The moment Chen Shi returned to the lounge, he threw himself onto the sofa and laughed.
"Daiu, I took a beating because of you today."
Daiu massaged his temples.
He knew exactly what Chen Shi meant.
He was the one who first clashed with Kenji at registration.
Who would've thought Chen Shi would end up drawing him in the main bracket?
Daiu chuckled helplessly.
"Well, I don't think we'll ever see him again tomorrow. Pretty sure someone will take revenge for you."
Chen Shi leaned back, replaying Kenji's earlier meltdown in his mind.
Honestly… it was hilarious.
How stupid did a person have to be to say something that self-destructive?
Losing was fine.
Yelling "cheating!" on a worldwide broadcast, in the World Tournament, while Elite Four Agatha sat in the building?
That was suicide-by-stupidity.
Furong slid closer, eyes sparkling.
"Chen Shi-ge! Why was your Swampert's Waterfall so fast? He practically teleported! How did you do it?"
Daiu and Cynthia instantly turned their heads too.
They wanted this answer just as badly.
Chen Shi smirked mysteriously.
"You wanna know?"
Furong nodded furiously.
"Mm-hmm!"
"Too bad. I'm not telling you."
"…!!"
Furong's whole face collapsed.
She puffed her cheeks angrily and glared at him.
Daiu and Cynthia both sighed, but neither tried to press.
Smart people could tell when something involved secret techniques.
It was like Kikuko's Death Makeup style—something you just didn't casually teach.
Chen Shi didn't explain further.
The truth?
Part of the technique came from Dragonite's training, part from his own internal-force burst method, part from Mew's refinement.
It was a Waterfall that created instantaneous acceleration so sharp it looked like teleportation.
And that wasn't even the full version.
The second half was still sealed away for future use.
Chen Shi clapped once.
"Anyway… have the pairings for round two been announced yet?"
Daiu pulled up the information on the big screen.
"Nope. They generate matchups only after each round finishes. Oh—also, they just sent a notification. Once we reach the Round of 64, the format changes to 2-on-2 battles."
Chen Shi skimmed the message.
Minor logistical changes. Nothing surprising.
"Got it. In that case, once round one finishes, it'll be close to noon. Round two will definitely be in the afternoon."
He stretched.
"So—do we stay and watch, or go get lunch first?"
Before anyone could answer—
Knock knock.
Chen Shi blinked, stood up, and opened the door.
Standing outside were—
Lance and Lorelei.
"Chen Shi! Long time no see!"
Lance grinned warmly.
Lorelei gave a polite nod.
Chen Shi stared at them.
Red hair. Cool aura. Standing side by side.
They looked… coordinated.
Like a married couple.
What kind of alternate universe am I in?
In his memories, those two were practically rivals at each other's throats.
Lance wanted the Championship.
Lorelei refused to give him an inch.
He'd failed so many times he fled to Johto to claim Champion there instead.
And now they were standing here like besties?!
What the hell happened to this timeline?
"Chen Shi? Heeellooo?" Lance waved a hand in front of him.
Chen Shi snapped out of it.
"Ah—sorry, was thinking about something. Come in—"
Lance shook his head.
"No need. We just came to ask if you wanted to grab lunch with us. Everyone's matches are done for this round."
Chen Shi glanced at the others.
Cynthia nodded.
Daiu nodded.
Furong practically bounced.
"Sure," Chen Shi said. "Let's go."
The six of them stepped out of the lounge—
When a soft voice called out:
"Chen-ge!"
Chen Shi froze.
A girl in a white dress, fair and delicate, rushed over—
And grabbed his arm immediately.
Cynthia's eyes narrowed.
Very. Slowly.
Very. Dangerously.
Daiu and Furong exchanged a glance.
Their faces lit up with pure gossip-hungry joy.
Lance and Lorelei simply watched politely, unsure what was going on.
The girl lowered her gaze, voice soft as silk.
"Chen-ge… I didn't expect to meet you here."
Her tone was gentle, timid, almost sweet enough to melt sugar.
Chen Shi stiffened immediately.
He very carefully extracted his arm, throwing a quick glance toward Cynthia's growing frost.
"Yuuko… long time no see. I didn't expect you either."
"I heard you went to Kalos for your Trainer journey. How have you been?"
"I… I'm fine. Thank you, Chen-ge."
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
The atmosphere instantly skewed.
Every alarm bell in Chen Shi's head rang at once.
He SHOT into introduction mode.
"This is Yuuko — my old neighbor."
"She left for her Kalos journey about a year ago."
He pointed at Daiu.
"I mentioned her to you before."
Daiu froze.
Then he remembered.
Yuuko—
The girl whose parents died on duty while protecting the League…
Only for that same League to later dock her compensation.
Cruel world.
Sad story.
And now, she was clinging to Chen Shi's arm.
Right in front of Cynthia.
This tournament just got a whole lot more interesting.
Read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon -> patreon.com/lucarioTL