November 15th, Saturday.
After the gym crisis was resolved in a more troublesome way, Aiden finally had a rare lie-in.
It wasn't until Eevee quietly finished watching another movie and, driven by hunger, returned to the bedroom to rub against his cheek that Aiden slowly woke up.
Come to think of it, in his past life when he kept cats, he always felt their saliva was sticky, but Eevee's scent made him feel at ease.
Is this truly the case, or is it just a psychological effect...
Can't figure it out.
After getting up and washing up, and preparing food for the two little ones, Aiden suddenly realized something very important—
He seemed to have nothing to do...
After the gym assessment ended, exhausted, he had already hung up a "closed for today" sign at the door, so no challengers would come knocking.
So, what should he do?
Seems like there's nothing to do today. Maybe I'll slack off all day.
At this point, let's play with my phone first.
Aiden directly flopped back onto the bed with a lazy fish tackle, ready to comfortably browse some videos.
However, just as he opened PokéTV to find something entertaining, a private message suddenly caught his attention.
[Nessa:
Teacher Azure, today in the afternoon is the Galar Ranking Battle day, and I will be facing Mr. Milo at the Turffield Stadium.
In this battle, I will change my tactics based on your advice. If Teacher Azure is available to watch the match online, could you please help point out any shortcomings in my performance during this battle?]
Galar's Nessa?
After receiving the message, Aiden thought for a moment and quickly recalled that indeed something like this happened.
Just last week, he overturned Nessa's rain team using Breloom and she came to his live stream to tip him, so he gave her some advice along the way.
Getting to know gym leaders from other regions through such circumstances can also be considered a kind of fate.
Since there was nothing else to do today, Aiden decisively agreed.
…
Galar region, Turffield Stadium.
As a region where the entire league has been thoroughly commercialized, Galar's gyms differ greatly from those in other regions.
Since there is no Elite Four position, the requirements for the strength of top-tier gym leaders are higher.
Moreover, the various gym leaders will spar with each other annually to compete for tickets to the Champion Cup knockout stage.
And these highly topical matches naturally require large venues to accommodate the passionate local audience. Coupled with the region's unique Dynamax phenomenon, larger Stadiums gradually replaced the gyms.
Today, the Turffield Stadium will host a revenge match.
In the player lounge, Nessa held a Dive Ball, lost in thought.
About ten minutes before the battle began, the enthusiastic shouts of the host had already penetrated layers of barriers, echoing in the empty room.
As the atmosphere gradually heated up, she knew it was time for her to step onto the field.
After taking a deep breath, Nessa patted her cheeks, seemingly boosting herself in this manner.
"This time, I will win!"
After saying this, Nessa quickly appeared outside the player tunnel, walking confidently into the Stadium, smiling gently and waving to the audience in response.
Her gaze briefly met the Rotom drone responsible for live broadcasting.
"Woah, Nessa is so cute!"
Somewhere in an unknown corner of the internet, Aiden, who had quickly gone live, happened to catch this scene and couldn't help but blurt out.
[I wonder why I suddenly got a notification… Oh, the streamer went live... Wait?]
[??? Who are you? Why is Teacher Azure, this lazy dog, streaming in the afternoon? Get out of his body!]
[Isn't this the Galar Ranking Battle? Has the streamer switched to being a commentator?]
Due to the impromptu live broadcast, there weren't many viewers in the live chat initially, making it seem rather quiet compared to usual times.
"Good afternoon, everyone."
While the battle hadn't officially started yet, Aiden briefly interacted with the chat.
"That's right, at the invitation of Miss Nessa, today Teacher Azure will take a break from his usual routine to guest as a commentator and bring you an absolutely thrilling Galar Ranking Battle!"
[Teacher Azure can commentate too?]
[Is it because he gave Nessa advice during the last stream? So prestigious, streamer!]
Through the perspective of the Rotom drone, Aiden soon witnessed the luxurious battle Stadium of Galar.
The stands, which could hold tens of thousands of spectators, were almost completely filled. The billboards surrounding the venue were full of international companies like "Devon Corporation" and "GF Studios."
It would be a lie not to be envious.
Even without considering how much money one could earn, fighting on such a venue would definitely be a very happy experience.
However, commercialization isn't entirely beneficial for the league either.
The two players quickly took their positions on their respective halves of the field, and the battle was about to begin.
[Streamers, do you think Gym Leader Nessa can win today?]
[Honestly, type disadvantage is fatal, and Mr. Milo's strength is not weak either, so it's quite difficult~]
[Successfully starting Dynamax will count as a success!]
"I can't say for sure. Let's see how both sides start; I can only say that the chances of winning are certainly not small."
Aiden didn't give a definite answer because he didn't know how much preparation Nessa had done for this battle.
However, since Nessa was somewhat like a water friend in his live stream, he would still slightly favor her.
With the referee's whistle, the match officially began.
Amidst the thunderous cheers of the audience, Milo and Nessa exchanged glances, confirming each other's serious gazes, then simultaneously tossed out their Poké Balls.
"Gym Leader Milo's starter is Bellossom, and Nessa still starts with Pelipper as expected, which is a predictable matchup choice."
Upon observing the two starting Pokémon, Aiden instinctively began analyzing.
"Pelipper triggers its Drizzle ability upon appearance, which explains why Milo would wear a sun hat for the battle; rain is very important for Nessa's team."
"The opponent obviously has defenses prepared. I guess this Bellossom will most likely use Sunny Day to override the weather."
Weather battles are an important part of Pokémon battles.
Since the benefits of weather for Pokémon with fixed attributes are significant, disrupting the rhythm of a weather-based team is crucial.
The simplest method, of course, is to cover it with another weather condition to make the field advantageous for oneself.
In their previous encounter, Milo used the same tactic.
"However, this time, Milo might suffer a heavy blow..."
Noticing the transparent glasses perched above the beak of the little rain-bringing Pelipper, Aiden couldn't help but silently click his tongue.
Uh-oh, Nessa really learnt her lesson!
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