It wasn't until 7 a.m. the next morning that Nathan finally woke up.
The matches started at 8, but he wasn't scheduled for the earlier rounds, so there was no rush. After rubbing his eyes and lying in bed a bit longer, he finally got up to wash up.
"Nathan, you're up?" his mother called from the living room, where she was making breakfast.
"Yeah. Mom, you haven't left for the store yet?" Nathan asked in surprise.
"I stayed to make you breakfast, of course. I'll head out once it's done. Hurry up and get ready—you've got a match today, right? Give it your all! Try to keep that winning streak going like before. If you do, I'll have something to brag about again at the shop!" she urged him with a grin. Clearly, she'd already been boasting about his previous three-win streak.
All parents love to brag about their kids.
Nathan shrugged and smiled. "Don't worry, Mom. Your son's definitely gonna win. I'll make you proud."
His mom beamed. "Alright, I won't keep you. Your dad's waiting for me to help out at the shop. I've made breakfast, so eat up after you're done washing—don't let it get cold. I'm off now!"
"Got it, Mom."
Click.
With the sound of the front door closing, Nathan, brushing his teeth, knew his mother had left.
After freshening up and changing into a simple black-and-white casual outfit, he sat down to eat while browsing the official tournament forum on his phone.
He hadn't used his phone much during the secret realm trial, so he was a bit out of the loop. Now was a good time to catch up.
As soon as he opened the forum, he noticed a new pinned post at the top.
The post was by someone with the username: Little Donkey.
Nathan remembered this user had also made the popular thread about the top players.
[Top Picks Across All Arenas: Strongest Contenders Most Likely to Reach the Top 16 – A Must-See!]
"Hey everyone, it's your favorite Little Donkey! I'm back again with some juicy insights. I know you're all curious, so let's dive right in—no fluff, just facts!"
"This year's Trial Tournament has been a wild ride. We've seen dark horses emerging left and right, and the elite heirs from places like Magic City and Imperial City are as strong as ever. Who'll make it to the Top 16? It's still anyone's guess."
"First, Arena 1 has a lot of talent, but let's highlight the three to watch: Evelyn Mist, Julian White, and Lucas Avery (Go my goddess!)."
"Arena 2 is also fiercely competitive, with several dark horses. The key players are Leo Ford, Helen Rose, and Nathan Vesper (This dark horse is incredibly mysterious. Even with my top-tier intel, I still don't know what his starter Pokémon is. Hopefully, it'll be revealed during the tournament. Let's wait and see.)"
"Arena 3..."
"Arena 4..."
"..."
Nathan kept reading down the post.
The notable contenders across the six arenas were mostly trainers with fully evolved Pokémon—none of them could be underestimated.
After all, this trial tournament brought together high schoolers from all over the country. While it wasn't as intense as the national tournament, it still showed just how many talented young trainers were out there.
"Leo, huh?" Nathan murmured. Naturally, in Arena 2, Leo Ford and Helen Rose were the ones to watch.
Liu Feng's starter was a Bulbasaur, now fully evolved into a Venusaur.
As for Helen Rose, according to the post, she used a Ghost-type Pokémon—Shuppet.
"These two aren't weak… I wonder if my Pangoro's current strength is enough to beat them." Nathan was confident, but Pangoro wasn't Volcarona—he couldn't rule out the possibility of losing.
"Still… I kind of hope they're strong enough to force me to use Volcarona."
Smirking, Nathan kept eating while scrolling.
Once he finished breakfast, he quickly packed up, fed both his Pokémon some Pokéblocks, and left the house. Unlocking a shared bike, he pedaled toward the competition venue.
….
The Competition Venue
Just as Nathan arrived, a young female reporter spotted him and ran over.
"Hey there, cutie! We meet again!" she greeted cheerfully.
"Another interview?" Nathan asked.
"Of course!" she nodded enthusiastically. "You're getting pretty famous lately—and you're a local here in Poplar City, too. I had to grab a quick interview. Don't worry, the questions are easy."
"Alright, shoot," Nathan nodded. He wasn't the shy type. A little fame could be a good thing sometimes.
"Thanks, handsome!"
With Nathan's agreement, the reporter smiled brightly and signaled to the cameraman behind her. Then, she held up the mic and asked, "Nathan, this upcoming match will determine who advances to the Top 16. You had a three-win streak in the preliminaries—do you think you can keep that streak going?"
Nathan rubbed his nose and smiled. "Confidence? My goal's always been the championship."
"Uh…"
The reporter blinked, momentarily speechless.
He hadn't directly answered the question, but that confident response said it all.
