"If possible... I'd like to battle you, too."
A boy stood before Gabriel. he remembered this one quite clearly—after all, this was the first boy had ever made cry in a battle.
Wait a minute... wasn't this King? Yeah, it was. Back when Gabriel defeated him, that old man Roland came straight to him afterward. At the time, he thought he was out for revenge on behalf of his grandson.
Looks like meeting King here wasn't a coincidence after all. Maybe this "guide" the headmaster told him to wait for... was him.
"Let's hold off on battling for now," Gabriel said. "I just enrolled and have a lot to sort out. Once I'm settled in, we can battle then."
James, standing off to the side, took it well. He sighed a little in disappointment but nodded, accepting his reasoning. King also gave a small nod.
"In that case, let me give you two a tour of Jin Capital Academy. Headmaster Lester assigned me this task personally."
And with that, King began leading Gabriel and James around what would be their new campus for the next four years.
"By the way," he asked casually, "which Department are you both thinking of choosing?"
"…?"
Gabriel blinked in confusion, but James didn't miss a beat.
"Of course, I'm joining the Battle Department. That's why I came here—to train in battle."
When King turned his gaze toward Gabriel, the latter scratched his head sheepishly.
"I… uh… don't actually know anything about that."
"You're kidding, right?" James said, exasperated. "You're already here, and you haven't even looked into the departments?"
Gabriel rubbed his neck, feeling a little awkward now. King could only shake his head with a helpless smile before starting his explanation.
"All academies across the country are focused on training Pokémon professionals. But to cultivate diverse talent, we divide students into different departments."
"There are three main ones—Battle, Breeding, and Research."
James continued the explanation for Gabriel's benefit.
"I'm going into the Battle Department. Most people like us, who entered through the Pokémon Trainer Recruitment Program, end up here. It's rare for us to go into Breeding."
"What about the Research Department?" Gabriel asked curiously.
King looked surprised.
"Don't tell me you're planning to join Research."
"Me? No, no, I was just asking."
King visibly relaxed.
"Good. If my grandfather found out I steered you toward Research, he'd kill me."
"The Research Department is... well, different. There are three ways to get into the academy. One is through Trainer Recruitment—like us. The second is through the Academy Entrance Exam. And the third… well, it's special admission, reserved for exceptional talents."
he pointed to his self, Gabriel and James.
"We're all in the first category. Trainer recruits almost always go to Battle. A few join Breeding, but hardly any go into Research. The people who join Research are usually those who got in through the exam. As for special admissions? I've never seen that happen—it's extremely rare."
"Breeding is still somewhat related to what we do—after all, raising and bonding with Pokémon is something we're good at. But Research… the stuff they study is way outside what we usually deal with."
King went on to explain the distinctions between the departments in more detail. After listening, Gabriel had a better understanding—and it seemed clear that the Battle Department was the best fit for him.
"Yeah… I'll go with the Battle Department."
"Nice! Who knows, maybe we'll end up in the same class," James said, throwing an arm around his shoulder with practiced familiarity.
"That would be awesome," King added with a smile. "We'd get to battle each other all the time."
So that's what this is about, huh? No wonder they've been so friendly. Turns out they just want to fight me!
Here I thought we were becoming friends—but you two just want to take a swing at me?!
Oh well. We haven't been assigned to classes yet. Maybe I won't even run into them once the semester starts.
After the conversation ended, King continued the tour seriously. he even helped Gabriel and James pick up their dorm essentials and personal supplies. His enthusiasm made Gabriel feel a little flustered. This kind of warm reception was something he'd only ever seen male university volunteers give to freshmen during orientation.
And now… someone was doing it for him. he couldn't help but feel a bit spoiled.
Thanks to King's help, Gabriel got his room in order pretty quickly. As a small token of appreciation, he bought him a drink from the nearby shop and handed it over.
"Thanks, King. I really couldn't have done this without you. If you ever need help with anything, just say the word—I owe you."
King's eyes lit up.
"You mean it?"
There was something about the way she said it that set off alarm bells in Gabriel's head. Still, he couldn't exactly take back his words.
"…I mean it."
"Then… will you battle me?"
Aha! So he hadn't let that go!
"Now? Are you sure? You've been busy helping us all day."
"I'm fine! Really! Let's go to the battle chamber. The academy has dedicated battle rooms just for this."
And sure enough, James looked just as eager—he just hadn't gotten the chance to ask first.
Well… guess there's no escaping this. But part of Gabriel wanted to test out his latest training anyway.
When he agreed, King lit up and led the way enthusiastically toward the academy's battle chambers.
The facility was impressive—far better than the battlefield used during the Trainer Licensing Exams—but what stood out the most was the customizable terrain system.
"What kind of terrain do you want?" King asked, clearly familiar with the setup.
Gabriel thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"Doesn't matter. Let's go with random."
King nodded, and moments later, a rocky field rose from the floor. Rock Terrain.
he tossed out his Pokémon—a familiar figure: Abra (Casey).
"You know my Beast (Pokémon) already—Abra. No need for introductions."
Gabriel nodded and threw out his own PokéBall. The Pokémon that appeared was holding a large leek in its wings—none other than Farfetch'd.
"This is Kaka, my Farfetch'd. Just caught him recently. He'll be your opponent."
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ps: Only Gabriel called the Pokémon-a Pokémon, but other character called their Pokémon- a Beast. so in Gabriel's POV he called Pokémon-a Pokémon.
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