Chapter 332: Facing the Runner-Up

Battle Tent.

After getting a basic understanding of the process and watching some videos, All Baimu's interest in it only grew.

The actual situation was still somewhat different from what the spiky-haired kid had said, because trainers weren't completely powerless—the one thing they could direct was switching Pokémon.

Once a Pokémon showed any issue on the field, they could pull it back and send another in its place.

In a sense, this let the Pokémon show off their ability to fight on their own while still giving the trainer a degree of involvement—pretty well thought out.

The only catch was that the Pokémon egg given as the final reward was a "blind box"—that part was honestly hard to swallow.

Winners had no say; whatever the organizers handed out was what you got, and it wasn't even fixed.

Some people fought their way to the top full of hope, only to end up with Wurmple and Sentret eggs—how could they possibly stay calm when they'd been hoping for something rare?

Besides, the Battle Tent organizers weren't exactly short on rare Pokémon eggs.

But then again.

It was precisely that lottery-like outcome that drew plenty of trainers with time on their hands to sign up—everyone wanted to gamble on their own luck.

All Baimu, who had a Lucky Scale tucked away on him, felt the same way.

Even though he couldn't be sure that Aggron and the others would definitely pull off the final win.

"Gotta try it anyway."

All Baimu smiled at his Pokémon, and it just so happened that the Battle Tent had a match tomorrow, and sign-ups hadn't closed yet.

Suddenly.

A knock came from outside the door.

Right after, Mitsuki's voice rang out.

"Excuse me, sorry for the intrusion—it's dinner time. If you don't mind, we can provide a meal here, whether it's your dinner or your Pokémon's…"

"No need, thanks."

"…R-right."

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Mitsuki's footsteps retreated, heavy and slow—he sounded pretty dejected.

All Baimu tilted his head, wondering why the other boy wasn't out traveling but instead helping out at his cousin Aman's place. Could the anime version of Mitsuki have awakened some kind of business sense?

That'd be a real shame—Mitsuki's talent as a trainer was outstanding, and the kid himself was the hardworking, go-getter type who loved his Pokémon dearly and was eager to grow alongside them.

"Whatever, I haven't even grown up myself yet."

All Baimu stopped thinking about it. Seeing a familiar face did put him in a slightly better mood, but that was all.

He turned and asked who wanted to come out with him.

"Hyah!" "Hyah!"

The resting Doubledragon was the first to lift its head and respond, like a dog hearing it's time for a walk.

That alone shut the other Pokémon who wanted to answer right up.

Aggron held back out of ace-level magnanimity, Mawile wanted to keep her composure, Chansey never liked to fight over things, Galarian Sun Coral hadn't even woken up, and Porygon looked blank, a beat late before it finally responded.

Halfway through its response, it noticed the others had gone quiet and lowered its own voice too.

"Ha, you again!"

All Baimu ruffled both of Doubledragon's heads, then headed out with Porygon.

After evolving, this guy not only didn't dislike people, he stuck even closer to him—even following him to the bathroom and calling out at the door, like he was afraid he'd fall into the toilet.

Recently, the time they spent alone together had increased a lot too. If this kept up, it would inevitably draw the other Pokémon's displeasure, and over-relying on the trainer wasn't good for its own growth either. Time to "quarantine" it for a bit.

"Hyah—" "Hyah—"

Shut inside, Doubledragon tilted its head back and howled, hoping to call All Baimu back.

But seeing him walk off without looking back, it could only sulk back onto the carpet, both heads drooping as it went to sleep.

Chase after him?

It wasn't that dumb.

Doubledragon knew perfectly well that a human city wasn't a place a lone Pokémon could get by in. That lesson had been seared into its heart when it and its companions had been kidnapped.

Even though it had the confidence to blast every last one of those humans who had once kidnapped it into next week, right now it didn't want to cause its trainer any trouble.

Not far off, the Galarian Sun Coral on its cushion flickered its eyes briefly, then dimmed again.

She'd thought that idiot would actually chase after him.

Didn't expect it to have a little brains left after all—those two heads weren't for nothing.

——

Passing by the front desk.

