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[Start of the chapter]
"Hello to all our friends here at the venue—and to everyone watching on TV!"
"The long-awaited 29th Wintergreen City Pokémon League Conference is now officially underway!"
In the massive central plaza of Wintergreen City, four gigantic battle arenas—each spanning over 5,000 square meters—had already been put into use.
Surrounding them was a full circle of open-air stands capable of holding two hundred thousand people. Long ago, those seats had been packed tight with a dense sea of spectators.
At a glance, it was a boundless crowd—noisy, blazing with excitement.
And those two hundred thousand on-site viewers were only a small fraction of everyone paying attention to this Pokémon Conference.
For the people who hadn't managed to grab a seat in the open stands, the only option was to watch the live broadcast from home.
At the very least, there were several million of them.
It practically covered the entire population of Wintergreen City!
Without exaggeration, the Pokémon Conference held every year was the single grandest festival and event in Wintergreen City.
Which was only natural.
After all, once someone stepped onto the path of becoming a Trainer, their status and social standing immediately diverged enormously from that of ordinary civilians—like a leap across classes.
Now the general public had a chance to witness, with their own eyes, battles between Trainers who were usually untouchable and high above them.
The feeling was like watching a group of millionaires singing, dancing, and putting on a dazzling show right in front of everyone.
It was impossible not to feel thrilled—and full of anticipation.
And more than that.
Once the Conference began, plenty of betting outfits would open lines: this year's champion, the winner and loser of every match, and even how many Pokémon the winner would take from the opponent.
All kinds of wagers—so many categories, so many variations.
It was exactly the sort of thing ordinary people loved to join in on.
If your luck was good—
and you picked right, making a huge amount of money—
then you wouldn't have to worry about your entire life anymore.
On the battle arena stage, the instant the suited host finished speaking, thunderous applause and roaring cheers exploded across the venue.
"First! Allow me to introduce the honored guests attending this Pokémon Conference!"
The noise below gradually softened.
The host began introducing the guests seated in that VIP section protruding from the stands, offering an excellent view of the arenas.
At the same time, the giant screen switched away from the host and cut to the VIP seating area.
"First guest! The City Lord who laid the foundation for Wintergreen City's prosperity and stability—City Lord Sugawara Izo-sama!"
The camera cut to Izo.
He was a stern-faced middle-aged man.
Right now, he wore a smile and raised a hand to wave at the camera.
"Next! From the Pokémon Academy—our highly respected Dean Hori Motoichi-sama!"
The camera switched again, giving Motoichi a close-up.
He nodded slightly toward the lens, treating it as a greeting to everyone.
After the first two, the host continued introducing the other VIP guests one by one.
The City Defense Forces' Captain Sazama Kazu-san.
And the heads of three major families in the city: Amano Akio, Moo Isoshi, and Kuga Naosuke.
…
Backstage at the venue, all contestants participating in this year's competition were waiting.
A crowd of people, each wearing a number tag, stayed inside the lounge, watching the situation on the screens.
As they watched one important figure after another appear in the VIP box—
and listened to the storm-like cheers and shouts rolling in from outside—
the hearts of these young people instantly began to surge with excitement, blood burning hot.
This was a perfect chance to make a name for yourself.
As long as you could achieve a strong result in this Pokémon Conference, your future prospects definitely wouldn't be bad.
Even if you didn't do well later in a Pokémon university—
you could still come back and land a good position in the city!
With that thought in mind, everyone started itching to try, eager and ready.
In a corner of the lounge, Isobe Himeko's gaze rested on the giant screen on the wall. Her expression was calm, without the slightest ripple.
Her attention wasn't on the VIP guests like everyone else's.
Instead, it fell on the row of seats behind the VIP guests.
There—
sat an entire row of neatly dressed people in suits who looked utterly ordinary.
The only eye-catching thing was that each of them wore a different silver badge on their chest.
Those badges were the school crests of Pokémon universities from the major central base cities across the Great Axia Alliance.
And those people—
were evaluators sent by each university to assess, select, and scout outstanding, high-potential new Trainers.
"All of the universities came," Himeko murmured.
Her eyes swept across the badges on their chests, confirming that every Pokémon university in the Great Axia Alliance had sent evaluators.
"But something's off. Why is one person missing?"
She swept her gaze across them again, frowning slightly.
Logically—
there should have been one more seat reserved for people from that department.
So why hadn't anyone come from their side this time?
(End of Chapter)
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