Chapter 267: VS. Baby Cynthia
Kanto Conference.
Lorelei's return after a two-year absence caught the eye of many spectators who had seen her previous battles.
Given that Lorelei had been the runner-up in the Sinnoh Conference last time, quite a few people were already secretly betting that she would become the champion of this Kanto Conference.
Not only that, many trainers who had battled Lorelei during her travels, both participants and spectators, came over to say hello.
Even though she hadn't participated in regional tournaments for two years, Lorelei had become somewhat famous locally in Kanto.
After all, she was strong, young, and beautiful—it was only natural she'd be famous.
The tournament officially began.
From the initial qualifiers to the second round of group stages, Lorelei didn't lose a single match.
And this was without Will even taking the field.
Even Lorelei herself was shocked.
Now, in the elimination rounds, they definitely couldn't afford to lose. Losing in the qualifiers or groups was fine, as long as you advanced. But losing here meant going home.
The elimination bracket was released. Lorelei frowned as she stared at the list, and Will carefully examined every photo.
"I don't see any opponents worth noting," Lucario said first.
"Mm, me neither." Will nodded.
It seemed no Gym Leaders or Elite Four-level figures were participating in this tournament.
"Hmm... there are a few who made the Top 8 or Top 16 in recent years, but the rest... don't seem to have ever made it to the elimination rounds before?" Lorelei scratched her head.
She felt there wasn't a single opponent in this bracket who could give her a real fight.
"Maybe we're just too strong now... Our strength is comparable to Ramos back then. If we fought him again, we'd have at least a 70% chance of winning." Will yawned.
With the current strength of Lorelei's team, she could easily serve as a Gym Leader.
However, she wasn't technically a "Gym Leader-level trainer" yet. That title required a full team of six Pokémon at Lv. 60 or higher. Lorelei was currently only a "Quasi-Gym Leader-level trainer."
But the level gap within her team was an issue. Will was the highest at Lv. 69, about to break into Elite Four level. But Slowbro, the lowest, was only Lv. 54. It would take longer for Slowbro to reach Gym Leader level than for Will to reach Elite Four level.
By the time Slowbro reached Gym Leader level, Lorelei wouldn't become a Gym Leader-level trainer; because of Will, she would jump straight to "Quasi-Elite Four level."
The elimination rounds officially began.
In the Top 64 and Top 32, Will didn't even get a chance to act. In the Top 16 and Top 8, he only came out to clean up the scraps.
It wasn't until the semi-finals (Top 4) that he barely got to fight a full opponent.
The Finals.
Lorelei's opponent was a blonde girl.
She looked to be only twelve or thirteen. Although the quality of regional tournaments had dropped significantly compared to Lorelei's first two, making it to the finals at this age definitely qualified her as a genius girl on par with Lorelei.
When Will heard the referee announce her name, his eyes widened instantly.
"Whoa?! I didn't recognize her!"
"What's wrong, Piplup? Do you know her?" Lorelei looked at the little penguin curiously.
Normally, she knew all the humans Will knew. The only ones Will knew that she didn't were some incredible Pokémon.
"Your idol, Carmela's daughter. That's her." Will grinned at the girl opposite them.
This version of Cynthia didn't have her floor-length hair yet; it was medium-length and tied in a ponytail. But her fashion sense hadn't changed much—a black tracksuit and Doc Martens, not too different from her future black suit and coat.
"?! Ms. Carmela's daughter is this big already? I remember when we saw her in the audience, she was just a snot-nosed brat."
"...Please, that was eight years ago. You were only eight then too, wetting the bed every night and blaming it on me." Will rolled his eyes at Lorelei, feeling a bit dazed.
Without realizing it, he had been a Piplup for eight years. Eight years... that was a long time.
"Don't say that! You're going first!" Lorelei blushed and tried to grab Will to throw him onto the field.
"Sending me first is just bullying. I could take out at least five of hers. Don't make her cry." Will did a backflip to dodge her.
"...True. Then you go last." Lorelei nodded, agreeing with his logic.
Enough chit-chat.
Battle Start!
Cynthia didn't get to the finals on luck. Though only twelve or thirteen, her strength couldn't be underestimated.
Her team of six Pokémon wasn't much different from the games. The only difference was...
