However, after entering deep meditation, Cain quickly came out of it.
"What's going on?" Cain showed a look of doubt, muttering to himself.
As if wanting to verify something, Cain went back into a meditative state, but this time much faster than before.
Not even five minutes had passed when Cain opened his eyes again.
But this time, there was no doubt in his gaze; in fact, his eyes showed a hint of joy.
"Is this another effect of deep meditation? Why isn't this mentioned in the psychic abilities training manual?" Cain thought to himself.
The reason he quickly woke up after entering meditation was that he noticed his psychic training speed was now several times faster than before.
In simple terms, if his previous meditation training speed was one, Cain's speed had now increased to three.
A threefold increase.
Although he wasn't sure if this was because his psychic foundation was low or if everyone experienced a threefold increase when entering deep meditation.
"System, explain the changes in my body."
The system was always monitoring his body.
"Beep, brain activity level is three times higher than before and remains at that level, increasing psychic training speed by three times."
The system also displayed a data graph in front of Cain, divided into two sections: one representing his previous state and the other his state in deep meditation. It was evident that brain activity had increased nearly threefold.
Additionally, the system kindly displayed an estimate: time projected to become a basic-level psychic, ten years!
"..."
All that joy disappeared in an instant.
Yes, his psychic training speed had tripled, but Cain's foundation was still weak. Even with this improvement, he had only ceased to be among the psychics with the poorest talent.
However, at least now, Cain had a bit of hope to reach the basic level of psychic ability.
Ten years. Cain was now fifteen, so in ten years, he'd be twenty-five.
Twenty-five years old is still young for a trainer, and by then, he could use telepathy.
After giving himself a little boost of confidence, Cain went back into meditation.
...
Three quiet hours passed, and then the S.S. Anne filled with noise again.
Yamamoto's secretary finally published the tournament's content and rules.
On every screen aboard the vessel, the tournament rules and prizes were displayed in a loop.
It could be said they were organizing the tournament with great fanfare.
Cain also sat in his room, watching the large TV screen in front of him, where the rewards for each position were shown one by one.
First place: TMs of the moves: Ice Beam, Earthquake, and Surf.
Second place: TM of the move Flamethrower.
Third place: 300,000 Pokédollars.
Fourth place: ...
...
Altogether, the prizes reached nearly 4 million Pokédollars. Yamamoto was being really generous.
Any trainer who placed in the top eight would receive a prize valued at at least 50,000 Pokédollars.
Additionally, so that everyone could battle without worry, Yamamoto had opened the S.S. Anne's Pokémon treatment room, and all treatment costs would be free.
All this was to ensure they could witness an exciting battle.
Then, the tournament rules were also displayed on the screen.
Considering that there might be many trainers participating, and their abilities varied greatly, letting some of the stronger trainers fight in each match would be a waste of time.
Therefore, the tournament was divided into two rounds: preliminaries and finals.
The first round of preliminaries involved dividing all registered trainers into eight groups, randomly selected, and having them compete in a free-for-all battle on one of the S.S. Anne's eight battlefields.
Only two trainers from each field would advance, determining the top 16.
Of course, since it was a random selection, it was possible that one field could have three or more very strong trainers, while another could have relatively weak trainers, resulting in the elimination of a strong trainer due to an unfavorable draw.
For this reason, those eliminated in the first round would enter a losers' bracket, where they could compete in additional battles, and the top four would have a chance to challenge the 16 qualifiers.
If they managed to win the challenge, they would replace that person in the top 16.
Then the main tournament would begin, where each trainer could use three Pokémon, and elimination matches would proceed by draw.
Finally, prizes would be awarded according to the final positions.
It's important to mention that during the preliminaries, each trainer could only use one Pokémon. In the battlefield, if their Pokémon was thrown out of the area or unable to continue, they would be eliminated.
Eliminated trainers would receive a consolation prize of 5,000 Pokédollars. Those who reached the main tournament but didn't make the top eight would receive 20,000 Pokédollars.
Overall, the tournament format was very reasonable, and the prizes were attractive enough for most trainers on board to register.
However, for the truly powerful, these prizes might not be so interesting.
For example, the ordinary-looking old man who had warned Cain before, probably the most powerful on the ship. Someone of his caliber likely wouldn't be interested in these prizes.
Otherwise, Cain wouldn't even bother participating. Yamamoto, being able to rent a ship like the S.S. Anne, surely had powerful guards at his disposal.
If they participated, no one else would stand a chance, and everything would be predetermined.
However, these individuals, for various reasons, would not participate in the tournament.
Registration closed at midnight, and anyone who wanted to participate only needed to call reception from their room.
Since they had recorded each person's information upon ticket purchase, they knew who registered by their room number.
After thinking for a bit, Cain called reception and registered.
The process was quick; in less than a minute, Cain was registered, and he was informed that the preliminaries would start the next morning.
The entire tournament schedule was well-organized and proceeded so efficiently that it seemed everything had been planned in advance. From the moment Yamamoto announced the tournament, all staff members on the ship began moving quickly, performing their tasks in an orderly manner, and soon all tournament preparations were complete.
Tomorrow the tournament would officially begin.
But the more Cain saw how quickly and efficiently everything was done, the more he felt something was wrong. Everything was too smooth, too perfect.
So perfect that it sent a chill down Cain's spine.
(End of chapter)