Anna's face lit up with sudden understanding. "If that's the case, then this is going to be tricky!" If that Lucario truly possessed aura-sensing abilities, then her and Zoroark's prized Illusion would lose its effectiveness. Without a doubt, that Trainer named Derick would be a formidable opponent. Anna fell into deep thought, strategizing her approach.
Lucien smiled and continued watching the large arena below. The qualifying rounds were still ongoing, after the first match concluded, the second would begin immediately. Because the qualifying rules mandated 2v2 battles with each Trainer limited to two Pokémon, individual matches progressed quickly. Even with the entire morning session plus a lunch break, they'd barely reached the halfway point.
The final morning match pitted Anna against Alex. Lucien knew both Trainers well, one was his personally trained disciple, while the other belonged to the first group of young people to receive their starter Pokémon and begin their journeys.
The outcome was predictable. Anna claimed victory decisively. Alex's team was utterly overwhelmed by Anna's Zoroark and its masterful use of Illusion. Having lost his chance to advance, Alex nearly broke down in tears right there in the arena. Fortunately, Anna's kind words consoled him, and he reluctantly accepted defeat, vowing to train harder and return stronger next year.
In the afternoon, the second half of the qualifying rounds commenced. Lucien finished his royal duties and hurried to the main arena to watch alongside the crowd. Whether due to their limited training time or not, this group of Trainers hadn't displayed particularly impressive strength overall. However, during this session, Lucien discovered an intriguing young woman.
Her name was Freya. Her opponent was Warren, a refined gentleman from a prestigious aristocratic family.
In the first match, Freya sent out Watchog while Warren deployed Purrloin. A fierce cat-and-mouse battle erupted, literally, but ultimately both Pokémon knocked each other out simultaneously.
The second match proved even more intense. Freya released Heracross while Warren called forth Zebstrika, its entire body crackling with electricity. Just like the opening bout, both Pokémon charged at each other the instant they hit the field.
Zebstrika reared back, lightning dancing across its striped coat. "Zebstrika, Wild Charge!" Warren commanded.
Electricity enveloped the Electric-type as it galloped forward like a living thunderbolt. Heracross braced itself, horn glowing with energy.
"Megahorn!" Freya shouted.
The two collided in an explosion of sparks and force. Heracross skidded backward, scorched marks spreading across its exoskeleton, while Zebstrika stumbled from the recoil damage.
"Pin Missile!" Heracross fired a barrage of glowing needles, but Zebstrika weaved between them with surprising agility.
"Flame Charge!" Warren called out. Zebstrika's body ignited with flames as it charged again, slamming into Heracross and sending the Bug-type tumbling across the battlefield.
The brutal exchange continued, Brick Break met Discharge, Close Combat clashed with Thunder Wave. Both Pokémon's stamina rapidly depleted with each devastating blow.
Finally, Warren's Zebstrika seized an opening. "Thunderbolt, now!"
A massive bolt of lightning erupted from Zebstrika's mane, striking Heracross dead-center. The Bug-and-Fighting-type cried out and crashed to the ground, seemingly unconscious.
Even the referee thought it was over. Lucien himself initially believed the match had concluded.
Just as the referee raised his flag to announce the result, Freya suddenly shouted with desperate urgency, "Heracross! If you win this battle, I'll use my remaining allowance to buy you ten bottles of Sweet Honey!"
The supposedly unconscious Heracross immediately opened its eyes and stared questioningly at its Trainer, as if asking, "Is everything you just said true?"
Freya nodded vigorously. "That's right! As long as you win!"
Heracross went berserk.
Its wounds forgotten, fighting spirit blazing in its eyes, the Bug-type surged to its feet. Energy gathered around its horn, glowing with brilliant intensity.
"Heracross, Megahorn!" Freya cried.
"Zebstrika, dodge it!" Warren shouted in alarm.
But Heracross was unstoppable. With impossible speed for its injured state, it charged forward, horn blazing. Zebstrika attempted to sidestep, but Heracross adjusted mid-charge.
CRACK!
The horn connected with devastating force, lifting Zebstrika completely off the ground. The Electric-type flew through the air and crashed down hard, electricity sparking weakly before fading entirely.
Warren, the referee, and the entire stunned audience watched in disbelief as Zebstrika let out a final cry before collapsing, completely unconscious.
Heracross turned toward Freya. "Hera! Hera!"
Freya's face showed helpless resignation. "I know, I know! Don't worry, I'll keep my promise!"
Hearing the satisfactory reply, Heracross lay down contentedly, closed its eyes, and wore an expression of pure bliss.
The entire arena fell silent.
After a long moment, the referee finally shook himself from his stupor, raised his flag, and announced: "Zebstrika is unable to battle! The victor is Freya, who advances from the qualifying round!"
Lucien: "..."
'This could be considered a bond between humans and Pokémon, right? Probably?'
At 5:00 PM, the first Unova Kingdom Pokémon Tournament qualifying rounds concluded successfully. Thirty-nine advancing contestants would compete in a new round of battles at the grand arena the day after tomorrow.
Amidst the thunderous cheers of the crowd, Lucien quietly returned to the castle. Shortly after, Elif arrived, his face beaming with joy.
"Your Highness Lucien, this competition has proven incredibly popular among the people! Every match in the arena was completely sold out. Even on my way here today, I could hear people discussing the competition and the contestants on every street corner!"
The Eindoak Kingdom had never experienced such a grand spectacle since its founding. The old butler seemed genuinely amazed.
Hearing this, Lucien smiled. "This is just the beginning. After this competition concludes, even more people will choose to become Trainers. By this time next year, Lucien City will be even more bustling."
"That's truly remarkable!" Elif couldn't help but murmur in wonder.
Lucien observed his kingdom's outward transformation. The Unova Kingdom's culture was flourishing and prosperous, and this highly anticipated Pokémon Tournament provided his people with spiritual fulfillment and entertainment. This single event alone had already brought him nearly 500,000 satisfaction points.
"Books, it seems, are more important to some people than material possessions when it comes to fulfilling spiritual needs!" Lucien murmured softly.
He opened the technology tree interface. With the unification of the kingdom and the steady population growth, nearly every day brought him substantial amounts of satisfaction points. During this period, he'd unlocked almost all the technologies of the industrial age.
The next breakthrough would be...
Lucien turned his attention toward the technologies awaiting activation.
[Generator: A generator based on Electric-type Pokémon's power generation principles. Required: 300,000 satisfaction points.]
[Electric Lamp: A lighting device powered by electricity. Required: 50,000 satisfaction points.]
Studying these technological items, Lucien narrowed his eyes and fell into deep thought. He realized that the Pokémon World's electrical technology differed vastly from the electrical development of his previous life. Electricity already existed in this world, nearly every Electric-type Pokémon possessed the natural ability to generate substantial electrical currents. It's just that in this era, humanity hadn't yet conceived of harnessing their methods for practical applications.
This meant that in their research on electricity, they could skip numerous developmental stages entirely, leaping directly from the steam age into the electrical age and achieving groundbreaking progress.
"Electric storage..." Lucien's mind flashed back to memories from the anime, where Ash encountered the Pikachu-powered generators at Pokémon Centers. They were somewhat similar to hamster wheels, generating electricity through Pikachu's natural Discharge ability as they ran.
In fact, even in modern times, many power plants utilized Electric-type Pokémon to generate electricity. Pokémon like Electivire, just a single one, could supply all the electrical needs for a large city's buildings for an entire year.