Today was the day of the Hundred Schools League finals. The main venue in Lake City was packed to the brim, with every seat taken and even the aisles filled with people.
Julian hadn’t bought a ticket in advance, so by the time he found out about the finals, the tickets were already sold out.
Fortunately, his face was still quite recognizable in Drakoria, so he managed to enter the venue just by showing up.
"Brother Julian, there are so many people here!"
Haley had come with Julian. Ever since he dragged her back from the bar last time, she had been relatively well-behaved at home.
So Aunt Sarah asked Julian to take Haley out for a stroll.
Coincidentally, Julian planned to watch the finals between Imperial University and Shu University, so he brought her along.
With oversized sunglasses covering his face, Julian wasn’t recognized by the people around him.
He had left Celebi at home, but Jirachi had come along and was now hiding in his collar, peeking out with its little head and curiously looking around.
Julian, with Haley in tow, went straight to the Imperial University team’s lounge, smoothly making his way through by using his face as a pass.
Soon, they arrived at the lounge.
When he knocked on the door, it was Ryan who opened it.
"Senior Julian!"
Ryan looked surprised to see Julian suddenly appear, then glanced at Haley beside him. She looked quite young, possibly even underage.
Seeing the girl clinging affectionately to Julian’s arm, Ryan felt a pang of envy.
In university he had a mature, elegant woman like Nicole, and outside, there was a girl like this. Senior Julian truly was the idol of all men.
From now on, if anyone dared to say that Senior Julian didn’t like women, he’d fight them to the death.
Julian had no idea that Ryan’s imagination was running wild.
But seeing the odd look in his eyes, Julian could more or less guess what this guy was thinking. So he said calmly, "This is my little sister."
He really did see Haley as a younger sister.
"Mm, mm, I understand," Ryan nodded vigorously.
Seeing his expression, Julian couldn’t be bothered to explain further.
He then looked at the other team members in the lounge. They were all his juniors, and looking at them, Julian suddenly felt a sense of being older.
The juniors were staring at him with admiration, even bordering on fanaticism.
It couldn’t be helped—a 22-year-old champion was simply too legendary. Moreover, Julian was their senior, so they naturally felt a sense of closeness to him.
"Julian, what brings you here?"
A voice sounded from behind him.
"Teacher Wade, I just happened to be at home these past few days. When I found out today was the finals, I thought I’d come cheer on my juniors," Julian said with a smile to Wade.
Wade was still the same as before, serving as the coach of the university team. He had given Julian many highly useful suggestions on raising Dragonite, some of which could even be considered core knowledge of the Drake family. So, Julian held Wade in great respect.
Because of this, the Walkers and Drakes had also grown close.
Asher, the heir of the Drake family, was Julian’s good friend, and Ian, a direct descendant of the family, was Julian’s classmate.
Wade nodded, then turned his gaze on the team members. Seeing how excited they were to see Julian, he frowned slightly and said, "Calm down. Don’t get so worked up just because you see Julian. You’re trainers—you need to keep a level head at all times."
Team members: 'But this is Senior Julian!'
"How about this—if you win today’s match, then tonight, your Senior will treat you all to dinner," Wade said, then turned to Julian. "Is that alright, Julian?"
Julian smiled. "Of course, no problem."
Just then, Jirachi, nestled in Julian’s clothes, tugged at his arm and whispered, "Julian, can I order a big pork knuckle for dinner tonight?"
Julian’s face darkened. Could you imagine such an adorable little guy, a dignified First-class Legendary no less, holding a pork knuckle and gnawing on it until its face was shiny with oil?
The mere thought made Julian want to spank Celebi—it must have been the one sneaking Jirachi off to eat pork knuckles without him knowing. According to Jirachi, Celebi had told it that gnawing directly from the whole thing made it taste better.
"You can, but you can’t gnaw at the whole thing," Julian finally relented under Jirachi’s pleading gaze. He decided he’d just have the kitchen cut it up first.
"It talks? That’s not a doll?"
Ryan stared in shock at Jirachi. He had initially thought it was just a stuffed toy tucked into Julian’s clothes, with its head peeking out as some new fashion trend. But then it suddenly spoke and even flew out.
Ryan’s eyes immediately lit up as he looked at Julian. "Senior Julian, is this a new Pokémon?"
"Mm. It’s a Mythical Pokémon—Jirachi," Julian briefly introduced.
Hearing it was a Mythical Pokémon, Ryan wasn’t too surprised, as Julian already had several Mythical Pokémon.
However, Wade was staring at Jirachi with astonishment. He had a vague feeling that this little creature beside Julian was anything but ordinary.
"So cute! Brother Julian, can I hold it?"
Haley’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Jirachi perched on Julian’s head. Girls practically had no resistance to adorable things.
Not just her—even a few female members of the university team were eager to try.
"You’ll have to ask Jirachi," Julian said.
He and Jirachi were friends. Even if Jirachi was his Pokémon, Julian still needed its consent.
Every Pokémon was an independent being. It wasn’t as if just because the trainer said something, the Pokémon had to obey.
Respecting a Pokémon's wishes was the first lesson every trainer learned—though many often forget this unconsciously.
Wade nodded in approval at this.
Haley looked at Jirachi with hopeful eyes and asked, "Jirachi, can I hold you?"
But Jirachi shook its head.
Aside from Julian and his mother, Tina, even Jake hadn't been allowed to hold it. So, refusing Haley was only natural.
"Brother Julian…"
Haley pouted, looking somewhat displeased.
"If Jirachi doesn’t agree, there’s nothing I can do," Julian shrugged, showing no intention of indulging her.
Ryan’s gaze at Julian grew even more admiring. No wonder he was a senior worth looking up to—not giving in even after such pleading looks.
But Haley wasn't about to give up, she pulled out a small bag of chips and said, "Jirachi, I’ve got some snacks here. Do you want some?"
Jirachi shook its head again. It was a First-class Legendary—how could it be bribed with something as petty as potato chips?
If it had been Celebi instead, it probably would’ve grabbed the chips and bolted on the spot—absolutely shameless.
*****
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