Crown Academy, on the way to the Tower of Despair.


    Terrance followed behind a man whose leg was clearly injured, walking with the assistance of a Gardevoir’s psychic power.


    “Gade challenged the Tower of Despair just two days ago and is currently stationed on the second floor.”


    Second floor, huh…


    Hearing Teacher Julian’s words, Terrance felt that this wasn’t Gade’s full strength.


    After all, Gade made the decision after hearing about his return to the academy. It was understandable that it hadn’t had enough time to challenge the tower.


    The second floor, while merely a starting point in the Tower of Despair, also signified that Gade could be one of the main forces in most of the academy graduates’ Pokémon teams.


    The Tower of Despair was fiercelypetitive, and it was rare for any single Pokémon to hold its position on a particr floor for too long.


    “It’s still quite remarkable…” Terrance exhaled deeply. By this point, Gade must be quite pleased with itself as well.“You’re eager to know Gade’s full strength now, aren’t you?” Teacher Julian asked.


    “I made a promise with it. Altaria and Gade still have a battle to fight.”


    Teacher Julian’s unchanging expression broke into a smile: “No one knows its full strength right now. It seems even it has never fully shown its capabilities.”


    “By the way, before your battle, I have a task for you.”


    “A task?” Terrance was confused as he caught the Poké Ball that Teacher Julian tossed over. Wasn’t this Gade’s Poké Ball?


    “There’s a new student who will be undergoing an assessmentter, and based on the battle results, we’ll ce him in one of the other sses. As you know, it’s been difficult to gather enough new students in recent years to form a full ss.”


    “You want me to conduct the assessment for a new student? Isn’t that your job, Teacher?”


    Teacher Julian didn’t answer, leaving Terrance speechless. Holding Gade’s Poké Ball, he asked, “Wait, are you asking me to use Gade for the assessment?”


    “That’s right. By having you control Gade, it’ll count as an official academy assessment rather than a private duel between students,” Teacher Julian nodded, finding the idea quite reasonable. “Besides, Gade has really missed you. Wouldn’t it be better to understand its current condition before your battle?”


    Terrance fell silent.


    They arrived at the Tower of Despair, and Teacher Julian registered Terrance to the teacher on duty. Then, they entered a passageway together and walked into the second room.


    The Tower of Despair has a total of 10 floors, with each floor containing 10 rooms. The room numbers correspond to the floor number, making the total count 100.


    Since students rarely challenge the Tower of Despair, aside from the Pokémons that officially belonged to the academy, the Pokémon guarding the floors didn’t stay there long-term. When a challenger registers, the teacher on duty would notify the Pokémon’s owner to assist with the challenge.


    Click!


    As the door swung open, Terrance immediately felt a fierce and powerful aura lock onto him.


    Its body was slender, showcasing a blend of green upper body and white lower body. Coupled with a head resembling a diator’s helmet, it projected an air of refinement.


    At this moment, the retractable des at Gade’s elbow were frozen mid-swing, as if it had been practicing its sword strikes.


    Upon noticing someone enter, Gade immediately steadied itself with its powerful legs, stopping its movements. With the grace of a swordmaster, it retracted its des and looked toward the two of them.


    “Long time no see.”


    Seeing Gade in such high spirits, Terrance couldn’t help but smile slightly. It seemed Gade had been living quitefortably.


    “Gall~ade!”


    Upon seeing him, Gade didn’t express the excitement Terrance had imagined. Instead, it cried out calmly.


    “As expected, evolution really changes a Pokémon’s personality. Just like Misdreavus, which became calm and reliable after evolving.”


    Gade’s reaction upon reuniting with Terrance caught Teacher Julian by surprise.


    “Are you ready for a battle?” Terrance asked with a smile. How could he not read Gade’s current mood? Although Gade was doing a great job hiding it, its eyes betrayed its eagerness to show off.


    “Before that, Gade, how about fighting alongside Terrance once?” Teacher Julian asked.


    “Gall~ade!?” Gade looked puzzled.


    “The battle can wait. You’ll have plenty of chances to fight afterward. For now, we need you to assess a new student. Terrance will be the one giving youmands,” Julian exined.


    Gade thought for a moment before nodding, agreeing to the request.


    It looked at Terrance. Now that he was back, whether it was a battle with Altaria or any other Pokémon, Gade just wanted to show how much it had grown.


    “Alright, let’s go.”


    Terrance held Gade’s Poké Ball in his hand. Gade’s eyes flickered for a moment, and with a soft “whoosh,” it vanished into thin air. In less than a tenth of a second, Gade reappeared in front of Terrance with a gust of wind, lightly tapping the Poké Ball with its elbow.


    In a sh of red light, Gade returned to the Poké Ball.


    “Your Teleport has improved again…”


    Masterful, superb, exquisite, ingenious, and skillful…


    Terrance didn’t even know how to describe Gade’s Teleport anymore.


    From the moment it was born, Teleport was the only move it could use. Instead of abandoning it, Gade made it the sole focus of its training. Day after day, year after year, for at least four years, Gade had been practicing this move. That level of dedication isn’t something that could be exined with mere words.


    “Let’s go.” Teacher Julian shook his head. Even the Gardevoir that had been with him for many years couldn’tpare to Gade’s mastery of Teleport.


    Hardship doesn’t only make a person stronger; it can also forge a powerful Pokémon.


    In both strength and spirit.


    “Where’s the new student from?” Terrance sighed, resigned to the task Julian had handed off to him.


    “There are three in total. This one is from Hoenn.”


    “Hoenn, huh…” Terrance nodded. “Leave it to Gade and me. I get to see its growth before our battle, so I’m getting a bit of an advantage, I suppose.”


    “Don’t underestimate it. As I said before, it still hasn’t shown its full strength.”


    It was the second time Teacher Julian said that. Terrance was curious now—just how much had Gade grown?


    He was about to find out.


    In the battle area, Teacher Issac led a boy in shorts, instructing him, “Your assessment will be conducted by Teacher Julian. His skills rank among the best among the teachers of the Battle ss, and he’s also a former member of the International Police. Do your best. Earning his approval will greatly benefit your academic career.”


    The boy nodded seriously. “I’ll do my best.”


    If Terrance was here, he would have recognized the boy immediately. It was Kota, the rookie Trainer he had encountered on the cruise ship, the one who had a Gade and a Meditite.


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