Edgar and Shae had already received the message. Their expressions stayed calm as they released their Pokémon outside the lobby.
"Gengar."
"Vanilluxe."
The moment the two Pokémon appeared, Marvin rushed in front of Shae. He bent forward anxiously and asked, "What happened? What's going on right now?"
Shae raised her cane but did not bring it down on his head. She just walked past him and spoke calmly, "I don't know either. The company said something went wrong at the headquarters building and asked me and Edgar to help."
Marvin then looked toward the old man, only to see Allister run over as well, standing in front of him and looking up.
Edgar had little to say. He could only shake his head.
The two boys could only watch as their teachers mounted their Pokémon and flew toward the direction of Rose Tower.
"What about Shiro?" Nessa asked as she reached the doorway, clearly worried.
Everything had happened too fast. No one even knew what had gone wrong. Unfortunately, neither Marvin nor Allister had any answers.
The three of them returned to the lobby, where a strange atmosphere filled the air.
Raihan and Rylan stood near the passageway, as if they wanted to go in and see for themselves. The other competitors sat quietly, not a single discussion to be heard.
"This Champion Cup final…" Marvin muttered in confusion. "Is it just over like this?"
* * *
Inside the competitors' waiting room, Leon had already finished preparing and was about to enter the arena. He stopped in his tracks.
The broadcast still echoed in his ears.
"Shiro…" Leon sighed softly and lowered his head. "Did he really leave?"
He had thought they would fight a full final match. But with the company closing in on him step by step, Shiro truly had no better choice.
Buzz!
The communicator vibrated lightly. Leon glanced at it, then casually slipped it back into his pocket.
He put on his gloves and lifted his head again. His gaze remained firm.
Even without an opponent, he would still step onto the field and stand there until the very end.
No matter what, he was still the undefeated Leon of Galar.
* * *
Wyndon Stadium.
Several Eldegoss floated in the air, trailing colorful ribbons. More than a dozen Corviknight flew steadily overhead, cargo boxes and cameramen secured beneath their claws. The blinding white lights atop the stadium shone down onto the grass at the center of the battlefield.
The crowd's excited chatter and cheers never stopped.
Because the audience was too large and too loud, and to avoid sudden panic, the earlier announcement had not been played here.
The subtle sounds from the lobby and indoor areas had gone completely unnoticed. But this news could not be hidden forever.
At the referee's stand.
With one hand gripping the railing, Ryan clenched his communicator tightly. The message on it was an order from the company, telling him to announce the situation and calm the audience.
Announce it. Calm them.
Ryan had no idea what he was supposed to say.
This was the Champion Cup final. The grandest event in Galar, held once every three years.
Not only were tens of thousands of spectators packed into this stadium, but hundreds of thousands more from different towns were waiting in city plazas across Wyndon.
Not to mention those who had stayed home early, sitting in front of their TVs and radios, just to watch or listen to the final.
If this was handled poorly, it could spark unrest across the entire Galar region.
Ryan scanned the dark sea of spectators below. In the end, he lowered the communicator and picked up the microphone. Taking a deep breath, he began, "Dear audience, just as the final match of the Champion Cup is about to begin, please allow me to tell you—"
Before he could finish, the entire stadium erupted like a volcano.
"Woo!"
"Leon! Leon! Leon!"
"Champion Leon! The undefeated Leon!"
"Charizard!"
"Let us see your final battle!"
The deafening cheers left Ryan stunned. He followed the noise and saw Leon already walking out from the player tunnel on one side of the field.
Amid the roaring applause, Leon calmly stepped onto the grass and waved to the crowd.
Ryan glanced at his communicator again, utterly confused.
Shiro was missing. Shouldn't Leon still be in the waiting room?
The company had told him not to come out.
If Leon stayed inside, they could blur the situation and keep the audience unsure whether it was Leon or Shiro who had the accident.
Even if people complained, once things settled and Leon fought the stand-in Shiro, most would accept that both were real.
But if it was made clear now that something happened to Shiro, then later, when Leon defeated a fake opponent, many would question it.
They would say the title was undeserved.
So why did Leon come out on his own?
Ryan swallowed the bitterness in his mouth. The speech he had prepared was cut short. He had no choice but to hold it back and reorganize his words.
While the referee struggled, the crowd was more excited than ever.
Even trainers from Hammerlocke, who usually disliked Leon the most, shouted his name along with everyone else.
The last match of the Champion Cup was the true final. The battle that would decide Galar's future Champion.
At this place, at this moment, trainers from every city could set aside all bias and rivalry and cheer freely for the one standing on the field.
After a moment, Ryan checked the time and finally raised the microphone, cutting through the excitement. "Now, there are five minutes left until the Champion Cup final begins. It seems our Leon arrived a bit early, but that's perfectly fine…"
As the crowd slowly quieted, his voice dropped. "But I must inform everyone of another piece of news… even though this is not my wish."
At those words, his voice caught in his throat. How was he supposed to say this?
"That is…" Ryan spoke extremely slowly, forced to drag out the words.
In an instant, the stadium fell silent. Even the faint murmurs vanished.
Ryan's eyes widened as well.
Directly opposite Leon, within the player tunnel half-covered by light and shadow, a familiar figure in a black cloak slowly stepped forward.
"Shiro!"
The stadium exploded.
The cheers that followed nearly shattered Ryan's eardrums. His entire body trembled as he raised his arm and shouted, "Both Trainers are ready! The final match of the Champion Cup will begin ahead of schedule!"
* * *
"Hey, hey? Rose! Why is it so loud over there? Sounds like a boiler about to blow!" Sordward's irritated voice came through the communicator.
Rose stared at Shiro walking onto the grass. A smile slowly formed at the corner of his mouth.
Sordward shouted again, "Rose! I'm already heading to Wyndon. If I don't see the Unown after the final—"
"You will see it," Rose replied softly, then ended the call.
He sat back on the sofa, fingers interlaced beneath his chin, and murmured, "So you came back after all?"
**
**
**
Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you can visit my P@treon:
P@treon/SilverShark769
Vote with Power Stones for Bonus Chapters!
Your support means a lot, thank you!