"Alright, I won't say anything more, Miss Karen. My match is about to start. We'll talk next time."
Sam smiled and waved at Karen before leaving the lounge.
Looking at Sam's departing back, Karen snorted softly.
"Just wait. I hope you can still keep that arrogance after I defeat you."
Because the battlefield had been heavily damaged during the battle between Pikachu and Blastoise, Sam's match was postponed for more than an hour.
Soon, groups of Machoke appeared on the battlefield carrying various tools and materials.
They began repairing the arena.
Sam finally witnessed the incredible speed of construction in the Pokémon world. With Pokémon helping, infrastructure work became extremely efficient.
In less than half an hour, the damaged battlefield was fully restored.
It looked exactly the same as before, as if nothing had ever happened.
---
Time slowly passed, and Sam's battle finally began.
His opponent was also a veteran Trainer and a well-known participant in regional tournaments. This wasn't his first time competing in the Indigo Plateau Conference.
Unfortunately for him—
His journey ended the moment he met Sam.
His trump card was Floatzel, a very agile Pokémon known for its speed and flexibility.
But it had no way to deal with Sam's Clefable.
Sam's Clefable had trained its Metronome and transformation abilities to perfection.
No matter how fast Floatzel moved, it simply couldn't break through Clefable's defensive tricks.
With the combination of Minimize and various healing moves, the opponent's Pokémon could barely deal any real damage.
After a short battle, Sam secured victory.
Clefable defeated all three of the opponent's Pokémon by itself and helped Sam advance directly into the semifinals.
The commentator spoke excitedly:
"What a very special Clefable! I don't know if everyone noticed, but Sam's Clefable almost never used conventional attacking moves."
"Its only offensive move seems to be Metronome!"
"It's hard to imagine a Pokémon relying entirely on Metronome to attack. But if every Pokémon were as lucky as Sam's Clefable, then Metronome might truly be the most perfect move in the world."
"After all, you can obtain almost any move you want!"
"Using Metronome like this is simply terrifying."
"Let's give a round of applause! Today we witnessed a battle from what could only be described as the illegitimate daughter of the Goddess of Luck!"
"Congratulations to Sam for advancing to the semifinals!"
---
As Sam was about to leave Quartz Stadium, someone stopped him.
"Long time no see, Sam."
Erika smiled warmly. Sam could clearly feel the sincerity in her expression.
"It really has been a long time," Sam replied. "How have you been lately, Erika?"
Sam hadn't expected to see Erika at the Indigo Plateau Conference. He had assumed she wouldn't pay much attention to the tournament.
"I've been doing quite well. Don't you notice anything different?" Erika raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Different?"
Sam carefully observed her.
Only then did he realize something unusual.
Erika was not wearing her usual kimono.
Instead, she was dressed in simple sportswear.
"That outfit looks great on you," Sam said thoughtfully. "It really suits someone young and energetic like you."
Looking at Erika in sportswear, Sam suddenly remembered something.
He once casually mentioned that Erika looked good in sportswear.
Could it be that she changed her usual style because of that?
"Do you like it?" Erika asked softly while looking away.
Her cheeks had turned slightly red.
If Sam didn't understand what she meant, then all those years of watching romance movies would have been pointless.
Wait.
What did romance movies have to do with this?!
Erika seemed to be expecting something.
Since the girl had already hinted at it, it would be embarrassing for Sam to pretend not to understand.
As a man, sometimes you had to take the initiative.
Sam slowly raised his right hand, preparing to make a move—
"Hmph."
A mocking snort suddenly sounded nearby.
Scared people really could scare others to death.
Sam almost had a heart attack.
Annoyed, he turned toward the voice.
Who dared interrupt such an important moment?
"Sabrina? What are you doing here?" Sam asked in surprise.
He was genuinely confused. What were both Erika and Sabrina doing at the Indigo Plateau Conference?
"Haha. Why should I explain where I go? I can appear wherever I want," Sabrina replied coldly.
Sam wanted to say something else, but Erika stopped him.
Erika walked toward Sabrina with a gentle smile.
"What a coincidence, Miss Sabrina. You happened to arrive during my date with Sam. Would you like to join us?"
"Date?!" Sabrina's voice instantly rose.
Her lips trembled slightly as if she were suppressing something.
"Yes, a date," Erika replied sweetly. "Didn't you know? Sam is my boyfriend."
The angrier Sabrina looked, the brighter Erika's smile became.
She was clearly enjoying the situation.
But the reaction she expected didn't happen.
Sabrina suddenly regained her composure and looked at Erika as if she were foolish.
"You're not angry?" Erika asked in confusion.
She was sure Sabrina also had feelings for Sam.
Shouldn't she explode after hearing that?
After a moment of silence, Sabrina spoke calmly.
"Only a fool would try to deceive a Psychic."
Erika's smile froze instantly.
She had completely forgotten that Sabrina was a psychic.
"Haha… Miss Sabrina, we'll meet again next time," Erika said with a forced smile.
After losing this round, she had no intention of staying.
She needed to go back and think of a better strategy.
"Of course," Sabrina replied calmly.
The two beautiful women turned around at the same time and walked away in opposite directions.
Neither looked back.
Only Sam was left standing there alone.
Sam rubbed his temples with a headache.
He wasn't stupid. He could clearly feel the tension between Erika and Sabrina.
Although… in a way, it might actually be a good thing for him.
Probably.
But this wasn't the time to think about romance.
The most important thing right now was to get a good night's sleep and prepare for tomorrow's battle.
His next opponent would most likely be Gary.
Sam smiled slightly.
The real competition was about to begin.
---------------Author---------------
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