Three days passed quietly, and the opening day of the Mauville City Pokémon Contest finally arrived.
Lionel was making final preparations in his hotel room. He took a deep breath, gave a composed smile to the camera, and pressed the live stream button.
Almost instantly, the bullet chat flooded in like a tide, densely covering the screen:
[It's starting, it's starting! I've waited three whole days, and finally, the day of the Pokémon Contest is here!]
[The last Pokémon Contest in Rustboro City left me wanting more. I have to watch the whole thing this time in Mauville City; nobody can make me leave!]
[New fan reporting! I saw Beldum's battle debut a few days ago, and it was incredibly cool! I wonder what different styles we'll see in this Pokémon Contest?]
[Expectations are maxed out! Host, hurry and take us to the scene!]
Lionel smiled and waved, turning the camera toward Feebas and Beldum who were nearby.
The two little ones were still watching a competition video together on the desk. Hearing Lionel's voice, they turned around, their eyes sparkling as they looked at the camera as if greeting the audience.
"Don't worry, we're heading to the venue now. Mauville City should be very lively today."
After returning the two little ones to their Poké Balls, Lionel walked out of the hotel. The sunlight was just right, spilling warmly over his body.
The air was filled with an increasingly thick atmosphere of anticipation. This city, famous for its electricity, seemed to have been injected with double the vitality; even the air carried a slight, cheerful tingling of electric current.
The streets were bustling with people:
Out-of-town Trainers carrying Poké Ball backpacks gathered in groups of two or three, exchanging competition tips and occasionally releasing their partners from their Poké Balls to show them off.
Tourists holding cameras frequently took photos and group shots with the electric-themed decorations on the streets.
Local residents brought their own Pokémon, their faces filled with a sense of shared pride and excitement. Some even enthusiastically introduced Mauville City's specialties to the tourists.
The shops on both sides of the street had already put up Pokémon Contest-themed decorations:
Colorful banners shaped like Electabuzz flapped in the breeze, the lightning patterns on the flags seemingly flickering for real.
Strings of Pikachu-patterned balloons hung from the doorframes, swaying gently with the wind like a group of lively Pokémon dancing.
Even the Voltorb models decorating the lamp posts flickered with warm yellow lights more frequently than usual. In the alternation of light and dark, it was as if they were silently warming up for this grand event.
Lionel followed the surging crowd toward the Mauville Old Park.
The closer he got to the park, the clearer the noise became. He could faintly hear the "zzzt" sound of staff testing the audio equipment, as well as the excited cries of Pokémon.
Upon arriving at the park entrance, the scene before him was already extraordinarily bustling.
The main venue for this Pokémon Contest was set in the battle area at the center of the park. Although it was an open-air environment, the staff had meticulously arranged it into a circular theater:
Tiered seating rose layer by layer along the edge of the field. The color of the seats was a bright, cheerful yellow. Looking down from above, it resembled a blooming sunflower opening up to the sun.
This scale was not at all inferior to the dedicated Pokémon Contest arena in Rustboro City.
Several staff members dressed in bright yellow uniforms were directing a few Volbeat and Illumise to help secure huge banners to the surrounding treetops.
The large golden letters reading "Mauville City Pokémon Contest" on the banners shone brilliantly in the sunlight filtering through the gaps in the leaves, making them exceptionally eye-catching.
"There sure are a lot of people."
Lionel remarked to the camera. As the lens swept over the crowd queuing for entry, many Trainers were holding their Pokémon, their faces filled with nervous yet expectant expressions.
Over the past few days, besides allocating resources to his three Pokémon and going out for targeted training, Lionel had spent almost all his remaining time deeply studying the rules of the Pokémon Contest.
By consulting the detailed information on the official tournament website and combining it with his previous experience in Rustboro City, he had gained a more thorough understanding of the Pokémon Contests in this world.
It actually shared similarities with the marathons held in various cities in his previous life.
Just as a marathon can attract runners from all over to gather together and simultaneously activate the host city's catering, lodging,
tourism, and other industries, the influence of a Pokémon Contest was the same.
