Pokémon: Rattata
Type: Normal
[Talent]: Unranked
[Level]: Lv9
[Ability]: Run Away
…
Seriously? Kyron frowned at the screen. How can someone with such garbage stats have the nerve to challenge my Aron?
He looked at his own partner.
[Pokémon]: Aron
[Type]: Steel, Rock
[Talent]: ★★★
[Level]: Lv5
[Ability]: Heavy Metal
After a day of eating and resting, Aron's level had risen. Although it was still lower than the opponent's Rattata, it had superior stats and strength. Beating a low-quality Rattata? Child's play.
Kyron stared at the cocky boy opposite him. "Where are you from? Has no one taught you not to let your Pokémon attack strangers?"
The boy crossed his arms, expression defiant. "None of your business."
Kyron's eyebrow twitched. Oh really? Time to teach you how harsh the real world can be.
With a cold grin, he said, "You want to battle? Fine."
"Let's go—there's an empty field right over there."
Kyron led the way to an open training ground. Aron followed, glaring at the Rattata that had rammed it out of nowhere. It was clearly pissed.
You little rat. You're going down.
Rattata wagged its tail, oblivious, and bounced after its trainer. The boy strutted around like he was already victorious, imagining cheers and applause as if he were some kind of hero.
Soon, a small crowd gathered—around a dozen people interested in the impromptu battle.
Kyron kept it simple. "No need for talk. One-on-one. Battle ends when one side can no longer fight."
As soon as he finished, the boy yelled, "Rattata, Tackle!"
Seriously? Trying to ambush me right off the bat?
Rattata charged forward with surprising speed.
Kyron smiled calmly. "Aron, Tackle it head-on!"
Aron snorted and dug its feet into the ground, charging forward with heavy steps.
Both Pokémon rushed straight at each other. Rattata was faster and seemed more aggressive.
Bang!
They collided.
Rattata felt like it had slammed into a steel wall. It blacked out on impact, flying backward through the air.
Aron staggered a few steps and flipped onto its back but quickly rolled over and stood back up, slightly dazed.
"Aron, again—Tackle!"
Aron snapped back to focus and charged once more. Its speed wasn't impressive, but in the eyes of the crowd, it was like watching a boulder rolling downhill.
Rattata, still seeing stars, was knocked flying again, this time completely unconscious.
Shouldn't have messed with that Aron…
The boy froze, stunned. Then:
"Nooo! My Rattata!" he screamed, tears streaming, and ran off cradling his fainted Pokémon.
Kyron didn't even get the chance to scold him. Kids these days… they all need to experience some tough love from the world.
The audience, satisfied with the drama, began to wander off to watch other battles.
Not far away, two men had been observing. One wore a black suit, short hair, and glasses, and chuckled. "That Aron's pretty good."
"Must've just hatched, but the potential is obvious. That fighting spirit is rare."
He turned to his companion. "It was smart of you to suggest advertising and renovating the battle park. Look at all the activity now."
The other man, in athletic gear, fit and handsome, smiled. "It only worked because you had the guts to back me—a so-called amateur trainer."
The man in the suit, Ding, laughed. "Come on, Zhao Ziqian. You're easily at Silver-tier level by now."
Zhao waved it off. "Don't overestimate me. I'm just lucky."
Ding grinned. "So modest—no wonder your name's Ziqian."
"Hey, I have an idea. With the national tournament heating up, let's host our own local competition right here."
Zhao's eyes lit up. "That'd be awesome!"
"But… we don't have funding or staff. How would we pull it off?"
Ding shrugged. "We'll get sponsors. Plenty of companies would jump at the chance for exposure. With enough participants and good marketing, everyone wins."
"You on Douyin?"
Zhao blinked. "Yeah, why?"
"I've got a plan. We'll go viral using Douyin…"
After the battle, Kyron patted Aron's steel head. "Nice job, buddy."
Aron: (☆▽☆)
Nearby, the rude kid from earlier sulked away into the crowd.
"Come on, Aron. Let's check out some more battles."
Another young boy soon came up to challenge him—much more respectful this time. His Pokémon was a weak Venonat that fainted after two tackles.
Later, another challenger appeared, but their Pokémon seemed a bit too strong. Kyron declined—Aron was still recently hatched. No sense risking injury in a high-intensity battle.
He continued training through the evening until 9 PM before heading home with Aron.
Back home, Aron promptly whined for food again, leaving Kyron speechless. We've only been out for a few hours… how are you hungry already?
He reluctantly made a late-night snack for Aron. He was hungry too, so he broke out his usual choice—instant noodles.
"Ahhh, perfect."
…
By 10:30 PM, Kyron had showered and was lying in bed, scrolling through videos of the Iron-type Gym Leader, Chen Feng. He told himself it was bedtime, but he definitely watched a few cute streamer clips before finally putting the phone down.
Aron was already curled up and fast asleep in its cozy little bed.
Kyron glanced at his partner, then at the strange bead-shaped tattoo on his chest.
He turned off the lights and closed his eyes, relaxing his body and mind.
After a few moments, his consciousness sank—and just like before, he entered a strange void-like space.
Yep. Same place. Kyron stood in a space filled with swirling gray mist and a single massive, floating, multi-colored orb.
This time, he noticed something different. Gray mist was slowly being absorbed into the colorful orb.
Curious, he approached. As his palm touched the orb's surface, his body suddenly jolted.
In an instant, he was transported to a new space—colorful, glowing, and filled with radiant energy streams.
He could only see about two meters around himself; the rest of the space was lost in a haze of shimmering currents.
He tried to control the colorful streams, imagining his consciousness as a net trying to capture them.
Snap. His mind trembled, and he failed.
Try again.Second time—fail.Third—still failed.Fourth—again, failure.
This time, Kyron paused. Why am I failing? Maybe I'm too forceful… these streams aren't meant to be caught. Maybe they need to be guided?
He changed tactics—turning his consciousness into a tiny hook, gently connecting to one end of a stream and guiding it outward.
Success. The stream began to flow.
He carefully maintained focus, drawing it out of the orb and into the gray mist. After a few seconds—
Shift.
The scene changed again. A colorful stream appeared inside his own body.
He could feel it—moving through his chest, into his organs. He had no idea where it came from, but it emerged from the orb and passed through his core, finally drifting into the air.
In the dark room, Kyron could see the faint glow of a colorful stream floating around. Only he could see it.
So what does this energy do?
From what he'd experienced:
His looks had improved over the last three months. He'd gotten taller, stronger, and more athletic.
Aron's talent had upgraded from two stars to three.
He'd gained the "Eye of Data" ability—which let him see Pokémon stats.
So far, those were the three major benefits. He didn't know if there were more uses, or how to truly control the energy, but he was determined to study it further this summer.
…
Five Days Later – July 4th
Kyron got up at 7 AM sharp. His mom was still sleeping in, but he was already brushing his teeth.
By 7:20, he was out the door with Aron for a morning jog.
It had been ten days since Aron hatched. With steady feeding and moderate training, Aron had grown visibly bigger.
[Pokémon]: Aron
[Type]: Steel, Rock
[Talent]: ★★★
[Level]: Lv7
[Ability]: Heavy Metal
Thanks to those five days of focused care and activity, Aron had reached Level 7.
Today would be the first day of official training.
Up to now, Kyron had only allowed brief jogs. But today, that would change.
He pulled out his phone and opened a fitness app.
"3…""2…"