stonecrandall Chapter 227 The Additional Rings of the Mikkelsen Cup
Chapter 227 The Additional Rings of the Mikkelsen Cup
Just when everyone thought the current situation was going to be deadlocked until one of the two sides lost the ability to fight, Xiao Guang's voice came out again in the huge arena.
"Bogaman! Go through the center with your peck!"
In this stalemate, Xiaoguang surprisingly chose to continue his attack.
Bogarman squinted, clearly feeling his stamina being constantly depleted in the vortex. If he withdrew his vortex at this moment and used other skills instead, he might not be able to hold on.
But, even though I know I can't hold on.
This applies to both Hikaru and Pogaman.
They were all willing to take a gamble for this extremely small probability.
Moreover, Pogaman's pride wouldn't allow it to collapse so easily here, nor would it allow it to ignore Hikari's instructions at such a crucial moment.
"Poga!!"
Bogarman unleashed all his power and began to roar in fury.
The huge vortex floating in mid-air dissipated rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.
As the vortex receded, Bogarman felt a sudden lightness in its body, almost being swept away. But in that instant, it tensed up, sensing the surge of another vortex, and then flapped its fins as it swam freely within the vortex.
A white light enveloped its sharp beak, and after a brief moment of charging, its body shot through the center of the vortex like a cannonball, hurtling towards the shimmering blue figure in the air.
Get out of the way!
Haruka was surprised that at such a tense moment, Hikari dared to ask Piplup to cancel the use of the Tide Cyclone. Even more surprising was that Piplup actually responded to Hikari's somewhat unreasonable request, using its last bit of strength to break through the Tide Cyclone amplified by the mirror reflection.
Although there was some distance between Glaceon and Piplup, Piplup's speed was still too fast due to the acceleration of Whirlpool.
At least in its mirror reflection state, Glaceon is no longer able to cancel its move while avoiding the still-running Whirlpool and dodging Piplup's peck.
"Poga!"
Piplup's Peck hit Glaceon head-on, and Glaceon, which was using Mirror Reflection, was easily knocked down by Piplup.
But the instant Glaceon fell into the water, Piplup, having lost its power, also fell into the water.
"beep--"
The next second, the bell rang, signaling the end of the match.
Everyone turned their attention to the big screen, where they saw that Xiaoyao's score had run out, and Xiaoguang's score was down to its last point.
A slight difference can lead to completely different outcomes.
“Poga…”
“Yi…”
Meanwhile, the two Pokémon that fell into the water showed completely different attitudes when they noticed the outcome of the match.
Bogarman had no strength left. After confirming the outcome of the match, it faced the ceiling, closed its eyes, and let its body float in the water. It seemed that it was truly unable to stand up and continue fighting.
On the other hand, Glaceon still had plenty of energy. It leaped out of the water and returned to May's side, its head bowed somewhat forlornly, as if apologizing for not reacting in time at the last moment.
.......
"This ending is truly..."
Watching what was happening on the field, Xiao Gang couldn't help but say:
"After taking more damage, Piplup was unable to continue fighting after making its final counterattack. If the match is not over yet, May and Glaceon will probably win."
"It is indeed difficult for Dawn and Piplup to win in a spectacular battle against Glaceon with its mirror reflection. Dawn herself realized this, which is why she wanted to deplete May's score."
"Did Hikaru do this on purpose? So that means..."
Reminded by Ash, Brock realized that if things weren't like that, Dawn and Piplup's final, all-out effort to break through the whirlpool would have been meaningless.
After all, that peck didn't do much damage to Glaceon; Piplup was actually more injured while breaking through the whirlpool.
Since it wasn't a pointless act of recklessness, it means that Dawn's plan must really be as Ash said.
Looking at Xiao Guang, who had lost all strength on the stage and was slumped on the ground, Xiao Gang shook his head and chuckled softly.
I never expected that Hikaru would actually win the Mikkuri Cup, whether it was his clever early advantage or his all-out effort at the last moment.
Xiaoguang's performance on stage today was quite different from her first appearance on the Grand Contest stage.
No wonder Ash keeps praising Dawn's talent.
.......
"I won... I really won..."
As Hikari, slumped on the ground, watched Bogarman gently swing his legs and swim towards her, then wearily raise his hands in celebration, the true feeling of victory finally enveloped her.
"Congratulations, I lost this time."
"?"
When Xiaoguang heard Xiaoyao's voice, she subconsciously looked up. When she saw Xiaoyao's right hand outstretched to her, she was stunned for a moment before a smile appeared on her face. She put her hand in Xiaoyao's hand and stood up.
"Thank you, but luck played a big part in this victory... If I had really given it my all, I'm afraid—"
"Honestly, the winner shouldn't say such things!"
Xiao Guang was interrupted by Xiao Yao patting him on the back before he could finish speaking.
"Luck alone is not enough; ability is the most important thing."
Xiaoyao said with emotion:
"To be honest, I didn't expect you to do something so crazy at the last minute, but I didn't realize what your purpose was until I noticed that my score was running out."
Xiaoyao touched her head a little shyly and smiled as she spoke.
"It's actually a bit embarrassing to admit. I was the one who traveled longer and experienced more matches, but I didn't even pay attention to the score in this match."
Perhaps she was too engrossed in her match against Hikaru, or perhaps it had been a long time since she had experienced a match where all her points were used up.
After all, the longer you stand on the stage of the Grand Contest, the fewer matches you'll have that kind of intense, heart-wrenching feeling.