All Baimu happened to catch a glimpse of Mitsuki and Gardevoir hiding inside, nibbling at rice balls together.

Sensing his gaze, the latter hurriedly set down his rice ball, stood up, and bowed.

"Good afternoon!"

There was still a grain of rice stuck to the corner of his mouth. Just as All Baimu was about to point it out, the Gardevoir beside him shot out a hand at lightning speed, plucked the grain off, and ate it.

So fast her hand became a blur.

That was fast!

All Baimu narrowed his eyes, gave a small nod, and pushed the door open to leave, Porygon right behind him.

Mitsuki looked up at their retreating backs and couldn't help muttering, "That Pokémon—I haven't seen it before. I wonder what it'd be like to battle it… Ah! No, no, I still have work to finish!"

He shook his head, pushing down the urge to battle rising in his chest.

Meanwhile.

Following the signs, All Baimu reached the Battle Tent entrance in about fifteen minutes.

It was called a Battle Tent.

In reality, it was just a layer of cloth pulled over the outermost part of the building, forming a pointed dome that resembled a tent, while the main structure was still reinforced concrete.

The Battle Tent didn't require an entry fee; registration could be completed with a Pokédex or a Trainer ID card. All Baimu, out of curiosity, asked the owner of the Battle Tent — and sure enough, it was Scott.

This man was the owner of the Battle Frontier. It was hard to imagine just how rich this fat guy wearing sunglasses had to be to pull off something like this.

He was sighing inwardly when, just as he was about to head out, someone stopped him.

"That's a Pokémon, right? Right?"

That person looked excitedly at Porygon, a Poké Ball in hand. "Let's have a Pokémon battle!"

"…Sure."

All Baimu saw that Porygon was bursting with eagerness, so he agreed along with it.

Thanks to the power of the glowing cuisine, the trust level between him and Porygon had already reached four hearts. For this guy to have risen to four stars in less than half a month since joining the team was already pretty impressive.

Furthermore, although it hadn't learned Trick Room over the past week or so, successfully learning Thunderbolt was still rather satisfying to him.

The two left the Battle Tent and found a battle field by the roadside.

Evening was drawing near.

The sky revealed a touch of dusky yellow.

Before the battle began, All Baimu noticed that the opponent's right foot was a bit lame. "Is your foot okay?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine! It's almost healed already! Just one more week and I'll be fully recovered!"

That person laughed heartily. "I just couldn't hold back the urge to battle. Too bad it's really hard to find an opponent at this time of day."

Greenfield Town constantly exuded a slow, leisurely atmosphere, which meant that even though many Trainers visited, not many were willing to have a proper battle.

All Baimu sent Porygon out directly.

The other person, meanwhile, sent out a Pokémon that looked like a kangaroo with a green mushroom cap on its head — Breloom.

"Jino!"

Breloom eagerly jabbed the air several times in a row, looking as if its fighting spirit could barely be contained.

The moment the opponent appeared, the Download Ability triggered.

Light from the stat boost shone across Porygon's surface.

All Baimu couldn't quite remember whether Breloom had high physical defense or high special defense, so for the moment he couldn't tell which stat had risen.

Fortunately, Porygon gave him a reminder.

"Pa!"

A single syllable.

Looks like it was Special Attack, no doubt about it.

Pokémon themselves were more sensitive to stat changes.

And this strange scene made the opponent pause for a moment. "What's going on here? Come to think of it, this is the first time I've ever seen this Pokémon."

Only now did the other party remember that they hadn't scanned Porygon with a Pokédex, and couldn't help but secretly think it was a shame.

It had been so long since they'd battled — they were a little too impatient.

On the other side.

All Baimu exchanged a glance with Porygon, which had turned to look at him, and gave a slight nod.

To be fair, Porygon's lack of fame was bad news for Professor Akihabara, but for him as a Trainer, it was the best news possible.

Information asymmetry was a very important part of Pokémon battles.

If that watermelon-headed brat from earlier had known that Texture allowed Porygon to freely change its type, he definitely wouldn't have been so careless.

He commanded: "Texture."

"Pari!"

