The eight advancing Coordinators were randomly matched for the Contest. It was unfortunate that May was paired against Drew in the first round, while Ash was paired against an unknown competitor. Although May had improved a lot compared to the original story, she was still too green to compete with Drew. So, I can already congratulate May on her one-round journey.
Ignoring May's fiery battle spirit, Drew said to Ash, "I'll see you in the finals!"
Hearing this, May's anger flared. (╬◣д◢) "Don't get too cocky! I'm going to be the one who wins! I'm going to be the one who battles Ash!"
Ash watched the two of them, speechless. I'm sorry, but neither of you is likely to make it to the finals. Ash looked at the bracket and figured Robert would probably win his bracket and advance.
The first five-minute battle was May vs. Drew. The two of them sent out Beautifly and Roselia. Although Roselia was at a type disadvantage against Beautifly, its strength was at the Elite-Late level, and Drew was not a Contest rookie like May. The chances of May winning were very slim.
As the match began, May was caught off guard by Drew's Magical Leaf due to her unfamiliarity with battle moves, and her score began to drop. The sparkling Stun Spore continued to lower her score. May panicked and used her signature move, Silver Wind, but it was scattered by Petal Dance. In the end, a dazzling Solar Beam knocked out Beautifly. May's score was completely depleted, and Drew was declared the winner!
May returned to the waiting room, her head down in frustration, tears welling in her eyes. "Big sister..." When Brock and Max arrived, Max didn't know what to say. Although the two siblings often bickered, they were still very concerned about each other.
"I'm so upset! My Beautifly worked so hard... sob..." May's tears began to fall.
Ash walked over and patted her on the head. "It's good that you're upset! Life isn't always smooth sailing, and you won't win every time. The purpose of having rivals is to challenge each other and help each other improve! Turn this frustration into motivation, and win next time!"
"Ash..." May wiped away her tears, looked at Ash, and nodded firmly. "I understand. I'll definitely beat that guy next time."
The matches were quick, each lasting only five minutes, and soon it was time for the finals! As expected, Drew was taken down by Robert. The finals were set: Ash vs. Robert!
"I choose you, Noctowl!" "Go, Milotic!"
One Pokémon was a shiny Noctowl with a beautiful color scheme, and the other was a Milotic with the Marvel Scale ability. Both of their entrances were stunning!
[Milotic]
[Rank: Gym Leader - Early]
It's the same level as Noctowl? Ash thought.
"Milotic, Twister!" Robert gave a calm and elegant command.
Milotic fanned its beautiful tail, and a tornado formed, heading toward Noctowl!
"Noctowl, break through with Moonblast!" Noctowl used a pink Moonblast. The Dragon-type Twister was quickly shattered by the Moonblast, which made the Moonblast even more dazzling as it hit Milotic!
Robert's score dropped significantly!
"Noctowl, use Hypnosis!" Noctowl's eyes turned blue as it stared at Milotic.
"Oh no, Milotic, don't look!" Even the usually calm Robert began to panic.
Sure enough, a moment later, "Now, Dream Eater!"
"Woooo!" Milotic cried out and fell to the ground. Its score plummeted!
"Milotic, use Aqua Ring!" Milotic's beautiful body was enveloped in a ring of water. Ash's score began to decrease!
"I won't give you a chance! Use Hurricane!" Noctowl flapped its wings, creating a huge hurricane that enveloped Milotic. Bang! Milotic was knocked out!
All three judges held up an 'X', and Robert's score was reset to zero.
"The winner of the Slateport City Contest is—Ash! Thank you, Ash, for that spectacular performance!" Vivian announced.
Clap, clap, clap! The crowd in the stands cheered!
"Congratulations, Ash! You're very strong!" Robert recalled his Milotic, walked over, and extended his hand to congratulate him.
"Thank you!" Ash shook Robert's hand.
"Yay! Ash won!" "Pika-pi~" May and the others cheered and jumped for joy.
"And now, our champion, Ash, and his Noctowl will receive the Contest Ribbon!"
Mr. Contesta presented Ash with the Slateport Ribbon!
"Thank you!" Ash accepted it.
[Ding! Received the Slateport Ribbon. Reward: 1000 points]
"The Pokémon Contest—Slateport City Contest—has come to an end! We'll see you all next time!" With Vivian's final announcement, the Contest officially concluded!
After leaving the stage, May and the others crowded around him. "Ash, you're amazing! You've already gotten two Contest Ribbons!" May said enviously.
"As long as you keep at it, you can do it too! You have to work hard!" Ash encouraged her.
May's fighting spirit was re-ignited. "I will! I'll work hard! First, I'll beat that guy, Drew, and then I'll become the top Coordinator who is great at both battling and performing!"
A Trip to the Museum
After the Contest, Ash and his friends decided to stay for another day. They had been training so hard that they hadn't had a chance to explore the great city!
Ash sent Noctowl back and brought Phanpy over. His next battle would be at the Mauville Gym, which was an Electric-type Gym with a three-on-three rule. So Ash planned to use Phanpy, Aggron, and Pikachu.
(Ash's current team: Pikachu, Phanpy, Corphish, Aggron, Mudkip, Ralts, Torchic)
Ash and Max were walking on the street. "Ralts" Ralts, who was feeling stuffy in its Poké Ball, came out. "Pika" Pikachu looked at the little kid helplessly. As for Brock and May, one went shopping and the other went to get some food!
Ash planned to take Max to the Sea Museum, which was said to be the best place to visit in Slateport City! But when they arrived at the museum's entrance, a sign on the door read 'CLOSED'!
"How could this happen? Why is it closed?" Max said, disappointed.
"I don't know. The tourist brochure didn't say it was a day off. Maybe something happened," Ash said, comforting Max.
But Max wouldn't give up. They were leaving tomorrow, and if he didn't see it today, he didn't know when he would get another chance. If Ash hadn't stopped him, Max would have climbed over the fence.
Just then, a boy in a straw hat ran over and yelled at them, "Hey! What are you two doing here?!"
"Uh... why are you asking us... we're..." Max suddenly got nervous. Oh no! He's going to misunderstand us!
Sure enough, the boy pointed at them and said, "I know! You're here to steal the exhibits from the Sea Museum, aren't you?"
"No, no, we just..." The more Max tried to explain, the more he got tangled up, especially since he had just thought about climbing the fence!
Ash quickly explained, "We came to visit the Sea Museum, but it's closed today!" "Pika-pi~"
"Hmph, I don't believe you!"
To be continued...