The next day.
Perhaps because today was the last round of the winners' bracket, the place was packed with people.
Especially when Ethan and Rowan Thorne entered the arena — the entire audience erupted into thunderous applause that almost shook the stadium.
Amidst that atmosphere, the two finalists stood on opposite ends of the battlefield, ready to fight the match that would determine the absolute winner.
Whoever claimed victory in this battle would, without a doubt, be the number one of the tournament — and become the strongest rookie of this year's competition.
"Ethan, I really didn't think the one fighting me in the final would be you."
Rowan looked at him with some emotion. In truth, he had always believed that his opponent in the final would be Lucien Foster, but the battle between Ethan and Lucien had turned out to be completely unexpected.
Still, this was good too. Defeating Ethan would certainly be much easier than defeating Lucien. And if he could beat him — he would be the strongest rookie beyond all question!
"The final round of the winners' bracket: competitor Ethan Black versus competitor Rowan Thorne. The battle begins now!"
When both stepped onto the stage, the referee announced the start. After flipping a coin, the first turn went to Rowan.
"I get the first move?"
"Then, as always, you'll open the match. Go, Gengar!"
After the referee's signal, Rowan threw his Poké Ball, releasing his Gengar.
"Gengar, huh?"
"Then... it's decided, I'll go with you!"
Seeing Gengar's silhouette, Ethan smiled faintly and took a Poké Ball from his belt.
He took a deep breath and threw it forcefully. Instantly, a white light burst out from it, forming a pink figure.
"Oh, oh, oh! It's here!"
"Facing Rowan's Gengar, competitor Ethan has sent a Slowbro into the field."
"Wait a second! Why does that Slowbro look so weird?"
The commentator, seeing both Pokémon appear on the field, grabbed his microphone to narrate the scene — but then suddenly froze in surprise.
The Pokémon Ethan had sent out did look like a Slowbro... but something about its appearance was off.
"Huh? What's going on there?"
"That pink figure should be a Slowpoke, right?"
"But when Slowpoke evolves with Shellder, the Shellder stays biting its tail!"
"So why is this Slowbro being bitten on the head instead?"
The audience was left stunned upon seeing that Slowbro — so familiar yet so different — and began murmuring amongst themselves.
"Could it be a failed evolution?"
"Are failed evolutions even possible?"
"Then what exactly is that Slowbro?"
"Could it be that the thing on its head isn't a Shellder, but some other kind of shell Pokémon?"
"Maybe it's a Slowpoke that fused with another shell-type Pokémon instead?"
After confirming that it was indeed an evolved Slowpoke, everyone turned their attention to the Shellder attached to its head.
Compared to the one that normally bites Slowbro's tail, this new design on the head looked much more elegant.
Some even began speculating that the Pokémon fused with Slowpoke wasn't a Shellder at all, but a Clamperl — since Clamperl was far more beautiful.
For a moment, the entire stadium was filled with speculation and debate — everyone's focus was on the mysterious Slowbro.
"A Pokémon we've never seen before...?"
Rowan was surprised as well. But since he was in the middle of a battle, he forced himself to stay calm and analyze the situation.
Judging by its appearance, that Pokémon was definitely an evolved form of Slowpoke, so it must have the same Water and Psychic types.
"I don't know what kind of Pokémon it is, but I'll treat it like an ordinary Slowbro."
"Gengar, use Night Shade!"
Having decided on his strategy, Rowan gave the command.
Gengar let out a sharp laugh, raised its arms, and fired a beam of dark energy toward Slowking.
Seeing the attack coming, Ethan merely smiled. He didn't give any command — letting his Pokémon act on its own.
In the next instant, Slowking vanished.
"That was... Teleport!"
"Gengar, watch out! It's behind you!"
Rowan immediately shouted when he saw Slowking reappear behind Gengar.
Gengar flinched, trying to move, but suddenly felt a psychic force pressing down on it, freezing it in place.
The next second, Slowking raised one hand and unleashed a Psychic attack at it.
Boom!
A thunderous crash echoed through the stadium. Gengar, still struggling against the psychic pressure, hadn't expected its opponent to attack simultaneously.
With no defense at all, Gengar was flung violently like a ragdoll, slamming against the arena's protective barrier — which even cracked on impact.
"G-Gengar is unable to battle! S–Slowbro wins the round!"
The referee stood frozen for a few seconds before managing to announce the result in a trembling voice.
Boom!
Instantly, the crowd exploded into an uproar of exclamations.
"What the heck was that? What kind of Slowbro is that?"
"Was Gengar just weak, or was that Slowbro too strong?"
"Weak? That Gengar belonged to Rowan! There's no way it was weak!"
A Gengar that powerful, defeated in a single blow... no one could believe it!
Rowan's Gengar was at the Advanced level — yet it had been taken down with just one hit.
"Weak? No, it wasn't because of weakness. It was clearly a type disadvantage."
"Rowan's battle style is very offensive, almost assassin-like. That's why all his Pokémon have high speed and attack, but very low defense. That's the reason it went down in one hit."
"But the attack wasn't even that fast... Even with Teleport, Gengar should've had time to dodge, right?"
Some of the experts in the audience also noticed the key detail: Gengar hadn't been slow — something else had immobilized it. But no one quite understood what exactly had happened.
(End of Chapter)