Trainers from all over Hoenn and even other regions brought their Pokémon to compete. The large number of accompanying spectators and tourists, while cheering for the competition, would naturally walk through the streets and alleys of Mauville City:
For example, going to the food plaza to taste various delicacies, heading to the video game arcade to challenge new machines, or renting a mach bike to roam along the circular path—
These actions invisibly injected fresh vitality into the city and promoted steady economic development.
And the unique "three-stage judging system" of the Pokémon Contest hid an even deeper intention to encourage participation from all Trainers.
The content of the first and second judging rounds seemed to overlap somewhat, but in reality, it was to give more people a sense of participation.
If a strict elimination system was adopted from the start, most applicants would stop at the first round, which would seriously dampen Trainers' enthusiasm for participating in Pokémon Contests.
The existence of the first judging round was to allow all contestants to have an opportunity to showcase their Pokémon.
"Even if someone only has a Caterpie, they can go on stage to demonstrate the most basic skills, like having the Caterpie use String Shot to weave a simple small web;"
"Or having a Poochyena perform a small obstacle course under the Trainer's guidance—"
"No matter how simple the performance is, even if they don't eventually advance, they can stand on the stage, bathe in the spotlight, and feel the joy of working in harmony with their Pokémon."
This sense of participation was precisely the key to why Pokémon Contests could continuously attract popularity and make Trainers of different levels willing to compete.
Furthermore, the judging criteria for the first round were very lenient. As long as there were no mistakes and there were a few highlights—
For instance, if a skill was released smoothly, or if the Pokémon and Trainer cooperated very well—they could pass the selection.
The second round was the actual stage for filtering out excellent contestants. The standards would be much stricter, testing the creativity and visual appeal of the skills.
Ultimately, it was all to make more people fall in love with Pokémon Contests and be willing to proactively learn about and diligently train their Pokémon.
When ordinary spectators saw various Pokémon displaying unique charm in the first round, they might develop the thought, "So Pokémon can interact like this;"
When contestants received bursts of applause even for completing a simple performance, this encouragement could become the motivation for them to keep moving forward, supporting them as they made steady progress on the path of a Coordinator.
As for the rules regarding the annual Lilycove City Pokémon Contest Grand Festival, they were also completely different from Lionel's impressions from the anime in his previous life.
There was no setting where one must obtain five Contest Ribbons within a single year to be eligible to participate; the rules in this world were more flexible.
As long as one possessed five Contest Ribbons, regardless of when they were obtained, they could sign up to participate.
Even if these Ribbons were slowly accumulated over several years, one could still step onto the stage of that highest-spec festival and show everyone the growth of themselves and their Pokémon.
When registering information, the system would clearly display the number of Ribbons the Trainer had obtained. When participating in the festival, these Ribbons would be "offset" and exchanged for a competition slot.
This setting was quite humane. As long as enough Ribbons were accumulated, one would have the chance to step onto the highest-spec festival stage at any time, without having to feel bad about missing a specific year's competition.
The rules for the Hoenn Region Trainer League Conference were similar. As long as one possessed eight Gym Badges, regardless of when they were obtained, they could sign up to compete.
When competing, the eight Badges recorded on the Trainer's ID card would be temporarily replaced by a competition slot.
If one wanted to challenge it again, they simply needed to embark on the journey once more, challenge the Gyms, and collect new Badges.
This undoubtedly gave Trainers more time to travel and train their Pokémon.
There was no need to rush for the sake of time; they could more calmly enjoy the time spent with their Pokémon and polish each other's strength.
Just then, the clear voice of the host came over the broadcast, interrupting Lionel's thoughts: "Attention all spectators!
The Mauville City Pokémon Contest is about to begin. Would the registered contestants please check in at the backstage as soon as possible!
Repeating, would contestants please check in at the backstage!"
"Alright, it's time for us to enter."
Lionel looked down at the Poké Balls at his waist and followed the flow of contestants toward the backstage check-in area.