Chapter 427: The Captain's Battle Begins!
After being front-loaded, Leo finally managed to redeem himself. He secured a clean, decisive victory in the first round, helping his team get on the board and atoning for his slump toward the end of the regular season.
In the second round, Aaron also delivered a steady performance, winning his match.
Starlight and Frost was off to a roaring start. After two rounds, they had already built a commanding 4-to-0 lead in the overall score!
However, it was clear that the Metro Team's strategy from the very beginning was to play defensively. The two main players they sent out were not the team's top aces, and their playstyle was conservative. They never seemed to be aiming for a win, but rather to just secure a single point in each set to avoid being completely shut out. In the end, they accomplished their mission, more or less.
It wasn't until the final singles round that they sent out their other powerhouse player besides Roman: Felix.
This round, it was Starlight and Frost's turn to play defense. The head coach didn't choose the more aggressive new player, Elara. Instead, she stuck with Alex to receive the challenge. Unfortunately, the other side was better prepared, and Felix managed to shut Alex out.
The regular singles phase of the match concluded with a score of 4 to 3, with Starlight and Frost holding only a one-point lead. Honestly, considering they had front-loaded their captain, this result was not entirely satisfactory, and the team's morale was a bit low.
Then came the doubles matches, where the Metro Team revealed another carefully prepared trump card. The host was, once again, completely shocked.
"My goodness! The player taking the field for the Metro Team is—Jensen, formerly of the Leaping Carp Team!"
This was undoubtedly a new acquisition the Metro Team had made during the transfer window. The Leaping Carp Team was already a bottom-tier team in the league, just one spot away from last place this season. With no hope for the playoffs or the Champions Cup, it was normal for their players to get restless and seek opportunities elsewhere. A mid-season transfer, if you picked the right team, could be a direct flight to the Champions Cup. For a player from a bottom-tier team, this might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The temptation was undeniable.
The only problem was—
"Holy crap, I remember him! Wasn't Jensen a main player during the regular season?!" a fan suddenly realized.
A player from a weak team transferring wasn't surprising. What truly shocked the commentators was this: "The Metro Team actually convinced a main player to voluntarily demote himself back to the doubles circuit?! That's incredibly rare!"
Jensen was twenty-nine years old, not yet thirty, so his return to doubles didn't break any rules. But according to conventional wisdom, a doubles player being promoted to a main player was an honor and a natural career progression. For a main player to return to doubles, for any reason, was seen as a humiliating step backward. Not to mention, the salary and prestige of a doubles player couldn't compare to that of a main player.
For a ticket to the Champions Cup, Jensen had truly put everything on the line. If he succeeded, he might just live up to his old team's name: a carp leaping over the dragon gate, soaring into the heavens. But if he failed, this would become a permanent stain on his career record. Taking such a step back in your career could land you on the pillar of shame. It was a true do-or-die, all-or-nothing gamble.
And in this match, he managed to withstand the pressure, showcasing the oppressive power of a veteran player. He and his partner worked in perfect sync, successfully defeating the sisters Ivy and Bianca and helping their team take the lead.
Fortunately, in the second doubles match, Bella and Justin put on a stable performance, securing the final win before the Captain's Match.
With all the regular singles and doubles matches concluded, Starlight and Frost was left clinging to a mere one-point lead. To be honest, it was not a comforting situation. Facing the number one player in the Alliance, a one-point advantage felt as thin as paper.
Although the fans were all cheering that Arthur had already defeated the third and second-place players and that beating the singles champion was the logical next step, when the Captain's Match was about to begin, the tension was still palpable. There was no helping it; Roman's performance during the regular season had been simply terrifying. An average of 3.8 points per match. A one-point lead was nothing in front of him.
"You can do this!"
Before he walked onto the stage, all his teammates could offer were words of encouragement. Fortunately, Arthur's expression remained calm, displaying a composure that was completely unlike a young man his age, which in turn served to reassure his teammates.
"Don't worry," he said simply. He then turned and walked confidently onto the stage, his mindset as steady as ever.
The final and most crucial match, the Captain's Match, was about to begin.
In the first round, Roman sent out his Sceptile. The choice was, honestly, not surprising at all. Roman still had many traits that, to outsiders, seemed unbefitting of a player at his level. For instance, the typing of his ace Pokémon was repetitive—all Water-types, with little synergy. Another was that, even now, his tactical choices remained singular, his opening sequence always the same, making it easy to predict.
Normally, these would be considered glaring weaknesses that needed to be addressed. But Roman had stuck with these traits for over a decade, to the point where now, almost every competitive player in the Kubfu Alliance knew exactly how he was going to start, yet very few could actually stop his opening gambit.
This was the dominance of the current number one player in the Alliance: I'll telegraph my strategy for everyone to see, and you still won't be able to counter it.
Arthur, for his part, made a rare choice for an opening round and sent out Little Eevee.
The commentators began to speculate. "Trainer Arthur has opened with Little Eevee! While we all know his Eevee possesses multiple evolutionary forms, a bottomless move pool, and a wide variety of tactical options, aren't its base stats a little too low for a captain-level showdown? His opponent is the number one player in the Kubfu Alliance, Roman! Director, what are your thoughts?"
The director beside him offered a theory: "Is it possible that Trainer Arthur is planning an immediate mid-battle switch, just like Roman's opening?"
Even the commentators could easily predict that Roman would switch out his Pokémon shortly after the start. The man's strategy was as stubborn and fixed as his personality, but also just as powerful.
Sure enough, his opening command was the same as always. "Sceptile, shed your armor, then use Grass Pledge!"
The so-called "shedding armor" referred to Sceptile activating its ability: Unburden!
Upon entering a battle state, Sceptile would visibly "shed its armor." With a great roar, it would cast off all the leaves and foliage from its body, instantly boosting its speed to the absolute maximum. However, in reality, this ability's boost wasn't permanent. As the battle continued, the leaves and foliage on Sceptile's body would gradually grow back, and the speed boost would decay accordingly. Once its foliage was fully restored, the effect would end completely. If the battle was still ongoing, it could then shed its armor a second time to reactivate the ability, and so on. It was a cyclical burst ability.
During this period, because the leaves on its body, especially on its arms and tail, were gone, it was more difficult for Sceptile to use moves like Leaf Blade, Fury Cutter, or Thrash. So, in a way, the ability came with a cost.
But Roman didn't care. He didn't need Sceptile to stay on the field and fight. All he needed was for it to rush to the opponent's side of the field as quickly as possible and set up Grass Pledge.
Then, he immediately pulled out a Poké Ball and exercised his right to switch Pokémon mid-battle.
The real duel was just about to begin.
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