Regardless of whether Celebi appeared or not, Kalia was determined to attend the floral conference. If she could catch a glimpse of Celebi, it would be fantastic; after all, legendary Pokémon sightings were rare and offered valuable experiences.
Not seeing Celebi wouldn't be a loss for her, as her primary interest lay in observing various flora.
"Whether it appears or not, let's go together tomorrow," Kalia suggested. Having company at the event seemed preferable to attending alone.
"Sounds good! Would you like to have a Pokémon battle so I can gauge your current strength?" Julian nodded and proposed.
Kalia glanced around at the other Trainers, mostly beginners, then shook her head, "No thanks."
As a mid-level Trainer, capable of even challenging top-tier mid-level Trainers, engaging in battles at Rhine City's Pokémon Center felt somewhat unfair to these beginner Trainers.
It reminded her of how high-level trainers might dominate Totem City's Pokémon Center battles. In Totem City, Kalia had never encountered any high-level trainers, only those at her level.
The disparity between high and low-level Trainers was significant; Kalia's single Sceptile could likely defeat all three Pokémon of a beginner Trainer, let alone considering her Charizard.
"You're right, you've already reached mid-level Trainer status," Julian acknowledged. Although Rhine City occasionally saw mid-level Trainers, they typically did not participate in local battles.
Feeling somewhat disheartened, Julian had been diligently training his Pokémon but had just earned his fifth badge. After spending more time in Rhine City, he planned to head towards Rockcliff City.
In Rockcliff City, he would need extensive training before attempting to challenge its gym, as it represented the sixth badge—the strongest Silver Rank gym with a formidable Gym Leader.
Adding to his concerns was the upcoming mid-level assessment, which overwhelmed him. The beginner assessment nearly took half his life, and facing an even more challenging mid-level assessment left Julian uncertain about how to succeed.
Julian feared it might require multiple assessments, potentially taking over a year to become a mid-level Trainer. After that, there were still two five-star gyms and the advanced level assessment, followed by the League Competition.
With these thoughts, Julian glanced at Kalia. She was already a mid-level Trainer and likely just steps away from challenging all remaining gyms. It seemed plausible for her to become a high-level Trainer next year.
The gap between them was widening significantly, but Julian could only strive to catch up, knowing fully well it might be nearly impossible, yet having a goal to aim for.
"Keep pushing yourself," Kalia encouraged him. "Once you become a mid-level Trainer, you'll be able to accept League missions and earn money."
For most Trainers, the biggest challenge is often financial constraints, limiting their ability to purchase quality Pokemon food and nutrient-rich drinks that enhance potential growth. However, with Alliance Coins, many aspects can improve dramatically.
Typically, ordinary trainers experience a significant boost in their Pokemon's strength after becoming mid-level trainers. Prior to this stage, economic limitations hindered optimal development of their Pokemon.
After becoming a mid-level Trainer, with sufficient strength, one can undertake League missions for rewards. Utilizing these Alliance Coins to improve conditions, the Pokemon's potential gradually emerges, leading to rapid growth and advancement.
Although beginner Trainers can also accept missions, most people lack confidence in their abilities, resulting in fewer opportunities and generally lower compensation.
The limited power of beginner Trainers often exposes them to risks, and without access to Flying-type Pokemon, they must rely on conventional transportation, which frequently incurs costs exceeding the mission rewards, making it impractical.
Hence, typical Trainers acquire a Flying-type Pokemon as their mode of transport. Ideally, if their primary battling Pokemon is already a Flying-type, it serves dual purposes: ensuring swift travel while minimizing aerial dangers due to its formidable strength.
Kalia agreed to meet up tomorrow for the floral conference, then returned to the Pokemon Hotel, planning to do some reading.
***
Late at night, Lian entered the system space.
Today's combat rating was particularly special because it involved battling Genesects. With the new system feature, as legendary Pokémon, there would be a multiplier bonus for the scores. If fortunate, this could result in significantly higher Combat Points compared to typical battles.
Lian eagerly checked today's combat ratings and was momentarily stunned, then completely astonished!
Instead of calculating the score based on just one Genesect, the system had evaluated all fifty-four Genesects' combat performances.
"This, this..." Lian was rendered speechless, his mind racing with thoughts. After pondering, he began to understand the reason behind it.
Although these Genesects did not have official Trainers, they obeyed Kentra's commands, effectively making them Kentra's Pokémon.
There is no strict limit on how many Pokémon a Trainer can own; however, managing too many Pokémon becomes challenging. Many Trainers, who primarily enjoy capturing Pokémon, often neglect their captured creatures after obtaining them.
During one conversation, Kalia mentioned that the League has issued warnings: Trainers have a responsibility to care for every Pokémon they capture. If unable or unwilling to provide proper care, they must bring the Pokémon to a Pokémon Center, where League personnel will release them responsibly.
This limitation restricts the number of Pokémon Trainers can capture, as capturing too many without proper care is against the Pokemon League's laws and subject to penalties.
In Kentra's case, it's somewhat ambiguous. Genesect undoubtedly requires sustenance, but since Kentra is the guild master of the Dark Guild, he does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Pokemon League and thus isn't bound by their regulations.
However, Lian suspects that if Kentra consistently fails to feed his ninety-plus Genesects, regardless of legal consequences, they might eventually seek food on their own and no longer obey his commands.
It should be noted that these Genesects were never captured using Poké Balls, which could potentially indicate a system bug.
The system likely recognized all Genesects as belonging to Kentra, thereby judging Lian's battle not just against one individual Pokémon but against all the Pokémon owned by a Trainer.
As a result, this led to a massive bug in Lian's combat rating calculation. The system counted every defeated Genesect during the battle, causing his combat rating to skyrocket to unprecedented heights.