"So this is the Rustboro City Trainers' School?"
A few dozen minutes later, Hakuya arrived at the assessment location specified in the commission.
Perhaps due to the generous pay and relatively relaxed job description, quite a few people had shown up for the interview just like him.
"Mr. Hakuya, are you saying you currently only have two Gym Badges on you?"
Before long, a female Trainer sitting in the waiting room—who introduced herself as a Top 32 finisher in the Sinnoh region's Lily of the Valley Conference—covered her mouth and let out a soft gasp of surprise.
"Yeah, what's wrong? Is there a minimum badge requirement to apply?"
Hakuya frowned slightly, genuinely confused.
When he read the commission details, he didn't recall seeing any prerequisites regarding the number of Gym Badges.
Hearing this, the female Trainer, who wore her hair in a high ponytail, shook her head gently.
"It's not that. It's just that the difficulty of this assessment seems incredibly high~"
As she spoke, she pointed toward an Elite Trainer staggering out of the assessment room looking utterly soul-crushed and traumatized. She lowered her voice and continued explaining.
"Because quite a few Trainers who have qualified for regional tournaments have failed the interview assessment. So, if you're really just strapped for cash, Mr. Hakuya, my advice would be to take on some easier commissions instead..."
"I see."
Hakuya nodded thoughtfully.
After all, a job with easy work and high pay didn't exist without a catch; it made sense for the employer to have high standards.
I just hope Latias and Floragato can elbow their way past a fully serious interviewer...
Hakuya patted the Poké Balls in his pocket and thought to himself.
After waiting in the room a bit longer, it was finally his turn.
"First of all, I need to make one thing perfectly clear. Even for a temporary Battle Instructor, we do not accept any Trainers looking to just slack off and collect a paycheck. Without genuine skill and knowledge, you will not be permitted to teach at the Rustboro City Trainers' School."
As soon as he pushed the door open, a female voice reached his ears.
The tone was as clear and pleasant as a silver bell, yet it carried an undeniable sense of strict authority.
Roxanne watched her Probopass knock out the previous applicant's Mightyena with a single [Power Gem] and shook her head.
"You failed."
Then, her gaze bypassed the defeated Trainer, and her beautiful crimson eyes immediately locked onto Hakuya, who had just walked in.
"The next applicant is... I remember you. You're the challenger who came to the Gym a few days ago, Hakuya, right?"
—The person I will never forget for the rest of my life.
As their eyes met, Roxanne instinctively smiled, that exact thought suddenly popping into her head.
Stepping aside to let the previous Trainer—who was vigorously wiping tears from his eyes—pass, Hakuya nodded in response.
"Yes. It's been a while, Ms. Roxanne."
He had almost forgotten. In the lore of the anime and games, aside from being the Rustboro City Gym Leader, Roxanne was also a teacher at the local Trainers' School.
It seemed highly likely that she was the one who posted this temporary teaching commission.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they naturally progressed to the interview assessment.
"Even though you are a challenger who previously defeated my Gym, an interview assessment is different from a Gym Challenge."
Roxanne's bright, captivating smile faded, replaced by a look of absolute seriousness as she pulled a Poké Ball from her belt. "I won't hold back during this battle like I did before. I expect you to use your full strength as well, Mr. Hakuya."
"Come on out, Cradily!"
As the white light from the Poké Ball dissipated, a Pokémon resembling a prehistoric plant with eight pink tentacles appeared on the battlefield.
Before leaving Randomized Emerald, Hakuya had already grinded Floragato and the others to their current level caps.
Now, facing Roxanne's Cradily—which radiated an aura significantly stronger than an average Pokémon—he thought for a moment before deciding to send out Latias as his vanguard.
Until now, the little jet plane had only been violently elbowing wild encounters in the tall grass of the game world; she hadn't officially participated in a real-world battle yet.
"La-woo~"
"Latias, are you feeling up for this?"
Looking at Latias, who appeared a bit groggy and sleepy after coming out of her Poké Ball, Hakuya asked with genuine concern.
For some unknown reason, ever since that intense "dining table battlefield" at the Pokémon Center a few days ago, the little jet plane's status frequently dropped offline. Recently, she didn't even have the energy to transform into her Rosa form; she just stayed in her Poké Ball and laid flat.
As expected, if she's too tired, I shouldn't force her. I should probably send out Floragato instead?
[Absolutely not! I am at full HP!]
Puffing her cheeks and throwing a telepathic message at her Trainer, the little jet plane turned her head, her cheeks flushed pink. She stared at the Cradily—which hadn't quite grasped the situation yet—with a fierce glare.
—I'm going all out!
Standing on the opposite side of the field, Roxanne was instantly filled with question marks.
"???"
Hold on, since when do rookie Trainers casually walk around with Legendary Pokémon?!
And even after the battle ended, the confusion in her head hadn't been resolved; in fact, it had multiplied.
Because not only did Hakuya pull out a Legendary Pokémon, but this specific Latias seemed far too... unnatural.
—The more she spammed [Draco Meteor], the stronger she got. Eventually, she completely dropped the act. Once she finished dropping meteors like it was a mandatory chore, she simply used [Surf] to wash away Roxanne's entire full party, putting them all to sleep.
"La-woo~"
Tucking in her jet-like wings, Latias turned into a streak of red-and-white lightning, sharply dodging the [Rock Blast] from the opponent's Probopass. Then, her eyes glowed a faint purple, and a wall of water rose from the ground like a reversed waterfall.
Fueled by the Special Attack boosts from the previous rounds of [Draco Meteor], the surging tidal wave crashed down from the sky like a solid curtain of black iron. A wall of water as high as the ceiling violently smashed into the opponent under the force of gravity.
Unlike in the games, the abilities of Pokémon in reality didn't seem to have a strict stat-stage cap.
The maximum effect they could achieve depended entirely on the Pokémon's innate strength.
Therefore, the sheer brokenness of the [Contrary] ability was undoubtedly even more exaggerated than in the games.
After repeating the sequence of [Draco Meteor] and [Surf] over a dozen times, Hakuya swallowed hard, feeling his lips go a bit dry.
"Um... Ms. Roxanne, I assume I've passed the assessment for the temporary Battle Instructor position?"
According to the commission's requirements, defeating the interviewer meant passing the assessment.
But Ms. Roxanne's expression looked a little... off.
He wasn't sure if it was because the little jet plane had dropped those [Draco Meteors] and [Surfs] a bit too violently.
Hearing Hakuya's voice, Roxanne silently recalled her unconscious Probopass into its Poké Ball, feeling as though the strength had completely drained from her legs wrapped in red pantyhose.
"Mr. Hakuya, you've passed. Let me walk you through the procedures now~"