When the dust settled, Argenti's Pokémon were running on fumes. While Roselia and Milotic kept their heads held high with practiced poise, their violently heaving chests and strained, rattling gasps laid bare the toll the duel had taken.
Argenti's eyes burned with lingering fire laced with faint melancholy. Offering Sushang a crisp, flawless knightly salute, he stepped down from the dueling dais.
"Such a pity... I was so close. For a heartbeat, I truly felt I could perceive Idrila's gaze..."
Against Sushang, Argenti had held nothing back, digging deep into every tactical reserve he possessed. When her relentless sword intent pinned him down hardest, a sliver of self-doubt had wormed into his heart. Yet his unshakeable faith as a Knight of Beauty had shattered that hesitation, sparking a sudden clarity. Looking back across the fierce clash, he had glimpsed the elusive silhouette of Idrila.
He had poured everything into elevating the match into a masterpiece of Beauty, yearning to draw Her radiant attention.
Yet he had fallen short by the narrowest margin.
"Miss March, I sincerely hope you can grant me a wondrous revelation."
Argenti was romantic, not foolish. He could gauge a trainer's capabilities from their previous bouts. In pure, technical contest fundamentals, March 7th did not yet measure up to Sushang's martial discipline.
Even so, he genuinely hoped she would transcend her limits in their clash, piling enough pressure onto his shoulders to force open that final veil concealing Idrila.
To him, Idrila was Beauty incarnate, reflecting differently in the hearts, minds, times, and places of all living beings. Throughout his lonely pilgrimage across the stars, an intuitive bond whispered that the unattainable silhouette ahead was indeed Idrila. He refused to believe She had fallen, for whenever the path turned brutally bleak, that familiar warmth reemerged, urging him onward.
This time, She had felt closer than ever.
"Rosa!"
"Mina..."
Sensing their trainer's tangled fervor, Milotic and Roselia nudged gently against his side.
"I am well," Argenti smiled warmly, resting a hand on each of them. "The final curtain rests upon your shoulders. Rest now, and renew your strength. May we all stand in Idrila's radiant presence when this day concludes."
When Sushang stepped into the competitors' lounge, Guinaifen rushed over to console her. Yet Sushang wore no sorrow; she simply leaned back and let out a massive sigh of relief.
"I'm totally fine, Guinaifen! Honestly, I'm thrilled I even made it this far."
Her original goal had been straightforward: rely on her mother's grueling drills to pass the preliminaries, without embarrassing the Cloud Knights or the Luofu during the Grand Celebration. Reaching the semifinals from the top eight was already beyond her wild expectations, and she accepted her defeat against Argenti without a shred of resentment.
Those who walk the martial path make no excuses for a loss. If your steel falls short, it falls short, plain and simple.
"Whew, that's a relief," Guinaifen chuckled, seeing that Sushang's bright grin was genuine.
"Still, Argenti is an absolute monster," Sushang pouted slightly, puffing her cheeks. "Seriously, how on earth did you manage to push Silver Wolf to the brink back then?"
Though she took the loss in stride, a tiny pang of competitive stubbornness lingered. Changing the subject was the easiest way to shake it off.
"Oh, come on, my head was completely empty back then!" Guinaifen waved her hands. "All I cared about was knocking her flat and not letting down my Pokémon or Boss Julian, who put all that trust in me. Before I knew what was happening, the match was already over!"
"Ugh, tell me about it. It's just such a shame I couldn't break through that final wall during our clash..."
The two bantered back and forth.
Beep, beep, beep.
Sushang's jade abacus chimed sharply with an incoming transmission. It was her mother.
"Hello? Mother, did you need something?"
"You handled yourself well out there today."
Su Yi's rare praise made Sushang beam with pride.
Her mother's next words wiped the smile clean off her face.
"However, your swordplay lacks refinement. If you cannot master it yourself, how do you expect to guide your Pokémon? Your old lady doesn't have the luxury to babysit your fundamentals forever. Given the structural flaws that cost you the match, I am overhauling your live-combat regimen. Prepare yourself."
"Wait, what?!"
Before Sushang could plead her case, Su Yi terminated the connection, leaving her staring blankly at the dark screen.
"No way!" Sushang groaned in agony. She had dreamed of kicking back and indulging in good food once the tournament wrapped, only to find her mother waiting with a brand-new training gauntlet.
Out on the stage, the grand championship was saved for the grand finale, while the lower placement matches took place to determine third through eighth place. This scheduling gave the two finalists plenty of time to catch their breath.
After several rounds of clashes, the rankings locked into place.
As expected, Angel Fate closed out the tournament in eighth place.
Pasha secured seventh.
Rappa claimed sixth.
Asta narrowly edged out Rappa, whose high-octane ninja rhythm had not fully settled into the contest format, taking fifth place.
In the battle for the podium, Sushang found her second wind and outmaneuvered Guinaifen to take third, leaving Guinaifen with a solid fourth-place finish.
After witnessing the breathless spectacles between Guinaifen and March 7th, and the high-stakes clash between Argenti and Sushang, the remaining placement bouts—apart from the lively duel between Sushang and Guinaifen—felt somewhat standard. Compared to those standout rounds, the other matchups lacked that gripping, razor-sharp flair.
The disparity set social media ablaze with endless debates over what truly separated an average contest from greatness. The discussion gained so much traction that it shoved the Grand Celebration's official announcements down to third place on the trending boards.
Taking second place was the great debate over the soul of the Contest format.
Holding the top trending spot, however, was the looming clash for the championship crown.
One camp rallied behind March 7th, convinced she would pull off another miracle breakthrough on stage to dethrone the knight. A larger faction favored Argenti, arguing that sudden epiphanies rarely struck twice under tournament pressure. Meanwhile, neutral spectators simply stocked up on snacks, eager for an unforgettable show.
In the quiet of her prep room, March 7th watched recordings of Sushang's duel against Argenti, alternating with footage of her own clash with Guinaifen.
She replayed the pivotal exchanges over and over. It wasn't that she saw nothing—rather, she could feel a hidden thread weaving through the strikes, but the concept remained maddeningly out of reach. A lingering, hazy intuition hovered at the edge of her thoughts, slipping through her fingers the moment she tried to grasp it.
With the countdown ticking to zero, she had no choice but to head for the tunnel, carrying that vague, unpolished realization with her onto the main stage.
"Next up, let us welcome our grand finalists: the Knight of Beauty, Argenti, and the Frost Princess, March 7th!"
Standing on the elevated podium, Owlbert's voice boomed over the speakers, reading out the dramatic monikers coined by fans online.
Argenti took the title with his usual courtly elegance, placing a hand over his breastplate. March 7th, on the other hand, turned bright red, heat rushing straight to the tips of her ears.
She loved thinking of herself as a graceful heroine, but having a grand, fairytale title broadcast to an audience of billions was enough to make her want to sink through the stage floor.
"Let's go, Princess March! Princess March is taking the crown!"
In the front rows, Stelle vaulted onto her seat, waving a banner and leading a booming chant with the local fan club.
Welt and Dan Heng, sitting directly beside her, instantly turned their heads in unison, staring resolutely at the ceiling tiles as though they had never met the girl in their lives.
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