Chapter 216: Victory

The captain of the First Military Academy, Pierce, had been defeated by Julian. Naturally, the remaining three members of Pierce's team stood no chance against him.

Metagross didn't even need to use its Mega Evolution and managed to defeat those three opponents in under ten minutes.

Thus, Julian's group from Imperial University achieved a perfect record, earning four points.

Meanwhile, Max's group faced off against Pearl University.

Pearl University's captain wasn't in this group, as he was busy battling against the First Military Academy's team. As a result, the match was much easier for Max and his teammates.

Though they lost two matches during the battle, Max turned the tide when he stepped in as captain, securing victory.

In the end, Max's group also earned four points, bringing Imperial University's total to eight points.

Since both Pearl University and the First Military Academy had already lost to Imperial University in their respective matches, even if their other groups won all remaining battles, they could only earn a maximum of four points each.

Though the matches between Pearl and the First Military Academy were still ongoing, Imperial University had already secured first place. Pearl and the First Military Academy were now left to compete for second.

This time, Shu University didn't even secure second place. Once known as the "eternal runner-up," they didn't even manage to hold onto that title.

Half an hour later, the results of the match between Pearl University and the First Military Academy were announced.

The First Military Academy earned four points, while Pearl University managed three points.

Champion: Imperial University

Runner-up: First Military Academy

Third Place: Pearl University

As the champion, Imperial University would once again manage Advanced Secret Realm No. 36 for a year and receive additional resource allocations from the Ministry of Education.

Online chat exploded:

"Congrats to Shu for clinching fourth place!"

"Shu: We're no longer runner-up, call us the eternal fourth!"

"You Imperial folks better not brag. Without Julian, getting first place wouldn't have been so easy!"

"Well, we 'do' have Julian, so just keep being jealous!"

While Shu University was left frustrated, another school celebrated with enthusiasm: the Second Military Academy.

After years of being excluded from the Top Five, they finally made a comeback this year.

Though luck played a role, as their overall strength wasn't on par with Modu Academy, fate seemed to favor them. Unfortunately for Modu, they had to face Imperial University during the group stage.

As a result, the Second Military Academy secured their spot alongside their "big brother," the First Military Academy, making it into the Top Five together.

The annual Hundred Schools League officially came to a close after the final matches. The awards and closing ceremonies were scheduled for 9 PM.

At the same time, the six Best Individual Players of the tournament would also be announced.

These Best Individual Players represented the strongest participants in the competition. However, only the top spot on this list was considered the 'true' strongest.

After dinner at the hotel with the university team members, Julian found himself being dragged along by Max, Paul, and a few others to share some celebratory drinks.

But it was all beer, after all everyone knew their limits since they had to attend the closing banquet at 9 PM. No one wanted to get drunk at such an important time.

The Universities participating in the competition all dined at the same hotel.

Those with excellent results were naturally in high spirits, enjoying a great meal and drinks.

Meanwhile, Universities with poor results—or worse, results below previous year—sat in noticeably gloomy atmospheres.

For reasons unknown, the hotel seemed to have intentionally arranged Shu University's table right next to Imperial University's.

Watching Imperial's side celebrate so joyously made the Shu team's faces turn green with frustration. They couldn't shake the feeling that the smiles and laughter from Imperial's table were mocking them.

Especially when the Imperial team occasionally glanced their way while drinking.

'These Bas*ds are definitely mocking us'

"Alright, don't lose heart. There's always next year. Just win it back then," said their captain, Carter, trying to console his team.

The reasoning made sense—losing this time didn't mean they couldn't turn the tables next year.

"But Captain, you're graduating next year. Sure, Imperial's Max will graduate too, but Julian will only be a sophomore next year"

Muttered one of the more clueless team members with a dejected expression, clearly lacking confidence in the future.

Carter almost slammed the dish in front of him into the kid's face.

'Was this Bas*d serious? I'm trying to lift everyone's spirits here, and you're dragging us down with cold water like this?'

And it wasn't just any cold water; it was ice-cold, it directly cooled the heart.

The truth of the matter couldn't be denied. Julian was only a freshman this year.

A freshman who had completely dominated their 4th-year students. What would he be like as a sophomore—or a 3rd-year? At that point, the Hundred Schools League might as well bar Imperial University from participating altogether.

Just hand them first place and let the rest of the universities compete for second and third place.

Julian's presence felt like a 'BUG' in the system. Unless another 'BUG' appeared to counter him, it was hard to imagine anyone beating him during his university years.

---

At 9 PM, the awards ceremony officially began.

Imperial University's captain, Max, proudly held up the championship trophy. The trophy was then passed around for each team member to hold before finally stopping in Julian's hands.

With the awards ceremony over, it was time to announce the six Best Individual Trainers.

The presenter turned out to be a highly prestigious figure: none other than the current Dragon-Type Elite, Victor Drake. His appearance instantly sent the hall into a frenzy of excitement.

As the crowd buzzed with anticipation, the large screen in the venue began playing clips from this year's tournament. The montage featured one standout individual—the same person in every scene.

The montage lasted for just a minute.

When it ended, the screen displayed the name of the sixth-best Individual Trainer: Dylan, from Modu Academy.

The montage continued, and the screen revealed the fifth-place Best Individual Trainer: Yuna, from Pearl University.

She was a female trainer, and she exuded a valiant and confident aura.

Next, the fourth-place Best Individual Trainer was announced: Carter, from Shu University.

In third place was Max, from Imperial University.

Second place went to Pierce, from First Military Academy.

Despite being an Elite-level trainer, Dylan only managed to get sixth place this year because Modu Academy didn't even make it into the Top Five.

After the announcement of second place, it was finally time to reveal the first-place Best Individual Trainer.

While everyone already knew who it was, anticipation still filled the air.

The large screen began showing highlights again. First, it displayed Metagross single-handedly defeating eight trainers from Modu Academy, culminating in a victory against an Elite-level Salamence.

Next came Melmetal, defeating an Elite-level Mega Aerodactyl.

Finally, the footage showed Mega Metagross overcoming the legendary Pokémon Regirock.

In a twist of irony, three of the newly crowned Best Individual Trainers—Dylan, Carter and Pierce—found themselves serving as the backdrop to Julian's dazzling achievements. They couldn't help but feel a twinge of frustration.

"Congratulations, Julian"

"Thank you"

Julian stepped forward and received the first-place trophy from Dragon-Type Elite Victor. Turning to face the audience, he raised the trophy high into the air.

In an instant, countless camera flashes lit up the hall. At that moment, Julian was undoubtedly the brightest star in the room.

Standing beside him were Pierce, Max, and the others, lined up according to their respective rankings.

Meanwhile, the online livestream was flooded with comments. The barrage of messages all seemed to echo the same sentiment:

"Hail King Julian!"

"Metagross is eternal!"

"I wish I could inherit Julian's genes!"

*****

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