As the saying goes—outsiders watch the spectacle, insiders read the structure.
As a top-tier Pokémon Trainer, Hassel could immediately see where the real strength of this Baxcalibur set and team composition lay.
In fact, compared to his own original straight-through breaker build—Icicle Crash plus Glaive Rush—this approach was clearly superior.
What he never expected was this—
The most famous trainer of the Paldea Dragon Tamer family,
a specialist who used Baxcalibur as his ace…
had just lost, decisively, to an unknown online battle creator.
"This battle concept… really has substance,"
Hassel murmured, rubbing his chin in thought.
"The decision to run Loaded Dice alone already shows how deeply this trainer understands Baxcalibur."
"Paired with Alolan Ninetales to establish a Snow team, every one of Baxcalibur's strengths—both offense and defense—has been brought out to the fullest."
"Even my own understanding of Baxcalibur may fall short of theirs."
He paused, then continued:
"However, Alolan Ninetales is a Fairy-type Pokémon. That doesn't entirely align with my philosophy of focusing purely on Dragon-types. I may not be able to fully reproduce the soul of this system."
"You can always learn half of it, Instructor Hassel,"
Iono replied cheerfully, sending a toothy grin emoji.
"(^▽^)"
"That… is also true,"
Hassel nodded.
"Still, I believe Chairwoman Geeta would be even more interested in both this concept—and the trainer who developed it."
"Why?"
Iono blinked in surprise.
"Chairwoman Geeta specializes in multi-type teams. Her core Pokémon are Glimmora, Kingambit, Dragapult—none of which relate to Baxcalibur. And Alolan Ninetales is an Alola specialty."
"Chairwoman Geeta has always been keen on discovering promising young trainers,"
Hassel explained patiently.
"Lately, she has been actively searching for outstanding newcomers."
"For someone who holds both the positions of Paldea League Chairwoman and Champion, the workload is immense. It's only natural that she hopes someone new might one day succeed her as Champion."
He sighed lightly.
"As for me—between teaching at the academy and handling family matters, I already feel stretched thin. I'd rather not end up as exhausted as Larry."
"W-Wait—are you saying…"
Iono's eyes widened.
"That the trainer who created this team might have Champion potential?! That's a bit much, isn't it?!"
"I wouldn't go that far,"
Hassel shook his head.
"But it's a possibility worth noting. Just pass the word along—whether Chairwoman Geeta is interested is up to her."
"Ohhh—(´▽｀) Got it!"
Iono replied happily.
"I'll let Chairwoman Geeta know. Who knows—if she's in a good mood, maybe next year Levincia Gym's League budget will go up by fifty percent. That'd be great for my livestream setup!"
"You really are hopeless,"
Hassel said, exasperated.
"How is this not being responsible?!"
Iono protested.
"If I didn't surf the net all the time, how would I ever discover trainers this strong?"
"…"
Hassel froze.
She… actually had a point.
Meanwhile—
Unaware that the butterfly effect he'd caused was now rippling through the Paldea League,
Serena and her Gible were locked in the hardest battle of her journey so far.
"Wartortle, use Water Pulse!"
Facing Gible's Dragon Rage, Tang Jinyu finally gave up on forcing the still-unmastered Icy Wind.
Instead, he switched to Wartortle's most reliable STAB Water-type move.
A surging wave of water rushed forward, attempting to disperse the incoming Dragon-type energy.
But Dragon Rage only looked like a fireball—
it was pure Dragon energy, not something that water could easily extinguish.
The remaining force slammed into the ground beneath Wartortle's feet,
the shockwave flipping it clean onto its back.
Shell down.
Limbs flailing.
Unable to right itself in time.
"Kame—! Kame—!"
"—A perfect opening!"
Serena's eyes lit up.
To be honest, if Tang Jinyu had stubbornly continued using Icy Wind,
Serena believed Gible's chances would have been extremely low.
After all—
four-times weakness is no joke.
But because the first Icy Wind failed to deliver its intended results,
Tang Jinyu abandoned the plan entirely.
"Gible—strike its abdomen with Dragon Claw!"
"Kapu!"
Gible burst out of the sandy terrain in a flash,
its small fins wrapped in fierce Dragon energy.
The claw came down hard—
right on Wartortle's exposed underside.
"Bang—!"
Critical Hit!
In Pokémon battles, critical hits occur randomly,
boosting damage by 1.5×.
Under normal circumstances, with no buffs involved,
the chance is only 1 in 24, roughly 4.2%.
But this—
Wartortle flipped over, helpless, belly fully exposed—
was one of those rare, unavoidable moments
where a critical hit was practically guaranteed.
Seizing that fleeting opportunity,
combined with Tang Jinyu's misjudgment,
Gible finally overcame a Pokémon that could four-times counter it,
advancing to the next round.
"…Phew."
Serena let out a long, slow breath.
For her first-ever Sprout Cup,
making it into the Top Four—
That alone already made her a "successful person."
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