That evening, Eevee's appetite surged.
More importantly, she went to bed very early. She didn't even play on her phone for long, which was a clear sign that she was truly exhausted.
With Eevee asleep, Owen didn't stay idle after finishing his homework. He began testing Magnemite's training results. Unlike Eevee, Magnemite only had one move to practice: Hidden Power.
"Progress," Owen praised as Magnemite manipulated a 2B eraser, keeping it floating in mid-air for a full minute.
Compared to a few days ago, the improvement was visible to the naked eye. This was achieved with very few resources; otherwise, Magnemite's growth would be even faster.
Unfortunately, aside from detonating electronics, Magnemite still couldn't effectively convert Hidden Power into a direct offensive move.
In other words, its Hidden Power currently lacked "lethality."
Whoosh!
At Owen's command, the eraser was flung by Magnemite, accurately striking the dartboard on the wall. Judging by the sound, the force was much greater than two days ago, but it was still far from being able to injure a Pokémon in battle.
Saturday: The Theory Lesson
Owen returned to the Fairview Building once again to attend the Rising Star Project training. This week was a theory lesson, so there was no need to head into the wild for practical combat. Owen arrived in a relatively relaxed mood.
"13th floor... the usual spot."
After showing his ID to security, Owen took the elevator to the room where they had been assigned their backpacks the previous week. The room was empty; Owen was the first to arrive. Bored, he pulled out his phone to kill time.
Soon, Lynnea and Leo arrived. The three greeted each other and waited for Zoe.
Creeeak—
A few minutes later, the door opened, and Zoe, the general supervisor of the Rising Star Project, finally arrived.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." She nodded to the three of them, gave a brief greeting, and pulled up the teaching interface on the wall.
"Leo, answer this: what are the common domestic rules for a Pokémon Team Battle?" Zoe looked at Leo as the machine booted up.
"Uh." Leo's face crumbled. Why him again? Did he look that much like a slacker?
"A Team Battle is a 5v5 format. Each side fields five trainers, and each trainer sends out one Pokémon. All Pokémon battle simultaneously on a decagonal field. Victory is declared when all five Pokémon on one side are unable to battle."
Although he couldn't use professional terminology, Leo managed to describe the general rules. It was essentially an upgraded version of the Double or Triple Battles found in games and anime, bearing some resemblance to the Battle Royal of the Alola region—except that was a 4-way free-for-all, while this was two camps of five.
Generally, this format was a staple in university leagues and remained a highlight of the World Pokémon League Championships. The Provincial High School League that Fairview No. 1 was about to enter used these exact rules.
"That's about right. Do you remember what I told you last week?" Zoe asked. "If there's a high-difficulty mission in the future, the three of you will likely execute it together.
A three-person team is the prototype of a five-person team. This week's course is about how to cooperate to maximize a team's power."
Owen realized that the training for the Rising Star Project and the Fairview School Team was running on parallel tracks. Next week, the school will likely start teaching team battle theory as well. This feeling of "getting ahead"... wasn't bad.
Zoe's next words confirmed his thoughts.
"As members of the Fairview School Team, you'll encounter similar theories at school, but there are key differences," Zoe explained.
"In Secret Realm exploration, Pro Trainers form teams primarily for survival. The trainer is the commander, and the Pokémon are the army.
Battles against wild Pokémon, foreign powers, or illegal syndicates aren't just 'Pokémon matches'—they are often carried out with the primary goal of killing the opposing trainer.
In those cases, Pokémon don't just fight; they must protect their trainer from harm."
"In contrast, tournament Team Battles focus on developing teamwork. Under the constraints of rules, they ensure spectacle and safety. They aren't nearly as cruel as real-world combat."
"However, there is still a lot of science behind team battles. Let me show you a video."
Zoe clicked on a file. The screen loaded, showing Pokémon appearing on a field. The lineup of one team was particularly interesting: Tyranitar, Sandslash, Garchomp, Gliscor, and Skarmory.
Owen blinked. Are they building around Sandstorm?
Sure enough, as soon as the battle started, Tyranitar whipped up a Sandstorm. Bolstered by the weather, the five Pokémon crushed their opponents in no time. Total physical suppression!
After the video ended, Zoe spoke: "The winners were the Imperial Capital University team. The losers were the Newera University team from our province. The entire match took less than a minute. Does anyone know where it went wrong?"
Leo jumped in with a smart-aleck grin: "It's tactics! It's cooperation! Imperial Capital's teamwork was amazing!"
"Nonsense! Imperial Capital is clearly a 'Whale Team' (pay-to-win); our province didn't stand a chance! Ahem... however," Zoe corrected herself, "while the strength gap was one factor, the strength of the core strategy was key."
"The five trainers from Imperial Capital formed a systematic team. Using Tyranitar's Sandstorm as the core, they welded the power of five Pokémon into one! By comparison, while the opponents used some tactics, their power remained fragmented. That's why they were suppressed so miserably."
"At the student stage, each trainer has a limited number and variety of Pokémon. It's hard to build a systematic team by yourself. But in a Team Battle, you can leverage your teammates' strengths to maximize your own value."
...
Zoe emphasized team composition and tactical synergy. Owen listened in silence. As expected, a 1v5 is much simpler and more direct.
He looked at his notes. His Eevee... didn't exactly look like she'd play well with Lynnea's Growlithe or Leo's Munchlax.
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