"Maybe... Lucario's training plan needs to change a bit."
Ethan stared at the information recorded in his notebook and fell into deep thought. Now that Riolu had already evolved into Lucario, many training routines were no longer necessary.
"Thanks to the move Copycat, Lucario can execute in advance moves that it hasn't learned yet. In that way, it can use Copycat to practice and familiarize itself with those moves beforehand, and then master them quickly afterward."
"Moreover, with Copycat, Lucario can also use many moves it normally wouldn't be able to execute, especially stat-boosting moves like Bulk Up."
Ethan pondered this: the move Bulk Up was actually quite similar to the move Calm Mind; besides being usable directly in battle, it also served as a method for daily training.
The pen moved nonstop across the paper, and very soon a preliminary training plan took shape in his hands.
"According to my initial concept, the ability Inner Focus and the move Calm Mind are the key to Lucario's training. At the same time, by increasing psychic power, Lucario's aura power can also be enhanced to a certain extent."
Looking at Lucario's first-phase training plan written in the notebook, Ethan smiled faintly and turned his gaze toward Litwick at the side.
"Litwick, use Calm Mind. Then, Lucario, use Copycat to copy Calm Mind."
After hearing Ethan's order, both Pokémon nodded.
Litwick immediately executed the move Calm Mind, closed its eyes, and entered a meditative state.
Lucario also copied the move instantly and likewise entered a meditative state. However, before long, Lucario opened its eyes and slightly furrowed its brow.
It was obvious that Litwick's method of meditation was not suitable for Lucario to practice.
"Looks like it worked."
"Through the move Copycat, Calm Mind can be copied directly!"
Seeing this, Ethan smiled. If Litwick's method of meditation didn't work, it was enough to switch to another one.
In the real world, the number of Lucario was already quite small, and moreover, most followed close-combat routes, so naturally there were no meditation methods specifically designed for Lucario.
Nevertheless, based on his knowledge of Pokémon, Ethan had already thought of a very suitable target. Once this inter-university exchange competition was over, he could begin implementing Lucario's training plan.
...
In the following days, the exchange competition continued.
During that time, Ethan devoted all his energy to refining the training methods of his Pokémon.
As a result, he did not participate in the battles on those days, until they finally encountered the Pokémon University of Blackridge City.
Boom, boom, boom!
The battles unfolded with great intensity.
At that moment, the match had already reached the fourth battle. The representative of the Pokémon University of Ironvale City was Marcus Foster.
On the field, Marcus's Salamence was fiercely facing off against a Charizard.
"Damn it, this Pokémon University of Blackridge City is cheating blatantly. These students have already reached graduation age. If I were given a bit more time, I could definitely win."
Claire Dawson spoke with obvious dissatisfaction. In the previous battle, she had been the one to take the field, and as expected, she lost without remedy, which left her quite frustrated.
"It looks like Marcus is going to lose as well. If that's the case, the score will be 2 to 2."
Patrick Mills frowned. Age, to a certain extent, also represented experience and accumulation.
Boom!
In the end, Salamence fell under Charizard's Dragon Claw.
"In the end, we lost... so now it's 2 to 2."
Seeing Salamence's defeat, the spectators felt their hearts sink.
"There's nothing to be done—losing was inevitable. After all, those students are from the same generation as Captain Daniel and the others."
"Even so, for this university to have secured two points with the new generation of the university team is already a pretty good result."
A student in the audience expressed his opinion with a resigned sigh.
"Lose? The last battle is Big Brother Ethan's! Do you really think he'll lose?"
The student beside him immediately refuted this. As a die-hard fan of Ethan, he trusted him without reservation.
"Heh, you say that because you don't know the captain of the other university, John Davis."
"He was a member of the second team of the university team of the Pokémon University of Duskwell City two generations ago. Back then, he once faced Captain Daniel's Breloom with his Alakazam without being at a disadvantage."
"Although John's Alakazam eventually lost to Captain Daniel's Breloom, that already proves how terrifyingly strong it is."
"Do you still dare say that Ethan can win easily?"
The student who had spoken first, upon being refuted, responded with a mocking tone.
The information he revealed made all the surrounding spectators suck in a breath of cold air.
Captain Daniel had been the third-best-ranked among members of previous university teams and was now within the top hundred of the Elite Tournament rankings.
That John had been able to face Daniel's Breloom with his Alakazam showed just how powerful that Pokémon was.
"Ethan, it looks like the final battle will depend on you."
Lucas Silver's expression also became very serious.
He had already investigated John's information a long time ago.
Precisely because of that, the atmosphere on the field had grown extremely tense.
They had witnessed Captain Daniel's strength firsthand during that university team assessment.
And the fact that John's Alakazam had been able to confront Breloom head-on made its power truly terrifying.
"Leave it to me. I also want to see how much distance there is between Captain Daniel and me. I'll use that Alakazam to test the results of my training during this time."
Ethan took a deep breath. A Poké Ball appeared in his hand as he stepped toward the arena.
At the same time, John also stepped onto the field. A barely perceptible smile curved at the corner of his lips, carrying an air of complete calm.
"It's my turn to attack first, huh? Then, go ahead."
Ethan took a deep breath. Because Marcus had lost the previous battle, this time it was his turn to send out his Pokémon first.
With a flash of white light, Meltan's figure appeared in the air, using electromagnetic waves to nullify gravity and float steadily in the sky.
"Is that Meltan? I thought Big Brother Ethan would send out Cacturne, which has the Dark type."
"If it were Cacturne, he could take advantage of the type advantage to counter Alakazam's Psychic-type moves very well."
A student, seeing Ethan's choice, showed a puzzled expression. If he had sent out Cacturne, in a sense he would have blocked the opponent's hidden trump card, Alakazam.
(End of chapter)