After his match, Paul remained in the lobby, silently observing the ongoing League matches on the broadcast, analyzing each trainer's strengths and battle styles.
Tobias was as overwhelming as ever. With his unmatched dominance, he dispatched his opponent's entire team using just his Darkrai—once again showcasing its terrible power. The only difference this time? His opponent had prepared countermeasures against Dark Void, forcing Darkrai to expend more moves and time than usual.
Meanwhile, Lucas and Barry faced relatively weaker opponents compared to Volo, allowing both to claim easy victories.
Once all battles concluded, the screen displayed the sixteen remaining contenders.
Besides Paul himself, the portraits of Lucas, Barry, Conway, and Tobias stood out among the crowd.
Paul wasn't surprised Conway had made it this far. As a tactician-style trainer, Conway's Pokémon might not be as outright powerful as those of Barry or Lucas, but his strategies? Ruthlessly precise. When it came to counterplay and disruption, Conway was no slouch.
As Paul contemplated this, the portraits on the screen shuffled and matched randomly—his next opponent was set.
Conway.
"Paul, I've been looking forward to this match. I've studied a great deal of your battle data, you know." Conway said with an eerie grin, pushing up his glasses as he seemingly appeared out of nowhere.
"Then give it your all." Paul responded calmly, hands in his pockets as he walked away.
Now that his next opponent was confirmed, Paul knew it was time to come up with a precise strategy and choose the right team lineup.
"What an arrogant man~" Conway smirked quietly as he watched Paul leave.
Though Conway's Pokémon were no match for Paul's in raw power, he made up for it in numbers and versatility. His Pokémon pool was vast, spanning nearly every type and role—he could easily build a Trick Room team, Sandstorm team, Sun team, or Rain team. With attackers, defenders, and speedsters all at his disposal, creating a counter-strategy against him was almost impossible.
And this wasn't something Conway had improvised overnight. Ever since his previous loss to Paul, he'd been meticulously preparing. In his mind, this time, the odds were in his favor.
Paul, of course, knew none of this—but as he examined deeper into Conway's battle records, he started to understand.
Conway's Known Pokémon:
Slowking
Aggron
Heracross
Vileplume
Shuckle
Lickilicky
Dusknoir
Floatzel
Kabutops
…and more.
Paul scanned the list, falling silent.
Conway had at least twenty Pokémon at his disposal. The diversity of types and tactics meant he could field virtually any strategy he wanted—Trick Room, weather teams, stall, or even speed comps. His roster had Pokémon that could tank, blitz, stall, or sweep. It was a strategist's dream.
For Paul, this made preemptive counterplanning almost meaningless.
The simplest counter?
Fight strategy with strategy.
Pick a defined battle archetype and commit to it. That way, he could at least establish a logical rhythm.
Still, no matter how many videos or records he watched, Paul's eyes kept drifting back to one particular Pokémon in Conway's lineup:
Dusknoir.
A Trick Room setter with access to Destiny Bond—a dangerous combo. Paul knew he had to account for it. If necessary, even sacrificing a Pokémon to take it out might be worth it.
Meanwhile, Conway chuckled as he studied Paul's data.
"Sun team? Rain team? Sandstorm?"
"Those are good, sure—but would they really work against someone like Paul?"
The answer was simple: No.
Unless one specialized deeply into a weather strategy with perfectly synergized, high-tier Pokémon, it wouldn't even have a 50% win rate against Paul.
Take Volo, for instance—runner-up of the Ever Grande Conference. His Sandstorm team was no joke, and his Pokémon rivaled Paul's in power.
But even then?
His whole team, save for Excadrill, got swept by Paul's Guts-activated Ursaluna.
That made one thing clear.
Weather teams wouldn't cut it.
Instead, Conway would lean into what he did best:
"My specialty—Trick Room."
He had analyzed Paul's record thoroughly. Though Paul's team had broad type and role diversity, with attackers, tanks, and even support-style Pokémon, there was one consistent trait:
They were all fast.
Faster than anything Conway could field on a Trick Room team.
"It'll be up to you two to open the match… and you, to secure the win."
Conway gripped three Poké Balls in his hand, heart racing with anticipation.
He had originally crafted this strategy for the finals—against Tobias. But fate had aligned him with Paul early, so the plan had to be deployed now. He could craft something new later.
He believed—this strategy would bring him victory.
.....
Time flew. The day of the Top 16 had arrived.
As the number of matches decreased, battles were now held one at a time, drawing in packed crowds and the attention of fellow competitors.
"Round Three is about to begin! The winner of this match will move on to the Top 8, where full 6v6 battles will begin!"
"Will the tactician Conway emerge victorious? Or will the dark horse Paul, with his mysterious Ursaluna, claim another win?"
"Let's find out!"
The announcer's voice boomed as Paul and Conway entered the arena.
In the Stands...
"Hey, who do you guys think will win?" Dawn, cradling her Prinplup, asked curiously.
"It's obviously Paul! He's way stronger—he'll crush that Conway guy in no time!" Barry declared with confidence.
"It won't be that easy." Lucas replied calmly.
"Conway excels at strategy. He might've developed a counter specifically for Paul—or even some kind of secret weapon."
As a fellow tactician himself, Lucas understood how dangerous Conway could be.
"Aw, don't jinx it, Lucas! Paul's totally gonna win this one!" Barry pouted, patting Lucas' arm. In response, Lucas just rolled his eyes.
What Lucas didn't say aloud was this:
*Among all of Paul's potential opponents, Conway might be the most difficult to handle—*certainly more so than Barry himself.
"Trainers, send out your Pokémon!"
The referee's voice rang out.
Both Paul and Conway tossed their Poké Balls.
"Dusknoir—battle ready."
"Samurott—stand by!"
As Dusknoir floated silently in the air, its ghostly presence was cold and still, the crowd remained calm.
But the moment Paul's Pokémon hit the field—gasps erupted.
"What kind of Pokémon is that?!"
"That's Samurott… but it looks… different?"
"Is that some kind of mutation?!"
"Wait—I think that's the variant they discovered recently… isn't that a special regional form?"
The audience, though avid match watchers, didn't always recognize rarer species.
"No way—that's Hisuian Samurott! You actually have one?! Wait—how did you even evolve a Dewott into that?!"
Conway had expected Paul to bring Samurott. But a Hisuian evolution? That didn't add up.
This form of Samurott was thought to have vanished long ago. Even if rediscovered, the evolution method should've been lost to time.
And yet—here it was.
But Conway wasn't clueless. He recalled a few obscure research papers he'd stumbled upon before…
Hisuian Samurott—an ancient form. Water/Dark-type, with abilities like Torrent or Sharpness.
"Tch… so you've been holding back too, huh?" Conway muttered.
The battle was about to begin, and with both sides revealing their opening schemes—strategy and adaptation would determine the victory.
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