From the "anticipation" in the eyes of the contestants inside the waiting hall, Ash could easily read what they were thinking.
He merely shook his head.
Whether it was Clarissa's quick wit and intelligence, or the overwhelming beauty of the shiny Magikarp, he trusted both of them two hundred percent.
When a Pokémon's appearance reached a certain level, it didn't even need to do anything special.
Just showing up on stage was enough to earn an incredibly high vote count.
Besides, it wasn't as though Clarissa lacked creativity.
The reason she hadn't displayed many tricks during the previous rounds was because she had deliberately been saving room for later performances.
After all, according to Ash's instructions, Magikarp only "knew" two moves publicly—
Splash and Tackle.
Until it evolved into Gyarados, none of the other moves Magikarp had mastered could be revealed to the outside world.
As a result, Magikarp's performance options were extremely limited, which was why Clarissa had held back during the earlier rounds.
But now that the competition had entered the semifinals and the latter half of the tournament, it was time to show a little more.
Whether the audience had grown tired of Magikarp's leisurely swimming displays or not—
Clarissa could finally reveal more of Magikarp's talents.
…
"Next, please welcome Contestant No.16's Pokémon, Magikarp, for its one-minute showcase!"
The moment the announcement sounded—
The arena exploded.
"WOOOOOO!!"
"MAGIKARP!!"
"MAGIKARP!!"
"MAGIKARP!!"
The audience erupted into enthusiastic cheers.
If Misty's Marill was considered a championship favorite—
Then Clarissa's shiny Magikarp was practically the presumptive champion.
As long as Ash's shiny Feebas suffered even the slightest stumble with its makeup presentations, there was a ninety-nine percent chance Magikarp would ultimately win the title.
The crowd's reaction alone was enough to prove just how popular it had become.
And neither Clarissa nor Magikarp disappointed.
As soon as the referee robot finished speaking, the gleaming golden Magikarp emerged from the underwater gate beneath the Water Cube arena.
Its scales shone like liquid gold and polished jade under the spotlights.
This time, however, it didn't lazily swim around the pool like an ornamental fish in an aquarium.
Instead, it immediately burst with energy.
At the center of the pool, Magikarp spun in a perfect circle, giving the audience a full 360-degree view of its dazzling beauty.
Then—
Like a trained sea lion balancing a ball on its nose, Magikarp raised its head proudly toward the sky.
Its body straightened vertically in the water.
Opening its mouth—
It blew out a single bubble.
Then another.
Then another.
The bubbles merged into one.
And continued growing.
Larger.
And larger.
And larger.
Meanwhile, Magikarp's upright body began rotating rapidly beneath it.
The bubble expanded.
Magikarp spun faster.
The bubble expanded again.
Magikarp spun even faster.
Soon—
At the very center of the Water Cube arena—
A breathtaking image appeared.
A golden pillar of light spiraling upward.
And atop it—
A glowing pearl-like bubble suspended in midair.
The entire scene looked as though a golden dragon were coiling around a heavenly pillar while presenting a divine pearl.
It was beautiful.
Majestic.
And overflowing with auspicious symbolism.
"WOOOOOO!!"
"MAGIKARP!!"
"MAGIKARP!!"
The crowd went wild.
The mere fact that the gorgeous golden Magikarp was willing to change its performance style and show a lively, energetic side already delighted the audience.
But now—
It had created an image that was not only stunningly beautiful but also deeply symbolic.
A sign of prosperity.
Good fortune.
Blessings.
The visual impact was overwhelming.
Even more impressive was Magikarp's control.
Despite spinning at incredible speed, it maintained perfect control of the giant bubble.
The bubble neither drifted away nor floated upward.
It remained perfectly connected to Magikarp's mouth throughout the entire performance.
The audience couldn't stop praising it.
And then—
Something unexpected happened.
Faced with such a beautiful and auspicious scene—
Many audience members instinctively began making wishes.
"Please let me pass my teaching certification exam!"
"Absorb some good luck! Quick, absorb it all!"
"Please let me pass my job interview!"
"Let me reconcile with my aunt!"
"Please let me graduate successfully this year!"
"Promotion and a raise this year!"
"Pass the interview!"
"Pass the exam!"
"Golden luck!"
"Please let my single summon be a miracle!"
"Please let my lottery ticket win!"
"Let my blind box contain the rare edition!"
"Let my confession succeed!"
The wishes echoed throughout the arena one after another.
It was as though the entire audience had transformed into worshippers praying before an auspicious divine beast.
And strangely enough—
Perhaps Magikarp sensed what everyone was doing.
Because even after the official one-minute showcase had ended—
Magikarp maintained its pose.
It continued spinning.
Continued holding the bubble aloft.
And waited patiently.
Only after the audience had seemingly finished making their wishes did Magikarp finally stop.
That thoughtful gesture instantly won over countless hearts.
When voting concluded a minute later—
The result was unsurprising.
A perfect score.
Once again.
…
"Another perfect score!!"
"It's another perfect score!!"
"Clarissa's Magikarp is terrifying!"
"Wrong! It's not Clarissa's Magikarp that's terrifying—it's Ash's!"
"That shiny Magikarp belongs to Ash. He just lent it to Clarissa for the competition."
"Is borrowing someone else's Pokémon even allowed?"
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"The Pokémon is what's competing, not the trainer."
"This isn't a battle tournament. It's a beauty contest."
"As long as a Pokémon is beautiful enough, it deserves a chance to perform."
"That's true."
"But Ash's shiny Magikarp really is gorgeous."
"Honestly, if Ash's shiny Feebas didn't use makeup, it probably couldn't compete with Magikarp."
"Maybe in pure appearance."
"But Feebas has a kind of feminine elegance and confidence that's on another level."
"Yeah, Feebas has incredible presence."
"Both are amazing in their own ways."
The audience continued discussing excitedly.
After all, among the 646 contestants who had fought their way into the semifinals, everyone's standards for beauty were exceptionally high.
Objectively speaking—
Ash's shiny Magikarp may have possessed slightly superior visual beauty.
But Feebas had something Magikarp lacked:
A unique blend of confidence, grace, and quiet heroism hidden beneath its gentle elegance.
Neither was truly better.
They simply shone in different ways.
…
The competition continued.
Clarissa returned to the contestant waiting hall with Magikarp, having secured its third perfect score in a row.
Meanwhile, new contestants continued taking the stage one after another.
Since Gary had already been eliminated in the previous round, only Ash, Misty, and Clarissa remained among the group of friends.
Now—
Misty had already performed.
Clarissa had already performed.
Only Ash remained.
Clarissa had drawn contestant number sixteen.
Ash had drawn number twenty-five.
There were nine performances between them.
Not very long.
Ash casually watched the ongoing performances and waited.
About twenty minutes later—
A staff member finally arrived at the waiting hall entrance.
"Contestant No.25, Ash, please prepare to enter the stage."
"Contestant No.26, Miu, please stand by."
At last—
It was Ash's turn.
And with it—
The long-awaited semifinal appearance of Feebas was about to begin.