Returning to the crowd, Gary's face immediately fell. Despite his usual confidence, losing the match really upset him, but he absolutely couldn't show it in front of Ash, or it would be even more embarrassing.
Even if he loses, Gary Oak has to lose with style and charisma!
Gary's cheerleaders and girlfriends also came over to console him, cheering him up, and with their comfort, Gary's mood finally lightened a bit.
"Gary." A voice called out, and Gary looked over to see his grandfather and Ash's mother, Delia.
"Grandpa, I'm sorry you had to see me like that." Gary pressed his lips together, ultimately managing a weak apology.
"What's there to apologize for? For a Trainer who's been traveling for just a month, you've done pretty well. To be honest, even I was just a little better than you back in the day," Professor Oak said, indicating just a tiny gap with his fingers.
Hearing this, Gary rolled his eyes. Is that how you comfort someone? Shouldn't you say I'm better than you were back then to make me feel better?
"And losing to Ash might not be a bad thing. Failure can calm down your character, make you less flamboyant, and help you reflect on your shortcomings," Professor Oak said, hands clasped behind his back, with deep meaning.
Then his gaze turned to Ash, who had started battling again, as he said, "Actually, I'm more worried about Ash's character. His passion for Pokemon is even stronger than yours, but his personality is a bit worse."
"He's the kind who gets cocky with a little success. I used to wonder how many failures it would take to adjust his character, but his progress this past month has really surprised me."
Professor Oak had watched both Gary and Ash grow up and knew their personality strengths and weaknesses very well.
Gary's progress was basically within Professor Oak's expectations; although his strength improved, he had faced no real challenges, so his maturity was still lacking.
But Ash's progress had truly exceeded his expectations.
Based on their usual phone conversations and Ash's performance in battling Gary, Professor Oak was very confident that Ash's mindset had completely changed from a month ago.
That rash child who used to get carried away at the slightest event had matured quietly over the month, and not just a little bit.
Was it because he was traveling with two Gym Leaders, or did the diverse experiences on his journey have a huge impact on Ash?
Whatever the reason, Ash's progress made Professor Oak genuinely happy for him.
And the rivalry between Ash and Gary would lead to mutual improvement, which was a good development.
It seemed that in this year's Quartz Conference, Pallet Town would finally have two standout competitors.
After listening to Professor Oak, Gary also turned his gaze to Ash, showing a hint of reluctance in his eyes, but what burned brighter was his fighting spirit.
If Ash could achieve it, why couldn't Gary Oak?
...
One hour later, with Pikachu's Thunder Shock, Ash finally secured ten consecutive victories.
This small official competition had determined its winner.
Aside from Gary, all the other challengers were unimpressive.
Strong Trainers don't appear so easily; there are countless Trainers in the world, and in such a small resort, having even one Trainer with Elite Level Pokemon is already exceptional.
Mostly, it's Trainers with Ordinary Level or Advanced Level Pokemon.
For Pikachu, battling even ten opponents was no problem!
This ten-win streak was achieved effortlessly.
After the host's award ceremony, this small competition was drawing to a close.
When the officials handed Ash the Light Ball, they admitted they didn't know what the tool was, only that it contained Electric attribute power, yet had no effect when carried by Electric Type Pokemon.
The specific effects would have to be explored by Ash himself.
In plain language, they didn't even know what the tool was for, so they just used it as a prize because it was useless anyway, and it boosted the resort's popularity, didn't it?
The result was certainly positive: giving away a practically useless Treasure Pearl doubled the sales in the surrounding area, and this was just the beginning.
Once the crowd dispersed, wouldn't those spectators still spend money? Then the revenue would super multiply!
Compared to such gains, what was a little Treasure Pearl worth?
Ash didn't say much; he just carefully tucked away the Light Ball.
This thing may be useless to them, but for Ash, it's a super treasure!
If ranked in chat group terms, this tool would be classified as S-level for Ash!
It could permanently double Pikachu's attack attributes, meaning Pikachu's training growth would also multiply!
Once Pikachu reached Champion Level, not even a god could withstand its electric attacks!
Ash, fully satisfied, reunited with Misty and the others and saw Professor Oak and Delia next to the now-calm Gary.