If only he were actually... more impressive. Cress's eagerness toned down a key as he wished sorely that he could brag on and on about the beautiful and terrifying aquatic Pokemon he didn't even train yet. A Feraligatr as magnificent and fierce as Lyra's... Or maybe, a Slowking who not only possessed an admirably sharp intellect but the refined ability to keep cool despite all pressures bearing down upon it. And in fantasies cast faaaaar out into a realm of impossibility, the thought of Kyogre kind of took his breath away. He could go on and on about individual merits of each water-type Pokemon he'd read up on through the years, but he didn't even train a single one of them. He wasn't at that level yet. The reminder was harsh.

But even with all the scintillating ideals he'd cooked up about his future Pokemon training career in that imagination of his, he could never take for granted what he already had, and so he was more than willing to speak fondly of his modest roster. "Panpour and Basculin. Those are the only two water-type Pokemon I have personally trained thus far." Some specialist! Cress anticipated scrutiny, if the Wartortle in front of him found reason to dish some out. He gracefully awaited it with nothing more than a pleasant smile on his face. After all, Marie came across to him as bored off his chair or fed up with this conversation and it was starting to eat away at his confidence.