After the first match ended, Eevee and Combusken fought three more rounds.
By the time May finished practicing with Squirtle and looked over, both Pokémon were breathing hard. Many scars had appeared on their bodies, which showed how much energy they had used.
Unfortunately, during those matches, Natsui only gave a few tips. Because of this, Combusken could not win even one round in all three matches.
The hope that had just grown in Combusken's heart to defeat Eevee sank again.
This was normal. After all, the difference in strength was very large. Being able to last three matches without losing immediately was only because of Natsui's help at important moments.
However, the matches were still useful. At least after fighting Eevee, Combusken got much better at using its moves. Its battle experience improved a lot, and it improved significantly.
"How is the training going?" May wiped her sweat and walked over to Natsui to ask.
"Progressing very quickly. If it trains for a few more days, it could even enter a Pokémon League," Natsui gave his honest opinion. Then he also asked, "Is the coordination between you and Squirtle going smoothly?"
"No problem!" May gave Natsui a thumbs-up. "Just watch my performance tomorrow!"
Because they needed to keep Squirtle and Combusken in good shape, Natsui and May took the Pokémon back to the Pokémon Center at sunset. They treated Combusken's injuries first. Then they let them eat a full meal and groomed them before finally telling them to rest.
By the time all this was finished, it was completely dark.
The two sat on a bench in the hallway, looking up at the ceiling of the Pokémon Center. Neither of them spoke.
May was naturally tired. She had been busy doing everything by herself. Now that she finally had time to rest, she did not want to move even a finger.
Natsui saw that she was very tired, so he did not speak. He let her rest her mind for a while.
After a long time, May stretched and smiled. "I did not realize it before. Now that I have to prepare alone, I see it is not easy at all."
Natsui understood what she meant.
Before, she had entered many Contests, but Max and Brock were there to help. There were things she did not need to do because others helped with the work. Naturally, she did not feel it much. But now that Max and Brock were gone, the heavy responsibility was entirely on her.
Of course, for other Coordinators, this was just daily life. May had simply been taken care of too well before.
He wanted to say something, but before Natsui could speak, May smiled again. "But it is okay, I will do my best! Even though I am a bit clumsy now, I believe it won't be long before I can handle things with ease!"
Hearing her words, Natsui was a bit surprised, and then he laughed.
It seemed May was always that cheerful and positive girl. She did not get discouraged or give up because of these difficulties. Instead, she was full of hope for the future. This was a big reason why she was so popular in the anime!
"I certainly believe you. Also, I believe that one day, you will definitely become a Top Coordinator!"
May did not think Natsui was joking. This made her stare at Natsui. She did not know why Natsui believed in her so much.
After all, everyone talks about dreams and goals, but how many people can truly reach them?
...
The Silver Town Pokémon Contest began at 10:00 AM as planned.
The venue was not very big, but it was already full of people. Although there were not as many people as in a large stadium, their excitement was just as high as in other places.
As expected, the host was still Lilian. The judges were also as expected: Raoul Contesta, Mr. Sukizo, and Nurse Joy.
Perhaps the only difference was that this Nurse Joy was not the one from Saffron City. She was the Nurse Joy from the Silver Town Pokémon Center.
But what was the difference?
The face was the same, the clothes were the same, and even their scoring rules were exactly the same.
After introducing the three judges and explaining the rules as usual, it was time for the contestants to enter.
One could only say that in a small town Contest, there were not many players. Including May, there were only about twelve contestants. Looking around, not one of them looked familiar.
It seemed the opponents were not very strong. As long as May performed normally, winning should not be a big problem.
With cheers from the audience, the Contest officially began.
It is worth mentioning that just seconds before the start, a middle-aged man holding a briefcase arrived late. He was dressed like an office worker. He ran onto the stage and unluckily tripped, which made the audience laugh.
Only Natsui did not laugh with them after seeing him. Instead, he looked serious, because he remembered something.
"So it is him..."
He remembered a story like this from the anime.
This meant the Silver Town Contest was not an unimportant match. It actually appeared in the anime!
But it was not a big problem. Even if it was a plot point, the ending would be May winning. This way, Natsui did not have to worry about her.
Once everyone arrived, the first round of judging officially began.
After the first few contestants finished their performances, received applause, and left the stage with their Pokémon, May finally went up as the fourth performer.
Just like in yesterday's practice, her partner was Squirtle. As soon as it appeared, Squirtle showed the audience a special skill.
The moment it flew out of the Poké Ball, before it even landed, it pulled its head and legs into its shell. Then, it breathed out an Ice Beam while spinning. Finally, it turned like a top, getting faster and more beautiful.
After flying in the air for a while, Squirtle finally landed steadily and bowed to the audience. Many clear ice crystals fell from the sky, sparkling under the lights.
