https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-339-The-Rivalry-Between-Freezid-and-Spectral/12537495/
Chapter 340: The Horse Race!
Chapter 340: The Horse Race!
On March 25, 199, of the Pokemon League Calendar, the horse racing tournament officially commenced.
Naoki arrived early at the venue with a few of his Pokemon and Adeke in tow.
Even though it was still early, the grass field was already bustling with people and Pokemon when they got there.
There were passing trainers like Ash, students in their Pawdea Academy uniforms, and town folks who had come to watch the races.
The field was festively decorated, vibrant with colors and excitement.
At the entrance hung a colorful ribbon that read, "Zhiqin Town Spring Horse Racing Festival," and not far away were stalls for purchasing race tickets and various small prizes and props that could be redeemed with those tickets.
Seeing this, Adeke exclaimed in awe, "Wow! This place is really lively!"
Naoki nodded with a smile. "Yeah! The horse racing event in Zhiqin Town is quite famous. It attracts many trainers every year around this time."
This kind of activity was similar to the bug-catching contests held in smaller towns.
"It's a shame I don't have any horse Pokemon with me; otherwise, I would have signed up to give it a try!" Adeke lamented.
Naoki recalled Adeke's Pokemon.
Scurvy, Bouffalant, Red-faced Dragon, Doublade, Knight Slowbro, and Volcarona.
It was a pity there wasn't a Bouffalant racing contest; otherwise, Adeke could have participated riding on his Bouffalant.
"Ponyta," the Ponyta by Naoki's side whinnied softly, looking around at the people with a timid expression.
Naoki patted its head gently, reassuring it. "Don't be scared. No one here will dislike you."
As he finished speaking, a few young trainers were drawn towards them, their attention captured by Golurk and Trevenant, two Pokemon they had never seen before.
"Wow! Pokemon I've never seen before!"
One of the trainers took out his Pokedex to scan them, only to find that there was no information about these Pokemon in the database.
Another trainer then scanned the floating Barbaracle tied to a red cape, and the Pokedex provided an introduction:
"Barbaracle, the Mud-Slap Pokemon. Though usually slow and sluggish, when forced into battle, it can swiftly overwhelm enemies with lightning-fast moves. Its fluffy fur acts as a storage battery, capable of holding an amount of electricity comparable to that of an electric car."
"Barbaracle?!" the trainer exclaimed in surprise.
His eyes widened as he stared at the Pokemon before him, which looked vastly different from the image he had in his mind.
The pink fur, the silver metal hammer, and the vibrant red cape all exuded a sense of majesty and power...
Was this really the Barbaracle he knew?! And more importantly, how was it floating... How was that even possible?!
Sensing the trainer's shocked and bewildered gaze, Barbaracle waved at them in a friendly greeting.
"Barba~"
Then, it clenched its fists and soared into the air, resembling a superhero taking flight.
"So cool!!!!"
The two trainers, unaccustomed to such a display, couldn't help but exclaim in excitement.
"Sir, are you the trainer of these Pokemon?" The boy on the left asked, his eyes shining with admiration.
Naoki nodded slightly. "Yes, this one here is Golurk, and this grass-type Pokemon is Trevenant."
"Golurk?"
"Trevenant?"
The boys murmured the names of the two Pokemon, their curiosity piqued.
They turned their attention to the massive, muscular Pokemon with a crimson body—Golurk.
Golurk glared at them with an intimidating gaze.
The aura of a fierce beast spread out, startling the boys.
"What a scary Pokemon!"
Naoki was a bit puzzled. He turned to look at Golurk and extended his hand towards it.
Golurk immediately responded like a well-behaved dog, nuzzling its head against Naoki's hand affectionately.
"Agahhh~"
Naoki chuckled. "Not scary at all!"
The boys swallowed nervously, thinking back to the menacing look Golurk had given them earlier...
Adeke struggled to hold back his laughter, but eventually, he couldn't contain it anymore and burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha!"
