Chapter 173: The Sinnoh Recharge Tournament (Part 2)

"On your marks… get set!"

BANG!

At the edge of a vast lake, the gunshot signaled the start of the race. All participants, alongside their Pokémon, plunged into the water and began swimming.

"Let's go, Infernape! You can do it!"

After swimming several dozen meters, Lucas cheered on his Infernape who had specially trained in swimming just for this competition.

"Raaah!"

Infernape responded with determination, pushing itself to swim faster.

After overcoming its fear of water and mastering swimming, its speed far surpassed that of most humanoid Pokémon, placing it and Lucas among the race's frontrunners.

"Once you're ready, just charge straight ahead."

At the back of the pack, Paul tightened the grip on the tail of his Electivire, which was wrapped around his waist, and spoke calmly.

"Viree~"

A sly grin spread across Electivire's face. Who was it, after all?

This was the same Pokémon that once chased down a cruise ship alongside Gallade in the open sea! Swimming? Who was it supposed to fear?

Activating its electromagnetic force, Electivire moved its arms fluidly. In the blink of an eye, it surged forward like a speedboat, pulling Paul along at an astonishing pace.

Within moments, they had overtaken nearly everyone, heading straight for the first checkpoint with unmatched speed.

"Holy—!"

"What the heck?!"

"That counts as swimming?!"

Both the competitors and the live-stream viewers were left dumbfounded.

That speed… wasn't this faster than most runners on land?

In no time, while the rest of the participants were still struggling in the water, Paul had already reached the shore. Without hesitation, he sprinted toward the bicycle transition area with Electivire following closely behind.

The tournament provided two types of bicycles:

Tandem Bicycles, which allowed both Trainer and Pokémon to ride together.

Single Bicycles, for Trainers or Pokémon riding alone.

"Keep the rhythm. Stay close."

Leaping onto a bike, Paul began pedaling along the designated course.

Due to Electivire's large size, Paul had no choice but to let it run behind him instead of sharing a tandem bike.

"Viree~"

Electivire already prepared, responded with a steady pace keeping up effortlessly.

In fact, ever since mastering Magnet Rise, Electivire had never needed to run long distances like this.

Now, with a total of 50 kilometers of cycling and running ahead, maintaining Paul's Super Veil Trainer speed was a real challenge.

But even if it couldn't use Magnet Rise, boosting its speed with electromagnetic force to conserve stamina was still an option.

Activating Charge and Motivational Boost, Electivire felt a surge of power. It even considered triggering Motor Drive for an extra burst—keeping up with Paul wasn't going to be a problem.

Due to Paul's overwhelming lead, a drone Rotom hovered in the sky, broadcasting live coverage exclusively on him.

"That's way too fast, Paul! This is totally unfair!"

It wasn't until Paul had cycled several kilometers that Lucas and Infernape along with some other contestants, finally made it to the shore.

"Raaah~"

Infernape panted slightly. Swimming underwater really wasn't ideal for a Fire-type Pokémon.

"Alright, let's go! We're catching up! I'm counting on you, Infernape!"

Glancing at the two types of bikes, Lucas decisively chose a tandem bicycle.

At this point, the gap between him and Paul was already massive. If he rode alone, there was no way he'd ever catch up.

Might as well take a gamble on the double power strategy!

"Infernape, we'll take turns going all out! You power up first!"

Hopping onto the bike, Lucas pedaled with all his might while issuing his battle plan.

"Raaah~"

Understanding the strategy, Infernape immediately began using Bulk Up to strengthen itself.

Once it reached peak condition, Infernape unleashed its full power on the pedals.

In an instant, their bike surged forward at max speed, rocketing ahead at an incredible pace.

Just like that, the Trainer-Pokémon duo quickly widened the gap between them and the other competitors, beginning their pursuit of Paul who was already nowhere in sight.

From a bird's-eye view, Lucas and Infernape were now chasing after Paul at an even faster speed.

But due to the massive time gap from the swimming stage, there was no telling if they could catch up.

"Faster! Faster! Faster! Infernape, I can see Paul ahead!"

Finally, as the cycling segment neared its end, Lucas spotted Paul and Electivire, who had just ditched their bike and begun the final 10-kilometer sprint.

"Raaah!"

Having spent most of the race in bursts of explosive effort, Infernape had been feeling exhausted. But upon hearing those words, its eyes lit up with renewed energy.

Accelerating once more, it sped toward the transition point.

"Go, go, go!"

Jumping off the bike, Lucas yelled as he took off after Paul.

While the intense cycling had drained most of Infernape's stamina, Lucas himself had more endurance left compared to Paul.

After all, while he wasn't the most athletic, Lucas was still a Super Veil Trainer!

"Raaah!"

Despite its exhaustion, Infernape pushed forward, following closely behind Lucas.

At this point, the race was still undecided!

Paul glanced back and noticed Lucas had significantly closed the distance. Without hesitation, he went all in grabbing onto Electivire's tail.

"Go faster!"

While Infernape's power had helped Lucas close the gap, its exhaustion now prevented it from accelerating further.

Electivire, on the other hand, still had the energy and control to increase its speed steadily rather than in bursts.

It activated Magnet Rise, fine-tuned its Motor Drive, and pulled Paul forward with increasing momentum.

Had it not been against the rules to outright carry Paul, Electivire would've blasted off at full speed by now.

And so, just when Lucas thought he had a real shot at victory, he could only watch helplessly as Paul and Electivire pulled further and further ahead.

"Keep pushing till the end!"

Despite the fading hope of winning, Lucas stayed resolute.

Finally, Paul crossed the finish line, securing a dominant victory.

Total race time: Less than 50 minutes!

"Whew…"

Crossing the line, Paul exhaled lightly.

Although he did not exert his full strength all the time, he was still feeling exhausted. But the race wasn't over yet.

The final challenge of the Recharge Tournament—Recharge!

The rules were simple: contestants and their Pokémon had to charge a special Energy Ball using any means available.

Paul immediately stepped onto a treadmill-like generator and began pedaling for power.

As for Electivire…

"Adjust stance. Activate Motivational Boost and Charge, then begin energy transfer."

Ordinarily, this would be the most advantageous round for any Electric-type Pokémon that could stand on two legs.

But the organizers never expected a powerhouse like Electivire to enter the competition.

"Viree~"

Electivire calmly built up its power, reaching peak condition before unleashing an eightfold-powered Thunder attack straight into the Energy Ball.

Immediately, brilliant sparks illuminated the sphere, filling it with pure electricity as if a flood of energy was pouring in.

By the time Lucas and Infernape arrived, Electivire had already finished charging the Energy Ball and was casually stretching his muscles and resting with Paul.

"…Freakin' monster."

Lucas could only mutter in disbelief before shifting focus to securing second place.

After completing his mission, Paul calmly walked off to the sidelines, resting as he waited for the tournament to conclude.

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