The next morning, Eichi and the others were summoned to Director Yanagi's office. When he arrived, several people were already there. They were all familiar faces: Matsumoto, Ishida, Ami, Kosei, and Sato. Notably, every single one of them was a first-year student. Eichi felt a flicker of surprise upon seeing them, but a quick thought confirmed his suspicion: they would likely be the ones competing in the next match.
Confusion was etched on everyone's faces, yet they were all sharp enough to guess why the Director had called them in. Eichi stepped forward and greeted him, "Director."
Director Yanagi nodded. "You're here. Wait to the side for a moment. Once everyone arrives, I have something to discuss."
Eichi nodded and moved to an empty spot next to Sato. "You're here too," he greeted quietly.
"Mhm," Sato replied.
Not long after Eichi arrived, Tetsu walked in. He immediately hurried over to Eichi's side and whispered, "Eichi, why did Director Yanagi call us here? Is he going to make us participate in the next match?"
"It seems so," Eichi replied.
Just as he spoke, Director Yanagi cleared his throat. The room fell silent as everyone turned their attention toward him. He lowered his hand and scanned the group. "I believe you've all guessed what I'm about to say."
"I won't keep you in suspense. You will be the ones competing in the next match."
"Really?" Tetsu whispered.
Sato and Eichi exchanged a look, both thinking: Just as expected.
The news brought a mix of excitement and anxiety to the group. They were excited because they craved another chance to fight; those who had lost the previous round were particularly eager to redeem themselves. However, they were also worried, feeling a lack of confidence in their collective strength and fearing another defeat.
After a brief discussion among the students, Tetsu suddenly asked, "Director Yanagi, will this match be the same as the last one?"
Director Yanagi raised his hand for silence. "I was just getting to that. This round," he said, his tone turning serious, "is completely different from the previous ones."
"This time, the venue is not the Battle Hall. It will take place in the Pokémon Breeding Center."
The Pokémon Breeding Center?
Question marks seemed to hover over everyone's heads. Fortunately, Tetsu voiced the group's confusion. He raised his hand and asked, "Teacher, why is the competition being held at the Breeding Center?"
"Don't interrupt me, I was just about to explain," Director Yanagi said. Tetsu scratched his head awkwardly and gave a sheepish laugh.
Seeing that no one else was going to interrupt, Director Yanagi continued, "Let me explain the details of this competition. I am the only official here right now; the other leaders are already at the site setting everything up."
"Most of the Pokémon in our Breeding Center have been fitted with a device. This device holds a badge and a button. When you defeat one of them, you press the button, and the badge will be released. Alternatively, if a Pokémon admits defeat, it can press its own button to release the badge."
"Your task is to enter the center, battle the Pokémon, and collect these badges. At the end of the time limit, we will tally the total number of badges collected by each academy to determine the winner."
"That's right—the victory depends entirely on the total count. Every single one of you is vital to the outcome. Victory rests on each person's effort."
Director Yanagi spoke for a long time and, feeling thirsty, took a sip of water. The students were stunned; they had never heard of such a tournament format before. They began whispering among themselves, while Eichi had a peculiar expression on his face. This system feels incredibly familiar!
It reminded him of the sect examinations in the cultivation novels he read in his previous life—where disciples had to kill monsters to collect cores, and the one with the most cores took first place. The logic here was nearly identical, with only minor differences.
Matsumoto suddenly asked, "Director, I have a question. The Pokémon in the center vary in strength, but if the badges are all the same, couldn't we just target the weak ones?"
"That's true!" someone whispered. "That's a loophole!"
Director Yanagi set down his cup. "Right, I forgot to mention that. I have categorized the Pokémon in the center into three levels: Bronze, Silver, and Gold."
"The badges they carry are different as well: Bronze Badges, Silver Badges, and Gold Badges."
Director Yanagi pulled a small box from his desk drawer and opened it in front of them. Eichi saw three badges nested inside: cyan, silver, and gold. The Bronze (cyan) Badge featured Suicune, the Silver Badge featured Lugia, and the Gold Badge featured Ho-Oh. Eichi had to admit, the badges were quite beautiful.
"To clarify," Director Yanagi added, "the final score is calculated in units of Bronze Badges. One Silver Badge is worth ten Bronze Badges. One Gold Badge is worth ten Silver Badges—which means it's worth one hundred Bronze Badges."
"So, once the match begins, you have two main strategies: win through quantity, or win through quality."
The students began buzzing again. This system was genuinely interesting. Everyone was intrigued, as they had never encountered a competition like this before. Matsumoto and Ishida were already looking eager to start.
"One more thing," Director Yanagi said. "Robbing badges from other participants is strictly forbidden. If caught, you will be disqualified immediately, and all your badges will be given to the victim. So, do not even think about it."
"Also, for tomorrow's match, each person is limited to carrying a maximum of four Pokémon. No more than that."
"Alright, that's everything. Any more questions?" Director Yanagi looked around. The students looked at each other and shook their heads. "No more."
Eichi then asked, "Director, what is the timeframe?"
"The match officially starts at 9:00 AM tomorrow and ends at 4:00 PM. That's seven hours total. Make sure you keep track of the time."
Meanwhile, in another room, the Indigo Academy first-years were also in a meeting. Director Kimura was explaining nearly identical rules to his students.
"For this match, everyone must give their absolute best to secure victory!"