Golurk's antics were truly amusing!
The boys dared not look at Golurk anymore, so they shifted their gaze to Trevenant instead.
Trevenant, sensing their attention, quickly hid behind Naoki.
Naoki asked, "So, do you find this Pokemon scary?"
The boys shook their heads vigorously. "Not at all!"
"You're not afraid of it?" Naoki inquired further.
The boys hesitated, sensing that the man in front of them seemed to be leading up to something with his questions.
One of the boys asked, perplexed, "Why should we be afraid?"
Naoki smiled mischievously. "No reason. Trevenant, did you hear that?"
Naoki glanced at the people at the registration area. He had arrived quite early, and there was still some time before the tournament began, so he figured he could spare a moment to have some fun with these young trainers.
When Naoki asked which of his Pokemon they wanted to battle, they both chose Golurk without hesitation.
Their reason was simple—Golurk looked incredibly powerful, and battling it would surely be thrilling!
And so, Naoki commanded Golurk to play with the two boys.
It seemed like they had been on their Pokemon journey for a while, as their Litten and Litleo had already evolved to their second stages.
Even so, they were no match for Golurk.
Naoki was in no rush to end the battle and happily played along, turning the instant battle into a turn-based one.
Only when their Pokemon were completely exhausted did Naoki call it quits. He then bade them farewell and made his way to the registration area to sign up.
Adeke stayed behind, patting his chest confidently. "Don't worry, I'll take care of Barba and the others!" he assured Naoki.
Naoki smiled and nodded, then turned and walked towards the registration area.
Along the way, he ran into Evan, who was looking for him.
As soon as he spotted Naoki, Evan excitedly asked, "Have you signed up yet?"
"I'm just about to," Naoki replied.
Evan slapped him on the shoulder. "Alright, brother! I'm counting on you!"
"How much did you bet?" Naoki asked, a hint of exasperation in his voice.
"Not much, just 100,000 Pokedollars!" Evan replied with a mischievous grin.
Naoki was speechless. "Aren't you afraid of losing it all?"
Evan's expression turned serious. "That's because I believe in you!" he declared.
Then, he added pitifully, "You won't let me down, right?"
Naoki was rendered speechless once more.
He pushed Evan's face away gently. "Stop it!"
Evan took a small step back, still grinning. "Alright then, I'll be waiting for you in the audience. Don't forget to do your best!" With that, he bounced away cheerfully.
Naoki sighed in resignation.
That guy...
He shook his head and continued on his way to the registration area.
"Name," requested the white-bearded old man in charge of registration, looking up briefly.
"Naoki," he replied.
"And the Pokemon you'll be racing with?"
"Spectrier."
Hearing this name, the old man paused in his recording, his eyes widening in surprise. "Spectrier? What kind of Pokemon is that?"
Naoki was stumped for a moment, trying to think of how to explain. "It's a Ghost-type Pokemon, originating from the Galar region," he finally answered.
"Oh, a Pokemon from another region!" the old man exclaimed, understanding. "May I take a look at it?"
"Of course," Naoki nodded and reached for Spectrier's Poke Ball, releasing it from its confines.
A flash of white light later, a majestic black horse with blue mane and tail, its limbs shrouded in a misty aura, stood before them.
The old man's eyes widened further, and he rushed forward, his gaze filled with awe as he beheld Spectrier. "What a robust body, what a graceful stance, and that pitch-black coat!" he exclaimed. "In all my years of raising horses, I've never seen such a perfect Pokemon!"
Naoki thought to himself that this was no ordinary Pokemon—it had once ruled over the Crown Tundra before being tamed by Regidrago. Spectrier was truly in a league of its own.
"Its name is Spectrier?" the old man asked, his eyes shining with curiosity.
"Yes," Naoki confirmed.
The old man nodded, his eyes still glued to the magnificent creature before him. "I'll remember that name. We're about an hour away from the start of the tournament, so you may proceed. I wish you the best of luck and hope to see a splendid performance from you and your Spectrier!"
