Pokémon Court

Chapter 70: The Key to Victory

“Look, Skitty has used the Blizzard move once again, and the frigid mist is directly attacking Beautifly,” The announcer Marian explained passionately, constantly heating up the atmosphere of the venue.

“Dodge it,” Terrance spoke, giving a simple evasive command.

Skitty’s Blizzard has a limited range, whipping towards Beautifly like a lash. In the face of this direct move, Beautifly had no reason not to dodge.

The two Pokémon stood on the stage, with Beautifly positioned diagonally above Skitty, forming a forty-five-degree angle. Under Abby’s command, Skitty continuously displayed its proud moves.

Blizzard.

Solar Beam.

Thunderbolt.

Skitty was proficient in various types of moves. As it executed them, Terrance’s score gradually decreased.

Showcasing its unique charm, for a Skitty of its species, reaching this level of performance aligned with the Pokémon Contest’s criteria for score reduction.

However…

Beautifly gracefully hovered above the stage. Despite the frontal assault and the relatively fast speed of the moves, it effortlessly dodged, thanks to Nosepass’s reflex training, which has enhanced Beautifly’s agility.

The moves were evaded, and Abby’s total score dwindled.

The two were evenly matched for a short period.

“Should I waste time?” Terrance assessed.

Continuing this stalemate would cause both scores to drop simultaneously, making victory uncertain.

But what he aimed for was absolute victory.

“Beautifly, no need to evade anymore. Counterattack with Air Cutter.”

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

To prevent Skitty from attacking again, Beautifly swiftly conjured three wind blades before launching them towards Skitty.

“Skitty, stabilize your body and shatter them with Iron Tail!”

“Meow…”

Following Abby’s instruction, Skitty opted for a powerful attack. A metallic gleam appeared on Skitty’s tail, then it leaped into the air, and shattered the three Air Cutters one after another.

“Beautifly, use String Shot and entangle it!!” Terrance commanded. However, Skitty was unexpectedly nimble. Faced with the pursuing String Shot, it still managed to dodge.

“Very impressive…”

Abby might be the only contestant that Terrance has encountered in the Hearthome Conference that has showcased the Coordinator style most perfectly.

Whether it was by using Skitty’s endearing gestures to showcase its charming appearance or by employing a variety of moves of different types to accentuate the allure of this unique Skitty, the opponent had put in quite an effort.

After all, even Beautifly hadn’t yet learned Solar Beam.

“But, haven’t you overlooked something?” Terrance thought.

A Coordinator is called Coordinator because they don’t only excel at evasion and dazzling moves. They are also Trainers, and battling is part of their skillset.

While Skitty was indeed quite impressive, its level was too low. Even if it learned various stunning moves, it couldn’t greatly affect Beautifly.

Hence, Beautifly would win.

“Quiver Dance!!”

The ultimate transformation move of a Bug Type Pokemon, a graceful, mysterious and beautiful dance that enhances attack, defense as well as speed.

This dance showcases Beautifly’s signature colorful patterned wings, providing all spectators with a visual delight.

This move, theoretically learned at a high level, was awakened during training with Nosepass. Beautifly discovered this move through training!

This marked Beautifly’s capability to stand on its own.

Abby gazed solemnly at the fluttering Beautifly, suddenly having a bad premonition.

“Skitty, interrupt it with Thunderbolt!!”

A thick, golden electric pillar surged from Skitty, headed straight for Beautifly.

However, in the Quiver Dance state, Beautifly’s speed wasn’t just slightly improved; the move “Tailwind” could be used more skillfully. This Thunderbolt was destined to miss.

“It’s our turn now.”

“Beautifly, use Silver Wind!!”

Or rather: Golden Wind.

Silver Wind is a move that incorporates “Shield Dust” into the wind to attack the opponent. The unique cutting attribute of “Shield Dust” inflicts damage on the enemy. However, at this moment, Beautifly used the same technique by incorporating yellow Stun Spore into the wind, making Silver Wind appear as a golden twister, incredibly gorgeous.

“Oh no,” Abby ordered anxiously, “Skitty, use Safeguard.”

In the Quiver Dance state, the force and speed with which Beautifly’s wings fluttered were unexpectedly great. In the blink of an eye, the “Golden Wind” was complete.

As for Skitty, the use of Safeguard made it seem mysterious, emitting a white holy aura… Whether “Golden Wind” would be effective or not, it’s unknown.

“It’s here, it’s here!! The incredibly elegant ‘Safeguard’ and the magical ‘Golden Wind,’ which side will emerge victorious??!”

Will Safeguard successfully defend against Golden Wind or would Golden Wind break through Safeguard’s defense?

Terrance wasn’t interested. In battle, seizing every opportunity was the key to victory. He didn’t want to engage in meaningless speculation about the collision of their moves’ results.

Giga Drain.

While everyone’s attention was captivated by the “Golden Wind” on the stage, Terrance issued another command. His command not only surprised Abby but even Marian didn’t know how to comment…

“Contestant Terrance has issued another command, but Skitty is amidst the yellow dust. Can Beautifly still accurately locate its position?”

Everyone nervously looked at the stage, feeling on edge for Skitty.

A moment later.

The dust from Stun Spore dissipated, and Skitty was still standing on the stage, causing everyone to breathe a sigh of relief. It seemed that Safeguard had successfully defended against “Golden Wind.”

“Not good, not good!! Skitty has been caught by silk threads!!” Marian hadn’t initially noticed, but when she saw Skitty’s tired expression, she noticed this detail clearly. Beautifly aimed the String Shot in the dust and successfully caught Skitty!!

“How’s this possible, Skitty—?” Abby became nervous.

Caught by Beautifly’s Giga Drain, Skitty had no chance of recovering. The balance of victory has tipped heavily toward Terrance’s side.

But what puzzled everyone was how, under those circumstances, Beautifly could ignore visual obstacles and accurately catch the tiny Skitty…

“The victor has been determined. Skitty has lost its ability to battle, and Mr. Terrance holds the advantage in score. It looks like we have a winner for the Hearthome City’s Pokémon Contest Hearthome Conference!!!”

“Let us congratulate Mr. Terrance; he will be awarded the highest honor of the Pokémon Contest—the Hearthome Ribbon!!”

“Before we move to the award ceremony, I’m sure everyone has the same question. Why was Mr. Terrance so confident that Beautifly could catch Skitty? I wonder if Mr. Terrance can explain this for us.”

Marian approached Terrance, handing over the microphone.

“It’s the compound eyes.”

“If there’s a Pokémon Breeder in the audience who knows about Beautifly, they would surely be aware that Beautifly’s aqua-blue compound eyes are made up of over twenty thousand small eyes. This means that even in dim lighting conditions, light can still refract into other small eyes, allowing the photoreceptors within each adjacent eye to sense the refracted light. So, even in low light, objects can still form an image. This is the reason Beautifly could roughly locate Skitty’s position,” Terrance explained.

“As expected.” Nurse Joy on the judging panel has a look of ‘I knew it’ on her face.

“Terrance is quite knowledgeable.” James commented.

“It seems… I didn’t lose unfairly.” Abby stood on the other side of the stage, comforting Skitty while looking towards Terrance.

“Compound eyes?!! Mr. Terrance has an in-depth understanding of his own Pokémon!! Truly impressive.”

Next was the closing ceremony. As the victor of the Hearthome Conference, Terrance attracted the gaze of the entire crowd, receiving enthusiastic applause and well-wishes from everyone.

Simultaneously, he received his first Ribbon!

“And thus concludes the vibrant Hearthome Conference. Let us look forward to the next one!!”

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