[Iono: Ciao-llo～(∠ω<)⌒★. You should feel honored to be added as a friend by Iono-sama~]
???
After receiving Iono's message, Aiden was utterly baffled.
He had always assumed that Iono's quirky style was just an act for her streams, but could it be that she was actually like this in real life too?
There were so many points to critique that he didn't even know where to start.
However, judging from her cheerful tone, at least she hadn't added him out of anger over their game battle.
Drawing from his past-life experience as a mischievous streamer, Aiden instinctively assumed the worst when he received the friend request.
As a content creator known for trolling in gaming streams, Aiden's gaming career could be summed up in one word:
Scummy. (Ragebait)
After all, he needed to make a living, and without some entertaining antics, how could he keep his audience engaged?
Setting Pokémon battles aside, even when streaming other games, he adopted the same approach.
His first Hearthstone deck was the infamous Dirty Priest, in Yu-Gi-Oh! he only played with the Runick archetype, and in FPS games, he was always the camper hiding in obscure spots.
Of course, while this style of play was fun, it came with risks.
If he encountered a short-tempered player, they might escalate things after adding him as a friend, leading to a full-on war of words.
Fortunately, the people of the Pokémon world were kind-hearted, and he hadn't even come close to using his full repertoire—so far, no problems.
[Aiden: Hello, Miss Iono.]
After politely replying, Aiden glanced at the time.
It was 1:00 PM—likely Iono had just woken up.
No wonder streamers had such erratic schedules.
[Iono: We're both Gym Leaders, no need to be so formal! Just call me Iono, and I'll call you Aiden!]
[Iono: Of course, if you want to call me Senior Iono, that's fine too~]
Senior?
Was he hallucinating? When did he and Iono become so familiar?
Aiden scratched his head, momentarily confused.
Still, Iono didn't seem to have any malicious intent, but surely she hadn't added him just to chat…
For now, he decided to go along with her.
[Aiden: Alright, Senior Iono.]
[Iono: Great!]
[Iono: Since you're calling me Senior, let me, as your senior, give you some proper guidance on running a Gym!]
[Iono: Though I hate to say it, your Gym management skills are way worse than your streaming abilities!]
"…"
Aiden wanted to argue, but upon reflection, he realized Iono was absolutely right.
After all, the Sunshine Gym had been closed for six months until he inherited this mess just two days ago after being reincarnated.
So, was Iono planning to mentor him and share how she ran her Gym?
But they had never met before—their only interaction was yesterday's game battle…
This Pokémon world really was too friendly, wasn't it?
Was it true that random NPCs would give away items or rare Pokémon?!
Aiden felt a small shock from the Pokémon world's overwhelming kindness.
However, given his plans for the Gym, the Levinvia Gym was indeed the best reference point.
If there were ways to quickly boost the Gym's popularity, the Sunshine Gym could get on track faster, and Eevee could even achieve travel freedom.
So—
[Aiden: Please guide me, Senior Iono!]
[Aiden: I'm eager to improve!]
…
"So that's how it is, I'm gradually understanding everything."
After chatting with Iono on the Navigator for a while, Aiden felt like he had learned a lot.
Though they were about the same age, Iono was clearly a professional. The Levinvia Gym she inherited from her parents already had a well-established operational model.
With Iono's reminder, he quickly noticed a flaw he had overlooked.
Simply put, while Aiden's popularity on PokéTV was high, since his first two tactics lacked regional characteristics, most of his viewers were from other regions.
And those viewers weren't going to travel long distances to challenge his Gym.
That explained why his streaming popularity remained high, but the growth points earned were pitifully low.
The principle was simple, but without Iono pointing it out, he would never have realized such an obvious reason…
[Aiden: So, should I include more Paldean Pokémon?]
[Iono: Bingo!]
[Iono: Instead of teaching systematic tactics, it's better to focus on one or two Paldean Pokémon!]
Iono offered her advice once again.
Aiden thought it made perfect sense.
After all, almost all the Trainers who would challenge his Gym were beginners—it was unrealistic to expect them to build a cohesive team.
Instead, focusing on introducing common Paldean Pokémon directly would be more effective.
Not only would it boost the Sunshine Gym's local popularity and influence, but it also aligned with his vision for the Gym's development, attracting more challengers.
No wonder she was the future super-popular blogger, Paldea's one-and-only adorable force—Iono was truly reliable!
[Aiden: Thank you so much for your advice, Senior Iono. I think I understand what to do now.]
[Iono: Hehe, of course a reliable senior like me is amazing~]
[Iono: But there's one issue—how familiar are you with Paldean Pokémon?]
While this path looked promising, there was a prerequisite—
Aiden needed to have a clear understanding of most Paldean Pokémon's roles, which was quite demanding for an 18-year-old.
[Aiden: Hmm… I think it should be enough?]
Aiden reflected briefly. While he mostly played doubles in his past life, he was fairly familiar with the Pokémon introduced in Scarlet and Violet.
When it came to the most common Pokémon in each region, it was usually the starter bird or rodent, right?
And speaking of Paldea's starter rodent, it was quite something…
It even tied back to his previous video on spike-setting.
With that in mind, Aiden immediately decided on the content for tonight's stream.
After chatting a bit more with Iono, Aiden swiped the screen and returned to the Navigator homepage.
Glancing at it, Cynthia still hadn't replied to his earlier message.
"Being a Champion must keep her pretty busy, huh?"
Aiden didn't dwell on it, setting his phone aside and stretching lazily.
League Champions and Elite Four members weren't ordinary people.
They might seem idle day-to-day, but when crises arose, they were the ones who had to step up.
Especially in disaster-prone Hoenn—even the workaholic Steven had 'died' from overwork, disappearing for long periods of time.
As for the Elite Four… just look at Paldea's hardworking Larry. Even Paradox Pokémon would commend his dedication.
Aside from a certain 9-year-old Elite Four member, the rest held multiple responsibilities.
"Seems even wanting to progress too much isn't a good thing—it's better to stay a small Gym Leader and live freely."
Aiden shook his head.
"I should prepare for tonight's stream."
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