In a forest, a Scyther was battling a small Roselia with several thorns on its head, a blue rose on its left hand, and a red rose on its right.
Ash and the other trainer stood on opposite sides, commanding the battle.
"Roselia, use Petal Dance!"
As soon as the words were spoken, a dazzling, colorful shower of petals, like a snowfall, attacked Scyther. But Scyther suddenly held up its scythes and spun at high speed, turning into a whirlwind that shredded all the petals. Its momentum steadily grew with the rotation. Finally, under Ash's command, it put its arms together and used X-Scissor, sending Roselia flying.
"Rose~"
Roselia, lying on the ground, struggled for a moment before its eyes turned into spirals, and it fell unconscious.
"Roselia is unable to battle. Scyther is the winner! Therefore, the victor is Ash from Pallet Town," Brock, who was acting as the referee, announced the result.
"I've lost, Ash. You truly are a powerful trainer."
Roselia's trainer was a bard named Nando, dressed like a troubadour and holding a golden harp. He was on his own journey and had happened to encounter Ash and Dawn training their Pokémon after they entered the forest. Due to his personal philosophy, Nando was eager to challenge Ash, a Pokémon Trainer, and Dawn, an aspiring Pokémon Coordinator. Although Nando defeated Dawn's Piplup, who was a novice trainer, facing the more experienced Ash, the outcome was obvious.
"Thanks to our battle with Scyther, my Budew evolved into Roselia. It was a very beneficial battle for both of us."
Even though he lost the battle, Nando still gained something from the experience. At the very least, his Budew evolved.
"You're too kind, Nando. It was your and Roselia's hard work," Ash said, quickly shaking Nando's hand. He then added an objective assessment. "After all, your Roselia was well-trained and was already close to evolving during its Budew stage. My Scyther didn't have much to do with it. If anything, it was more of an EXP boost for Scyther, which helped it get stronger and even learn the stat-boosting move, Swords Dance."
"Ugh, why was Ash able to defeat Nando, but I was easily taken down in one hit? Waaah~" Dawn complained, puffing her cheeks in frustration. She had been training with Piplup just like Ash for the past few days, but it hadn't helped at all. She wanted to put on a good show, but she was knocked out in one hit. It was so embarrassing! Just thinking about that moment, she couldn't help but cover her slightly flushed face.
"Don't overthink it, Dawn. Piplup is a Water-type Pokémon. Sending it out wasn't the smartest choice, since your opponent had a Grass-type Budew," Ash said, walking over and casually explaining to the frustrated Dawn.
"Exactly. Besides, you're a new trainer, Dawn. Both you and your Pokémon don't have the same level of experience as Nando and Ash," Brock chimed in.
"Yeah, I know! Ugh, this is so frustrating!" Although she understood, Dawn still felt upset. She held her hands to her head, her deep blue hair messed up in frustration. The others silently watched the girl's frustration, a small smile forming on their lips. They could all understand her feelings. The feeling of not wanting to fall behind other trainers is a normal feeling for many new trainers.
When the three of them arrived in this forest, they happened to meet Nando, who was also traveling. At the time, he was conflicted about whether to challenge the Pokémon Contests or the Sinnoh League. Seeing that Dawn was a Coordinator and Ash was a Trainer, he decided to have a battle with both of them to see which path was right for him. Ash, who was already special training Scyther, and Dawn, who was itching for a battle, had no reason to refuse.
From the results of the Coordinator battle, it was clear that Nando had completely dominated Dawn, who was a novice, leaving her no room to fight back. After all, Nando was a trainer who had participated in Pokémon Contests before, and his Roselia had a great talent for performing. Compared to Nando's Roselia, the newly-debuted Piplup seemed a bit lackluster. It was understandable that Dawn, who had just become a new trainer, would be no match for Nando. Losing to a Budew that was about to evolve was a given. If she had actually won, Ash would have had to seriously consider if Dawn was also a transmigrator.
"Nando, have you decided whether you'll challenge the Pokémon Contests or the Sinnoh League?" Dawn, ever the optimist, quickly got over her loss and asked him.
"Actually, in my humble opinion, you should join the Pokémon Contests. That way, Roselia's beautiful moves can be shown off in the competition." Ash and Brock nodded in agreement. From the performance battle with Dawn, it was obvious that his Roselia had a great talent for Contests.
"First, I must thank you for your help," Nando said with a smile. "I've decided. I'm going to participate in both the Pokémon Contests and the Sinnoh League!"
"Both?" Dawn exclaimed in surprise. She was about to say something but realized she couldn't. She remembered that there was no rule stating a person could only participate in one type of competition. It seemed Nando's decision was a valid one.
"Whether it's Pokémon battles or Contest performances, my Pokémon can participate. I don't need to limit myself to just one type of competition," Nando explained, having come to the realization himself. This was the inspiration he had gotten from his battles with them. If it's something I love, why should I limit myself? That's not the personality of a bard.
"Just as I thought," Ash, who already knew the answer, muttered to himself.
But all of this didn't concern him. Soon, it was 9 PM, and they arrived at a Pokémon Center near the forest for a simple night's rest. As for Ash himself, he was reviewing his Pokémon's recent training results.
First, there was Pikachu. It had already learned its new move, Electroweb, and could now use it proficiently. This was within his expectations. After all, it was a "Pika-God," so having great talent was a given. Next was Starly. Under Pidgeot's guidance, its speed had improved significantly. In a little while, he could start Starly's next phase of training. Aipom's progress was only so-so. It was more playful and didn't seem to take training seriously. However, due to its increased strength, it had also learned a new move or two. The one that benefited the most was undoubtedly Scyther. It had learned Swords Dance, a move with the highest returns for its current stage. He just needed to find the right time to give it a Metal Coat so it could evolve.