The first to take the stage was a contestant who had scored 86 points in the preliminary round. Once he and his Dewgong came on, they put on an extravagant show.
All kinds of Ice-type moves appeared one after another, as if he intended to use every move he knew. This went on for nearly a full minute before he finally stopped.
In the end, just as the audience was wondering what exactly this was supposed to be, a curtain of water surged up across the field. It turned out that he had first used ice to demonstrate move coordination, then used the water melted from the ice to finish with the move “Aqua Ring,” showcasing his own charm.
“His mastery of moves is decent, and he knows how to use Ice-type moves to better perform Water-type moves, but it’s flashy and impractical.”
As the three judges discussed, the score was announced.
The contestant was still immersed in the water veil he had created. Seeing Dewgong within the water curtain, adorned with sparkling ice shards, he felt fairly satisfied.
However, the moment he saw his score, his expression immediately turned distressed. It was too low.
Eighteen points. Out of a maximum of thirty, he had only received 18 points, just a passing score.
“Haha.” Resting against a wall in a corner, Terrance glanced at the big screen and shook his head with a smile. If this contestant had been willing to discard the ice shards in the water, his score would have risen to at least 24 points. Unfortunately, in pursuit of visual splendor, he had abandoned the practical combat value of Aqua Ring.
In other words, by mixing ice shards into the water curtain’s restorative effect, the Aqua Ring became merely a superficial display. Although this made the performance more visually appealing, he hadn’t expected the judges to be unusually strict this time.
Even the audience members who thought the performance was decent were surprised by the score.
“Second performance, Contestant Armin.”
On stage, Vivian announced loudly.
The judges did not point out where the first contestant had fallen short; they only mentioned his strengths. This was very much in the style of Pokémon Contests. No matter how the performance went, only the positives were spoken of, praise was given wherever possible, and all the shortcomings were hidden within the score, left for the Coordinator to discover on their own.
As Vivian finished speaking, the second contestant quickly walked onto the stage. With a toss of her Poké Ball, ripples spread out and flower petals filled the air…
“No way, not even 20 points again? The judging this time is way too strict!”
As time passed and another four or five contestants scored below 20, the Coordinators were stunned.
After all, anyone who had made it this far was someone who could score over 29 points in ordinary Pokémon Contests. Yet at this Grand Festival, the scores were unexpectedly low. Even accounting for stricter standards, the drop was far too drastic.
“It seems that highlights are being ignored, while flaws are being infinitely magnified,” Terrance said as he moved his neck, showing great interest in the new judging criteria that Mr. Raoul Contesta and the others had devised.
Up to now, even performances with no obvious flaws in any aspect and with clear highlights had only managed total scores above 27 but still below 28.
In Terrance’s eyes, a score of 27 in the first round of any previous Pokémon Contest would have been considered perfect.
Coordination level, practical combat value, the Pokémon’s own charm; everything was on display, with no major shortcomings. Such a performance even surpassed the full-score performance Terrance had achieved when he first debuted, yet it still failed to meet the standard for a perfect score…
Soon, the first ten contestants had finished performing. None of these 10 were the ones who achieved a perfect score in the preliminary round, and the next to take the stage, Terrance… was the first.
“What bad luck, he’s coming out this early,” Mr. Sukizo said with a slight smile.
“If he puts on an overly perfect performance, the standard for a perfect score might be raised again.”
“Let’s keep watching,” Mr. Raoul Contesta said, equally curious.
Because of the preliminary round, both the audience who already knew Terrance and those who had only just learned of him placed great importance on this performance.
When Terrance walked onto the stage and tossed out Ninetales’ Poké Ball, some of the audience immediately burst into cheers. These were viewers who had watched Terrance’s previous five Pokémon Contest performances, people who had followed all the way as that Vulpix won five consecutive victories.
“That Vulpix has evolved.”
“It’s even more beautiful than when it was a Vulpix. I think Ice-type Ninetales looks far more noble than Fire-type Ninetales.”
“You can’t really say that. It’s mainly because this Ice-type Ninetales was trained so well, which gives it that extraordinary aura. If it were another Ninetales, it might not be the same.”
The appearance of Ninetales instantly drew widespread attention. Once again, for the audience unfamiliar with Alolan Ninetales, Vivian briefly introduced Ninetales before turning her gaze to the stage, because Terrance and Ninetales had already begun their performance.
What confirmed to her that the performance had begun… was not Ninetales’ movements, but the temperature she sensed in advance.
Yes, centered on the entire stage, a cold chill rapidly spread outward, and Vivian was the first to feel it.
“It’s actually… not that hard to endure.” As the cold washed over her body, Vivian’s eyes suddenly grew blurry. She even felt that the chill brushing across her skin was quite comfortable, like taking a sip of an iced drink on a scorching summer day. That perfectly balanced sensation caught her completely by surprise.
This meant that even changes in temperature, something that would almost never be included in the judging criteria, had been taken into account by Terrance.
At this moment, Ninetales… had already perfectly controlled the temperature of the venue. Not only would the upcoming performance cause no discomfort to the audience, but those who knew how to appreciate it would actually experience a wonderfully pleasant feeling!
“This kind of presence… it wouldn’t be that, would it?”
At the same time, in the contestant lounge, a Coordinator stared at the Blizzard surging wildly on the stage and exclaimed in shock.
“Which one do you mean?”
The next moment, Lisia, who regarded Terrance as a rival, walked over and asked in confusion.
“A shaping technique centered on Hail, Blizzard, and the Snow Warning Ability.” Seeing Lisia approach to ask, the Coordinator immediately explained. He was no stranger to this super genius and naturally didn’t ask for her identity.
“Before this Ninetales evolved, it competed in five Pokémon Contests in the Kanto region. Among them, only its very first performance left the deepest impression on me. That was an extremely high-difficulty combo move containing many different elements…” the Coordinator said admiringly.
What he was referring to was the first time Terrance and Vulpix showcased Ice Moon…
But soon, he shook his head sharply. Not just Ice Moon, although that too was a shaping technique, the control this Ninetales displayed now seemed to have risen to an even higher level!!
The raging Blizzard did not converge at a single point. Instead, it surged upward into the air and spread out in all directions!
And at this moment, Terrance stood calmly at the center of the stage, patiently waiting for Ninetales to once again complete the technique that had been left unfinished back then.
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