Chapter 80: Will's Confidence

After stepping out of the venue, Julian didn't slow down. He walked quickly back to the hotel and released Dragonair from its Poké Ball, allowing it to eat some Yache berries. 

About 70 Yache berries have been eaten by Dragonair so far including the 10 he got this time. 

"How about it? Do you feel that you have some resistance to ice-type moves?" Julian asked, watching as Dragonair eagerly devoured another Yache berry. The Pokémon had a look of happiness on its face, clearly enjoying the sweet taste of the berries.

"Dra~"

Dragonair thought for a moment, then nodded its head slowly, confirming that it did feel a bit stronger.

"Great! That should help you reduce the damage of ice-type moves from 4x to about 3.5x" Julian said, feeling a surge of excitement.

Thanks to his Aura powers, he could sense what Dragonair wanted to say without him needing to speak.

Eating 70 Yache berries helped reduce the damage from ice-type moves by 0.5. Dragonair could eat as many berries as it wanted, but it would take an enormous number to completely block out ice-type attacks. Julian knew that the amount needed would keep increasing as they tried to reach full resistance.

He remembered that daily quest rewards were random, and the chance of getting Yache berries was pretty low. There were actually 18 different berries available that could weaken various types of attacks. He could also buy them from the system mall, but each berry cost 1,000 points, which was far too expensive. He preferred saving his points for more useful items.

"Dra~"

Dragonair whispered softly, its big, shining eyes pleading with Julian, almost as if it was begging for more Yache berries.

"No, no! I need to save some for later,"

Julian quickly replied, not wanting to give in to the charming look in Dragonair's eyes. He couldn't bear to see it looking so hopeful.

"Dra~"

Dragonair sighed, and its expression turned sad, making Julian feel a twinge of guilt.

"Okay, fine! I can only give you two more, though. No more than that!" he finally relented, knowing that the excitement in Dragonair's eyes was hard to resist.

"Dragonair~"

Dragonair nodded eagerly, excitement lighting up its face and his tail swung up behind him, it looked like he had been possessed by a Growlithe.

With a sigh, Julian bought two Yache berries from the system, watching his points drop by 2,000. 

"Here you go," 

He said, handing the berries to Dragonair. Instead of eating them right away, Dragonair nuzzled Julian's cheek gently with its head, showing its affection before munching on the berries.

Julian was usually quite serious and didn't make friends easily. Will was his only real friend. Others, like Shen, Zosh and Han felt more like teammates or classmates.

But with Pokémon, it was different. To Julian, they were not just partners; they were family.

Around noon, while Julian was lying in bed scrolling through his phone, a message popped up on the screen.

Will: "Come out for lunch! Shen and I are waiting for you in the lobby."

Julian quickly typed back: "Okay."

The Conference had arranged for all contestants to stay in the same hotel, and most of them brought their families along. By lunchtime, the lobby was buzzing with activity as many people enjoyed their meals and chatted about the ongoing Conference.

As Julian walked into the lobby, many people recognized him right away. Several even pulled out their phones to snap pictures. In the team match against Lit Middle School, Julian had single-handedly defeated three opponents, including a strong Mega Evolved Venusaur and a tough Pupitar.

His performance made many believe he could achieve a top-three finish or even win the individual competition.

When it came to that competition, Julian had displayed even more strength, making him a popular choice for the championship title.

However, due to his serious aura, no one dared to approach him for photos or to say hello.

"Over here!"

Will's voice called out from a table, cutting through the crowd. Julian spotted him waving enthusiastically.

"Really, You didn't even come to eat without me calling you, did you eat in the room?"

Seeing Julian take his seat, Will couldn't help complaining.

"Did you both lose your matches?" Without answering Will's words, Julian looked at Han and Zosh, who were downcast, they both exuded a sense of 'I lost'.

They both nodded, their faces showing clear disappointment. They already knew from Will's big mouth that both Julian and Shen had been accepted early to Imperial University.

They had hoped to perform well enough in the individual competition to get into a top school, but they only managed to reach the top 30.

"Who did you lose to?" Julian asked, digging into his beef fillet and stir-fried peppers.

The strength of these two was still good, and it should be no problem to enter the top 15. Now that both of them have lost, it seemed their Rivals were very powerful.

"Zosh faced Nolan, and Han went up against the Gengar Trainer from Lit Middle School," Will replied, a smirk forming on his face.

In a way, both Zosh and Han could become rivals in future competitions, so Will seemed to enjoy their losses a bit too much.

"Looks like the luck of the draw wasn't in your favor. I guess I'm the only shining star in our group!" Will said, clearly feeling proud of himself.

"Let's focus on winning your afternoon match first," Han said, not impressed by Will's bragging.

"Just a Bug-type Trainer. You really think they can match my Fire-type?" Will boasted confidently, leaning back in his chair.

"Ugh," 

Zosh said, also annoyed.

"Your luck is just ridiculous. You keep getting easy opponents!"

"Hahaha! I can see you're all just jealous! I love it!"

Will laughed, relishing the moment while enjoying his meal.

"I still have a shot at this!"

Han declared, trying to boost his spirits. "At the end of today's games, the Conference will bring back one eliminated player to fill the last spot. I could be that lucky one!"

All the eliminated trainers shared the same hopes and dreams, imagining they might be the chosen one.

"Julian, at two o'clock in the afternoon at the fifth venue, Make sure you come to cheer for me!" Will urged, completely ignoring Han's complaints.

"Just imagine me taking down three of his Pokemon with just Charizard!"

Will's enthusiasm was contagious, even though Julian had already pulled off an impressive victory with Metagross earlier that day. Will believed Charizard could do the same, especially since its Bug-type opponent wouldn't stand much of a chance.

Among all the types, Bug-type Pokémon were usually considered weak, especially when compared to other types at the same level. Most trainers viewed Bug-types as easy targets, which only added to Will's confidence.

*****

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