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One month later.
During this past month, Jacob had spent most of his time in the Water-type Secret Realm in Magic City, building a bond with his newly captured Gigantamax Lapras while also training his other Pokémon.
Since the High School Cup had ended, Jacob hadn't subjected his Pokémon to any high-intensity training, which had resulted in almost all of them becoming somewhat lazy recently.
Jacob took this opportunity to intensify their training regimen and establish a short-term goal for each of his Pokémon.
First, for his three main Pokémon—Charizard, Sceptile, and Noivern—Jacob set the goal of reaching Gym Leader level before university began.
Next, for his first team, Fraxure should aim to evolve into Haxorus, and Shelgon should similarly strive to evolve into Salamence.
Drakloak should work toward evolving into Dragapult.
This was Jacob's training plan for the first team.
As for the second team, Indeede, Cinderace, and Gengar should all push themselves to break through to Elite level.
Speaking of Gengar, it had originally been a Haunter. After arriving in Magic City, Jacob, with Raya's financial support, had obtained two A-rank Poison-type items, and Jacob directly helped Haunter evolve into Gengar. (T/N: Haunter evolving into Gengar is normally a trade evolution, but in this reality, it has been changed to a level-up evolution.)
As for the remaining Iron Valiant, Jacob had no specific requirements for it. After all, it was the team's ace, so it could train as it pleased. He simply hoped it could break through to Master level soon and become an even stronger pillar of support.
Then, for Diancie, Jacob required it to break through to Overlord level and then, if possible, advance to Gym Leader level.
This was because Mythical Pokémon grew exceptionally quickly, far faster than ordinary Pokémon, so Jacob's expectations for it were naturally higher.
Next was Darkrai. Jacob had given it the broken Prison Bottle to absorb. A one hundred percent pure Dark-type core energy source was no trivial matter. Jacob believed that with the assistance of the broken Prison Bottle, Darkrai's growth rate should be extremely rapid, and it could quickly break through to Quasi-Champion level or even Champion level.
As for the newly hatched Rotom, Jacob didn't hold high expectations for it. It could simply grow at its own pace. After all, it had countless stronger teammates ahead of it to provide protection and support.
… … … …
While Jacob remained immersed in the Water-type Secret Realm, constantly training his Pokémon day after day.
Raya, wearing stylish sunglasses, was meeting with an old friend she hadn't seen in quite some time, enjoying afternoon tea together.
"Raya." The woman sitting across from her was around fifty years old. Even though she maintained herself exceptionally well, there were still noticeable crow's feet around her eyes. She wore a crisp white lab coat and looked at Raya questioningly, "Why did it take so long for you to come in for a recheck this time?"
"Something came up," Raya explained. People of her status had dedicated private doctors who conducted regular check-ups. Usually, these occurred every two weeks or once a month, but it had been over a month since Raya's last examination. "What are the results?"
"Your body is in very good condition." The doctor scrutinized Raya carefully, a hint of knowing amusement in her eyes. "Your previous problem with hormonal imbalance has improved significantly. I used to tell you to find a partner—it can effectively address hormonal imbalance issues. You never listened before, so what made you finally take my advice now?"
Raya's face flushed slightly, "It happened by chance."
"Keep it up. It's quite rare for someone your age to have their first experience." The middle-aged doctor teased Raya playfully, "By the way, how did you find the experience?"
"It was alright..." Raya's expression became somewhat unnatural. Since that incident with Jacob, it had never happened a second time.
As for the memory of that first time, she actually didn't remember it very clearly at all.
"Just alright? I'll prepare a supplement for you—it can help enhance that aspect of life. When are you planning to bring your boyfriend to meet me?" the middle-aged doctor asked.
"We'll see when I have time," Raya said, feeling quite awkward about the topic.
"Oh, now you're getting shy about it. We're both adults here—we can speak a bit more openly," the middle-aged doctor joked with a knowing smile.
… … … …
After staying in Magic City for over a month, Jacob was preparing to return to Frosthollow Province because his sister-in-law was due to give birth soon. Accompanying him were Raya and a professional team of obstetricians and gynecologists hired from Magic City.
Since his sister-in-law was in her late stage of pregnancy and it was quite inconvenient for her to travel long distances, she had not come to Magic City. Instead, a professional medical delivery team had been hired at considerable expense to travel to Starlight City.
As for the cost, Raya had waved her hand dismissively, indicating she was more than happy to cover everything.
… … … …
As soon as she arrived back in Starlight City, Raya received an exceptionally warm welcome from both the Xia family and the Lin family.
Given Raya's prominent status, wherever she traveled, she would naturally be treated as the most distinguished guest. Moreover, this time when coming to Starlight City, Raya had not only brought a professional obstetrics and gynecology team but had also arranged for private jet transportation.
Jacob's family and the arriving elderly Lin couple all expressed their sincere gratitude to Raya.
Raya smiled warmly and said it was all just a small favor, and given the cooperative relationship between their two families, these were truly trivial matters.
After dinner that evening, Raya suggested going for a leisurely stroll around Starlight City, and this accompanying task naturally fell to Jacob, who was currently on summer vacation.
… … … …
Having not returned to Starlight City for quite a long time, Jacob found the city had become somewhat unfamiliar to him.
He didn't know exactly when it had happened, but almost all the posters on both sides of the streets had been replaced with images of Jacob.
There were group photos of Jacob celebrating his championship victory, as well as individual action shots of Mega Charizard, Mega Sceptile, Noivern, and Drakloak in battle.
Not only that, but many young people walking along the streets were wearing replicas of Jacob's Starlight City battle uniform.
Jacob, who had created a historical record for the city, was undoubtedly considered the hero of Starlight City.
Raya observed this scene with great interest before turning to quietly ask Jacob, "I didn't realize you were so incredibly popular in Starlight City, Champion Jacob."
Jacob, wearing a face mask to avoid recognition, looked at the small city around them and said, "For a modest city like Starlight City, it's perfectly normal for a High School Cup Champion to only emerge once every few decades. In many people's eyes, I represent the hero of Starlight City, but in reality, I'm just an ordinary person."
"Great hero, please continue accompanying me for a walk," Raya said with amusement.
The two strolled leisurely down the street and unknowingly walked into a public park.
In the park's central square, the area was absolutely packed with people.
"Jacob—you all know him, right? Our hero of Starlight City."
"Last summer, in this very square, Jacob didn't even have a single Pokémon yet."
"But even back then, Jacob had already displayed the aura of a champion. Even without possessing a single Pokémon, he dared to challenge other Trainers boldly."
This person spoke with absolute conviction, attracting many passersby to stop and listen.
"He didn't have a single Pokémon, and he still dared to challenge someone?" The curious onlookers clearly found this hard to believe.
"You'd better believe it." The young man raised his head proudly, speaking dramatically: "We ordinary people wouldn't dare, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't dare. What kind of person is Jacob? A National Champion! With your limited perspective, no wonder others can become National Champions while you can't even make it into the top thirty-two of Starlight City's local tournament."
"Although Jacob didn't have a single Pokémon at the time, when he stood there, he appeared incredibly imposing, radiating a powerful aura. His eyes were sharp as lightning, and his voice rang out like a great bell."
"Just hearing Jacob roar, 'You coward, do you dare to battle me!'"
"That presence alone was enough to scare his opponent into surrendering immediately."