After winning his second Ribbon, Terrance returned to the lobby, grabbed his backpack, and prepared to leave.
āTerrance-senpai, which PokĆ©mon Contest are you planning to enter next?ā Sora asked as she approached him.
āIt should be the Verdanturf Conference, right? Thatās the one happening right after the Lilycove Conference,ā Reiko guessed. āWhy? You want to avoid facing Terrance?ā
āNo!!ā Sora looked at Reiko with dissatisfaction.
Reiko laughed, āJust kidding, but it would be really tough to win if you encounter Terrance again. Iāve experienced it firsthand.ā
Watching the two bicker, Terrance recalled and said, āNo, Iām not planning to enter the Verdanturf Conference. I already have Verdanturf Ribbon, so thereās not much point in participating again.ā
āI havenāt decided on a specific place yet,ā Terrance added.
āAlright, Iām going to participate in the Verdanturf Conference again,ā Sora said. She didnāt even pass the primary judging in the Lilycove Conferenceā¦ Right now, Sora urgently needed another PokĆ©mon Contest to regain her confidence.
āIn that case, letās part ways here,ā Reiko said. āIf possible, I hope we meet again at the Grand Festivalā¦ though I donāt think I stand much of a chance this timeā¦ā
Terrance nodded, said his goodbyes, and then planned to stay at the PokƩmon Center for a day to plan for his next journey.
However, outside the contestantsā exit, two people stopped Terrance. They were, of course, Yuu Tachibana and Yui Lizzie.
āExcuse meā¦ā Terrance looked at the two girls in confusion.
āHello, Iām Yuu Tachibana.ā
āHello, Iām Yui Lizzie.ā
The two introduced themselves to Terrance and explained their intentions.
āSorryā¦ I havenāt made any plans yet,ā Terrance said.
āAhā¦ā Yuu Tachibana looked at Terrance in disappointment and was just about to ask something when a commotion erupted outside.
āWhatās going onā¦ā The three of them looked out to see a dozen people rushing over. Even before they arrived, their voices could be heard.
āMr. Terrance, may I ask where you will be participating in the next PokĆ©mon Contest?ā
āMr. Terrance, can I have your contact detailsā¦ā
āMr. Terrance, please accept me as your apprenticeā¦ā
āMr. Terranceā¦ā
Voices came from all around, and all three of them stared wide-eyed, quite taken aback by the scene. Even Terrance himself was completely stunned.
āUmā¦ā
As the dozen or so people arrived beside the three, surrounding Terrance, beads of sweat formed on his forehead. He quickly said, āIāll probably go to one of the PokĆ©mon Contests held after the Verdanturf Conference.ā
āMr. Terrance, can you give us a specific location, or at least your contact detailsā¦ā A girl clasped her hands together, wearing a pleading expression as she earnestly requested Terrance.
āMr. Terrance, do you have Bowei? I can follow you thereā¦ā [*Author here uses Bowei opposite of Weibo, a chinese social media platform.]
Terrance felt his scalp tingling as he was surrounded by a dozen people bombarding him with questions. Finally, he understood the feeling of irritation: āI donāt really use the internet much.ā
Faced with a barrage of eager questions, Terrance hesitated about whether to decide on a specific PokĆ©mon Contest location. If he wasnāt mistakenā¦this group of people should be his fansā¦
Terrance was taken aback. So quickly? He had thought it would take until the Grand Festival for him to gain some audience support.
But he didnāt expect that after participating in just two PokĆ©mon Contests in Hoenn, he would draw quite a bit of attention, with people starting to ask where he would compete next.
In the crowd, a woman with short red-hair and two young men blended in, observing Terrance. Suddenly, the red-haired woman grabbed Terrance and announced to everyone, āIām Mr. Terranceās manager! Please give us some time to consider, and we will soon announce Mr. Terranceās next destination.ā
With that, she pulled a bewildered Terrance into restroom, while the two young men with camera equipment blocked the crowd, their expressions calm but twitching slightly.
ā???ā Yuu Tachibana looked at Yui, both of them filled with confusionā¦
Manager?! š§šš®š®ššš£šÆā“š£š¦šµ.šøā“š
But he had only participated in two PokƩmon Contests! Although his performance was good, why is he already being treated like a big star?
****************************
Inside the restroom.
Terrance stared at the woman with black-framed glasses in front of him, stunned by the series of unexpected events.
āWhat do you mean by āmanagerā?ā Terrance asked.
When she grabbed him, he could have broken free or even subdued her, but her actions had actually helped him out. Moreover, he was curious about her intentions.
Soā¦ Terrance followed her into the restroom.
āThat was just something I blurted out,ā the woman replied casually: āIām a reporter.ā
Saying that, she pulled out a microphone from her waist and continued, āThose two outside blocking the crowd? Oneās a cameraman, and the otherās a Trainer.ā
āA reporter? A cameraman?ā Terrance was still puzzled. āAn interview?ā
The woman laughed. āOf course not. Weāre not paparazzi, and weāre not particularly interested in PokĆ©mon Contests.ā
āWeāve actually met before. Let me thinkā¦ werenāt you riding an Altaria to Slateport City, or maybe it wasā¦ Mt. Chimney?ā
Terrance stared at her, recalling the explosion incident at Mt. Chimney involving Team Magma.
He missed the Intermediate Breeder exam because he was rushing to Fallarbor Town, and he did have some impression of her.
āThe yacht?ā Terrence tentatively asked.
āThatās right, so you saw us!ā the woman said, surprised. āAs you can see, although weāre similar to a reporter team, we are a bit different from a traditional reporter team. My name is Maki, and Iām a member of an Adventure Team.ā
āThe two outside are Ishi and Arvin.ā
Adventure Team?
Terrance had never heard of such a thing.
āWhat does an Adventure Team want with me? Itās not just to help me out, right?ā Terrance asked.
āItās a long story,ā Maki sighed. āBut shouldnāt you deal with those people outside first? My partners might not be able to hold them off much longer.ā
āIf you trust me, please announce that your next PokĆ©mon Contest will be in Mauville City,ā Maki looked at Terrance with keen, sparkling eyes.
Mauville Cityās PokĆ©mon Contest was the one after the Verdanturf Conference, scheduled for just over a month later.
Terrance didnāt know what Maki was up to, but he did need to tell his āfansā outside a specific location.
His path as a Coordinator was just beginning, and he needed the audienceās support, which was crucial for building his popularity.
āExplain everything to me later,ā Terrance said, then he left and walked outside.
Watching Terranceā back, Maki was momentarily stunned. Despite being much older than him, she felt oddly passive in this situation.
āNever mind, age doesnāt matter. As long as heās a strong Trainerā¦ā
Outside, Ishi and Arvin were blocking the crowd, explaining and stallingā¦ until Terrance emerged, much to their relief.
āI plan to participate in the Mauville Cityās PokĆ©mon Contest nextā¦ thank you all for your support,ā Terrance told the dozen or so people.
āAnd thank you for enjoying my battles. I will definitely win the Mauville Conferenceās Ribbon.ā
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