Chapter 73: Xander Challenges Cain

"This kid..." Viper, seated in the stands, was taken aback for a moment before letting out a chuckle and cursing softly.

"I don't know what Umbra told him, but this time he really didn't hold back at all," he murmured with a slight smile after looking again at the large white numbers on the Test Stone to make sure there was no mistake.

As the head instructor of Team Rocket who had been on the Trial Island for a long time, he was the one who best understood the level Cain had reached with this result.

Without exaggeration, it could be said that Cain's result was among the most outstanding of all trial participants over the years.

"Ahem!"

Seeing that the examiner was unresponsive, Viper gave a soft cough, snapping everyone out of their astonishment.

Hearing the cough, the examiner on stage shuddered and quickly announced, "N-number 234, attack of 458 points!"

"Hiss!"

With murmurs of awe, the entire field erupted into chaos.

"Damn it!"

"Damn it! Damn it!"

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

There was no other word that could describe what they were feeling at that moment.

Cain had completely consolidated his position as number one in this test, surpassing everyone by an overwhelming margin.

Below the stage, Jasmine's mouth slightly opened, her beautiful face turned somewhat rigid, and her eyes fixed on Cain and Murkrow on stage with a mixture of shock and admiration.

After a while, her chest rose and fell slightly as she murmured to herself, "Is this his true strength? Is this the change the master spoke of?"

Xander opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, only muttered to himself, "Last time he already surpassed me, but this time... this time he's that far ahead! What kind of monster is he?"

"In just one week, to go from an attack value of over 200 points to over 400 points—he really is a mysterious character. This test is getting more and more interesting!" said Alec, who was standing among the crowd, with an apparently calm voice.

However, the hand that slightly trembled as he stroked Mightyena revealed that his mind was not as calm as it seemed.

"Is this... Cain's true strength? Soros didn't die in vain!" staring at the score on the Test Stone, Skye, Cain's main subordinate, murmured to himself in disbelief.

Skye had thought that even if Cain managed to be number one, it would be by a small margin, just like last time when he barely surpassed Xander. But he hadn't expected Cain's true strength to be so impressive.

Although some were still astonished, their glances at Cain reflected complex thoughts, and it was unclear what they were planning.

After the examiner recorded the result, Cain stepped down from the stage with Murkrow, returning to his original place.

As a leader, Cain was already surrounded by his followers, and after this result, they drew even closer.

They felt fortunate to follow someone so strong, thinking that he would face fewer problems on the Trial Island and that, in Team Rocket, their status would rise if they followed his steps.

After Cain, there were no more surprising results, except that Skye, with the help of his recently captured Koffing, managed a score of 288, which drew a bit of attention.

Using the Koffing that previously belonged to Soros, Skye achieved an attack of 288 points, which surprised Cain. After all, Koffing wasn't known for its direct attack, and the fact that it had improved so quickly after being captured showed that Skye had talent as a trainer.

Shortly afterward, everyone finished their tests. Although the final results surprised some, the positions didn't change much.

Cain, with an attack value of 458 points, crushed everyone and reclaimed first place.

The rankings were as follows:

First place: Cain and Murkrow with 458 points.

Second place: Xander and Ekans with 337 points.

Third place: Alec and Mightyena with 330 points.

Fourth place: Jasmine and Zubat with 308 points.

Fifth place: Skye and Koffing with 288 points.

The main positions didn't change, except that Skye replaced Soros in fifth place, and Alec rose to third place thanks to his Poochyena evolving into Mightyena. There were no major surprises.

However, recalling Umbra's words, Cain noticed a few special people. Although their scores weren't high and they were ranked around tenth place, it seemed they were hiding something, maybe their true strength or some other secret.

"Ahem!" The examiner's cough on stage refocused everyone's attention.

"The basic test has ended. According to the new rules, if anyone is unsatisfied with their result, they can challenge any participant up to 10 positions above."

"Each person has only one opportunity to challenge. If the challenge is successful, they will take the defeated opponent's place. If they fail... their position will drop ten places! In this challenge, life or death is not taken into account!" the examiner announced, firmly looking at everyone.

If the attack test only evaluated the Pokémon's strength, this unrestricted battle tested the trainers' abilities to manage battles, give orders, and train their Pokémon.

After all, a Pokémon's strength doesn't solely depend on the trainer's commands.

Moreover, since this challenge was life or death, every challenger was a mortal enemy to the challenged. If they failed, the result could be fatal.

Listening to the examiner, the field filled with a slight tension. Some hesitated, even among those who wanted to challenge their positions.

Despite their dissatisfaction with their results, the possibility of a deadly duel made them waver. Facing death was terrifying, and although some felt confident before, they couldn't avoid feeling fear now.

Cain, standing beside the stage, observed the participants, finally resting his gaze on Xander and smiling.

At that moment, Xander was also looking at Cain. He had been thinking about this moment, but Cain's result made him hesitate. However, when he saw Cain's gaze upon him, he finally made his decision.

"Hmph! A bunch of trash! I'll go first. I challenge number one, Cain!" Xander clenched his fists, raised his head, and announced his challenge to the examiner.

(End of chapter)