In the games, Cynthia always had a Lucario.
But now, the Lucario was gone, replaced by a Sceptile.
Garchomp, Sceptile, Togekiss, Milotic, Roserade, Spiritomb.
There was a high probability that Cynthia was just like Lorelei in the past. Meaning, she had started raising two Pokémon before she turned ten.
Lorelei raised Will and Lapras.
Cynthia raised Garchomp and Sceptile.
Two prodigies from similar molds.
"That Milotic is so beautiful..." Lorelei stared at Cynthia's Milotic, practically drooling despite her usually cool demeanor.
"Idiot, focus! You're going to get Froslass killed." Will rushed up and kicked Lorelei in the butt, snapping her out of it.
"Ouch, sorry."
"Don't underestimate her just because she's young. Going all out in every battle is basic respect for your opponent. Do I still have to teach you this?"
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again. Piplup, you're so mean." Lorelei pouted, then focused her full attention on the battle.
Will also focused on the field.
Cynthia's team average was around Lv. 55. But that average was pulled up heavily by Garchomp and Sceptile. The other four were barely Lv. 50, or even lower.
Garchomp and Sceptile were Lv. 60 and Lv. 58, respectively.
'Terrifying.' Will shook his head.
Cynthia's achievements weren't just due to her own talent. Her family education played a huge role. Her grandmother was Professor Carolina of Sinnoh, and her mother was a Champion-level trainer who had dominated the regional circuit in the previous era. With those two backing her, Cynthia's early education far surpassed anything Lorelei, a grassroots trainer, could compare to.
So, it was normal for Cynthia to achieve more than Lorelei at the same age.
But there was one area where Cynthia would never beat Lorelei.
And that was Will.
He was certain that even if Cynthia's team surpassed Lorelei's in the future, they would never beat him. As long as he was there, Lorelei would always be one step ahead of Cynthia.
The battle reached the late stages.
Lorelei had Lapras, Cloyster, and Will left.
Cynthia had Garchomp and Sceptile.
"Let me go." Will tapped Lorelei's leg and stepped forward.
"It's rare to see you volunteer, Piplup~" Lorelei recalled Cloyster and rubbed Will's round head. "Then I'm counting on you, my Ace."
"Leave it to me." Will waved a flipper casually, looking up at the tall Sceptile opposite him.
This Sceptile was 1.8 meters tall. Its talent was visible to the naked eye; it had been raised perfectly.
As he observed it... Will suddenly raised an eyebrow.
Staring at the pendant around its neck, he felt an inexplicable aura.
It felt like... his aura.
More precisely, the aura of his past life as a Sceptile.
Looking closer, inside the pendant was a sharp, emerald-green leaf. It was a leaf from his tail in his past life.
"Did I give Celestia a tail leaf in my last life?"
Will paused. He didn't remember doing that.
When did that little thief steal it?
'That little cat-burglar.' Will shook his head with a helpless smile. Not only had Celestia taken the leaf, she had passed it down through her descendants.
"Piplup! I know you! I've wanted to battle you for a long time!"
Cynthia spoke up, looking at Will with shining eyes, clearly excited. "Mom said you're the fastest-reacting Pokémon she's ever seen, even faster than her Sceptile!"
"...She flatters me." Will raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected Carmela to have noticed him.
"Mom also said that if I can beat you, even if I don't win the championship, she'll tell me a secret about Great-Grandma."
"That secret might be that your Great-Grandma almost fell in love with me, hahaha." Will covered his mouth to stifle a laugh, a look of nostalgia in his eyes.
"Let's begin."
Will stopped smiling and waved to Sceptile and Cynthia.
"Sceptile! Rock Tomb!"
"Scep!"
Sceptile raised a foot and stomped down hard.
BOOM!
Massive pillars of rock erupted from the flat ground.
"Wait, that move..." Will pursed his lips, looking at the familiar technique, almost laughing out loud.
"Agility!" Cynthia's confident voice rang out again.
But the ice-blue figure was faster, stepping onto the rock pillars before the green figure could move.
Extreme Speed.
The tiny figure darted between the pillars.
In the blink of an eye, Will was in front of Sceptile and kicked it flying.
"Impossible?! Why do you know that move too?!"
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