Pokémon Court

Chapter 322: Gym and Pokémon Contest

“The future you described does sound promising. If Fallarbor Town does attract a large number of Trainers, it would definitely promote the development of Pokémon Contests.”

At this time, Raoul Contesta had no idea that if this world didn’t have Terrance, two years later Fallarbor Town would indeed become just as Terrance described—a large agricultural town. Thanks to the establishment of a Pokémon Center, Fallarbor Town rapidly developed, and many people even moved there.

Around that time, Pokémon Contests were not far behind and also made their way into Fallarbor Town, further accelerating its development.

“But this is just a hypothesis. We can’t treat it as a certainty yet,” Raoul Contesta shook his head. Even though he thought Terrance sounds reasonable and that there was a good chance he might be right, such decisions weren’t his alone to make.

“If you can give me a detailed plan, I might be able to help you out, but whether it succeeds is not something I can decide,” Raoul Contesta said, still holding Terrance in high regard and deciding to give him a chance.

Building a Pokémon Contest Hall in Fallarbor Town?

If he remembered correctly, Terrance was from Fallarbor Town… Becoming a Top Coordinator and still caring about his hometown’s development? Just for that, Raoul Contesta couldn’t help but respect Terrance a bit more.

Terrance thought to himself, “As expected.” Just with this alone, convincing others to establish a Pokémon Contest Hall in Fallarbor Town wasn’t persuasive enough.

However, Terrance had other cards to play. This wasn’t his final goal.

“What if Fallarbor Town had a Gym? An official League-recognized Gym. Wouldn’t that create the foundation for Fallarbor Town’s development?”

“Where there’s a Gym, there will definitely be a Pokémon Center. With these conditions, Fallarbor Town’s development prospects seem pretty certain.”

After Terrance finished speaking, Raoul Contesta asked, “A Gym? I don’t recall Fallarbor Town having one. Wait… Are you the one applying for the Gym?”

Raoul Contesta looked at Terrance in disbelief, unable to imagine those words coming from a youngster. Applying for a Gym, even though the process of establishing a Gym was easier during times of peace, if the applicant was a youngster, it would be far more difficult.

But seeing the confidence on Terrance’s face, Raoul Contesta realized that this youngster wouldn’t speak without certainty, and so he fell into silence.

“The conditions for applying for a Gym…” he mused. A Gym wasn’t something just anyone could apply for, even if Terrance was a Top Coordinator.

“Besides being from Fallarbor Town, you should also know where I studied,” Terrance said.

Crown Academy!

Raoul Contesta suddenly recalled Terrance’s information and realized, “Ah, so that’s it. Graduates of Crown Academy have the qualifications to apply for a Gym.”

This is the academy’s century-old heritage, the connection mutually built with the League. Even the Pokémon Contests had many areas of cooperation with Crown Academy.

Raoul Contesta has some understanding of these.

“If that’s the case, as a graduate, you do indeed have the qualifications to apply for a Gym. But applying for a Gym isn’t as simple as it sounds…” Raoul Contesta trailed off, realizing that the youngster in front of him was the Super Rookie who, in just one year since his debut, had defeated a Top Coordinator and won the highest honor. He shook his head.

“Very well. If you manage to become a Gym Leader, then building a Pokémon Contest Hall in Fallarbor Town would be no problem at all,” Raoul Contesta said with a hearty laugh. Given how far the conversation had gone, faced with such a promising future, he should also muster up some courage to take the plunge.

“But you are putting in so much effort. Surely, your goal isn’t just to create a development opportunity for Fallarbor Town, is it?”

As his conversation with Terrance went on, Raoul Contesta began to increasingly sense that Terrance’s goal wasn’t so straightforward. Terrance is putting in so much effort for just a Pokémon Contest Hall. What personal benefit would this bring him?

“I really can’t hide anything from you, can I?” Terrance responded with a smile. “If a new Pokémon Contest Hall is established, I imagine it will need management staff and other personnel, won’t it?”

“I grew up in an orphanage in Fallarbor Town. If possible…” Terrance spoke vaguely, but how could Raoul Contesta not understand the underlying meaning?

“You little fox,” Raoul Contesta cursed inwardly, but he couldn’t feel any disgust. An orphanage, huh…

Terrance’s background was indeed like that.

Looking at him again, Raoul Contesta now understood a bit more about Terrance’s intentions.

For some reason, seeing Terrance—who should have been chasing his dreams at this age—shouldering so many responsibilities made Raoul Contesta feel a bit heavy-hearted.

“If it’s just that, it shouldn’t be a problem. Using local staff would be convenient too,” Raoul Contesta replied.

The jobs provided by a Pokémon Contest Hall would be well-paid, especially for an orphanage like Old Green House that had no source of income. How many Pokémon Contest Halls were there across Hoenn? As the second-largest tournament after League tournaments, the pay and benefits would be substantial.

With the support of a Pokémon Contest Hall in Fallarbor Town, at least in the short term, Old Green House wouldn’t face any major difficulties.

As for the children’s future development, that would depend on the success of Terrance’s Gym. How well the Gym developed would determine the ultimate achievements of both Terrance and the children of Old Green House.

Additionally, if one obtains the identity of a Gym Leader, they wouldn’t have to participate in League Conferences and can directly qualify for the Champion League. Furthermore, Gym Leaders enjoy special privileges in many places, making it a prestigious status within the Trainer community.

Suddenly, Terrance said, “What do you think of a Gym that tests a Trainer’s coordination skills and mastery of moves as its core focus? Currently, in all of Hoenn, only Sootopolis Gym does that, and perhaps in the entire world, it’s the only one. With the right promotion, it could serve as great publicity for Pokémon Contests.”

“There might even be Trainers who, due to the Gym battles, develop an interest in Pokémon Contests or participate in one or two Contests as part of their training to pass the Gym’s challenge. And if Fallarbor Town just happens to have a Pokémon Contest Hall, wouldn’t that complement the whole idea perfectly?” Terrance smiled.

After hearing Terrance’s thoughts, Raoul Contesta was stunned. This was a well-thought-out plan to establish a Pokémon Contest Hall in Fallarbor Town.

From the perspective of developing Pokémon Contests, Raoul Contesta had to admit the proposal was entirely feasible.

There were Gyms that tested Pokémon-raising skills, Gyms that evaluated a Trainer’s command abilities, and even Gyms that measured how well a Trainer could handle defeat. But focusing on coordination? Other than Juan’s Sootopolis Gym, founded by a Coordinator, there really wasn’t any.

Sootopolis City is also famous in Hoenn as the “City of Beauty.” Thanks to Sootopolis Gym, the locals revered the elegance of water, believing that the Water-type Pokémon are the most beautiful of all types.

With Wallace also hailing from there, Sootopolis City had become a sacred place for many aspiring Coordinators.

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