[Pokémon: Beedrill (Simulated)]
[Ability: Forewarn]
[Gender: Male]
[Talent: ???]
[Level: 13]
[Moves: Poison Sting, Fury Attack, String Shot, Fury Cutter, Quick Attack]
[Description: An energy construct created through illusion and Metagross-level computation. Data has no real-world reference value.]
"Charmander. Let's go."
The fire in Charmander's eyes was unmistakable.
It had been waiting for something like this.
"Char!"
Its blood boiled. Its tail flame flared brighter.
Across from them, the Beedrill buzzed violently.
White light flashed along its twin lances.
Fury Cutter.
A move that grew stronger with each consecutive hit.
"Fire Punch. Test its edge."
Flames ignited around Charmander's claws.
Beedrill stood nearly 1.5 meters tall. Its blades gleamed—
And then—
Clashed head-on with a flaming fist.
Fury Cutter only grew dangerous if it could chain strikes.
But this time—
There was no second strike.
Charmander's gaze remained steady.
Its tail flame roared higher.
"Char!"
With a powerful twist, it flung the Beedrill aside and slammed it into the ground.
"Nice! Don't give it room—Ember!"
Lin Yu pressed the advantage instantly.
The "Ember" that left Charmander's mouth could hardly be called an ember anymore.
Fist-sized fire droplets rained down like meteors.
The simulated Beedrill dissolved into light—
Flowing into Lin Yu's wrist score display.
Virtual opponent.
No need to hold back.
Level 13 Beedrill.
500 points.
His ranking shot up to 4th place.
Then quickly dropped to 5th.
Lin Yu's eyes narrowed.
As expected—
There were monsters in this school.
Even 500 points wasn't enough to hold top position.
Freshmen weren't weak.
"Charmander, no slacking."
"Char!"
Victory still pulsed through it, but at Lin Yu's words, it pumped its fists eagerly.
The Rosemary Incense effect was still active.
No time to waste.
More importantly—
Now that he'd used it once, he'd memorized the composition.
With [Side Profession Expert], he could recreate it himself.
On the way here, he had already collected several of the necessary herbs.
No one else had noticed.
Monitoring Room
Hundreds of screens flickered simultaneously.
Whenever a battle occurred, the display auto-zoomed.
Grade One homeroom teachers, selected Grade Two and Three mentors, and staff monitors filled the room.
Qin Feng had just entered when commentary filled the air.
"Not bad. Qing Fei's Growlithe has clearly trained that Fire Fang for a long time."
"That Squirtle's Water Gun accuracy is impressive."
"Scyther's early-game advantage is insane."
"Oh, Qin, you're here. That Dratini in your class? She's treating this like a walk in the park."
"Probably not interested in the school rewards," Qin Feng sighed.
On-screen—
Ye Qingxue leaned casually against a tree.
Dratini hovered beside her.
Any simulated Pokémon that approached—
One Dragon Rage.
Erased.
She wasn't even actively hunting.
Meanwhile—
"Wait—what?! That Beedrill didn't even fight back. Which class is that?"
Luo Xing leaned forward.
This year's virtual Pokémon were tougher than previous years.
Modeled after real wild behavior.
More aggressive.
More experienced.
Over a dozen students had already withdrawn.
"550 points? He just entered, didn't he? Replay it."
They watched the footage.
"Standard-tier… that Fury Cutter user was already solid."
"Fire Punch?"
"So decisive. Fire Punch blocked Fury Cutter outright and even launched it."
"That Charmander's at least Standard-tier."
"Look at the muscle definition. The execution."
"This one's special."
Then someone asked—
"Which class?"
"Class Three! Who's the homeroom teacher for Grade One, Class Three?"
Qin Feng froze.
A spark of blind-box excitement ignited in her chest.
Could it be—
"Me. I'm Class Three."
"You've got something cooking over there," someone remarked. "Dratini and now this Charmander?"
She stepped forward.
The teachers parted slightly.
The student profile appeared.
Lin Yu.
Her student.
But just as pride began to bloom—
Another teacher sighed.
"Unfortunate. He pushed too deep. Spearow flock."
On screen—
Charmander and Lin Yu, fresh off defeating Beedrill—
Had run straight into a group of Spearow.
Qin Feng's heart tightened.
She remembered this student.
One of the last to obtain a Pokémon.
And because of that Charmander.
She had paid attention.
On-screen—
Instead of immediately retreating—
Lin Yu calmly took something out.
"Is he… feeding it an energy cube right now?"
The room fell briefly silent.