For an entrance like that, the audience naturally cheered loudly to encourage them.
That was not all. Under May's command, Squirtle blew out many bubbles and made a huge super bubble in the center. Then it jumped onto the super bubble and used Ice Beam to break it. This formed a huge flower-shaped ice spike on the stage, and Squirtle landed steadily on top.
In the front row, Natsui clapped with the other people.
It was clear that May and her Pokémon's performance had become even better than before. Even Squirtle, which had not been with her for long, quickly found its rhythm under May's care. It was not nervous and showed its strength with confidence. One could see how fast they were both growing.
She really is a natural-born Coordinator...
With such a performance, it was no problem to enter the second round of judging.
After May left the stage, the middle-aged office worker who was almost late came up.
From Lilian's introduction, Natsui knew his name was Jeremy. He was around forty years old and a bit fat. He looked honest and simple. His gray suit made him look like an ordinary man you might see anywhere on the street or in the subway.
Since the town was small and Jeremy was a local, most of the audience knew him well. They probably saw him every day.
Because of his trip earlier, people laughed kindly when they heard his name. They all wanted to see how he would do.
However, the lights on the stage suddenly went dark. A man with a tall haircut and black sunglasses appeared. He wore leather clothes, gloves, pants, and shoes. He held an electric guitar and looked like a biker. He walked onto the stage while electronic music played!
"Who... is that?"
That was likely what everyone in the audience was thinking.
Only Natsui, the director, Lilian, and a few others knew what was happening.
That is right, this person was the honest office worker Jeremy!
His new look and energy were completely different from before. It was like he was a different person!
When they realized this, the audience was shocked.
There were more surprises to come.
The new Jeremy released his Butterfree. While he played music quickly, Butterfree used Poison Powder and then Stun Spore. Large purple and orange clouds spread across the stage. Then it used Whirlwind to blow the powder everywhere. Finally, it used Safeguard, which created rainbow-colored lights like colorful clouds!
This beautiful scene completely amazed the audience. Butterfree's charm was fully shown through these combined moves.
But then, something unexpected happened.
A mother and son suddenly appeared below the stage and stopped Jeremy's performance.
Then, a scene played out where the family tried to stop the husband from following his dream. With May's help, Jeremy spoke from his heart. Because of his great performance, the audience supported him. Everyone stood up and clapped, and in the end, his wife and son supported him too. It was a touching moment.
Of course, this was just a small interruption, but it made the ordinary Contest much more meaningful.
After the family left the stage with the audience's encouragement, the Contest continued. The other contestants performed one by one.
In the end, as expected, four contestants, including May and Jeremy, moved on to the second round.
It should be mentioned that in small towns, only four players enter the second round, unlike big cities where eight usually move forward. Even though there are fewer people and fewer battles, it is still very exciting!
The matches appeared on the big screen.
As if the God of Anime was watching, May and Jeremy were not put together, just like in the show. They both beat their opponents easily.
This meant they would meet in the final.
To be honest, there was no mystery for Natsui. He knew May and Combusken's strength very well. Plus, they had received his advice. It was like watching a movie where he already knew the ending.
But for others, this was a match everyone wanted to see!
Even May and Jeremy thought the other was a tough opponent.
The two went on stage and released their Pokémon.
For May, it was her Combusken. Jeremy's Pokémon was a Venusaur that was much larger than a normal one!
Both Pokémon had done great in their earlier battles. In terms of typing, Combusken had the advantage. So it seemed May had a better chance to win.
But Contest Battles are not just about types. They also look at how beautiful the moves are. This made the match hard to predict.
Jeremy's Venusaur was actually quite good. It was very big and had a lot of energy. It could not be taken lightly.
But unfortunately, just as Natsui thought, the result was already decided.
At first, Venusaur used Vine Whip to break Combusken's Fire Spin despite the type disadvantage. It showed great power and even used the strong Grass-type move Frenzy Plant. It almost trapped Combusken. However, after yesterday's training, Combusken was not an easy target anymore.
With May's encouragement and orders, Combusken performed perfectly. Finally, it used fire to burn the plants on the stage and defeated Venusaur with Sky Uppercut!
It was easy to see that May's Combusken was much calmer than in the anime. It did not face as much trouble as it did on TV.
This was the result of the special training!
Even though it could not beat Eevee once, the experience and practice it gained were real!
This allowed it to defeat Venusaur and help May win another Ribbon!
Victory was victory, but the applause and cheers from the crowd were not very loud.
It was not that the people were not excited. It was just that after the touching family scene earlier, most of the audience wanted Jeremy to win and reach his dream.
But competition is cruel. Jeremy had a reason to win, but May also had a strong belief that she could not lose!