia Yan grinned.

"Teacher, what are you saying? How could that be? What could be the relationship between me and Hoshino Ryuichi's grandson? I only cleaned up the traces because I didn't want to reveal some information about my Hunter identity."

This is something that's hard to talk about openly, at least not by Xia Yan himself. Otherwise, even if he's in the right, what's the value of his reasoning?

"Heh—" Kikuko chuckled softly, "Not bad."

"Ok?"

Kikuko slowly stood up, leaning on her cane. "From now on, no matter who asks you this kind of question, just say it this way."

“Uh…” Xia Yan opened his mouth.

So, teacher, you also believe that I did it?

Xia Yan didn't say it aloud, but he felt it was pretty much the truth.

“He already suspects you,” Kikuko said.

Xia Yan, on the other hand, was quite frank.

He nodded.

Suspect?

Hasn't he already suspected many people?

The fact that they came uninvited to watch the "Lily of the Valley Youth Competition" is the best proof of this.

They just couldn't pinpoint anyone.

But Xia Yan and Du's survival in the harsh mountain has caught his attention.

They didn't say they were certain it was Xia Yan.

At least in his mind, Xia Yan's importance had surpassed that of others, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the number one suspect.

As for crossing?

hehe--

"Don't worry, he won't dare to do anything to you personally. If he dares to come after you, I dare to go after him." Kikuko patted Natsuhiko's arm reassuringly.

This is probably the support I received from my teacher.

Xia Yan was somewhat touched.

“But if he sends someone to test you, then it’s up to you,” Kikuko added.

Xia Yan: "..."

He withdrew his earlier emotion.

Although Kikuko looks down on Hoshino Ryuichi, it is undeniable that he has accumulated a wealth of experience and knowledge that most of the other Four Heavenly Kings do not possess, having held that position for so long.

In terms of personal connections alone, probably no one in the entire Sinnoh region can compare to him.

"Don't worry too much. I gave him a warning today. He won't dare to do anything to you in the short term. Just focus on improving yourself."

"No matter what, you're the Gym Leader of Sinnoh. He doesn't have solid evidence to cause you trouble. Just tell the League about this and see what they do."

Xia Yan is the dojo master.

If an Elite Four member attacks a Gym Leader without any evidence, what will the other Gym Leaders in the Sinnoh region think?

and so.

On the surface, he doesn't need to worry.

At least it's safe inside the dojo.

That's all.

Kikuko walked slowly toward the door.

"By the way, I have some news for you. The Hunter's Guild has investigated your identity quite a bit, but they haven't found anything. However, this is good news, which means that you have attracted enough attention."

Kikuko's figure slowly disappeared into the dark corridor.

Xia Yan sat back in his chair.

Since Kikuko said that Hoshino Ryuichi wouldn't dare to cause trouble for him personally, Natsuhiko wasn't really worried.

It's impossible for someone at the level of a museum owner to test me.

A near-King level player is coming...

Xia Yan glanced at the blank space beside him.