Chapter 353: Help Us Take Care of Rotom
There was meaning behind the secret treasures obtained in the preliminary round.
Because in the official match, these treasures could be equipped in multiples.
Although the boost provided by the same type of treasure would diminish with each additional one worn, as long as the Pokémon's body could handle it, wearing three or four A-rank treasures could rival the effect of a single S+ rank treasure.
However, if it was a treasure the trainer carried themselves, each Pokémon could only carry one.
So it was a choice between two paths.
In official competitions, a tiny boost might be the deciding factor in the match's outcome.
Once you reach the level of a master-class trainer, forget about the so-called "6v6 fair fights" from high school leagues.
Resources were also part of a trainer's competition!
After five days of buzz...
From an outside perspective, Hikaru's livestream had become the most popular among all contestants.
With his powerful Latias, casually looting official secret treasures, and even defeating Yamamoto Nika...
All these achievements piled up, and now 70–80% of viewers watching the competition preferred his stream.
Can't blame them.
This "open world gacha" kind of gameplay was genuinely adrenaline-pumping!
Comments like these were all over the stream:
> [A lot of other contestants are asking why the secret treasure count dropped so much this year…]
> [Hikaru's just insane—nothing left behind, not a single feather…]
> [Damn! No wonder I couldn't find any treasures—it was all looted by that guy! Crap!]
> [Forget it, I saw someone with a Herdier, Lycanroc, and Arcanine… and they only found one B-rank treasure…]
...
On a small island in the Orange Archipelago—
The sea breeze was salty and damp. Waves gently lapped the shore.
As the safe zone shrank with time, most of the treasures had long been cleaned out by Hikaru.
Only a few B-rank ones remained, and Hikaru wasn't even interested in searching anymore.
Now, the four of them just needed to find a good spot and wait for the prelims to end.
That's exactly what Hikaru was doing.
With that, his job also shifted from "Treasure Hunter" to "Rotom Babysitter."
"Hikaru, help us take care of Rotom..."
Over there, Hu Yan'er called out.
"..."
Hikaru nodded helplessly and took out some orange-flavored Pokéblocks.
The Rotom, which had been floating near the girls livestreaming, obediently buzzed over to Hikaru.
It floated nicely beside him, camera lens trained on him.
Meanwhile, on the beach—
The girls had already changed into swimsuits. Their fair and graceful figures sparkled under the sunlight...
Yes, that was exactly why they asked Hikaru to bring Rotom over.
It was the third day of the prelims.
The sun was warm, the sea breeze pleasant.
Someone casually suggested, "It's such a nice day. Why don't we go swimming?"
And then... this happened.
But it wasn't bad.
At first, Hikaru was too embarrassed to look directly.
But his heart was scratching like it was full of cats.
Several beautiful girls in swimsuits playing in the water right beside him—what man wouldn't want to look?
And after sneaking a glance, realizing the two senpai didn't say anything, and Sakura merely rolled her eyes at him—
Hikaru boldly let go.
He just lay there, feeding Pokémon and watching...
As expected—
Men are boys at heart till the very end.
"Hmm?"
Latias floated beside him, noticing that Hikaru's eyes were practically glued to the beach. As he popped another Pokéblock into her mouth, she couldn't help but ask curiously, "Hmm?" (Is it good to look at?)
"Good. Very good..."
Hikaru replied without hesitation, eyes full of appreciation.
But immediately, he snapped back to reality, a bit flustered. "Ahem... No, no. I mean, I'm appreciating, appreciating..."
This was a nationally broadcast livestream after all.
Even without watching the chat, Hikaru could guess it was being flooded with ridicule.
And indeed, the comments were relentless:
> [Damn, this guy again! Watching this scenery all by himself!]
> [Let me in, let me in—move aside!]
> [Aaaaahhh!]
> [Please, I'm begging you, just let me peek...]
> [Who is this streamer? He's practically drooling...]
The stream's gift rain hadn't stopped either...
"Hmm..."
Latias twirled in mid-air, then looked down at her own body, eyes thoughtful.
Clearly, Hikaru seemed to enjoy watching...
Hikaru tossed another Pokéblock to the approaching Blaziken and asked Latias, "Aren't you going to join them?"
Latias shook her head.
Coming from the Water Capital, she didn't find water anything special.
Hikaru didn't push it either.
Just then, the Rotom that had been floating lazily suddenly stiffened.
And its mechanical voice rang out:
"Rotom notification: Congratulations to the 132 contestants who have qualified for the official competition!"
Hikaru raised his brows. "Huh? The final list is out?"
Once the list was out, the prelims were pretty much over.
After all, there wasn't much point in fighting over ranks during prelims.
Your position didn't carry over to the main event, and there were no rewards either.
All four Rotoms were with Hikaru. Just as he was considering whether to alert the girls—
Rotom's voice rang out again:
"Coordinates 520.236: Secret treasure will be dropped in ten minutes. All contestants, please prepare."
Hikaru was stunned. This coordinate...
He quickly pulled up Rotom's map function—
And sure enough, the drop point was right here.
He instantly used aura to send a message to the girls still playing on the beach.
About a minute later, the senpai and Sakura returned, already changed.
Their hair was still damp, cheeks glistening in the sun with a faint blush.
After spending the past few days together, they'd grown quite close.
Hu Yan'er shook out her fiery red hair and said in surprise, "Another drop?"
Hikaru nodded. "Right on our island. And someone's already on their way."
It had only been a minute since the announcement.
Already, someone had entered his aura's detection range.
Sakura and Ye Mingshuang immediately summoned their Dragonites without delay.
The four of them split into two pairs, each mounting a Dragonite.
Hikaru gave Latias a pat. "I'll leave it to you, Latias~"
Then, the two Dragonites soared into the sky—
While the Latias at ground level quietly activated invisibility...
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