"You did a good job, Shelly. Take a well-deserved rest."
Shinobu took Accelgor back into the Pokeball and whispered with a complicated expression on her face. Meanwhile, Dante also walked over to wake Pikachu up.
"Congratulations, Dan. It looks like I'll have my revenge at a later date."
She came over and 'playfully' pinched Dante's waist.
Dante felt nothing with his current physical fitness, but looking at her dissatisfied face, he still pretended to hiss in pain.
With Shinobu's competitive personality, he was honestly worried how she would take being consecutively defeated by him. But judging from her current attitude, he was glad that she didn't take the beating too seriously.
If Shinobu knew what Dante was currently thinking, she would have laughed at him for worrying too much.
Although Shinobu has a competitive personality, she won't hold a grudge against the other party when she is defeated. Instead, she'll just impose stricter restrictions on herself and train harder so she won't lose next time.
The reason she was dissatisfied with Dante now was because he hid the fact that Pikachu already learned Feint from her.
"Seriously, were you already planning against me and Shelly from the beginning? You deliberately didn't use Feint in all our previous battles."
"N- Of course! That's because I knew that you'd be my biggest opponent in this competition. I have to keep a trump card prepared against your stall tactic or else I would have lost!"
"Hmph!"
Shinobu took back her hand and crossed it in front of her chest. Although her current action showed dissatisfaction for what Dante did, the corner of her mouth curving upwards proves that him taking her and Shelly so seriously pleased her.
Dante wiped the sweat on his forehead in relief. To be honest, he himself even forgot about Pikachu learning the move Feint.
It was only during the qualifiers, when they battled using only physical attacks, that he remembered it due to being one of the only three physical moves Pikachu has.
"What a great show of friendship for both Trainer Dante and Shinobu! The both of them are laughing everything off after the battle. I hope that the two young geniuses can go further together on the road of being a Pokemon Trainer!"
"Hmm, they're totally dating. Oh ahem! What a great match indeed to end the final battle! The battle could have gone in either direction, but Dante's preparation against Shinobu proved to be the clincher for this match!"
The audience gave the two Trainers in the arena a loud applause. Many scouts are already furiously taking down notes, ready to visit the Trainers tomorrow to invite them to their university.
For now, however, everyone agrees to let them have their well-deserved rest.
—
After Dante and Shinobu's Pokemon were healed, they were ushered on top of the stage, together with the top 3 and 4, for the awarding ceremony.
For the awards, Gym-leader Erika was responsible for handing the medal to all of them.
Everyone received a voucher from the Alliance where they can register a Pokemon and obtain a monthly supply of that Pokemon's exclusive food for a whole year.
Note that it is an exclusive Pokemon food, not the generic Electric-type food that Dante fed Pikachu at the beginning. After seeing the voucher, even Dante was surprised at the generosity of the Alliance.
The Pokemon food in this world is divided into three categories: Pet-level, Trainer-level, and then the exclusive ones.
Generally, a bag of the lowest quality Trainer-level food costs around 2,000, the medium quality is 5,000, and the high quality is 10,000 credits.
The exclusive food is different. Each of them are tailor-made according to the Pokemon's specification. Depending on the species of Pokemon, the price can range from as low as 20,000 to 100,000 or even more just for one bag!
Dante was very curious to know the difference between this exclusive food and the Apples and Berries from the PMD world that Pikachu is currently eating.
Erika gave out a bronze medal for both the 3rd and 4th place as well as some encouraging words. For Shinobu, who is in 2nd place, she received a silver medal.
"That was a splendid battle, young lady. From you and Accelgor, I was able to see a dazzling display of both wisdom and courage. Are you perhaps interested in joining my Gym as an apprentice?"
Shinobu was taken aback by Erika's sudden offer. She wasn't expecting to get such an unexpected windfall.
"Can I think about it first? I don't want to rashly make a decision for such a thing especially before the start of University."
"Sure! You can visit my Gym anytime to inform me of your decision. By the way…"
Erika suddenly leaned in and asked a question silently in Shinobu's ears.
After hearing her question, Shinobu's face turned a little red and she gave a sidelong glance at Dante before nodding to Erika.
"Squeee! I knew it! Oh- ahem. I mean, keep it up!"
Erika patted Shinobu's shoulder enthusiastically under her deadpan gaze before moving on to Dante.
"Now, as the winner of this competition, you get something different!"
Erika smiled teasingly at Dante as she took a trophy that was handed over by the staff at the side.
The trophy has a thick, flat base that is holding up a golden colored Pokeball. It was surrounded by some golden rings to serve as further support and decoration. On top of the Pokeball, a "ROOKIE CHAMPION" was written. He also saw his name located on the base of the trophy as well as the current date.
Dante smiled and took the trophy from Erika's hand. On his shoulders' Pikachu let out an exclamation of excitement, running on Dante's hand in order to take a closer look and touch it himself.