A riot of colors lit up across Porygon's surface, the blue parts rapidly shifting to pink-purple.

Breloom, as a Grass/Fighting-type Pokémon, had the type advantage over the Normal-type Porygon, so changing types right at the start was very important.

Otherwise—

"Mach Punch!"

Whoosh!

Breloom's figure vanished in an instant, and when it reappeared it was already at Porygon's side, its sharp red claws shooting out like bullets!

Even though All Baimu and Porygon had caught the figure of its punch with their dynamic vision, by the time they could actually react, it was already too late.

Breloom's fist landed squarely on its head!

Boom!

A muffled thud.

Porygon was sent staggering back a full two meters by the punch before it managed to steady itself.

"Psybeam!"

All Baimu shouted hurriedly. Porygon immediately raised its tail and fired a multicolored beam at Breloom. Its starting motion was equally fast, piercing through the lingering smoke and hitting Breloom's body.

The smoke exploded with a "pa!"

"Jino!"

The latter let out a pained grunt. A STAB Special Attack Psybeam, with Porygon's boosted stats, packed quite a respectable punch.

Even though Breloom wasn't low-level, taking a direct hit made it unable to help but show pain on its face.

But after showing that pained expression, it didn't get angry — instead, it started laughing.

"Jino!"

"Ohhh! This Pokémon called Porygon sure can take a hit!"

The opponent's voice came through, even more excited: "The Pokédex didn't say it was a Normal-type Pokémon! And its counterattack speed is so fast too! How interesting! Really interesting!"

"Hah, fly up and gain altitude!"

All Baimu very politely didn't pick up on the other's thread, and focused entirely on dealing with Kabuto.

Trainers from the main-series regions tend to love launching into long-winded speeches mid-battle, handing over the hard-won opportunity to their opponent on a silver platter.

But the one in front of him hadn't battled in a long time, and Kabuto probably hadn't either, so a moment of excitement was understandable.

"I believe after this battle, Porygon will grow once again!"

He thought happily.

His purpose in coming to Greenfield Town was to level up Porygon and Galarian Corsola and have them learn more moves.

——

The entrance of the inn.

Mitsuki and Gallade kept looking toward the doorway.

Every evening at six o'clock.

His cousin Amane would forcibly send him off work, not allowing him to stay at the inn any longer.

She said: "You are a Trainer, you know! Even though I've troubled you to help me run the inn, don't forget your actual job!

"Go find some Trainers to battle! Greenfield Town is a place where experts lie in hiding!"

Actual job…

Mitsuki slowly walked forward, staring at the bluestone bricks on the ground.

Although traveling with his Pokémon and growing stronger together had solved his weak constitution, after the defeats at the Saiyu Tournament and his second defeat at the Shi Ying Tournament, he was truly a little lost.

Where should his path lead from here, and could he truly become the strongest Trainer?

Without a doubt.

Because there was no normal game progression, and Mitsuki hadn't asked Mr. Sora to help him catch Pokémon, he and Sho weren't rivals-and-friends; the only connection between them was that one final match at the Saiyu Tournament.

Having lost his goal to chase, Mitsuki gained no results in two tournaments and was thoroughly lost.

So he returned to Greenfield Town, hoping to find some spiritual healing and to seek out the path he should take next.

Perhaps being an innkeeper wouldn't be bad either?

After helping his cousin Amane run the inn for a few days, he had genuinely begun to entertain similar thoughts.

Although it would be unfair to his Pokémon, persuading them to run a Pokémon inn together might actually be quite nice, and occasionally he, the boss, could even battle the guests.

Mitsuki kicked at the pebbles underfoot.

Gallade watched its Trainer with concern; it truly didn't know how to comfort him, and being of a taciturn disposition itself, it could only quietly keep watch over Mitsuki.

In any case.

No matter which choice the latter made, it would support him unconditionally—

Boom!

The sound of a move exploding rang out from not far away.

Mitsuki and Gallade both turned their gazes in unison, both involuntarily drawn over, and then exchanged a glance, both feeling a little restless.

Even though he was lost inside, whenever he encountered a strong Trainer and heard someone battling, he always couldn't help gravitating over, as if driven by instinct.

