"Milotic, it's our turn."
Lionel lightly raised his hand, and Milotic gracefully manipulated the water vapor to fly onto the field.
Its creamy-white body floated slightly above the battle stage, and its golden tail fins swayed gently with its breath. It carried a calm and composed aura, as if it were a born protagonist of the stage.
Ludaes stared nervously at Lionel, her fists clenched tightly.
She had seen the video of Lionel's battle in Rustboro City and knew that his original Feebas was already quite troublesome in battle.
Ludaes herself leaned more toward being a performance-style Coordinator. If she were facing Feebas, she would actually have some confidence.
After all, the Electric-type has a natural advantage over the Water-type.
But now, Feebas had evolved into Milotic, and this battle made her inevitably nervous.
But when she looked down at the Blitzle beside her, she cheered herself up in her heart: No matter what, her Blitzle was the best!
"Blitzle, use Shock Wave!"
Ludaes took a deep breath and was the first to issue a command.
The white lightning mane on top of Blitzle's head instantly stood up, gathering streaks of yellow electricity.
A fine bolt of electric light, like a nimble whip, struck toward Milotic with a crisp "crackling" sound. Its speed was so fast it almost left afterimages in the air, its offensive sharp.
Facing this swift attack, Milotic showed no panic at all.
It turned its body slightly and instantly exhaled a frigid breath from its mouth.
The cold air rapidly condensed in front of it, turning into a semi-transparent ice shield. The surface of the ice shield was also covered in fine ice crystals, like an exquisite work of art, completely protecting its front.
"Crack!"
The Shock Wave slammed into the ice shield, bursting into a web of small cracks that spread out, but it never managed to pierce through this solid barrier.
The current sizzled on the surface of the ice shield before finally dissipating into tiny electric sparks.
"Now, Water Pulse!"
Lionel seized this fleeting opening and gave a low command.
Milotic flicked its tail fin, and a blue ring of water shot from its mouth. The water ring rushed toward Blitzle with a uniform spinning force, its trajectory beautiful yet hiding great power.
"Blitzle, dodge quickly!"
Ludaes shouted urgently, her heart in her throat.
Blitzle reacted quickly, jumping backward suddenly, its four hooves drawing several afterimages in the air as it barely avoided the water ring.
The water ring grazed the tips of its hooves and hit the ground, instantly bursting into countless water droplets that splashed all over Blitzle.
Ludaes felt a wave of relief, just about to celebrate that Blitzle had dodged Milotic's attack.
Before she could shout the next command, she saw Milotic gently open its mouth, and a wind carrying cold air quietly blew across the field.
It was the Icy Wind skill!
The water droplets that had just splashed onto Blitzle's body instantly froze under the effect of the cold air.
From its hooves to its body, in the blink of an eye, it was condensed into a crystal-clear ice sculpture.
Blitzle's eyes were still fixed in a moment of surprise, but its body was completely unable to move, with only a faint glimmer of electricity remaining in the stripes on its forehead.
Lilian quickly stepped forward to check and then announced loudly: "Blitzle is unable to battle! The winner is contestant Lionel!"
The entire venue immediately erupted into thunderous applause, and even the other contestants backstage couldn't help but stand up to cheer for this clean and decisive duel.
The audience in the livestream room was even more explosive:
[That was too fast! I just wanted to go to the bathroom and come back, how did it turn into an ice block?]
[Milotic is just too amazing, this play was absolutely top-tier!]
[Ludaes was already great, but Lionel and Milotic are truly on a completely different level—]
Ludaes looked at the frozen Blitzle, and although there was disappointment on her face, she quickly adjusted her emotions and bowed solemnly to Lionel: "Thank you for letting me see a stronger Coordinator. I will also leave Mauville City to further my studies and improve my strength with Blitzle. I will keep working hard."
Lionel smiled and nodded in response.
Milotic gently fanned its tail fin, thawing Blitzle's frozen state.
Blitzle snorted, shook the water droplets off its head, gave a cry toward Milotic, and then followed Ludaes off the stage. Though its back showed regret, it also revealed a resilient spirit that refused to give up.
In the subsequent drawing of lots, the opponent Lionel drew used a Masquerain.
Facing Masquerain's "Bubble Beam" and "Air Cutter," Milotic responded calmly:
One Icy Wind to freeze the bubbles, and then an Ice Beam to block the opponent's flight path and attack, easily securing the victory.
Although Ludaes lost the duel because of this match with Lionel, the final result of the Pokémon Contest was based on the total score of the three rounds.
Relying on her excellent performance in the first two rounds, her total score still ranked second, and she successfully obtained a Ribbon Medal.
As for Lionel, with an indisputable advantage and a perfect score of 90 across three rounds, he took the championship of this Mauville City Pokémon Contest and won his second Ribbon Medal.
During the awards ceremony, Ludaes specifically walked up to Lionel, holding her medal and smiling: "Until next time. Blitzle and I will definitely become stronger, so you'd better be careful then."
"I'll be waiting for your challenge."
As Director Colosseum pinned the golden medal engraved with a lightning pattern onto Lionel's chest, ribbons fell across the venue once again.
Milotic was also by Lionel's side, accepting the cheers belonging to the victor along with him.
Inside the Mauville City Pokémon Contest arena, ribbons and flower petals were still drifting in the air, and the atmosphere was filled with celebration.
As Director Colosseum pinned the Ribbon Medal engraved with a lightning pattern onto Lionel's chest, the cheers of the crowd had not yet fully dissipated before a large number of spectators rushed impatiently to the edge of the stage.
Holding up phones, autograph books, and some even holding sketchbooks with drawings of Milotic, they waved excitedly at Lionel.
"Lionel! Can I get a photo? Just one!"
"Milotic is so beautiful! Can I touch it?"
"Which city are you going to next? I'll definitely follow you to the scene!"
The voices rising one after another submerged the arena's background music like a tide. Lionel looked at the crowding heads in front of him and curled his lips helplessly.
He had already anticipated this.
After all, this was a Milotic.
A shiny version of the same signature Pokémon as Master Wallace, Lionel had practically become the focus of the entire venue at this moment.
"Everyone, don't worry, take it slow, one by one."
Lionel shouted, raising his voice, while simultaneously glancing sideways at Milotic.
Milotic cooperated by lowering its body, its creamy-white form glowing softly under the lights. Its blue fins lightly brushed past the palms of some people in the crowd, drawing bursts of exclamations.
Milotic seemed to enjoy this feeling of being surrounded and focused upon, its golden tail fin swaying gently from time to time.
Controlling the water vapor around it, it created little droplets of water that fell precisely into the palms of the children in the crowd, making them giggle.
When taking photos with people, Milotic would also quietly manipulate the water vapor to lift the people beside it slightly into the air, adding a touch of dreaminess to the pictures.
This made the people in the back rows even more anxious to get their turn.
"Everyone, make some room, give these two little guys some space as well."
Lionel smiled and took two steps back, tossing out two other Poké Balls.
With flashes of red light, Beldum and Tyrantrum appeared one after the other.
Beldum floated in mid-air, its metallic body spinning in a circle and reflecting the bright light, while Tyrantrum ran to Lionel's side with its long legs and shook its head.
Seeing so many people surrounding it, a powerful low roar erupted from its throat, declaring its formidable strength.
As soon as these two appeared, the crowd's enthusiasm surged even higher, and their cheers almost blew the roof off.