"But after I started using Ash as an example, everyone immediately went silent," Misty said, her eyes shining brightly.
"After all, Ash and I are practically the same age. His birthday is November 22nd, while mine is November 25th—I'm only three days younger than him."
"Ash is only six years old too, but he's already achieved things that amaze even adults. His fame and social influence are incredible, and his personal strength has already reached the Elite Tier."
"Once I brought up Ash as an example, nobody could find anything to argue against anymore."
"After that, whether I battled trainers publicly or taught battle basics to kindergarten kids only slightly younger than me, nobody looked down on me again."
"And… all of that was because of Ash…"
As she spoke from the heart—
Misty's eyes gradually reddened slightly.
Seeing Gary, Green, and Clarissa all staring at him with expressions that clearly said "We didn't know you'd done this much behind the scenes…"
Ash simply smiled and waved his hand modestly.
"I only casually gave a few suggestions," he said. "The reason Cerulean Gym managed to stabilize itself is because you and your sisters all worked hard together."
"Exactly~"
Clarissa nodded gently from the side.
"And besides… considering the relationship between you and Ash, it's only natural for him to help you."
"Huh?" Green blinked curiously. "Why did you suddenly start calling Misty 'Onee-san'?"
"Well, I didn't know at first," Clarissa explained with a smile, "but Misty just said she's the same age as Ash and only three days younger than him."
"And unfortunately for me, my birthday is December 25th—Christmas Day—exactly one month after hers."
"So if I don't call her 'Onee-san,' what else should I call her?"
"Hehe~"
Misty instantly looked delighted.
"Then that means both Misty and I should call you Onee-san too, Green," Clarissa teased mischievously.
"You little brat!"
Green immediately puffed up her cheeks.
"You look all elegant and well-behaved normally, but your mouth is way too sharp! Careful, or your Onee-san Green might spank you!"
"Hehehe~"
"Hahaha—"
The playful banter between Green and Clarissa instantly livened up the atmosphere.
And after everyone shared their birthdays, the distance between them unknowingly shrank even further.
The earlier unfamiliarity had completely disappeared.
—
"Oh right, Misty," Ash asked while everyone walked back toward the Gym entrance after the tour, "how's the preparation for the Cerulean Water-type Pokémon Beauty Contest going? Can you tell us more about it?"
After all—
Besides finally meeting Misty in person, another major reason Ash had come to Cerulean City was to let Lumina, his Shiny Feebas, participate in the contest.
Both Magikarp and Feebas were already close to evolution.
Earlier that morning during training at the river estuary near Pallet Town, both had reached LV.21.
Magikarp had already begun showing clear signs of evolution.
Ash estimated that it would evolve within the next few days.
As for Feebas—
Its evolution didn't depend on level, but Beauty.
Still—
Ash could feel it.
Lumina was already extremely close to evolving.
This Beauty Contest might become the perfect catalyst.
Even if it didn't evolve during the contest itself—
At the very least, Ash wanted Feebas to display clear signs of transformation.
Which was why—
He cared deeply about this event.
"The format of the Water-type Pokémon Beauty Contest isn't particularly innovative," Misty explained seriously.
"To be honest, it's mostly based on beauty contests already held in other cities and regions."
"First of all, only Water-type Pokémon are eligible to participate."
"The competition is divided into four rounds."
"Round One is the Elimination Round."
"All participating Pokémon will perform for one minute each, and the audience will vote afterward. Any Pokémon receiving over 80% approval advances."
"Round Two is the Advancement Round."
"All contestants will be randomly divided into groups. Each Pokémon still gets one minute to perform, and the audience votes using electronic voting devices."
"Only the highest-voted Pokémon in each group advances."
"Round Three is the Semifinals."
"In this round, there are no groups anymore. Pokémon may use moves during their one-minute performance."
"The audience will vote after all performances, and the top five Pokémon will advance."
"And finally…"
Misty's expression became even more serious.
"Round Four is the Finals."
"For the Finals, we adopted the performance format used in Pokémon Coordinators' Contest Spectaculars."
"Pokémon still only have one minute to perform…"
"But this time, trainers will also appear on stage and actively command their Pokémon during the performance."
"After all finalists finish, the audience votes one final time."
"The top three contestants with the highest total votes will receive Champion, Runner-up, and Third Place."
As she continued explaining—
Everyone gradually gained a much clearer understanding of the event.
"And to attract more trainers to participate," Misty added proudly, "the rewards are pretty generous too."
"The Champion will receive a trophy, a Water Stone, and a cash prize of 50,000 Poké Dollars."
"The Runner-up receives a three-month voucher for Water-type Pokémon food plus 30,000 Poké Dollars."
"And Third Place receives a one-month Pokémon food voucher plus 20,000 Poké Dollars."
Although information about the contest had already been publicly announced over the past week—
Gary and the others had been far too busy training to pay close attention.
Now—
Hearing the organizer herself explain everything in detail—
Everyone finally had a complete understanding of the upcoming competition.
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