"The waiting area for participants is right behind us. Go ahead and collect your racing number and uniform, then wait there until it's time," he added, pointing the way.
"Thank you very much," Naoki said politely, then led Spectrier towards the waiting area.
After climbing a set of stairs, they reached a spacious grass field where several other participants had already gathered with their Pokemon.
Naoki went to collect his racing number and uniform, which both bore the number 06, indicating that he and Spectrier would be racing on runway number six.
Each competitor had a unique Pokemon partner. Among them were a fiery Rapidash, a striking Zebstrika with black and white stripes, a robust Mudsdale, and an unusual Donphan...
What surprised Naoki even more was the presence of a young Ponyta among the competitors.
The Ponyta's trainer appeared to be quite young, and the Ponyta itself seemed out of place among the larger and more formidable horse Pokemon.
However, compared to the Donphan, the Ponyta was a more conventional choice for a horse Pokemon.
Nevertheless, one couldn't deny that horse Pokemon were incredibly rare in the Pokemon world.
It was impressive enough that these trainers had managed to obtain any horse Pokemon, let alone a Mudsdale...
Time ticked by.
Gradually, the audience filled the seats, and their enthusiastic cheers mingled with the sound of exploding fireworks.
Naoki couldn't help but feel surprised by the turnout.
The popularity of the horse-racing tournament seemed to have increased significantly since last year, when the audience seats hadn't even been filled to capacity.
Times were changing, and Zhiqin Town was evidently thriving.
Many of the spectators were likely drawn to the town by the legends of the Crown Tundra and the majestic Spectrier.
Just like how the ghost stories of Beiju Village had become a tourist attraction.
Spectrier, usually calm and unperturbed, seemed excited by the bustling atmosphere.
So many humans... So many Pokemon...
Soon, it would be crowned the King of Horses, witnessed by this enthusiastic crowd.
"Are you ready?" Naoki asked as he donned his protective gear and turned towards Spectrier.
Spectrier neighed in response.
"Then, let's go!"
Naoki mounted Spectrier and rode into the arena alongside the other competitors.
"Welcome, everyone, to the Zhiqin Town Horse Racing Tournament! I'm your commentator, Renping!"
"And now, I'll be providing commentary for this exciting competition!"
"As you can see, our contestants are taking their positions. First to enter the arena is our number one contestant!"
"Our number one contestant is partnered with a Rapidash. Wow, just look at that majestic stance! Those blazing flames match the enthusiasm of our audience!"
As the first contestant took their position, the second contestant entered the arena.
"And here comes our number two contestant, and they've brought something unusual—a slow and steady Donphan! Although the name Donphan does contain the character for 'horse,' let's see what kind of performance this contestant and their partner will deliver!"
The audience chuckled, clearly not expecting much from the slow-moving Donphan.
The third, fourth, and fifth contestants then made their entrances.
Soon, it was Naoki's turn to enter with Spectrier.
"And now, entering the arena is our number six contestant... Wait, what Pokemon is that?"
The commentator paused, momentarily stumped by the unfamiliar Pokemon.
Hearing this, the audience turned their attention to the arena.
They saw a majestic black horse with blue mane and tail, its limbs shrouded in a misty purple aura, slowly walking out from the entrance.
Its eyes were tightly shut, yet it moved with precision as if it could sense its surroundings.
The audience was filled with surprise and curiosity.
"What's going on? What kind of Pokemon is that?"
"This is incredible! Is that horse blind?"
"How can it find its way with its eyes closed?"
"Wow, that horse is so cool! I love its legs! So unique!"
The commentator flipped through the contestant information and finally found the entry for the sixth contestant.
"What a surprise! Our number six contestant has brought a never-before-seen horse Pokemon!"
"What? Never-before-seen?!" The audience leaned forward, their curiosity piqued.
Commentator: "Yes! According to the information provided by the number six contestant... Spectrier, that's the name of the Pokemon, Spectrier!"
(End of Chapter)
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