Super Contest Hall, Hearthome City.
A venue once reserved exclusively for Pokémon Contests had taken on a new identity. Following the creation of the Emerald League, the Super Contest Hall had become one of the league's premier battle arenas.
Its popularity had far surpassed the expectations of Lance and Wallace, the two Champions who had first discussed bringing the league to life.
Even matches that featured neither Champions nor Elite Four members, but simply Gym Leaders, consistently sold out.
For many ordinary Trainers, it was an eye-opening experience.
"So... Gym Leaders are actually this strong?"
"Were they going easy on me during my Gym battle?"
The answer was simple.
Yes, they were.
A Gym Leader selects their team according to the number of Gym Badges a challenger possesses. Unless they had only recently inherited a Gym, most Gym Leaders possessed the strength of an Emerald caliber Trainer.
The strongest among them, such as Giovanni and Blue, were widely acknowledged to have Diamond-level strength.
The Emerald League allowed Trainers to witness the true power of Gym Leaders without restrictions. At the same time, it gave audiences the chance to enjoy battles fought at an entirely different level.
On the battlefield, the raging sandstorm steadily chipped away at Mismagius's stamina every turn.
Still, Fantina was far from being on the defensive.
Her Mystical Fire had already lowered Tyranitar's Special Defense.
Now it was time to capitalize.
"Mismagius, Energy Ball!"
Although Energy Ball wasn't one of Mismagius's same-type attacks, it struck Tyranitar for super-effective damage.
The commentator quickly analyzed the situation.
"Thanks to the sandstorm boosting Tyranitar's Special Defense, combined with its naturally impressive bulk, Brock should still be able to endure this attack."
"And don't forget it's holding Leftovers. That gives Brock an even better chance of outlasting Fantina."
Leftovers
The glowing sphere of emerald energy tore through the swirling sand and slammed directly into Tyranitar's chest.
Boom!
Smoke erupted from the impact as the massive Pokémon staggered backward under the force of the blast.
"The difference in Speed is simply too great!" the commentator shouted.
Since this was Hearthome City's home arena, most of the crowd naturally rallied behind their hometown Gym Leader.
From nearly every angle, Brock appeared to be fighting an uphill battle.
Even after using Dragon Dance, Tyranitar would still need at least one more boost before it could hope to match Mismagius's speed.
Fantina clearly understood that advantage and kept Mismagius well outside Tyranitar's reach.
"Mismagius, another Energy Ball!"
Brock's expression hardened.
"Block it!"
Instead of dodging, Tyranitar surged forward.
The swirling sandstorm weakened the incoming Energy Ball just enough for Tyranitar to meet it head-on with its claws.
With a thunderous roar, the colossal Pokémon knocked the attack upward.
The Energy Ball shot into the arena's shields before exploding in a violent burst that shook the entire stadium.
"Tyranitar blocked it!" the commentator exclaimed.
Although part of the attack had still connected, the damage was far less severe than taking the full force of the blast.
That was the beauty of Pokémon battles.
The unexpected was always possible.
Watching from the stands, Austin could hardly contain himself.
That was incredible...
In the neighboring VIP suite, Winona finally remembered where she had heard Austin Black's name before. The realization came after Cynthia had recently visited him to purchase Pokéblocks.
She had been in such a hurry that she hadn't brought any food for her Garchomp. For the past month, Garchomp had eaten nothing except the Pokéblocks crafted by Austin Black.
Anything else?
The Dragon-type simply refused to touch it.
Winona had first heard Austin Black's name from Wallace.
The Hoenn Champion had spoken of Austin's Pokéblock craftsmanship with remarkable admiration.
Knowing Wallace as well as she did, Winona understood the weight of that praise.
Wallace respected Trainers who possessed both elegance and strength. If Austin Black's Pokéblock-making abilities had not truly reached an extraordinary level, Wallace would never have offered such high praise.
. . .
The opening match between Cynthia and Lance had been more of an exhibition than an official contest.
In a standard Emerald League battle, each Trainer selected three Pokémon from a roster of six. Victory was achieved once all three of the opponent's chosen Pokémon had fainted.