"How about… we take a look?" Mitsuki asked cautiously.

"Leido!"

Gallade nodded in agreement.

The two of them broke into a light run, making their way over to the field where the sounds of battle were coming from.

At that moment.

They saw a Kabuto battling a rather unfamiliar Pokémon; the former was extremely fast, every strike seemingly capable of dealing tremendous damage to the latter, yet no matter what, a glow would always rise from the latter's body, rapidly restoring its condition.

Mitsuki didn't recognize Kabuto's Trainer, but the unfamiliar Pokémon's Trainer was a guest who had checked in earlier.

"Amazing…"

He stared at Porygon in astonishment.

Anyone could see that this Pokémon's level was clearly inferior to Kabuto's, yet it could miraculously keep holding on, and at the right moments, strike back.

Watching such an intense struggle, Mitsuki couldn't help feeling parched, wishing he could rush up and help direct Kabuto's Trainer.

And in the end.

In the end, Porygon simply couldn't outlast Kabuto in endurance, and was defeated by its Seed Bomb.

"Finally, finally won! How is your Porygon this tanky!"

The limping Trainer was gasping for breath, and Kabuto was so exhausted it simply slumped down on the spot, looking like a wilted mushroom with its whole face drooping, as if it couldn't have held on much longer either.

"There are a lot of complicated factors at play in here."

All Baimu crouched beside the fallen Porygon, also somewhat surprised on his own face.

This was the first time he had pushed Porygon to its absolute limit in battle, and he had never expected it to be this tenacious.

Of course.

It was inseparable from the change to Ghost-type brought about by 【Texture 2】; the moment its type changed, many of Kabuto's moves were sealed off, such as its signature Mach Punch.

"Good work, you did beautifully." He gently stroked Porygon on the head and recalled it into its Poké Ball.

All Baimu was just about to head to the Pokémon Center when he noticed a familiar figure had appeared on the street at some unknown time, looking over in this direction.

Their gazes met.

Mitsuki flailed his hands in a panic, "Uh! That, um—"

"Off work already?" he cut Mitsuki off, noticing the lingering excitement on the other's face. "Sorry, I only brought one Pokémon, so I can't battle you. How about letting that big brother over there do it instead."

He pointed at his opponent.

"I'm done too! I'm heading home to rest today!"

The other party hurriedly begged for mercy, gave an apologetic smile, then pulled back his straw hat and fled like a lone bird taking flight.

Despite being half a cripple, his escape speed was hardly slower than his Pokémon; in no time at all his figure vanished, disappearing completely from the street.

All Baimu couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. "This rehab guy's mentality is no good — one match and he bolts. Looks like you're not having much luck."

"I-I actually just came over to take a look."

Manchu poked his two index fingers together and explained in a conflicted tone: "I wasn't planning to battle."

"Oh~"

He nodded, but his face was written all over with disbelief.

When he'd caught that fleeting glimpse earlier, the expectant light on Manchu and Gallade's faces had nearly blinded him — and now the guy was telling him he was just looking?

You can fool strangers, but don't fool yourself along with them.

This guy had probably hit some hurdle he couldn't get past, so he'd started avoiding certain things.

All Baimu could faintly judge what state Manchu was in right now.

But he wasn't skilled at counseling people, so he didn't presume to spout useless chicken soup at the other guy.

He asked point-blank: "So, do you feel like battling now? If you're willing, let's have a match at the field by the inn later."

"Um…"

Manchu's heart was stirring, but for some reason he hesitated, instinctively turning his head to look at Gallade.

"Lei!"

Gallade nodded vigorously. It could tell its trainer actually really wanted to battle and had been holding it in for a long time, so it took the chance to give him a push.

And seeing that his most trusted Pokémon had volunteered for a fight, Manchu happily agreed.

"Okay!"

"Then let me make a trip to the Pokémon Center." All Baimu smiled — the strength of a tournament runner-up; tonight he might be able to verify it.

"M-me too!"

Manchu pulled a Poké Ball from his pocket. "I want to get my Pokémon a check-up…"

Pre-battle check-ups — a very common practice.