"Well, it seems you're very confident! But actually, what our viewers are even more curious about is this—you developed a unique fighting-type move on your own while still in high school. So, is your starter Pokémon a fighting type as well? And could you reveal what your first Pokémon is?"
"Nope." Nathan rejected flatly.
"..."
Couldn't he be a little less blunt?
The reporter looked a bit exasperated. That really threw off her flow.
"Looks like you want to keep it a surprise for a key moment. Okay, one last question."
"There's been a lot of buzz online about the fighting move you developed. Could you share more about how it works? And do you plan to turn it into a move tutor TM for sale?"
Nathan thought for a moment. "I call it 'Shave.' It's a technique developed through specific training and mechanics. It allows for explosive short-to-mid-range movement. As for turning it into a TM… Sorry, not planning on it."
"Alright. Thank you, Nathan, for your time. That wraps up our interview!"
After the camera cut, the reporter patted Nathan on the shoulder. "Good luck, handsome. I'll be watching the match!"
"Thanks," Nathan said with a smile, then headed for the Arena 2 lobby.
There were already quite a few trainers there—though far fewer than the first round. Many had already been eliminated.
Nathan's arrival drew attention.
After all, he had been trending on social media, and fellow competitors couldn't help but take notice.
Some fighting-type trainers even approached to ask if he'd sell the training method for "Shave." They were willing to pay big.
But Nathan turned them all down.
He found a quiet corner, sat down, and played on his phone while waiting for his match to start. He also checked his schedule.
[Match: Nathan Vesper vs. Warren Dean]
[Field: Arena 2]
[Time: 9:30 a.m.]
It was almost time. His first match of the day was about to begin.
After a while, the loudspeaker came on.
"Contestants Nathan Vesper and Warren Dean, please proceed to Arena 2 through the contestant tunnel. Your match is about to begin!"
Three times in a row, the announcement repeated.
Nathan stood up and walked toward the tunnel.
As he passed, a few other trainers nearby whispered:
"Nathan? That guy who invented the fighting move? Hope I get to face him."
"Fighting type, huh… Shouldn't be too hard."
"Let's see how he performs. I get the feeling he's changed a lot over the past week."
Nathan didn't hear their voices—he was already stepping into the dark tunnel, walking toward the light ahead, and emerging onto the battlefield.
Cheers erupted from the crowd.
There were a lot of spectators.
Nathan even spotted fans holding banners with his name and screaming in support.
It surprised him a little.
But in truth, they were locals from Poplar City. This year, a dark horse had finally emerged from their city, with a real shot at the best record in Poplar City's history.
Many young people had come to support him—especially a bunch of fangirls who were there for his looks.
"Wow! The match is about to begin, and one of our contestants is none other than the familiar Nathan!" the commentator exclaimed cheerfully.
"As a local from Poplar City and with this year's tournament being hosted here, he's got a lot of beautiful ladies cheering him on."
"No kidding, he really is handsome. But as a trainer, Nathan's strength is unquestionable. Let's see if he can surprise us again today."
On the field, Nathan stood calmly.
His opponent, Warren Dean, was a fellow high schooler with a braided hairstyle and good looks. He smiled at Nathan.
Nathan smiled back.
Then, the referee's voice rang out.
"Battle, begin!"
"Go, Kingler!" Warren shouted as he tossed out his Pokéball. A large crab-like Pokémon appeared on the field.
"A Water-type Kingler?" Nathan raised an eyebrow, then smirked. Red light flashed from his own Pokéball.
"Come out, Pangoro!"
Kingler is the evolved form of Krabby—a Pincer Pokémon. Don't be fooled by its not-so-massive size; that one oversized claw of its packs a whopping ten thousand horsepower. Of course, that's both its strength and its weakness. Because the claw is so powerful and heavy, Kingler often struggles with balance and has a hard time aiming its attacks accurately.
This particular Kingler looked like it had been well-trained, but it clearly wasn't Warren's main Pokémon. Nathan had watched one of Warren's matches before, and the Pokémon he used back then was a different one—Cloyster.
Now, Nathan's eyes locked onto the battlefield.
The match had begun.
His expression remained calm. Against a Kingler like this, Pangoro could easily take the win.
Without hesitation, Nathan gave his order.
"Pangoro—Shave!"
Hearing its trainer's command, Pangoro let out a fierce roar in response. Though its frame was bulky and towering, its speed was nothing to scoff at. After all, of the eight Salac Berries Nathan had acquired, two had been traded to Vice President Cloud for other resources, leaving him with six—and five of those had been fed to Pangoro.
The full effects of those five Salac Berries hadn't been completely activated yet, but even now, they'd already given Pangoro a considerable power boost. With continued training, once all the energy from those berries was fully drawn out, Pangoro's speed would become even more terrifying.