"Quick, hide in the shadows!" Abigail hurriedly said.
Before the words finished, this Psychic attack had already hit Gengar.
Serena looked at Amber with a tense expression at this moment.
Originally, she hadn't planned to use Psychic-type moves. Because of type advantage, Psychic-type moves would deal double damage to Gengar.
Of course, Gengar's Sucker Punch was the same.
But the problem was that her Delphox was level 69. Compared to Gengar, which had just recently leveled up to 50, it was almost crushingly superior.
"Finally using Psychic-type moves," Gunther commented. "Was this girl letting Abigail win just now?"
"Perhaps?"
Obviously, this Delphox's level was not low.
However, almost every stat of Abigail's Gengar had been boosted with quite a bit of potential by Ron.
Actually, it wasn't weak either—at least not to the point of immediately falling under double damage.
Thinking this, the broadcast came from the television.
"Amber, use Payback!"
"Gengar used Payback, heavily striking Delphox! This blow dealt considerable damage to Delphox!"
"The scores are tied! Let's wait and see who will win the championship!!"
"Who do you think will win?" Gunther couldn't help asking.
"Serena," Ron said.
Abigail hadn't given Gengar any rings, so there was no way to finish the battle quickly.
And Gengar basically had no techniques to speak of in Pokémon Contests. Compared to Delphox, whose every move was quite gorgeous, it would be difficult to win in a drawn-out battle.
Moreover, that Delphox's ability appeared to be Blaze.
The Blaze ability meant that although Delphox was continuously injured by Gengar's attacks, its Fire-type moves would instead gain power boosts because of this.
"Delphox's ability has activated! The flames on its staff are growing increasingly fierce!"
"Use Flamethrower!"
"Delphox gorgeously used Flamethrower! With Blaze's boost, Flamethrower has trapped Gengar!"
"Time's up! The champion of this Pokémon Contest is——competitor Serena!"
"It's her first time competing, losing is normal. Runner-up is pretty good too," Gus comforted Caroline nearby.
The couple's gazes were currently focused on Abigail's face. Seeing she wasn't disappointed, the two couldn't help exchanging glances.
"It's fine, after all it's her first time competing. More than this, she's grown a lot from this trip," Caroline smiled. She then stood up, "How about celebrating at the saloon tonight? Pierre's treating!"
Pierre below opened and closed his mouth, his gaze finally landing on Abigail's face. In the end, he said nothing, tacitly approving of Caroline's arbitrary decision.
——
So the Pokémon Center erupted in cheers once again.
Meanwhile, at the construction site on the other side, hearing the cheers coming from not far away, the five people present couldn't help looking at the television, repeatedly confirming whether their eyes were playing tricks on them—mistaking the winning Abigail for Serena.
"Didn't she lose?" Pam looked confusedly at the distant building.
"Second place is pretty good too, right?" Penny guessed: "After all, it's her first time, so everyone's happy for her?"
While the few people looked at each other in bewilderment, people began coming out of the Community Center one after another. From afar, seeing the few of them, someone broadcast this good news.
"Dinner gathering at the saloon tonight! Pierre's treating!"
At these words.
The five people looked at the television again.
Pam even looked up at the sky, carefully distinguishing directions, confirming that the sun hadn't risen from the west today.
"Why?"
"Celebrating for Abigail, I suppose," Gus said with a smile at the front, noticing the dining tables in the saloon. He smiled and said: "Remember to move the tables inside later. Oh right, you all should come too. You can continue working right after eating."
"Oh right, where's Caroline?"
"On the phone with Abigail."
Saying this, Gus turned and entered the saloon to begin preparations.
Meanwhile, at the Pokémon Center.
Caroline looked at Abigail's completely unconcerned face. Just as she was about to say something, she heard Abigail say: "Oh right, Mom, I'm not planning to continue participating in Pokémon Contests!"
"What?" Caroline was startled. She couldn't help saying: "One failure is nothing, dear. Your father didn't win the championship at this year's fair either, and he didn't say anything."
"It's not because I lost that I'm giving up!" Abigail hurriedly explained: "I just feel I'm not quite suited for this competition. Um, I seem more suited for Gym battles. Look, these are my Gym badges! After defeating all the Gyms, I can participate in the League Conference!"
——
Caroline was stunned for a moment. After repeatedly confirming from Abigail that she wasn't giving up because of setbacks, she finally smiled gently at Abigail, then said: "That's good then. Whatever you want to do in the future, as long as you're happy, Mom will always support you."
Abigail couldn't help but smile at Caroline.
Learning that Pierre was even willing to treat the entire town to a gathering at the saloon for her first competition, she hung up the phone with a dazed expression.
She then turned to look at Serena beside her.
"What's wrong?" Serena had just hung up her phone. Seeing Abigail looking at her, she couldn't help asking.
"Nothing. I just feel that—I only left home for a while——but they've changed so much I barely recognize them."
If it were before, forget about having Pierre treat everyone—just asking him to round down the total at the general store would make him distressed for half a day.
"I see," Serena smiled. "Perhaps it's because you're not by their side?"
Family ties are like this—there's a saying that distance makes the heart grow fonder.
Originally when she was at home, she would often argue with her mother over various matters. But after leaving home to begin her journey, gradually, her mother also began to understand everything about her, started preparing dresses for her, and no longer forced her to inherit the family business.
At this moment, in Pelican Town's saloon, Pierre sat in a corner drinking beer. Caroline, after hanging up the phone, also came to the saloon and sat beside Pierre.
The two of them didn't usually come to the saloon for gatherings. Pierre turned to look at Caroline, as if waiting for Caroline to convey her conversation with Abigail.
"Mm, she seems to be doing well," Caroline continued. "But she's not planning to continue with Pokémon Contests."
Pierre paused, making no comment on this. He took another sip of beer, and after a while said: "As long as she's thought it through. She's an adult now—she should bear the responsibility for her own choices."
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