Since Pokémon are like professional athletes, they may not always be at their peak, so to guarantee their condition, check-ups are especially necessary.

Once issues like acclimation problems or stress reactions are detected, timely swaps or treatment can be arranged.

——

The inn's back courtyard.

In a fairly large battle field, All Baimu and Manchu each stood on one side.

Not far away.

Cousin A-Man watched them with an excited face, and quite a few other lodgers stood or sat scattered about, looking into the battle field.

For the lodgers of this inn, although the back yard had always had a fairly large battle field, basically very few people ever used it.

Now someone was actually about to start a battle, and one of them was that shy front-desk guy.

Truly intriguing.

And All Baimu, after pulling his gaze back from the onlookers, said in a clear voice: "How shall we do this? One-on-one? Three-on-three?"

"Either works!"

Manchu took several deep breaths, and the aura about him slowly changed.

Many trainers, once they enter battle mode, become quite different from usual, giving unfamiliar people a strange sense of impact.

Manchu was clearly among them. From sickly, good-boy to confident and sharp-edged, only at this moment did he finally have a bit of the flavor of a seasoned trainer — like the Paul Ash first met, radiating an air of practiced skill from head to toe.

Even his speech became crisp and decisive.

"Then let's do three-on-three."

All Baimu said with a smile, placing three of his Poké Balls into his pocket.

To preserve their condition for tomorrow's tournament, Boldore and the others definitely couldn't go out — if they overdid it like Porygon today, going on stage tomorrow would be inconvenient.

Anyway, the purpose of battling other trainers wasn't only to win; battling a tournament runner-up would most likely be an extremely valuable combat experience for the "little babies" in his team.

"Okay!"

Manchu took out a Poké Ball.

Street battles have no referee; when to release Pokémon and when to attack all depend on the trainer's personal quality.

In the common unspoken rules, the moment both sides take out their Poké Balls and lock eyes, they can release their Pokémon.

Pop pop!

Two Poké Balls flew up and opened.

In the flashing white light.

A gray-white boulder appeared before All Baimu, while Manchu chose the graceful and beautiful Delcatty.

The latter was visibly taken aback by the Galarian Corsola, and only when it extended its smoky tentacles and floated up off the ground did she realize that was indeed a Pokémon.

Again…

An unfamiliar Pokémon!

Manchu's heart stirred; he somehow felt that some long-dormant feeling inside him had returned.

That longing to grow alongside Pokémon, to see more unfamiliar Pokémon — the original aspiration.

What had he set out on this journey for?

A wave of irritation surged into his heart, like some program freezing halfway through, making him clench his clothes and bite his lower lip hard, finding no relief.

Obviously.

Mancong still hadn't thought it through on his own.

Sensing something off about its trainer's state, the Delcatty turned its head with a worried glance.

All Baimu looked at the other's condition, frowned, and said, "Feeling unwell?"

"... I'm fine!"

Mancong released his grip on his collar, took another deep breath, and his condition improved considerably.

Hearing the other's decisive reply, he nodded and said, "Then I won't hold back! Curse!"

"Screee—"

The Galarian Corsola's eyes blazed brilliantly, eerie purple smoke spilling from its body, suddenly transforming into a shrieking ghost shadow that lunged at the Delcatty!

"Shadow Clone—dodge it!"

Mancong's command elicited an extremely swift response from the Delcatty.

Whoosh!

The Delcatty abruptly split into countless copies; the ghost shadow lunged at one of them, failing not only to slip into its shadow but also lunging at empty air.

"Dazzling Gleam!"

"Meow-ow!"

Pink light waves erupted simultaneously from the mouths of the many Delcatty, striking the ghost shadow and dispersing it entirely.

No way around it—real combat isn't the causality-bound kind from games. The essence of Curse is still an energy attack; it can miss, and it can be dispersed by a stronger move.

Of course.

Without a certain level of strength, that would definitely be impossible.

"Impressive." All Baimu was impressed by how swiftly the Delcatty chained its moves together.

The Galarian Corsola glanced at its opponent, feeling the situation didn't seem to be going its way.