The reason May sent out Glaceon, which had only recently evolved and was not yet fully familiar with its new power, to battle Dawn today was twofold. Firstly, she wanted to see just how strong Dawn, whom Ash praised so highly, really was in a close battle. Secondly, May herself wanted to experience the feeling of a close match.
She wanted to win the Mikkelsen Cup, but for her, it wasn't a must.
However, for Ash's new companion, who is also a newcomer to the Contests, the victory achieved through his own command on this stage is something that cannot be replaced by ordinary Contests.
In conclusion, both Hikari and Haruka were quite satisfied with the outcome of the Mikuri Cup.
If she had to say something, Xiaoyao would still feel a little resentful.
After her battle with Hikari, she truly realized that her talent was indeed inferior to Hikari's.
But it's okay... If she has the chance to meet Hikari again on the stage of the Grand Contest in the future, she will definitely give it her best to win the competition!
.......
After a grand awards ceremony, the main competition of the Mikkelsen Cup came to an end.
However, the audience did not leave immediately because they remembered that the promotional poster mentioned that there would be a small bonus event after the conclusion of this year's Mikkelsen Cup.
They didn't know what this additional segment was, so they stayed on site to wait for the conference organizer, Michael, to announce it in person.
On the stage of the Grand Contest, after presenting Hikari with the award and handing her the ribbon medal symbolizing the victory of the contest, Mikoto turned around the next second.
Facing the large audience below, who were engaged in lively discussion, Mikoli spread his arms wide and announced in a passionate voice:
"Next up is the supplementary segment of this conference!"
"Additional steps?"
Unlike many viewers who had seen the promotional posters, Ash really didn't know what additional activities were involved in this year's Mikkuri Cup; at least, he didn't recall any such activities.
On the stage, Mikuri looked down at Ash's location and hummed twice, seemingly in a good mood.
The timing for this year's Mikkelsen Cup is really good!
Mikoli thought to himself.
Not only did we enjoy the amazing performances by the trainers, but we could also—
While thinking, Mikoli announced to the audience:
"The bonus activity for this year's Mikkuri Cup is that one audience member will be randomly selected to battle me! It can be either a Pokémon Contest or a Pokémon Battle, and everyone will receive a lovely little gift from me after the match!"
Mikoli blinked after she finished speaking.
A brief silence fell over the audience, but after that, a deafening roar of exclamations erupted throughout the venue.
"Really? With Mr. Mikkelsen?!"
"A head-on confrontation?!"
"The opportunity to accept Pokémon battles is a once-in-a-lifetime chance!"
As the champion of the Hoenn League and the number one player in the Grand Contest, it's not easy to even meet Michael, let alone fight him.
But today, the opportunity is right in front of everyone, and everyone present is starting to wonder if this might be their only chance in this lifetime.
Indeed, in this fair and just atmosphere, Mikuri pretended to look around at the audience, then showed an expression of difficulty in making a decision. After thinking for a while, he pointed in Ash's direction with a look of difficulty and regret.
"Ah~ then, the trainer in the middle of the third row with Pikachu, would you like to accept this opportunity?"
Ash: "......."
It turned out to be the case.
It was only when he felt all eyes on him that Xiaozhi had this thought.
No wonder Michael said he was looking forward to his performance when they parted that night; was this the moment he was looking forward to?
Xiao Zhi sighed inwardly.
Even if you're really going to fake it, shouldn't you at least use machines? What's with this feeling of picking out vegetables at a market...?
Although he was thinking this in his heart, Ash had no reason to refuse.
Just like everyone thought, opportunities to face the champion are not many, even in the past.
After all, the champions from each region are all elusive and rarely seen.
Almost everyone has their own side business, and it's not easy to meet them unless the league directly calls them.
Moreover—
"A high-pressure environment... isn't that a bit too much?"
"Skin?"
When it went on stage with Ash, it heard Ash's murmur and subconsciously looked up at him.
This glance also caught Pikachu's attention to the Poké Ball that Ash was holding.
It seems there's no room for it to shine today.
Considering what Ash said, the teammates who will appear today, just like Ash who was chosen by Wallace, have already been decided.
"Oh, you look quite impressive! Could this lucky audience member please introduce themselves to the audience?"
"..."
At this moment, it wasn't just Ash who felt speechless, but also Dawn and May behind the scenes.
Although May didn't know that Wallace's choice of Ash was predetermined, she could still tell his mood from his teasing expression.
Pleasure.
Clearly, Ash is not a stranger to Wallace.
Ash took the microphone from Wallace's hand, his lips twitched twice, then he shook his head helplessly, turned to the audience below, and said:
"I'm Ash from Pallet Town."
"So which of my identities are you going to challenge?"
Mikoli then asked.
"Hoenn League Champion".
Ash pointed the Poké Ball at Wallace and said this with certainty.
Upon hearing Ash's answer, the audience below the stage began to discuss it.
After all, they felt it was a little strange to challenge Mikoli, the league champion, on the Grand Contest stage.
However, after a brief moment of curiosity, many people finally realized what Ash's self-introduction had meant, and their previous doubts turned into cheers.
A clash between a rising star and the league champion.
Even though the matches aren't their favorite Grand Contests, it still seems quite interesting.
"Ah, then, come on."
Michael gestured for Ash to go to the other side of the stage, then clapped his hands. At his signal, the huge water field began to shake. After a while, the field collapsed, and the field that rose up in its place was the regular battle arena.
Mikkuri said to Ash very considerately:
"This way, my advantage in terms of venue is neutralized."
................................