"Since this is still Iron-tier, Nessa probably hasn't officially become a Gym Leader yet…" Peter thought to himself.
Based on what he knew from his past life, Nessa was insanely popular in Galar. On one hand, it was because of her relentless, wave-like offensive battling style—once she seized momentum, she'd drown her opponent without mercy. On the other hand, she was also a nationally famous model.
Striking looks, long legs, and that unmistakable Water-type beauty aura—combined together, her photos had probably accompanied more than a few innocent young men under their blankets late at night.
Another thing worth noting: Galar doesn't have an Elite Four system. Many Gym Leaders there were easily comparable to Elite Four members—or even Champions from other regions.
Take the Dragon-type Gym Leader Raihan for example—one of the Masters Eight, a trainer who could realistically win a championship just by switching regions.
Which meant that as a fellow Gym Leader, Nessa's strength was absolutely nothing to scoff at.
That said, due to the current timeline, she should still be in her rookie stage.
"Battle begin! Both trainers, send out your Pokémon!"
The referee's flag dropped, snapping Peter out of his thoughts.
"Buneary, you're up!"
"Chewtle, prepare for battle!"
[Chewtle | Lv.20 (Intermediate)]
Seeing the level, Peter relaxed slightly. Chewtle wasn't known for speed, which made it a fairly comfortable matchup for Buneary.
Nessa clearly enjoyed the spotlight. Her clear, confident voice rang out:
"Chewtle—Shell Smash!"
"Chomp!"
Chewtle retracted its short legs into its shell—then kicked the shell away entirely and leapt out. Light flared around its body.
Shell Smash: Lowers Defense and Special Defense by one stage, while raising Attack, Special Attack, and Speed by two stages each.
A high-risk, high-reward move—sacrificing bulk for explosive speed and power.
Peter raised an eyebrow.
As expected of the "Raging Tides" style—Shell Smash perfectly compensated for Chewtle's weaknesses. If she seized the tempo, she could snowball the fight from start to finish.
"Too bad…" Peter shook his head.
Nessa paused, momentarily confused.
A familiar smile appeared on the boy's face.
"Buneary—Copycat."
"Mi-kyu~!"
The little rabbit spun in place, shedding a bit of fluff as light surged over its body.
Even without a shell, Copycat still replicated the effect flawlessly.
It was honestly ridiculous—Copycat was straight-up broken.
"Charge in—Water Gun!" Nessa didn't waste the turn.
Chewtle fired a thick stream of water while charging forward.
Seeing the certainty on Nessa's face, Peter's lips curled upward.
"Buneary—Quick Attack to disengage, then Teeter Dance."
"Mi-kyu~!"
Buneary flashed aside, dodging the Water Gun with ease. Using its superior speed, it retreated to the edge of the field and began a dizzying, hypnotic dance.
"Are you seriously just going to dodge?!"
Nessa's irritation flared instantly.
"Heh…"
Peter only smiled.
Against a slow, close-combat–oriented Pokémon like Chewtle—with a shallow move pool—Buneary's speed advantage was absolute.
As long as he refused to engage directly and relied on control-heavy moves, he was practically untouchable.
That was exactly why Nessa had opened with Shell Smash.
Unfortunately for her, Copycat turned that aggressive setup into a free gift.
From there, the outcome was inevitable.
Peter fully embraced the ancient and honorable tradition of hit-and-run cheese tactics.
Using speed to deny Chewtle any chance of closing the distance, he waited until confusion took hold—then dashed in and ended it with a clean, efficient double strike.
…
"Hmph!"
Nessa recalled Chewtle, shot Peter a vicious glare, and turned away.
She immediately pulled out her phone and started typing furiously:
Family, who understands my pain?! Today—Pokémon Calendar Year 2023, July 48th—I ran into a completely shameless scoundrel…
[Ding! Level-gap victory achieved. Reward: Universal Talent Points ×2.]
Peter listened to the system notification with a satisfied grin, completely unaware that he had just been permanently blacklisted in a certain Water-type beauty's heart…
…
"Mr. Peter, congratulations on winning both matches today.
Through on-site and online viewership, the arena generated 16,530 Poké Dollars in total revenue. After deducting the 2,000 Poké Dollar registration fee, 50% of the remainder will be transferred to your account within 24 hours."
"Got it—thanks."
Peter smiled.
Two matches, several thousand Poké Dollars—being a Trainer really was a fast way to make money.
He rubbed the heads of his two partners.
"Come on—bonus dinner tonight!"
"Mi-kyu~!"
"Mi-no~!"
…
The following days were relatively routine.
After discovering that evolution-based talent gains could be manually allocated, Peter decided to grind out as many Talent Points as possible—bringing both partners to absolute perfection before evolving them.
Buneary evolved via friendship, and with the Soothe Bell, the little rabbit had grown increasingly clingy.
Peter genuinely feared that one morning he'd wake up and find a full-sized bunny girl under the covers instead.
Because of that, he deliberately avoided Gym challenges for now.
Instead, he stayed in Jubilife City, mass-producing Pokéblocks, grinding the arena, and training in the Dream Space.
Life was calm—and fulfilling.
Buneary reached Lv.20, naturally learning Double Kick, and through system-assisted relay footage, mastered the tactically vital move Baton Pass.
Baton Pass: Switches with a reserve Pokémon, transferring all stat changes.
This was one of the core tactics Peter had planned for Buneary.
The idea was simple:
Stack Speed endlessly with Acceleration—then Baton Pass everything to a backline monster.
Just imagine it:
A Slaking switching in with absurd Speed—tanky, devastatingly strong, and impossibly fast.
A full-team bulldozer.
Just thinking about it made Peter grin in his sleep.
Most of Buneary's moves reached the Mastered tier, with Charm hitting Proficient—
entirely because she demanded Moomoo Milk every day and used "cute attacks" on Peter whenever he refused.
The problem?
It worked every single time.
Those pitch-black eyes were completely irresistible.
Thankfully, Smoliv was much more low-maintenance.
Under Peter's 24/7 high-output sunlamp setup, Smoliv reached Lv.19, naturally learning Grassy Terrain, and—after watching the movie Parasite—picked up Leech Seed.
The only regret was still the lack of arms.
No arms meant no gaming, which meant slower skill proficiency growth.
Aside from Sunny Day reaching Mastered due to nonstop looping practice, most of Smoliv's skills were still at the Learned tier and lacked polish in combat.
…
Then there was the system lottery.
After covering daily expenses and food reserves, Peter had earned a full 500,000 Poké Dollars in just three days through Pokéblocks and arena battles.
If not for the Berry market in Jubilife City nearly drying up under his buying spree, he could've made even more.
And now—
Peter planned to go big.
A five-pull draw.
The thought alone made his heartbeat quicken.