Meanwhile, the battle between Brock and Fantina had reached its conclusion. Mega Steelix had overwhelmed Fantina's final Pokémon, securing Brock's victory.
On the main stage, the commentator's excited voice echoed throughout the arena.
"Luvdisc is unable to battle! The winner is Champion Cynthia!"
Cynthia's lineup of Milotic, Garchomp, and Roserade had ultimately proven too much, earning her victory in the clash between two Champions.
Wallace recalled his fainted Luvdisc with his trademark elegance.
"Come back, Elisabeth. You're already beautiful enough."
Despite the defeat, there wasn't a trace of frustration on his face.
Instead, he smiled gracefully at Cynthia.
"Congratulations, Cynthia."
"Thank you."
The fierce intensity that had filled Cynthia's eyes during the battle faded almost instantly.
Looking at her, Wallace caught a glimpse of the determined Trainer who had once pushed herself relentlessly atop Mt. Silver.
. . .
Although Wallace's appearance often caused people to mistake him for a woman, he was very much a man.
In fact, he managed to change out of his battle attire even faster than Cynthia.
After changing clothes, Wallace headed straight to the VIP suite.
A warm smile spread across his face as he extended his hand toward Austin.
"So, we finally meet in person, Austin."
Wallace had first heard Austin's name from Steven.
Later, he watched several of Austin's instructional videos on Pokéblock making through PokéStream.
At first, Austin's techniques still lagged behind his standards, but Wallace had witnessed Austin's improvement firsthand.
His progress had been astonishing.
By now, Austin's Pokéblock craftsmanship was on par with Wallace's.
Someone who improved that quickly...
There was only one word for it.
A genius.
"It's an honor to meet you, Champion Wallace Mikuri," Austin replied with a smile as they shook hands.
"Just call me Wallace." He chuckled. "When you have some free time, how about a Pokéblock-making competition?"
Austin raised an eyebrow.
"How exactly would we judge something like that?"
Wallace tapped his chin thoughtfully.
"Hmm... let's have Steven's and Cynthia's Pokémon decide the winner."
Before Austin could answer, Cynthia's calm voice came from behind Wallace.
"In that case, you're probably going to lose."
Wallace blinked before looking back and forth between the two of them.
"That's quite a bit of confidence you have in him."
"There isn't any bias," Cynthia replied matter-of-factly. "Garchomp has been eating Austin's Pokémon food for more than a month."
"Chomp!"
Standing beside her, Garchomp nodded vigorously in complete agreement. The usually intimidating Dragon-type looked unexpectedly enthusiastic.
After exchanging contact information, Wallace tucked away his phone and smiled.
"We'll continue this another day. Winona and I have a date to get to."
Without another word, Wallace and Winona departed together, leaving only Austin and Cynthia in the VIP suite.
Austin glanced toward her.
"Are you hungry?"
Cynthia looked at him silently for a moment.
Realizing how the question sounded, Austin quickly clarified.
"I mean, do you want to grab something to eat?"
There were refreshments in the VIP box, but they were hardly enough for a proper meal.
Cynthia thought for a moment before answering.
"I think the food you make tastes better than anything at a restaurant."
Austin didn't mind cooking.
The problem was the location.
"But we're in Hearthome City. How are we supposed to do that?"
A faint smile appeared on Cynthia's face.
"I have a villa here."
Austin froze.
Forget it... I should just stop comparing my bank account to a Champion's.
He recovered quickly and laughed.
"Then we'll need to buy ingredients first. What would you like to eat?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them.
Why did I ask that?
If he let Cynthia decide, they might still be choosing dinner by tomorrow morning.
Sure enough, Cynthia rested a finger against her chin and fell into deep thought.
Seeing that familiar expression, Austin immediately changed his approach.
"You head back to the villa first. Send me the address, and I'll take care of buying the ingredients."
Cynthia nodded gently.
"Mhm."
. . .
Please leave a review and powerstones to help with the book's exposure.
Want to join Patreon and subscribe to 30+ advanced chapters?
Visit the link:
[email protected]/GRANDMAESTA_30
Change @ to a