"What did you say?"
Misty took a step forward, her beautiful eyes wide with indignation.
"I'm not elegant? Also, is 'haughty' a compliment? From your tone, it's as if you think it's a pity I don't have that kind of temperament!"
She stood with her hands on her hips, looking aggressive.
"What are those so-called young misses in your Institute like? Tell me!"
Joe was startled by her sudden outburst of anger, and his neck instinctively shrank back.
But as if to prove he wasn't lying, he began fumbling around his person in a fluster.
Soon, he carefully pulled out a photo from an inner pocket of his school uniform. It was well-preserved and flat, though the edges were clearly clipped from something else.
He held the photo in both hands and presented it to Misty, his voice carrying a strange mix of admiration and humility.
"Here, it's her... Giselle, the genius of our Institute's new generation. She's been the top of her grade for two consecutive years and is also the head leader of our 'whip of love' special training."
The photo featured a young girl.
The background appeared to be the Institute's grand auditorium. She wore a perfectly tailored, high-quality Pokémon Technical Institute custom gown in deep blue with gold piping, and a shining top student badge was pinned to her chest.
The girl had long, sexy burgundy hair that reached down to her waist.
Her features were indeed beautiful, possessing a refined look that blended superiority with detachment. Her chin was slightly raised, her eyes looked calmly at the camera, and her lips held a perfect smile that seemed mathematically calculated.
Her entire being exuded a high-and-mighty aura steeped in wealth and strict upbringing.
Misty leaned in to look at the photo, her eyes narrowing instantly. She instinctively took half a step back, shrinking toward Roy's side, her face full of disdain and disbelief.
"You... why do you carry around a photo of a girl who bullies people? And it's clipped from a magazine!"
"You're not a pervert, are you?"
"N-No!" Joe hurriedly explained, his face turning bright red. "She's beautiful and strong! I just... I just use her as a goal to motivate myself!"
As if seeking validation, he turned the photo toward Roy and Delia, asking weakly:
"Don't... don't you think she really has a lot of class?"
Delia smiled gently but didn't answer directly.
Roy merely glanced casually at the photo and nodded, speaking the plain truth.
"Yeah, just looking at the photo, her temperament and appearance are indeed quite good."
As soon as he said that...
Misty's brow furrowed immediately, her small mouth pouting unconsciously. Her beautiful eyes, filled with intense dissatisfaction and accusation, stared straight at Roy.
In her heart, she was already frantically taking notes in her little ledger:
Roy! You big pervert! You can't even walk when you see a pretty girl! No vision! No taste! Hmph!!!
The observant Delia noticed Misty's almost tangible expression of resentment. She quickly stepped forward, gently putting an arm around Misty's shoulder and patting her softly, soothing her with a look that signaled her not to be angry.
Roy seemed not to feel the "murderous intent" emanating from his side. His gaze fell back on Joe, and he continued to guide him in that flat yet piercing tone.
"She's a truly noble young miss with immense family wealth. You're using her as a goal to motivate yourself?"
"Are you trying to work your parents to death?"
"N-No!" Joe waved his hands frantically, explaining, "I'm not trying to pursue her! I know that's impossible..."
"I just use her excellence and her achievements as a goal to motivate myself to work hard, graduate from the advanced course successfully, and then participate in the League Conference."
"Oh?" Roy raised an eyebrow, his face showing more obvious surprise.
"That's even more ridiculous. For her, from the beginner to the advanced level, the full curriculum, top-tier resources, private tutoring... all the costs are probably just a drop in the bucket for her family."
"How long have you been studying?"
"O-One and a half years..." Joe's voice dropped.
"One and a half years," Roy nodded. "One and a half years of the beginner course. I'm guessing it's already drained more than half of your family's savings?"
Joe's body shuddered violently, and his head hung even lower.
"And that's just the beginner level," Roy said, mercilessly exposing the bloody comparison.
"In these one and a half years, if you had been cultivating in the wild and learning actual combat from Gyms, you could have probably collected two badges by now."
Joe was silent for a moment, his fingers tightly clutching the hem of his clothes. He whispered a defense as if reciting a dogma:
"My parents said... cultivating in the wild is very dangerous, and I might get hurt."
"And the teachers at the Institute told us that the Training Faction just wanders around aimlessly without a systematic study plan. They can't develop solid basic combat techniques at all. That way... there's no future."
"Your teacher is full of sh—" Misty almost shouted the profanity in her excitement.
But as the words reached her lips, she suddenly remembered Roy's comment about Giselle having "good temperament." A surge of emotion—unclear if it was spite or competitiveness—welled up.
She forced herself to swallow the word, took a deep breath, and changed her tune:
"Your teacher is talking nonsense!"
"The Training Faction has richer experiences and can learn many things not found in books! Combat adaptability, managing a Pokemon's condition, utilizing different terrains... that is true battle!"
"I'm a living example!"
Misty grew more excited as she spoke:
"Back at home, my sisters were afraid I'd suffer, so they showed me many Pokemon battle explanation videos from your noble academies. They're stiff, unchanging, just like reciting a textbook!"
"But how long have I been out cultivating? The battles I've experienced, the Pokemon I've seen, and the things I've learned are far more than what I got from watching those crappy videos for years at home!"
"I've clearly become much stronger now!"
