The battle continued—
Aurora didn't let up.
"Magical Leaf!"
Leaves spun through the air—
Locking onto Pupitar.
No matter how it dodged—
They followed.
Hit.
Direct.
Pupitar was blasted back.
Follow-Up Combo
Aurora seized the moment instantly.
"Now—Grass Pledge!"
Grass erupted beneath Pupitar mid-air—
Forming a pillar—
Launching it again before it could land.
Clean.
Precise.
Decisive.
First Win
Aurora pulled Grovyle back calmly.
No need to chase.
Victory—
Already secured.
Ethan smiled and recalled Pupitar.
"I'll take that loss."
"But be careful next round."
Momentum Shift
Aurora's confidence skyrocketed.
"Bring it on!"
Next battle—
Ethan sent out another Pokémon.
Aurora responded with type advantage again.
Same strategy.
But this time—
Seven minutes later—
Her Pokémon collapsed.
Ethan won.
Back-and-Forth
Third match.
Fourth.
Fifth.
At first:
Aurora → confidentThen → stubbornThen → frustrated
Her expression slowly shifted—
Toward tears.
Emergency Adjustment
Ethan saw it.
…Not good.
If she cries here—
I'm dead at home.
Because:
Aurora + his mom = very closeIf she cried → guaranteed consequences
So—
He made a decision.
Tactical "Throwing"
He started… holding back.
Carefully.
Subtly.
Letting Aurora win a couple rounds.
And just like that—
Her mood flipped instantly.
Smiling again.
Full of energy.
Final ResultAurora → won several matchesEthan → still dominant overallMost importantly → no tears
Ethan sighed in relief.
"…Good. I can still go home."
Audience Reaction
Meanwhile—
The audience was suffering.
Deeply.
They came expecting:
🔥 High-level battles
⚔️ Intense strategies
What they got:
💔 Romance
🍬 Dog food
Crowd Complaints
After Ethan and Aurora left—
The dam broke.
"BRO WHAT WAS THAT?!"
"You said epic battles!"
"That wasn't battling—that was flirting!"
"The way he held back—EVEN I could see it!"
"I didn't eat today and I'm still full from all that dog food!"
On the Way Back
Aurora suddenly asked:
"…I beat you a few times today."
"Won't people think you're weak?"
Ethan paused.
"…Probably not."
(He absolutely hadn't thought about it.)
But honestly—
He didn't care.
Meanwhile — Final Preparations
Elsewhere—
Qin Yingying was still grinding hard.
"Come on, Charmeleon!"
"We're getting first place!"
"I'll reward you if we win!"
She had:
Trained relentlesslyBalanced work + school + trainingPushed her Pokémon to Elite levelThe Reality
Among all students:
Many → still unevolvedFew → reached EliteEven fewer → close to peakFinal Evaluation Day
The next morning—
Same hall.
Same machines.
But upgraded.
Because of one person.
Ethan.
Crowd Buzz
"Ethan's here!"
"Do you think he'll break the machine again?"
"No way—they upgraded it!"
"Even Elite Peak shouldn't break it now!"
All eyes—
On him.
The Stage Is Set
The teacher stepped forward.
"Names will be called one by one."
"Step up for evaluation."
Silence fell.
Everyone waited.
Because they all knew—
The moment Ethan stepped up—
Things might get interesting again.
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