The next morning, while having breakfast at the hotel, Julian noticed Taylor yawning repeatedly, looking tired and listless.
"Stayed up late playing games?" Julian asked.
Why gaming? Because, speaking from personal experience, the biggest reason he ever stayed up late was for gaming.
Most people thought Julian was not only well-born, good-looking, and talented but also free of the bad habits common among kids from affluent families. What they didn't know was that Julian was, in fact, an online gaming addict.
"Had trouble sleeping in a new bed," Taylor replied, yawning again.
The truth, however, was that she had been on guard all night, worried that Chase—who was sharing her room—might sneak off to Julian's room while she was asleep to throw herself at him.
'Trouble sleeping in a new bed?'
Chase looked at Taylor suspiciously. Since when did Taylor have trouble adjusting to new beds?
"Just started recently," Taylor explained.
Such a flimsy excuse only made Chase more suspicious.
If she didn't know how oblivious Julian was, she might have assumed, seeing how exhausted Taylor looked, that Taylor had snuck into Julian's room last night instead.
True to their friendship, both Taylor and Chase were thinking along the same lines, though about each other.
After finishing breakfast, each with their own hidden agenda, Taylor and Chase accompanied Julian to South Lake University.
Although South Lake University was at the lower end of the elite university rankings, it was still an elite institution. And like every top university, it had at least one flagship program.
For South Lake University, its flagship was not Pokémon training but Pokémon research.
The university had produced many renowned Pokémon scholars, both domestically and internationally.
Its Pokémon research program was even considered superior to that of Imperial University and Pearl University.
Many students aspiring to become Pokémon researchers would choose South Lake University as their first option, with Imperial and Pearl coming second.
Julian wore a black face mask, a white short-sleeve shirt, khaki casual pants, and light yellow sneakers. His tall, upright figure and relaxed stride caught the attention of those around him.
With Taylor and Chase by his side, he strolled through the South Lake University campus, chatting and laughing along the way.
Compared to the intensely competitive atmosphere at Imperial University, where even the slightest rivalry reached every corner of the school, South Lake University felt more laid-back.
Being a student at Imperial University was both an honor and a burden. Surrounded by geniuses, one had no choice but to work tirelessly to avoid falling behind.
At Imperial University, it was rare to find anyone taking it easy, even among first-year students, who worked hard to secure their rankings within their classes.
But here at South Lake University, Julian felt none of that heavy atmosphere.
This was what a university should feel like, and it reminded Julian of what college life was like in his previous life.
The kind of university life where students slack off from their freshman year all the way to senior year, barely scraping by to earn a diploma.
"What's that place over there?"
Julian pointed to a street not far away as they walked.
"Today's market day. Don't you have something at Imperial University?" Taylor asked, puzzled.
"No, we don't. We don't need it"
Julian replied, shaking his head.
Taylor: 'I really want to punch this jerk.'
Market day was a designated time when students brought out things they didn't need or wanted to sell to exchange for money or resources.
Events were common at universities.
Market days typically happened on Saturdays or Sundays.
Imperial University didn't have market days. As the top university in the nation, it provided students with a monthly allowance of resources, a significant amount compared to other schools.
This alone was enough to make countless aspiring students dream of attending Imperial University.
And why did Imperial University have so many resources to offer its students? That was thanks to the Trainer Association.
The annual Hundred Schools League wasn't just about competing for the ownership of a high-tier secret realm.
It also determined how much funding and resources schools would receive from the Trainer Association the following year.
The higher your school placed in the league, the more resources it would receive.
Compared to the risks and efforts involved in exploring a high-tier secret realm to gather resources, the Trainer Association's funding was a safe and reliable alternative.
Julian said, heading toward the street out of curiosity, hoping to find something valuable.
After walking for a while, Julian felt a bit disappointed. The stalls were filled with either common items or junk.
The slightly better offerings consisted of evolution stones, but even those weren't anything special.
None of this was useful to Julian. If he were in a secret realm, he wouldn't even bother with anything less than top-tier evolution stones.
Noticing Julian's lack of enthusiasm, Chase said, "Julian, maybe there'll be something interesting further down."
There was an unwritten rule on market streets: the further you went, the higher the value of the items.
However, Julian had already walked about two-thirds of the way and hadn't seen anything worthwhile, so he wasn't holding out much hope for the last third.
Forget about striking a bargain; he'd be content just to find something that caught his eye.
"Come, take a look, everyone! Fossils of Pokémon for sale—perfect for collectors or as decorations!" shouted a vendor ahead.
On the bustling trade street, the sound of vendors calling out was common, but one voice stood out—loud and clear, advertising something quite unique: fossils of ancient Pokémon.
Fossil Pokémon were only found in ancient secret realms, and naturally, their fossils came exclusively from such places. In the entire Nation of Drakoria, there was only one ancient secret realm.
Encountering someone selling fossils in a place was certainly surprising.
"Julian, don't go there. That guy's fossils are all fake," Taylor said with obvious disgust.
"Taylor was deceived by him before"
"Chase, do you have to say it?"
Taylor glared at Chase, her face flushing with embarrassment at having her misstep exposed.
While the two bickered, Julian had already approached the stall. He casually picked up a fossil. From its texture, weight, and even the overly perfect shape, it practically screamed "fake."
Julian gave Taylor a disbelieving look. 'Is she missing something?'
Taylor angrily pointed at the student running the stall.
"Don't listen to her nonsense, fellow student. Everything on my stall is genuine," the vendor protested with a smile.
Julian chuckled, pointing at the items. "These are all compressed from stone powder. Genuine fossils wouldn't have such smooth surfaces, and the imprints wouldn't be this clear. Also, you used the wrong stone powder—it should be carbon steel stone."
The vendor didn't seem upset at being exposed. Instead, he took out a pen and paper, jotting down notes.
"Hmm, hmm. Go on, classmate. I'll improve them next time," he said earnestly.
Hearing this, Taylor nearly lost it and had to resist the urge to kick him.