After Lu Ze stepped out and his Pokémon had all gone with him, he arrived at the teaching building in no time.
The morning class was another large lecture, though not Professor Liu Xiangjun's course on held items — it was a Pokémon knowledge lecture instead.
"Morning."
"Morning."
When Lu Ze arrived, Sui Yan and the others were already there, and they'd saved him a seat in the middle.
"Not many people here."
Lu Ze sat down, looked around, and remarked.
Today's class wasn't held in the grand auditorium but in a large lecture hall instead. Even so, with class about to start, the hall was far from full — the first three rows were basically empty.
"Well, obviously. Compared to Professor Liu Xiangjun's class, this guy's just a regular teacher, and his teaching style is pretty dry and rigid. Not many people bother."
Fugui spread his hands. He was the type who genuinely worked hard — aside from his own classes, he'd basically crash every lecture and open class he could find, so he could talk at length about most teachers' styles.
"By the way, did you see the announcement on the school website?"
"The school website announcement?"
"Right, let me fill you in."
One look at Lu Ze's face told Sui Yan that Lu Ze definitely hadn't seen it, so he took the initiative to explain.
"The school has decided to select a few students from this year's cohort to go to Long Teng University in America as exchange students, for a one-year program."
"Exchange students?"
Lu Ze asked, somewhat surprised.
"Yeah, exchange students. Long Teng University in America is currently ranked first in the world, so the school wants to send a few students over there to learn from their educational approach."
"Has the school already decided who's going?"
Sui Yan shook his head. "No, apparently you sign up yourself. Our school has eight spots, Jing University has eight more, and the remaining four spots come from other schools."
"Also, just before you got here, we were discussing — Yuyou…"
"Quiet. Class is starting."
Before Sui Yan could finish, a middle-aged man with graying hair and professorial glasses walked in, clapped his hands, and addressed the students below with a blank expression.
With that, Lu Ze could only set aside his curiosity and quiet down, waiting for the lecture to begin.
Satisfied that the students had quickly settled, the teacher nodded in approval, then released his Pokémon.
"Woo Haf!"
"Today I won't go over type matchups — that's foundational knowledge. Instead, I'll discuss Pokémon abilities."
The teacher spoke without regard for his students' reactions, lecturing entirely on his own.
"This is a Monferno, a Fire- and Fighting-type Pokémon. Its abilities are the common Blaze and the hidden ability Iron Fist. You're all surely familiar with Blaze by now, so let me focus on Iron Fist — the Iron Fist ability…"
......
"No wonder so few people showed up. This teacher's lectures are genuinely boring."
Two hours later, as soon as class ended, Sui Yan complained.
"First time I've ever seen a teacher turn a class into a one-man show."
"Same here."
The group started picking apart the lecture together — all except Lu Ze, who was still wondering what Sui Yan had been about to say. What had happened to Yuyou?
"You still haven't finished what you were saying. What's going on with Yuyou?"
Lu Ze looked from Yuyou to Sui Yan as he spoke.
"You tell him."
Sui Yan directed it at Yuyou, then went back to chatting with Fugui and complaining about the teacher.
"So, um, my family wants me and Lingling to go — as exchange students."
Lu Ze paused, but quickly recovered.
"Then go for it. Did your family say why?"
Yuyou nodded. "Yeah, they did. My dad said the strongest Ghost-type Elite right now is an honorary professor at Long Teng University, and his ace Pokémon is Gengar. So my dad wants me to go and see if I can pick up a trick or two."
"That's great, then."
Lu Ze said with a grin, patting Yuyou on the shoulder.
"Have Gengar work a little harder, yeah? If the strongest Ghost-type Elite's Gengar hooks up with yours, I want first dibs on a Gastly egg."
"Uh…" Yuyou scratched his head awkwardly. "So, um, my Gengar is male."
"Ya Jee!"
The Gengar that had just hopped out of Yuyou's shadow also gave an embarrassed nod.
"Right, fine then."
Lu Ze shrugged, spreading his hands. "By the way, Gengar, do you want a girlfriend?"
"Ya Jee!"
The moment Lu Ze finished speaking, Gengar shook his head fearfully, then quickly dove back into Yuyou's shadow.
"Tsk, getting shy too. Really."
Lu Ze watched Gengar's movements — nimble and agile despite that bulky body — and couldn't help but sigh.
Why were all the Gengar around him male? Not a single female anywhere. And they were all exactly the same — the moment he mentioned finding them a wife, they'd get shy and hide.
Were Ghost-type Pokémon all this bashful?
With that thought, Lu Ze glanced up at Deoxys buzzing and chirping wildly in the air.
That one was the complete opposite. Pure social butterfly. Not a hint of shyness in sight.
"Man, my purple fatty's gone again. Seriously."
Lu Ze shook his head, sighing.
"Hah… hah."
Yuyou had no idea how to respond, so he just laughed awkwardly.
"Did the school say when you'd be leaving?"
Yuyou shook his head. "No, right now it's just the application period. But my dad said the American exchange students should be arriving soon."
"That fast? You mean our side hasn't even filled all the slots yet, and they're already coming over?"
Lu Ze asked, surprised.
"Yeah. My dad said they seem to have some purpose in coming, but he couldn't find out what."
Yuyou said, then turned to Lu Ze with shining eyes. "Why don't you ask your family too? If they want you to go, we could keep each other company."
Lu Ze nodded. "Fair enough. I'll ask. Though there isn't really anything in America that appeals to me."
The Fossil Restoration Machine from a while back would have been one thing, but Dragon Nation already had one now, so Lu Ze didn't need to go all the way to America just to see it.
"Excuse me, could you move aside?"
Just as Lu Ze and Yuyou were talking — and as Sui Yan and Fugui were deep in their complaints — a voice came from behind the group.
Lu Ze and Sui Yan instinctively shifted to the side, making room.
What they saw was the teacher who had just finished lecturing them — the very one Sui Yan had been complaining about — walking past with a face dark as ink.
"…"
"I might be done for…"
Unlike the teacher's expression, Sui Yan's face had gone ashen.
———
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