Joe was intimidated by her momentum, but he still couldn't help but argue softly, "I... I've also become much stronger. In the Institute's simulated battle system, I've... I've already beaten the Cerulean Gym many times."
"What simulated battle?" Misty caught the phrase, her beautiful eyebrows immediately shooting up.
She questioned him defiantly, her face written with 'don't you dare bluff me.'
"It's true!" Joe seemed to have found a way to prove himself, and his eyes lit up.
"Right in the Institute's battle classroom! There's a very advanced system in there that has recorded public battle data from many Gyms. I can demonstrate it for you!"
Seeing how certain he was, Misty became even more eager.
"Fine! Lead the way! I want to see today how your simulation system 'beats' our Cerulean Gym!"
...The interior of the Pokémon Technical Institute was indeed worthy of its name and tuition fees.
After passing through well-manicured courtyards and several teaching buildings that looked expensive to build, Joe led Roy's group of three to a standalone, high-tech building.
The interior of the battle room was immense, divided into several standard battlefields, while the perimeter was lined with many computers and simulation devices that looked quite advanced.
Joe walked familiarly to a computer, turned it on, and logged into his student account.
A complex interface soon appeared on the screen.
"Look, this is the 'True Gym Simulation Challenge System' developed by the Institute. It contains years of public battle data, common Pokemon, and tactical tendencies for all official Gyms in the Kanto region, and it optimizes simulations based on algorithms."
Joe introduced the system while operating it, a trace of subtle pride in his tone.
He quickly selected the "Cerulean Gym" option, set the difficulty to "Beginner," and then started the simulated battle.
On the screen, in the virtual Cerulean Gym arena, the virtual character representing the Gym Leader sent out a Goldeen.
Joe operated his own virtual character and sent out a Weepinbell.
The following battle was a textbook example of type-advantage play.
The Weepinbell avoided the Goldeen's Water Gun, used Vine Whip to restrict it, then Poison Powder to paralyze it, and finished it off with Razor Leaf.
The entire process was smooth and standard, almost perfectly replicating the optimal solutions on the Pokemon type-effectiveness chart.
"See, I won." Joe pointed at the "Victory" icon on the screen and looked at Misty with an expression that said, "See, I wasn't lying."
Misty crossed her arms and looked at the screen, curling her lip.
"Tch, data is dead, reality is alive."
"What's there to be proud of in beating a bunch of cold data?"
Becoming more defiant as she spoke, she walked directly to an empty battle arena nearby.
"Come, come, no more virtual stuff. Let's have a real battle. Let me see how much weight you 'Academic Faction Elite' who has 'beaten the Cerulean Gym many times' actually carries."
Joe looked at the eager Misty, hesitated for a moment, but eventually plucked up his courage and walked to the other side of the battlefield.
"Then... then please guide me, Miss Misty."
"Battle start!" Misty acted as her own referee, her voice crisp.
"Go, Starmie!" Without any hesitation, Misty threw out her strongest combatant.
Seeing the Starmie, the knowledge Joe had learned in class raced through his mind:
"Starmie, Water-type plus Psychic-type... This is currently a land arena, so Water-type moves are weakened. Its Special Attack is high, but its Physical Defense is relatively average..."
"I have a Grass-type Pokemon with strong water resistance... According to type advantages and arena analysis, my chances of winning are very high!"
A look of "I have seen through everything" appeared on his face as he confidently threw his poké ball.
"Go, Weepinbell!"
"Weepinbell, use Razor Leaf to test the waters!" Joe issued the first command, standard and regulated.
Weepinbell flung out several sharp leaves.
"Starmie, avoid it with Rapid Spin, then close in and use Psychic!" Misty's command was concise and clear, filled with the decisiveness of actual combat.
Starmie's core spun rapidly, easily dodging the Razor Leaf, while its entire body closed the distance at an alarming speed, getting close to Weepinbell almost instantly.
In the next moment, powerful Psychic energy surged out, something a Pokemon like Weepinbell simply couldn't resist.
Weepinbell didn't even get to use a second skill before it was slammed hard into the ground by the invisible force, its eyes turning into spirals.
An instant K.O.!
Clean and efficient!
The confidence on Joe's face froze instantly, then shattered, turning into complete bewilderment and disbelief.
He stared blankly at the fallen Weepinbell, then at the composed Starmie across from him and at Misty, who had an "as expected" look on her face. His lips trembled.
"H-How? I clearly followed the optimal type advantages from the books... Land arena weakens Water-types, Grass-types resist Water... How could I lose so... so fast?"
He simply couldn't understand it.
This was completely different from the simulated battles he was familiar with, where every step was predictable and calculable!
Misty recalled Starmie and walked to the center of the field. Looking at the despondent Joe, she sighed and was about to say something more.
Just then, a crisp, melodious female voice, carrying an innate haughtiness and elegant tone, drifted in from the entrance of the battle room:
"That's why you're always dragging the team down, Joe."
"The opponent is the successor of the Cerulean Gym; her experience in breeding and battling Water-type Pokemon is far beyond your imagination. Her Starmie's level and individual strength likely exceed the 'conventional' parameters in your database."
"And you only know how to mechanically apply the type-effectiveness charts from books. You can't even perform a basic data-driven estimation of the enemy's strength versus your own or individual Pokemon differences."
"It seems the 'whip of love' is still too gentle for you. Your theoretical foundation is simply full of holes."
"An irredeemable piece of trash."