"If being class representative interferes with my training, I'd rather not take the position."
After Eichi finished speaking, Miss Joylin hadn't yet responded when Kelly suddenly said, "Don't say that, Eichi! If you're worried about the time, I can handle the class affairs for you, as long as you stay as class representative."
What else could Eichi say? He looked toward Miss Joylin, and Kelly did the same.
Miss Joylin smiled. "You two can decide among yourselves. Whatever you agree on will be fine."
Then she asked, "By the way, Kelly, what did you need to see me about?"
Kelly smiled shyly. "Ah, it's my first time being a class officer, and I'm not sure what to do, so I wanted to ask you."
Miss Joylin chuckled. "Oh, I see! There's nothing special to worry about. If anything comes up, I'll let you know."
"Oh right, do you both have communicators?"
Eichi and Kelly nodded at the same time. "Yes."
"Good, let's exchange contact numbers. I'll notify you when there's something important."
After exchanging their communicator numbers, the two said goodbye to Miss Joylin.
Kelly turned to Eichi. "Eichi, you really have to stay as class representative. Without you, no one will listen. You're the only one with real authority, and since you're the top student, it's only natural. I think it's the same in other classes, the first-place student is always the representative; otherwise, it's hard to convince people."
Eichi replied, "I see. Then I'll be counting on you."
Kelly gave a bright, adorable smile. She had long, soft green hair and a gentle, beautiful face. Her uniform gave her a calm and graceful look.
***
Back at the dorm, Eichi noticed it was already mealtime, so he began to cook.
After eating and resting for a bit, he headed out with his two Pokémon for training.
Meanwhile, something related to him was happening elsewhere, though he had no idea.
Inside an office in the Battle Department's main building, a purple-haired female teacher was sitting across from Director Yanagikawa.
"Teacher Sakai," the director asked, "how did Joylin's first class go? This was her first time as a homeroom teacher."
Teacher Sakai sighed. "Terrible. She couldn't control the students at all. She couldn't even get them to quiet down. It even escalated into a fight between students. Luckily, it stopped before it got worse. Then the two of them turned it into a Pokémon battle."
"The class only calmed down after the fight. Honestly, the students fear one of their own more than the teacher."
Director Yanagikawa asked, "You said there was a Pokémon battle? Which students?"
Sakai replied, "Eichi and Hirota."
"And who won?"
"Eichi."
"I figured as much," the director said with a small nod. "As long as he's there, things won't get out of hand. Let's just observe for now."
Sakai: "…"
***
Elsewhere, near a battle field, three boys were sitting together. One suddenly leaned forward and said, "Hey, class rep, did you hear what happened in Class One today?"
The class representative was Sato, who happened to be the representative of Class Two.
Sato looked up. "What happened in Class One?"
The boy said, "Their teacher's new, and no one listened to her. Then one student stood up and beat up the noisiest ones. Another kid got angry and challenged him to a Pokémon battle."
"But the guy who threw the punches actually won! You know who it was?"
Everyone leaned closer. "Who?"
The boy grinned. "Haha, it was the top student of Class One, Eichi. The guy who got beaten was the third-ranked student. Talk about bad luck, he picked a fight with the strongest one and got completely crushed. After losing, Eichi mocked him so badly that he ran off crying to his dorm."
"They say Eichi used a really powerful Beedrill. His opponent had a Sneasel, but Beedrill toyed with it and finished the fight easily with one move."
Sato nodded thoughtfully. "Eichi, huh. I know him. He's also from Viridian City like me. During the entrance exams, his evaluator was one of our upperclassmen, using their strongest Pokémon. Eichi beat it with just one move."
"I could do that too," Sato said with a smirk. "I'd love to battle him someday."
***
Elsewhere, Konan, the third member of the Viridian City trio, had also heard the news. A month from now, I'll defeat both of them, she thought.
***
Walking through the forest around the academy, Eichi passed several older students already training their Pokémon.
He didn't disturb them and kept searching until he found a small clearing. It was clearly a place others had used before, showing signs of prior battles and training.
Eichi spotted several strange devices on nearby trees. With one leap, he climbed up effortlessly.
He picked one up, it looked like a lamp with a solar panel attached to it. So, it's a solar-powered light.
At that moment, the light flickered on, brightening the area. It was already nightfall.
The glare stung Eichi's eyes briefly, but he adjusted quickly. After setting up the lamp, he jumped back down. Alright, let's start training.
He released Scyther and Beedrill. Scyther immediately looked sharp and eager, it hadn't trained for a while so it was itching for action.
It seemed Scyther had already adapted to double gravity.
Beedrill buzzed beside Eichi, chittering in agitation.
"You want to increase the gravity again? Has triple gravity stopped working for you already?"
Hirota's taunts must have reignited its fighting spirit. It wanted to push itself further and grow stronger.
They hadn't trained properly in days, so Eichi didn't assign anything complicated, only adaptive drills to warm them up.
***
The next day, classes officially began. Eichi chose a seat near the back of the room.
The first class of the day was Bug-type Studies.
When the bell rang, an older teacher walked in, he looked to be in his fifties. Calmly, he stepped behind the podium and said, "Good morning, everyone. I'm your Bug-type instructor. My name is Takemoto."
"Since you all have your books, let's begin."
Though his age showed, his voice was strong and clear, filling the room.
The textbooks had been distributed the previous evening by Miss Joylin, who had notified everyone to collect them from the classroom.
Eichi had skimmed through his copy last night. There was some material he already knew from breeder manuals, but much of it was new to him.