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

As the unique duel unfolded, Su Bai kept his eyes locked on the field while silently counting the number of times Grotle used Withdraw.

Even in real-world battles, Pokémon moves followed certain in-game mechanics.

Each use of Withdraw increased Defense by +1 stage.

And the max stack?

+6.

At that point, even a lower-level Pokémon like Grotle could tank attacks far beyond its tier.

With +6 Defense, even an actual A-rank attacker wouldn't be able to one-shot it.

"That's the fourth one," Su Bai muttered.

As he reached the count of four, Pei Jingguo, fully charged and focused, finally made his move.

A pitch-black arc of sword energy shot forth with unstoppable force, slashing straight at the shelled-up Grotle!

The strike tore a deep trench into the stone platform, raw power radiating outward.

"This world's top-tier power… is no joke after all."

Su Bai's eyes narrowed.

"Maybe I've underestimated the combat strength of humans in this world."

If a student could cause this much damage with a single swing…

That kind of force would be devastating to most unevolved starter Pokémon!

BOOM!

The sword energy crashed full-force into Grotle's shell.

Despite turtling into its defense stance, Grotle's massive body was knocked backward, skidding several meters across the arena.

The small trees growing on its back were torn apart by the shockwave, one of them even snapping clean off.

Dust and debris exploded into the air.

"Pei Jingguo wasn't exaggerating…"

The old headmaster stroked his beard with admiration.

"That strike really was close to A-rank."

What could be more satisfying than seeing your students break through their limits?

But despite his pride, he couldn't help but feel a little anxious, for that chunky little Grotle.

"Can it survive that attack?"

"If it's really down for the count… that would be such a waste."

The headmaster hadn't paid Wang Tao much attention before, but now? He saw the boy in a new light.

Sure, his tactics were sneaky and defensive, but they perfectly matched his partner's strengths.

Even if Wang Tao himself wasn't powerful, his battle sense was impressive.

That kind of strategic mind?

Deserved recognition.

Meanwhile, dust swirled wildly across the field.

Pei Jingguo stood motionless, his sword lowered, waiting for the dust to settle.

The audience strained their necks, holding their breath.

Would Grotle's defenses hold?

Or had Pei Jingguo's ultimate strike shattered even this mighty tank?

"100 credits says Grotle got wrecked!"

"Make that 200! No way a student pulls off an attack like that and doesn't win!"

"You calling Pei Jingguo a student? Hah!"

"You guys clearly don't get it. Ever heard of 'dust clouds can't kill tanks?' I'm betting 200 that Grotle's fine!"

"Wang Tao's overconfident. If Grotle's hurt, he'll regret this for life."

"What a waste of a Pokémon! If that thing was mine, I'd treat it like royalty!"

"Royalty? Then what, you're Grotle's dad now?"

"If you're Grotle's dad, your dad's an awesome, giant turtle!"

The stands erupted in chaotic, overlapping voices.

The dust was too thick to see anything clearly, only faint silhouettes moved within.

Just as tension peaked—

Wang Tao's voice rang out from within the smoke:

"What the hell! What the ACTUAL hell?!"

"Pei Jingguo, you bastard, were you trying to hit me with a chemical attack?"

"I swear, if I get dust lung from this, you better cough up compensation!"

"Ahhh! Grotle! My precious Grotle!"

The audience froze.

Even Liu Yunlan, the ever-dramatic middle schooler, clutched Murong Nan's hand.

"Grotle's okay, right?"

"Wang Tao sounds like he's screaming in agony!"

Zhang Qun, hidden in the crowd, looked equally distressed.

His Gible growled from inside his arms.

They'd been through battles with Grotle.

Sure, they'd mostly been handing out beatdowns to death beasts together…

But hey, that's still a bond!

Just when everyone was convinced Grotle had been fatally wounded—

Wang Tao's voice came again…

This time, in his signature annoying tone:

"My Grotle! How could you…"

"...how could you lose your bark like that?!"

His voice turned utterly shameless near the end.

The smoke finally cleared.

Wang Tao knelt beside Grotle, stroking its head proudly.

Grotle looked utterly clueless, shoving its big head affectionately into Wang Tao's arms.

The audience collectively lost their minds.

Even Su Bai, who had actually been a little nervous, collapsed speechless into his seat.

"Since when was this guy this much of a troll…?"

He used to think Wang Tao was just some scrappy underdog.

But apparently—

Power changes people.

On stage, Pei Jingguo was stunned.

The trees on Grotle's back?

Yes, he had cut one down.

But the attack hadn't even broken the shell.

"No damage at all?!"

Pei Jingguo took a step forward, disbelief etched on his face.

"How can its defense be THAT insane?!"

Wang Tao glanced lazily at him, rolling his eyes.

He pointed at the stump where one of the trees had been chopped.

"What do you mean no damage? That tree was Grotle's favorite!"

"If this wasn't the school arena, I'd be billing you millions!"

Then he pointed at a tiny hairline crack on Grotle's shell.

"Look! Your sword nearly gave my Grotle a paper cut!"

Everyone's eyes zoomed in on the spot.

Sure enough—

There was a faint, fingernail-sized crack.

Cue rage.

They all wanted to scream.

All that build-up. All that suspense.

And you're telling us the epic slash did THIS?

Even Pei Jingguo looked like he'd swallowed a bitter pill.

He thought back to his dramatic speech before the attack and suddenly felt...

Embarrassed for himself.

Clearly, Grotle hadn't even taken the fight seriously.

This level of defense?

Absolutely broken.

If he could, Pei Jingguo would've begged for a rematch.

Ten slashes. Maybe twenty.

Just let me TRY again!

But his hand was still slightly trembling from the impact of that one strike.

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, stepping off the platform.

"You win."

"As of now, you're ranked number one."

"Looks like… it's time we start rethinking how professionals fight in this world."