For Silas, the earlier opponents simply weren't worth mentioning.
He advanced through the tournament effortlessly, crushing every obstacle in his path.
Again and again, his battles ended with clean, decisive victories.
Naturally, this drew increasing attention. By now, nearly everyone aboard the cruise ship had already labeled Silas as one of the tournament's strongest contenders.
After entering the main rounds, the average strength of his opponents improved somewhat But most of their Pokémon were still only around Level 20.
Against Umbreon's overwhelming level advantage, they stood little chance.
The only opponent who could barely be considered troublesome was a Hypno that had reached Level 31.
Even then, Silas only needed to put in a bit more effort.
The result remained unchanged.
After all:
• Dark-type moves heavily countered Psychic-types
• Umbreon held the level advantage And the opposing Trainer lacked any particularly impressive strategy or held items
So the battle ended exactly as expected.
"Umbreon, Pursuit."
"Umbreon, Dark Pulse."
"Umbreon, Protect."
As more participants were eliminated, the tournament finally reached its final match.
The crowd surrounding the arena grew larger and larger until the battlefield was practically packed. And Silas's final opponent Was the same girl he had noticed earlier during the preliminaries.
The Trainer with the exceptionally well-raised Glaceon.
Like Silas, she had advanced all the way to the finals using only a single Pokémon.
As Silas stepped onto the battlefield, countless eyes immediately turned toward him.
At the center of the arena stood a girl with her arms crossed, calmly ignoring the surrounding whispers as she waited.
The moment Silas saw her clearly ,He froze slightly.
Back during the preliminary rounds, the distance had been too great. He had only been able to vaguely tell she was a girl But now, seeing her up close... The figure before him slowly overlapped with memories from his previous life.
Long golden hair cascading to her waist.
Fair skin. Sharp yet elegant facial features. A tall, slender figure dressed in black fitted pants and a long dark coat.
She carried an overwhelming presence, Like a devil wrapped in elegance, paired with the face of an angel. As though every beautiful word in existence had been created for her alone.
"...Cynthia?"
Yes.
The cold and composed girl before him was none other than the future Sinnoh Champion.
Cynthia.
Although she hadn't yet fully developed the overwhelming aura Silas remembered from his previous life, traces of that future dominance already existed.
If someone asked which Trainer Silas admired most in his previous life ,Cynthia would absolutely rank near the very top.
Perhaps even first place.
In the Pokémon world, Trainers generally followed two major paths:
• Specialized teams
• Mixed teams
Most Elite Four members and Champions chose specialization.
It allowed faster growth and easier mastery But naturally Every advantage came with weaknesses.
Specializing in a single type made a Trainer easier to counter.
That flaw was obvious. Yet countless people still chose that route.
Why?
Because it was the fastest path toward strength But Cynthia was different.
Her mixed team composition demanded:
• greater effort
• greater resources
• greater adaptability
Growth was slower and Far more difficult But once successful ,Mixed-team Trainers often became monsters among their peers, possessing almost no obvious weaknesses.
Of course, exceptions existed.
Someone like Steven Stone, backed by the enormous wealth of the Devon Corporation, was a special case entirely But Cynthia's strength?
She had built it battle by battle.
Even now, videos and online forum posts about her challenging powerful Trainers were rapidly spreading across regions.
At this point, Cynthia was already becoming famous online.
The "Genius Girl of Sinnoh."
Naturally, part of that popularity came from support behind the scenes:
• her family
• Sinnoh media
• regional promotion
But her own charisma was undeniable. Otherwise, she could never have gathered so many admirers.
Across the battlefield, Cynthia looked slightly surprised after hearing Silas say her name. She had only recently arrived in Hoenn and hadn't publicly announced much.Yet someone already recognized her.
'A fan?'
A trace of curiosity appeared in her golden eyes.
Still She had no intention of holding back.
Because to Cynthia:
The greatest respect one could give an opponent was to battle with full strength.
"Hello."
"I'm Cynthia."
The blonde girl gave a calm introduction.
Silas smiled faintly.
"Silas."
"I'm looking forward to this battle."
In his previous life, he truly had been a huge fan of Cynthia. Her strength ,Her presence,Her appearance and Everything But after being reborn into this world, Silas had long since learned how to suppress emotional fluctuations completely.
At most, only a small ripple surfaced in his heart.
Nothing more.
That calmness was a habit forged through surviving in the gray world.
A survival instinct.
As the referee urged both sides to begin, they released their Pokémon.
As expected:
Umbreon versus Glaceon.
Neither side changed Pokémon.
Both intended to finish the tournament using the same partner that had carried them through every previous round.
The matchup instantly excited the audience. After all, Eevee evolutions were among the most beloved Pokémon in the world.
Different forms.
Different personalities.
Different battle styles.
The contrast alone made the battle fascinating.
Cynthia moved first.
"Glaceon, use Ice Shard."
The battle officially began.
"Glace!'
Glaceon instantly condensed Ice-type energy. A razor-sharp shard of ice shot forward at astonishing speed.
Even Umbreon barely reacted in time.
Then came:
• the second shard
• the third
• the fourth
Rapid-fire attacks.
Ice Shard wasn't particularly powerful.
But:
• low energy cost
• near-instant activation
• overwhelming speed
made it extremely dangerous.
Silas reacted immediately.
"Umbreon, use Screech."
"Umbreooooon!!"
Umbreon lowered its body before suddenly unleashing a piercing cry that echoed across the entire battlefield.
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(End of chapter)