Chapter 278: To Restore Professional Glory is Our Solemn Duty
After the discussion time ended, the big screen began to randomly select the matchups.
The All-Star Weekend used exhibition match rules, meaning there were no move slot limitations, and the field was smaller than a standard professional arena.
This allowed the matches to conclude more quickly, as there were more important events scheduled for later.
The bracket was announced, and Arthur was scheduled for the fourth match.
The first round was particularly interesting. On one side was a popular player from the Demon King Team paired with a youth camp trainee. On the other was a second-year rookie from a weaker team—their only All-Star—paired with an unknown fan.
Before the match, almost everyone favored the Demon King player's team. The live audience win-rate prediction organized by the event staff reached a staggering 98% to 2%.
But when the match actually started, the team with the Demon King player and the youth camp trainee was crushed in less than two minutes…
It was a jaw-dropping upset!
Arthur was one of the few who wasn't particularly surprised.
His pre-match prediction had been part of that 2%.
Because he recognized the "unknown" lucky fan.
It was Kevin!
In the half-year since they had last met, Kevin had also grown considerably.
Perhaps it was because, after coming to the Kubfu Alliance, he was finally free to chase his competitive dream.
Watching his seasoned commands, he must have participated in quite a few amateur leagues over the past six months.
The only thing Arthur found worthy of comment was that the kid, for some reason, had unconventionally chosen to catch a Honedge as his second Pokémon in addition to his Honchkrow.
Could it be that our one night in the Star Brilliance Alliance gave this young boy some kind of misunderstanding about Honedge?
He could only sincerely wish him good health, and hope he didn't get drained dry…
The first-round upset caught everyone by surprise, and even the host looked bewildered.
But for the organizers, this was a great thing. The hype and discussion had instantly skyrocketed!
Next up was the second match, featuring the unlucky Elijah.
As expected, he also got completely run over by the fan on the opposing team.
The atmosphere in the stadium surged once again!
The theme of the All-Star Weekend was the underdog rising. More than watching the pros dominate with practiced ease, the audience loved to see trainees and fans stage a comeback and become the main characters.
Who doesn't love an underdog story?
The organizers understood their audience perfectly, which was why they had added the new rule this year preventing pro players from using their main Pokémon before the final two rounds.
This drastically closed the gap between professionals and amateurs.
For some pro players with a limited roster, their benchwarmers weren't necessarily stronger than a youth camp trainee's main Pokémon.
The third match followed a similar script. The fans and trainees delivered many brilliant plays, no longer just being carried by the professional players as in previous years.
Now, the fans were happy, the trainees were satisfied, and the audience was ecstatic.
But the All-Star players on the field didn't look so pleased.
Bella grumbled from her seat on the players' bench, "Tch, so useless. If it were me up there, I'd crush them all!"
Unfortunately for her, she hadn't been drawn to participate.
Similarly, none of the doubles players like Luna, who were preparing to challenge the main singles players later, were chosen to play.
From this, it was clear that the organizers' "random" draw wasn't really so random.
You had to hand it to this year's All-Star Weekend organizers; they really knew their audience.
And so, before Arthur went on stage, Elijah could only place his hopes on him.
"I'm counting on you, Brother Arthur."
What was supposed to be a fun exhibition match had somehow been imbued with an air of tragic heroism.
Should I be saying something like "To Restore Professional Glory is Our Solemn Duty" right now?
Arthur thought, amused.
He and Monica then followed the cameras onto the fan tournament stage.
Their opponents were a pro player paired with a lucky fan from the audience.
He just wondered if this fan had the same competitive skill as Kevin.
The referee blew the whistle, and both sides revealed their Pokémon.
The opposing team was a seafood combo: a Kingler paired with a Corphish.
The Corphish belonged to the fan.
Having gotten used to professional matches, it had been a long time since Arthur had seen an unevolved Pokémon on the battlefield.
He fondly remembered that back in his amateur days, opponents like this were quite common.
It felt strangely nostalgic.
But then again, he was in the same boat this time—
His side was fielding an Indeedee and Little Eevee.
The host was stunned.
"Wait, wait, wait?! Is our Arthur really sending out an Eevee? An Eevee? But didn't we hear in the pre-show program that his Eevee is only one year old? Is this… is he really out of other Pokémon?"
Monica instinctively turned to glance at Arthur.
To be honest, when Arthur had told her before the match that he planned to use Little Eevee, her reaction had been almost identical to the host's.
She too had suspected that Arthur was out of options.
But then she remembered that, as a member of the Everhart family, she knew for a fact that Arthur also had a Honedge.
At the time, Arthur had simply given her a mysterious smile.
"Don't underestimate Eevee. He might just surprise you."
Honestly, even now, Monica wasn't convinced.
Arthur had gotten his Little Eevee around the same time she had last year. What could it possibly accomplish in just one year?
But her competitive drive wasn't that strong anyway. She was just here to have fun, so she silently went along with Arthur's "foolishness."
At least, from a common-sense perspective, this was indeed foolish.
But the moment the match started, Arthur displayed a ferocious offensive spirit.
"Eevee, use Quick Attack!"
At that moment, the two opposing Pokémon had just finished repositioning.
The pro player's Kingler moved forward to take the front line, while the fan's Corphish retreated, providing cover with Bubble Beam.
It was clear that this fan wasn't going to continue the trend of terrifyingly strong amateurs. His Corphish seemed content to play a supporting role.
But Arthur wouldn't allow it!
The moment the match began, Little Eevee instantly accelerated, making a beeline straight for the Corphish!
"Kingler, block it!"
The professional player's Kingler tried to intercept, but Little Eevee simply leaped over it mid-charge.
There was nothing to be done. Kingler was a bit too low to the ground and suffered from a height disadvantage…
Little Eevee then tanked the Bubble Beam and slammed headfirst into the Corphish, knocking it to the ground.
"This one-year-old Eevee looks very brave!"
The host's tone was still mostly teasing.
His words seemed to drip with a playful subtext: "doing this much is already very impressive for a one-year-old, but what can you possibly do next?"
It wasn't that he had anything against Arthur personally; it was just that hosting this kind of show required a spirit of stirring up trouble for the fun of it.
Unfortunately for them, if they were hoping for a funny show this time, they were destined to be disappointed.
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