Dante was standing outside the Alliance building, talking with Pikachu about his recent experience of only using physical attacks.
"Sorry for the wait. The line at the Center was a bit long. Luckily, nearby professionals are helping out, or Arceus knows just how long I have to wait there."
Shinobu walked over while holding Shelmet. Her tone of voice signified that she was clearly in a good mood despite the hold up. Dante knew the reason, he already checked the Alliance website and confirmed that Shinobu also entered the top 32.
"It's alright, we didn't wait long. You want to grab some dinner first?"
"Sure! I'd love to."
With so many participants in the qualifiers, even after being divided into 4 groups with many battles taking place simultaneously, it still took a whole day to finish. The staff gave those that were still participating at noon a free lunch, along with the Pokemon food of their choice for their Pokemon. For dinner however, it was up to the Trainers to handle it themselves.
Because the two were tight on money (Dante due to having no source of income and Shinobu from raising Shelmet), they agreed to eat at the Jollibee fast-food restaurant.
"So? How were the Trainers in your group? Knowing you though, I guess you and Pikachu didn't encounter any problems."
"Isn't it the same for you? The Pokemon used by the Trainers are all just newly trained. They can't compare to your Shelly who already reached its racial limit."
Hearing Dante's praise, Shelmet who was eating from the side puffed out her lips in pride. Shinobu also curled her lips at Dante's praise, but then her expression suddenly turned serious.
"In our group, there was a Trainer with a Scyther. His Pokemon was strong, and his commanding ability was top-notch. I was lucky we didn't get paired, otherwise, I don't think me and Shelly would be able to qualify for the top 32 today so easily."
"Huh? Does this Trainer have blond hair and talks in a pompous tone?"
"You know him?"
"I'm not sure if it's really him, but we met a guy like that during Pikachu's registration a month ago. Long story short, Pikachu beat his Scyther and he wanted a rematch. I told him about me participating in this competition and it looks like he joined to avenge himself."
"So that's why! I was puzzled why someone dressed like that even participated in this kind of competition. It was your fault all along!"
"Hey! Don't put the blame on me! It was him who kept pestering me for a rematch."
"Pfft! He's very reckless then. From what I've seen so far, I don't think his Scyther can last even a minute in front of your Pikachu."
Dante awkwardly laughed at Shinobu's words while scratching his head. He can't say that Pikachu was weaker than Scyther a month ago and they only won due to luck, right? That was why that guy was so adamant on getting a rematch.
"I say you have a good chance of beating him with Shelly, though. His Scyther's attacks are a bit weak, and Shelmet can take them all with his defense. You just need to think about how to hit him."
"Heh, you don't have to worry about that. After fighting with you and Pikachu for so long, me and Shelly have already formed a tactic for faster Pokemon. I only have to be careful of his Flying type attacks."
Knowing Shelmet's movepool, Dante had a preliminary idea about what tactic Shelmet would implement.
Dante and Shinobu talked for a while longer before walking on the way home. Shelmet already fell asleep in Shinobu's arms, exhausted from the day's battle. Meanwhile, Pikachu was inside Dante's bag, his upper body hanging outside, holding the phone that was showing a drama aired at this time every night.
"Hey, Dante. Don't you think the rewards for this competition are a bit…lackluster?"
"Hmm? Well yeah? It's for Rookie Trainers after all."
"Why don't we make a bet? You know, to spice things up a little. Just between the two of us."
Dante was taken aback by Shinobu's words. She already knows how powerful Pikachu is from their battle. Dante doesn't think Shinobu is so stupid that she will bet on impossible odds.
"Well, what do you have in mind?"
"How about this? If you get 1st place in the competition, you win. And if I get 2nd place, I win."
"Huh? Then what if I get 1st place and you get 2nd place?"
"In that case, both of us will win."
"Ahh, I see. So that's your goal huh. And? What's the prize for winning the bet?"
Shinobu showed an innocent smile towards Dante.
"If I win, how about joining me live on stream? And if you win, you can ask me for whatever you want."
Hearing Shinobu's conditions, Dante's words were stuck in his throat.
While the both of them were chatting online one day, Shinobu invited Dante to play Valomon with her (Pokemon version of Valorant). Because of Dante's increase in stats, his reaction speed was unreal and he constantly made some crazy flick shots during the whole game.
Shinobu was shocked at that time due to Dante's crazy plays. She instantly asked Dante for permission to post the recording of their match in her Poketube account, and it instantly blew up.
After that, she live-streamed a few more games with Dante as her duo every couple of days and her livestream rapidly increased in views. After learning that the two of them know each other, many viewers hoped that they could see the face of that legendary player.
As for the possibility of cheating? No one even thought about it. Valomon is backed by a large gaming company that uses the latest Porygon-Z as their cybersecurity.
Hacking their game is almost the same as being able to hack the Official Pokemon Alliance database. No one would be bored enough to spend that much effort just to get 'kills' in a game.
"Well, alright. I'll agree to this bet."
Dante thought for a while before agreeing to her conditions. He'll become a public figure in the future anyway, so being exposed to more people now won't hurt.
The last part about him being able to ask her for anything definitely didn't have any sway on his decision.
"It's a deal then!"
Shinobu happily hummed while walking beside him, laughing from time to time in their ensuing conversation.