"Congratulations, Dante. I hope this is only the first of your many achievements in the future. I hope one day, I can see your face on the national and even the world stage once again. But don't forget, there are many people behind you that are supporting you in your journey."
"Thank you for the blessings, Ms. Erika. However, can I ask you a question?"
"Huh? Sure, go ahead."
"I heard the Gym's are closed for this month because the circuit just ended. Is there any other way to get a Gym Badge?"
Yes, after the competition, Dante started to worry about this problem.
The Gym Circuit is a period from July to March every year, where Trainers can challenge the Gym to get their Gym badges and qualify for the National Tournament.
The National Tournament is held in June, which is this month. Trainers who obtained eight Gym badges will battle against one another, with the winner obtaining a generous reward as well as the qualifications to participate in the Champion's Tournament.
Dante forgot all about this while he was preparing for the Rookie Competition.
"Hmm. Not that I know of. Is there a reason why you want to get a Gym Badge?"
"Well, I befriended another Pokemon while training with Pikachu in the wild. I need the badge so I can capture it and then officially register to the Alliance."
"Oh, it's simple then, just ask the Alliance for permission."
"Ask…the Alliance?"
"Yes. As the champion of this competition, they'll definitely agree to give you early permission for something as simple as this. Especially since it looks like your Pikachu already reached its racial limits."
"I see. Thank you very much, Miss Erika!"
After that, the official gave the winners the cheque containing their prize money, and then the closing ceremony for the competition began.
Shinobu and Dante didn't go home directly like everyone else. Instead, according to what Erika said, the both of them asked the alliance staff about the process for early Pokemon registration.
The two of them were directed to the office responsible for Pokemon Registration, and after some back-and-forth call between the branch admin and the staff, Dante's request was approved.
Walking out of the building while holding the registered Pokeball in his hand, Dante couldn't stop the smile on his face. Now, as long as Azumarill agrees and he captures him with this, he can officially get his 2nd Pokemon.
"I still don't know why you're so eager to get your second Pokemon. After Pikachu evolves, you'll need to focus on training him to reach his racial limit."
Shinobu and Dante finally walked out of the Alliance branch. From the end of the competition until now, it only took 20 minutes for Dante's request to be processed and approved.
"But Shinobu, I don't plan on letting Pikachu evolve."
"What? Why?? If it's about the price of the Thunderstone, I can still lend you some money from my savings. Don't delay your progress just because of something like this!"
"Thank you for the offer, but it's not that. Do you know about the Light Ball?"
After seeing Shinobu shake her head, Dante proceeded to explain its effect and that it only works on Pikachu.
"A held item that doubles both the Attack and Special Attack…something that powerful must surely have a serious side effect. Are you sure about your decision?"
"Very sure. Pikachu and I already talked about this."
"Pika!" (That's right!)
"Well, alright then. I guess you getting your second Pokemon is logica-"
"Woof!"
Suddenly, Dante felt something heading in his direction at a fast speed. His body instinctively entered a fighting state, but after seeing who it was, he relaxed and instead opened his arms to capture it in a hug.
"Luna! What are you doing here?"
"I brought her here. What took you so long? The competition was over a while ago."
While Dante was ruffling Luna's hair, his mother's voice sounded from the front as she gave him a tight hug.
"Congratulations for winning, Dan! Your father and I couldn't be more proud of you."
"Thank you ma. I also couldn't have done it without you and pa supporting my decision."
After giving one final squeeze, she finally let him go. Then, her gaze inevitably fell on the girl that was nervously twiddling her thumbs beside Dante.
"Oh, let me introduce my…friend to you ma! This is Kuki Shinobu, she's the one I talked with you about."
"Yes, you're Dante's foreigner friend, right? Thank you very much for taking care of my son these past week."
"No no, it was Dante who took care of me, Aunt Zulueta. Thanks to him, I was able to hone Shelly's fighting style and achieve what I have in the competition."
Shinobu was caught off-guard and a little flustered for suddenly meeting her not-quite-a-lover-yet's parents so soon. Her body subconsciously straightened up, trying her best to leave a good impression on her.
"I remember you came alone to this country, right Shinobu?"
"Um, yes ma'am!"
"Haha, you don't have to be so stiff. Dante's father cooked up a feast tonight to celebrate. Why don't you come with us? We can celebrate both you and Dan's achievement in the competition."
"Oh, it's alright Ms. Zulueta. I don't want to intrude on such a private occasion."
"I insist! Besides, knowing Jack, I'm sure he'd cook more food than necessary."
Shinobu didn't want to reject her repeatedly and leave a bad impression. Knowing that she would inevitably face this in the future with her relationship with Dante, she resolved herself before agreeing to Ms. Zulueta's invitation.