Grace didn't press the matter any further.
After all, he had already said it was his secret—continuing to ask would only be impolite.
"Hey… you're the only one from the regular class who made it into the Training Camp, right?"
Grace looked at Aaron again, clearly recognizing him now.
"Yes," Aaron replied with a shrug.
"Hello. My name is Grace. I don't know your name yet, but thank you for saving me…"
She greeted him formally, her beautiful, wide eyes fixed on his face, as if trying to see what made him different.
"Hi, Grace. I'm Aaron. You don't need to be so polite. I just… you know—saw an injustice and couldn't stay quiet. 'Beast, let go of that girl!' and all that. That's all," Aaron said with a grin.
"Pfft—"
Grace couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.
"I really couldn't tell you were this humorous," she said, rolling her eyes.
"And I really couldn't tell you could smile," Aaron replied, unable to help himself as he looked at the stunning face in front of him.
Back at the academy, Grace always wore an icy expression. This was the first time Aaron had ever seen her smile, and it genuinely caught him off guard.
"Am I not human?"
"Am I not allowed to smile?"
Grace rolled her eyes even harder at his comment.
"OK, OK…"
Aaron looked at her helplessly. What was with this girl and her obsession with rolling her eyes?
What a cold-hearted girl…
"Beep—beep—beep—"
Just then, both of their student watches sounded an alarm, signaling that the Training Zone time had ended. It was time to leave.
"It's already over?" Aaron asked, slightly stunned.
"What did you expect? Let's go back," Grace said as she silenced the alarm and took the lead.
Left with no choice, Aaron reluctantly gave up on continuing to loot valuable resources and followed after her.
...
What the two of them didn't know was that Sterling and the others—who had watched Snorlax one-shot Onix from start to finish—had once again fallen into deep existential doubt.
The group sat in the monitoring room, unable to speak for a long time.
That night, the room fell into silence.
Why did Snorlax suddenly turn Shiny!?
Why did Snorlax suddenly grow long arms!?
What skill had Snorlax even used!?
...
Question after question raced through their minds, tormenting them endlessly.
"Old Principal… could you explain this to us?" the school leaders asked softly, their faces full of hope as they looked toward Sterling.
Sterling rubbed his thinning hair when a flash of realization crossed his eyes. He spoke excitedly,
"I know now… finally understand…"
The other administrators froze, then hurriedly asked,
"Old Principal, what do you understand?"
"Quick, tell us!"
"Yes, hurry up and say it!"
Sterling stared at Aaron's handsome figure on the screen and said with excitement,
"Aaron must have awakened a superpower!!"
The moment the words left his mouth, the others were stunned.
"Superpowers!?"
"Hiss—"
Everyone sucked in a sharp breath, their eyes filled with shock.
In this world, humans could indeed awaken superpowers—but the odds were so low they were downright discouraging.
Out of a hundred million people, perhaps only one lucky individual would awaken one.
But anyone who did awaken a superpower possessed astonishing potential.
Once fully developed, they would become top-tier human powerhouses.
Take, for example, one of the Ten Great Champions of the Hualis Region—the Psychic Champion Lilith.
She awakened psychic powers.
Not only could she rival Pokémon with her human body, she could also use her psychic abilities to assist, dramatically enhancing their combat capabilities.
Or take our ChampionTrainer of the Hualis Region, Drake.
He awakened the superpower Dragon Affinity.
Not only did he possess a natural affinity with Dragon-type Pokémon, he could also amplify their strength.
Born into the prestigious family—a legendary Dragon Pokémon lineage—and blessed with an awakened superpower, Drake's life was practically a cheat code.
At twenty-two, he became an Elite Four candidate.
At twenty-five, he rose to become the Dragon King among the Ten Great Champions.
At twenty-eight, he claimed the Champion's throne, becoming one of the strongest Trainers in the Hualis Region.
Drake's entire life was the stuff of legend.
Aaron had even wondered before whether this guy might be a transmigrator too—another player running cheats.
But back to the point…
Anyone who awakened a superpower was destined to become a top-tier powerhouse.
And judging from Aaron's superpower, it was clearly extraordinary—capable of massively boosting Pokémon strength and even causing Snorlax's body to mutate.
One look was enough to tell this was no ordinary ability.
System: "At least you lot have good judgment…"
...
As the administrators recalled everything Aaron had done, a light bulb went off in their minds.
"That's it, that's it—this is the only explanation! Nothing else can account for something this outrageous!"
"Good grief… is Sealine Trainer Academy really about to rise!?"
"Can you believe this? Could we actually teach a top College Entrance Exam scorer before we retire!?"
"Superpowers! Hahaha! In all my years of teaching, this is the first student I've ever seen who's awakened superpowers!"
"Exactly… this is our lucky break—and Sealine Trainer Academy's as well!"
...
The monitoring room was filled with excitement, faces glowing with joy, as if they were already seeing Sealine Trainer Academy rise to prominence.
"Calm down, calm down…"
Sterling suppressed his excitement, stroked his beard, and forced himself to speak calmly despite his slightly trembling voice.
"Call Aaron over later. We'll know the truth once we ask him."