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Luther didn't stay to watch Etorre's match. Instead, he took his Pokémon outside the stadium to the Pokémon Center. There, he ran into Aaron, who had lost a bet with Lucian and the others and had been sent out to buy drinks.
"Lucian said that if Hayata apologized to you, you'd forgive him. I said that wouldn't happen, so I lost the bet."
Flint didn't understand why Lucian was so certain that Luther would forgive Hayata, but he chose to trust Lucian anyway.
Only Aaron firmly believed that Luther would give Hayata a piece of his mind after the match because he had heard about Luther's past deeds from Cynthia.
What could he say? Lucian was extremely skilled at stirring things up. Before the match, he had deliberately come over to remind Luther of his "anger." Yet, Lucian also clearly understood that Luther wasn't the kind of person to act irrationally.
Because of certain events related to Evergreen, Lucian believed that Luther longed for kindness more than ever.
Even when facing someone like Hiroshi, Luther hadn't spoken harshly; he'd only said half of what he truly meant.
After traveling for so many years, Luther had likely undergone even more changes in mindset.
Hayata, a rich young man who had lost sight of himself because of family influence, wasn't truly evil. Because of that, it was impossible for Luther to celebrate by stepping on Hayata after winning.
Luther handed his Poké Balls to Nurse Joy and sat down nearby to rest.
Aside from Darkrai and Mismagius, the others had expended a great deal of energy. It would take time for them to recover on their own, but it was faster and more reassuring to leave them in Joy's care.
Luther browsed the forum thread dedicated to him while Mismagius squeezed up beside him, trying to see if anyone had taken pictures of her.
"Oh, looks like someone did catch you on camera."
Luther pulled up a photo of Mismagius taken from the audience's perspective. It was the exact moment when she and Mimikyu fired Shadow Balls at each other. Seeing herself in the photo made Mismagius happy.
Luther laughed when he saw a comment below the image:
"Sometimes I feel like Mismagius looks like a flying hat with a tail."
"Isn't it more like a flying jellyfish?"
Fortunately, Mismagius couldn't understand what those people were discussing. Otherwise, she would have probably knocked Luther's phone right out of his hand.
Many posts discussed Darkrai, mostly comparing Luther's and Dakota's Darkrais and arguing about which one was stronger.
And also...
Where could someone catch a Darkrai?
Discussions about Marill and Espurr had finally expanded beyond calling them cute. The moment Marill dragged Dragalge down to the ground had been turned into a GIF and paired with strange captions.
Various bizarre pictures with text added all over them had been edited with the image of Espurr lying on Meowstic's back.
Silly internet users are indeed a source of joy in every world.
After retrieving his fully healed Pokémon, Luther walked out of the Pokémon Center and ran into two familiar faces.
Airi jumped over and hugged Espurr, squeezing its cheeks as she began her enthusiastic "cat-sniffing" session.
Haruto Kisaragi stood nearby with his hands in his pockets, watching Airi helplessly and sighing.
"So you two really didn't leave," Luther said with a smile.
After the first day of the competition, Haruto Kisaragi said he was planning to leave. Yet, even today, they were still on Lily of the Valley Island.
"Airi didn't want to leave. She wanted to stay and watch the matches. She also said that there are many Pokémon Trainers on the island right now that we can spar with, so leaving too early would be pointless. I thought she made a good point, so we stayed."
Lying beside Luther's feet, Houndoom noticed the much larger Arcanine. It couldn't help but stand up and observe Arcanine from the perspective of a senior sizing up a rookie.
"Unfortunately, we can't buy tickets anymore. We can only stand outside the stadium and watch the big screen," said Airi as she stood up, still holding Espurr. "Thanks for speaking up for Haruto Kisaragi and me earlier."
Haruto and Airi had guessed that Luther might come to the Pokémon Center to heal his Pokémon, so they hurried over as soon as the match ended.
It would obviously feel unpleasant to hear someone you don't even know belittle you so thoroughly. Airi was furious when she first heard it, but after Haruto Kisaragi said that Hayata was extremely strong, she could only hold it in.
If you lose, you have to accept the loss. If the opponent is stronger, you can only endure it. If Airi had felt even the slightest bit unwilling to accept it before, after watching Luther battle today, she was speechless.
Luther's level surpassed that of the vast majority of competitors currently in the preliminary rounds and their understanding of Pokémon battles.
For someone like that to acknowledge their abilities in front of the Champions and the entire audience, Haruto Kisaragi felt deeply honored.
If before this everyone had simply regarded Haruto Kisaragi and Airi as a pair of disposable underdogs, after this match many people would know their story.
The further Luther advanced in the tournament, the more valuable his evaluation would become.
Airi was so moved that she practically dragged Haruto over to thank him. However, when she stood in front of Luther, she lost her nerve and could only pet Espurr to hide her nervousness.
"What I said in the arena was sincere. You're not inferior to Hayata."
Seeing even someone as composed as Haruto Kisaragi look like he wanted to say something but hesitate, Luther spoke first.
"Try thinking about it another way. So far, you're the only one who's successfully forced me to switch out Marill."
Even though he knew Luther was joking, Haruto couldn't help but laugh.
"I'll work harder. In the future, I'll prove my strength to Hayata and show that you were right today."
It was that conviction. When Haruto said those words, his eyes were filled with confidence.
Luther smiled and pulled up Hayata's contact information.
"Hayata said that if there's a chance, he'd like to apologize to you in person."
Airi curled her lips.
"But just saying sorry doesn't mean much. It'd be better if he helped us get tickets for the later matches."
"Hm. I've already sent your message to Hayata."
Luther's words instantly made Airi's face turn red. She looked awkwardly at Haruto Kisaragi, then back at Luther.
It had only been a casual complaint that she had blurted out, and she hadn't expected Luther to actually pass it along.
Soon, a reply came back.
"Send me their address. I'll use my connections to get them tickets and deliver them personally."
Hayata's sincere response surprised Airi. She had thought Hayata would respond arrogantly with a dismissive remark, but this was completely different.
Haruto Kisaragi, however, seemed to understand something.
It looked like the battle earlier had changed Hayata greatly. On the surface, Hayata had lost face in that match and even become the subject of jokes, but in return, he had gained something far more valuable.
Haruto Kisaragi sighed. It was a pity that he hadn't had the chance to face Luther in a proper six-on-six battle.
Airi suddenly remembered something.
"It seems Mai-senpai wasn't with you today?"
"Mai?" Luther said. "She's doing something very important right now."
(End of Chapter)