"Make sure you eat breakfast on time and don't stay up late playing games."
"Now that the weather's getting colder, remember to dress warmly."
"Don't hesitate to spend money. If it's not enough, your mom will send you a few million more."
Before Julian returned to university, Tina, was relentless with her reminders. She had said these exact same things before when university started.
"I know, Mom. With Slowking by my side, you can relax," Julian replied, feeling both touched and a bit helpless.
Especially the last sentence about not hesitating to spend money—when had he ever been stingy?
However, in his parents' eyes, Julian really was a "frugal" child.
Most kids from wealthy families, even those with decent morals, tended to spend lavishly. If they weren't buying luxury brands, it was expensive cars or designer watches.
At the very least, they'd throw money around to impress women.
But Julian? None of that. The bulk of his spending went toward his Pokémon, and he spent very little on himself.
This time, instead of taking a plane back to Imperial University, Julian opted for the high-speed train. Recently, a wild Pidgeot of Elite rank had appeared in the skies over Lake City, causing disruptions.
Because of this, the Lake City Airport had temporarily ceased operations.
Even the head of the city's Trainer Association had tried multiple times to subdue the Pidgeot but failed. The crafty bird always fled the moment it realized it was losing.
Catching a flying Elite-level Pokémon was nearly impossible for someone of the same rank unless you had a numbers advantage or your Pokémon significantly outclassed it.
Julian didn't get involved in the matter and wasn't interested, either. If he couldn't fly, he'd just take the train.
It only meant spending more time traveling, which didn't bother him since he wasn't in a hurry.
"Your dad is unbelievable. You're about to head back to school, and he still runs off to go fishing."
At the entrance to Lake City's high-speed railway station, Tina, accompanied by Love, escorted Julian while grumbling.
'He probably ran off because he knew you'd be busy sending me off,' Julian thought to himself.
With Tina and Love waving goodbye, Julian passed through the ticket gate and entered the station.
His train was scheduled for 1:00 PM, and it would take seven hours to reach the capital. The current time was 12:30 PM, and his boarding gate was 12A.
After winning the Best Individual Trainer award at the Hundred Schools League, Julian had become very well-known in Drakoria.
Even though nearly half a month had passed since the tournament, its popularity hadn't faded. As a result, Julian now wore a mask whenever he went out.
In this world, celebrities came in many forms—actors, singers, writers, and manga artists—but the most admired were star Trainers.
Star Trainers were essentially the most famous among professional Trainers.
A popular star Trainer could earn at least hundreds of millions just for participating in an exhibition match.
Of course, to become a star Trainer, the minimum requirement was at least Elite rank. After all, star Trainers were still Trainers first, and strength always came first.
Julian's tall and commanding presence, coupled with his extraordinary demeanor, drew attention even with his mask on.
A group of young girls nearby couldn't help but glance curiously in his direction.
Boarding started at 12:45 PM.
Julian had booked a business class seat. Unlike the more crowded first and second class cabins, the business class car only had eight seats total, with one seat on either side of the aisle.
Once seated, Julian took off his mask, exhaled deeply, and allowed himself to relax.
Wearing the mask for so long had become uncomfortable.
He wondered how those celebrities managed to wear masks and sunglasses all day without going crazy.
Even after removing his mask, no one in the business class seemed to recognize him—or, if they did, they chose not to bother him.
As the train slowly departed the station, Julian pulled down the curtain by the window and closed his eyes, ready for a nap.
He'd stayed up late last night playing Glory with Slowking. Unfortunately, Julian's gaming skills were... less than stellar.
Even with Slowking's exceptional support, carrying Julian to reach the game's highest rank, "King" had proven a daunting task.
To achieve this goal, they'd played until 3 AM.
At 7:30 AM, Love had woken Julian up for breakfast, while Slowking snoozed comfortably inside its Poké Ball.
Julian had grumbled about being tricked.
Now, the moment he settled into the comfortable seat, his eyelids grew heavy. Reclining the chair, he fell asleep within minutes.
The journey from Lake City to the capital passed through six cities along the way.
Since Pokémon emerged in this world, the planet's landmass had more than doubled in size, naturally increasing the distances between cities.
Forests, lakes, rivers, and mountains often lay between cities, creating significant challenges for infrastructure development, particularly railroads.
One of the biggest obstacles to building railways was the presence of wild Pokémon. To connect cities, the tracks inevitably had to cross through the wilderness.
Constructing railroads in such areas was a massive undertaking.
Just developing tracks that could withstand attacks from wild Pokémon required enormous resources and effort.
Additionally, patrol teams routinely monitored the tracks to prevent damage caused by Pokémon.
Over time, wild Pokémon near the railroads learned to avoid the tracks and refrained from damaging them.
If a wild Pokémon dared to tamper with the railways, it risked being subdued by humans—or worse, captured outright.
As a result, most wild Pokémon instinctively steered clear of the tracks.
Four hours and thirty minutes into the journey, Julian stirred awake, still feeling groggy. It wasn't that he'd had enough sleep—he simply realized he was hungry.
Glancing at the time, he saw it was already 5:30 PM.
In the business class car, there was a dedicated attendant.
Julian turned toward the crew member, who immediately noticed his gaze.
"Mr. Walker, is there anything you need?"
The attendant's expression betrayed a hint of excitement—it was clear she recognized him.
"Could I trouble you for dinner?"
"Of course! We have three meal options. Which would you like?"
She presented a tablet to Julian, displaying the available meal sets.
Remembering his mother's reminder not to skimp on himself, Julian opted for the most expensive choice—the A Set, which cost a whopping 50 pokedollars.
Not long after, the attendant returned with his meal.
However, just as she was about to place the tray on Julian's table, the entire train suddenly screeched to a violent halt.
A powerful forward inertia surged through the car. Julian reacted instantly, grabbing the armrest with one hand while catching the falling attendant with the other. The impact from her nearly sent both of them tumbling.
The other passengers weren't as fortunate. They were thrown off balance, landing in a chaotic heap.
In the first and second-class cars, passengers were cushioned by the proximity of their seats, avoiding severe injuries.
Business class, however, wasn't so lucky. With the open layout and fewer seats, almost everyone ended up sprawled on the floor, their dignity thoroughly shattered.