Chapter 275: Off-Season Activities
The match ended. After shaking hands, the players from both teams returned to their respective backstage lounges.
Upon their return, Derek and his partner were immediately met with encouragement and comfort from their entire team.
"Don't be discouraged. Stay calm. It's a good thing to find the weaknesses in our lineup before the playoffs begin. In terms of doubles, your opponent today is at a top-tier level even by playoff standards. There's no shame in losing. Don't let it affect your mentality."
As opponents, they still gave Arthur their full respect.
In contrast, back on the Sea Carp side, the atmosphere was more subdued when Arthur and Elijah returned.
The young analysts who had picked at Arthur before the match now kept their heads down, too embarrassed to speak.
The facts had proven that even with Arthur dedicating a large amount of his time to Little Eevee, his dominance on the doubles battlefield was still intact, his performance so solid it was infuriating!
Furthermore, the actual battle process was enough to prove that he hadn't neglected the training of his main Pokémon at all!
With Greninja learning so many new skills in a single season, who would dare say he wasn't taking his job seriously?
Even the players constantly praised by the media for being "heavenly diligent" didn't show the same rate of progress as Arthur. If his efforts were considered 'unfocused,' what would that make all the other average players?
Before this match, Arthur had never privately responded to any of the doubts or slander within the team.
Yet, the victory in a single match was enough to shatter all the whispers of ghouls and demons!
At this moment, the analysts who had been full of gossip not long ago were as quiet as cicadas in winter, their minds filled with nothing but relief.
They were relieved that they had only spouted their nonsense in private within the team and hadn't posted it publicly online. Otherwise, they would probably have been flamed into oblivion by now…
In the end, it was Bella who was the first to stand up and offer him a sincere congratulations.
"Congratulations, congratulations! A beautiful win!"
"Thanks."
Arthur responded with a smile.
He hadn't paid any mind to those voices anyway.
Their level was too low to be worth his attention.
Afterward, Bella and Luna also took the stage and secured a win. Thanks to the outstanding performance in the doubles segment, the Sea Carp Team turned their defeat into a victory, staging a comeback to defeat the higher-ranked Yankee Team!
With this, the regular season officially entered its final countdown.
Each team had at most one match left.
The regular season was about to end, and the playoff picture was mostly clear for most teams, with only a few still in a tight race.
The Sea Carp Team was one of those in a tight spot.
They had performed much better this year than last, having already secured a spot in the playoffs early on. But if they won their last match, and the top teams did them a favor, they might even have a shot at the winner's bracket!
This was something they would have never dared to dream of before Arthur joined.
However, the result was unfortunately disappointing. In the final match of the season, the Sea Carp Team made a strategic error right from the start, going 0-6 in the 1v1 portion.
Before the doubles matches even began, the fans could already start shouting, "Are you even worthy of us? Damn it, refund our money!"
Arthur, Bella, and Luna, along with the other doubles players, could only shrug helplessly.
There was truly nothing they could do.
They were given a chance and couldn't capitalize on it!
In the end, the Sea Carp Team had to accept the same fate as in previous years: advancing to the playoffs but starting from the loser's bracket.
At the same time, with the conclusion of the regular season, a longer off-season break would begin.
During this period, many awards would be announced—
Such as "Best Rookie," "Best Captain," "Most Valuable Player," "All-League First Team," and so on.
Among these, Arthur was only eligible for "Best Rookie" and "All-League First Team."
The regular season "Most Valuable Player" award was, by default, given to a main singles player each year. Doubles players couldn't compete for it.
The final results were as expected.
"Let's give a big round of applause for—Arthur from the Sea Carp Team!!"
On the awards stage, the host drew out the name with passion, welcoming Arthur to receive his award.
The Best Rookie award had been his for the taking for several weeks, and a spot on the All-League First Team was naturally his as well.
Long before the organizers notified him to come receive the award, Arthur had already prepared his "Training Insights," a long… a long share of over three thousand words.
He had to symbolically share something to get the league merits, after all.
Arthur didn't particularly care about the award itself; the prize money wasn't even as much as his cut from a single advertising endorsement now.
In less than half a year, he had become a rising star in the league!
But he cared a lot about those league merits!
A few days ago, he had grabbed a certain time-traveling Pokémon who had been lazing around at home playing games, turning into a complete shut-in. He let it absorb some of his body's energy to turn back time and confirm the general whereabouts of one of his past companions.
He was just waiting to receive the merits to go on a field trip to find them.
The distribution of merits would take about ten more days to be approved, which was perfect timing. He could set off right after the playoffs were over!
After a series of awards and ceremonies, the league organizers and various teams would host many online and offline activities during the off-season break.
Things like fan meet-and-greets, team open house days, fan tournaments, talk shows, and so on.
Among them, the most famous, most-watched, and most competitive event was the All-Star Weekend!
This event had a long history, existing almost as long as the competitive league itself. It included a series of offline themed activities, held in a different city each year. Attendance was always sold out, and viewership ratings were nearly on par with the annual playoff finals!
Many casual competitive fans and those who only watch might not follow the regular season, but they rarely missed an All-Star Weekend!
Each year, the All-Star Weekend not only included fan interactions and entertainment but also high-stakes battles between professional players—and they were very serious competitive battles.
This was because the All-Star Weekend always featured a special segment where doubles players could challenge main singles players!
This was crucial for many older doubles players, around twenty-eight or twenty-nine, who were approaching the retirement deadline! This stage was something they valued and cherished greatly! It was a precious opportunity for them to showcase themselves to the public and to other teams.
Someone like Luna, for example, was determined to make her mark at this year's All-Star Weekend!
She hadn't slacked off in her training one bit during the off-season and had been preparing for it for a long time.
"So, we all have to go?"
One day, Arthur held the invitation from the organizers and confirmed with the two beautiful ladies on his team, plus Elijah.
Thanks to Arthur, Elijah had also been selected for this year's All-Stars.
Although he was a rookie who had only been rotated in for five matches during the regular season, under Arthur's wing, his appearance win rate was a staggering 80%! He was a standout among the rookies!
So, miraculously, he had also been invited to the All-Stars.
This made Asher, who hadn't received an invitation, so jealous his cell walls were separating!
Damn it! Why?! His win rate is higher! Is it just because he's older, played more, has a worse image, and is less popular?
This is outrageous! This world is full of oppression against veteran players! When will we old-timers finally get to stand up!
But in the next moment, Luna, who was of a similar age, walked over, also holding an invitation.
"We have four people going to the All-Stars this year. The team will probably arrange for accompanying staff."
This was the most people the Sea Carp Team had ever sent to the All-Stars in its history.
Beside them, Asher could only suck his thumb in envy…
Why!
Just why!
They invited four people from one team, so why couldn't they just add one more for me? Why not…
So sad, so wanna cry…
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