Everyone Else Awakened, But I Just Opened a Pokémon Pet Shop

There's an old saying:

A wolf has a copper head, iron mouth, and tofu waist.

But in reality, besides the waist, the nose is one of the most vulnerable parts of a wolf.

And clearly, that weakness still applied—even to a B-rank Blood Wolf.

The moment Prinplup's beak jabbed its snout, the ferocious aura surrounding the beast vanished. It let out a howl of agony!

But before the cry could echo for long…

WHUMP!

A chubby blue body plopped right on top of it.

"Yes! Just like that, Prinplup—use Metal Claw!"

Murong Nan's eyes lit up.

This… this was the perfect opening!

Even she hadn't expected her Prinplup to perform so spectacularly against a B-rank death beast.

After all, back when she had teamed up with Wang Tao and the others, Prinplup was the special attacker, hiding behind Grotle to fire ranged moves.

The strongest opponent they'd ever faced as a team?

Only a C-rank beast.

Prinplup still wore that prideful, smug expression on his face, like he was too cool for school.

But his trainer had spoken. And her orders were absolute.

"Prin~~!"

With a cocky cry, Prinplup's stubby wings began to glow with a metallic sheen.

Yes—Metal Claw.

Technically it was called a claw, but Prinplup used his wings to execute it.

Those tiny flapping wings might have looked funny, or even adorable.

But judging by the Blood Wolf's twisted face,

there was nothing cute about it.

It hurt like hell.

Slash!

Slash!

Slash!

The wolf was still stunned after being pecked in the nose.

And Prinplup took full advantage, furiously stabbing at the wolf's waistline with his shiny metal wings.

Why the waist?

Because his stubby little arms couldn't reach the head.

According to lore in HeartGold and SoulSilver, a Prinplup's wing strike was powerful enough to cleave a tree in half.

Even if Prinplup was a special attack-oriented Pokémon, its physical attack stat wasn't exactly weak.

So despite the Blood Wolf's B-rank defenses, it was quickly overwhelmed by the flurry of Metal Claws.

Its midsection was shredded, torn apart as if sliced by countless blades.

Flesh flew. Blood spurted.

And in just a few more strikes, the once-fearsome Blood Wolf collapsed.

Crippled by multiple hits to its weak points, and having already suffered the full brunt of bubble Beam,its fate was sealed.

It lay there motionless.

The crowd erupted.

Compared to the savage and terrifying blood wolf, the proud, noble-looking Prinplup was clearly more beloved.

Especially by battle-savvy awakeners in the audience.

The way Prinplup and Murong Nan worked in flawless sync, the way it understood tactics, followed orders.

That was something no mindless contract beast could ever replicate.

Compared to those wild monsters that might even turn on their masters when irritated,

Pokémon were intelligent, reliable, and perfectly aligned with their trainer's strategy.

There wasn't a soul in the crowd who wasn't tempted by that.

"Prinplup's amazing!!"

"Pokémon are awesome!!"

"He actually beat a B-rank contract beast?!"

"My blood's boiling! So this is what a real Pokémon battle looks like?!"

"I finally believe these aren't contract beasts. Contract beasts could never be this smart!"

Amid the thunderous praise, Prinplup proudly lifted his beak once more.

Because in the mind of every Prinplup…

"I am the greatest. Aside from my trainer, no one else deserves my respect."

"Truly… impressive!"

Even Li Xiaoyu, standing across from them, raised both hands in surrender.

Prinplup looked like he was about to charge again, and she hastily backed away.

"I'm no contract beast, I can't take another hit like that!"

Then she added cleanly:

"I forfeit!"

Even her B-rank contract beast had lost.

There was no point dragging things out.

It was just a school ranking, after all.

Once she bought her own Pokémon, could Murong Nan really stay ahead of her?

She was Li Xiaoyu, after all, a genius!

With that, she stepped off the stage.

And then came the announcement, this time with a tone of surprise and relief.

"Li Xiaoyu has surrendered! Murong Nan moves up to 5th place!"

The Dean of Discipline finally relaxed.

Thank goodness, no one got hurt.

But his eyes stayed glued to Prinplup.

That performance had shattered his expectations of battle entirely.

Even he, a veteran who'd seen countless fights between awakeners, was stunned.

At his side, the principal nodded repeatedly.

Pokémon had once again proven both their controllability and combat effectiveness.

This battle had already demonstrated more than enough.

As cheers roared throughout the venue—

Murong Nan did something she rarely did:

She smiled.

She gently hugged Prinplup, whispering praise as they walked off the stage.

Then the Dean's voice rang out again:

"The ranking battle is not yet over. Anyone who still wishes to challenge, please step forward!"

"If no further challenges are issued, this tournament will be concluded!"

Murong Nan, of course, had already achieved her goal.

Her ranking was never her true focus.

She'd proven Prinplup's strength. She'd avenged her previous defeat.

She was content.

But the ever-spirited Liu Yunlan was not.

As soon as Murong Nan stepped off stage, the middle-school chuunibyou girl eagerly raised her hand again.

Except this time—

Someone completely unexpected raised theirs first.

"Can a higher-ranked student challenge someone with a lower rank?"

The voice was low and calm.

Everyone froze in surprise.

Because the speaker was none other than—

Pei Jingguo.

The top-ranked student in the entire school.

Haicheng First High's B-rank Swordmaster.

The whole arena fell into a strange silence.

Even the Dean's expression shifted.

Pei Jingguo was a legend among students, so far ahead that no one even considered challenging him.

Not even someone as bold as Liu Yunlan dared entertain the idea.

And yet here he was, wanting to challenge someone below him?

But who?

Everyone turned toward Pei Jingguo.

The Dean stammered:

"There's… not much benefit to challenging someone lower than you."

"But… if the other party agrees… I suppose there's no rule against it."

"Who do you want to challenge?"

Pei Jingguo calmly raised his sword, and pointed directly at a certain spectator.

"I want to see… if that Pokémon can block my blade."

The tip of his sword landed squarely on…

Wang Tao.

Wang Tao stood there frozen.

After a long pause, he finally reacted.

"Wait… You're challenging me?!"

He jabbed his finger at himself in disbelief.

The chubby boy's eyes bulged like dinner plates.

Did Pei Jingguo just eat something weird?!