Aoki and Cynthia walked to the middle of the field to shake hands.
"Congratulations," Aoki said with a smile.
Cynthia, however, didn't return the smile, merely responding softly, "We'll fight again after your team is fully formed."
Hearing her words, Aoki felt another headache coming on.
There was always the nagging feeling that he was being singled out by this battle-obsessed Champion.
Whether that was good or bad remained unclear.
Though Cynthia had won the match, she wasn't particularly pleased.
As one of the combatants, she had sensed it most clearly.
She could tell that Aoki's Pokémon were, overall, weaker than hers, yet she had barely managed to defeat him by relying on her pseudo-legendary Garchomp's overwhelming power.
If Aoki's Pokémon were raised to the same level as hers, Cynthia was certain she would have lost today.
Even if their strength wasn't raised by much—if Aoki simply filled the missing link in his team—she suspected she might still lose, even with the current difference in power.
Aoki, however, didn't place as much importance on victory or defeat. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent out Politoed to fight, instead of his Altaria, which could have at least matched Garchomp in a direct confrontation.
Strangely enough, the loser of the match had the better mindset.
That was rare.
As Aoki walked through the player tunnel, he crossed paths with Steven, who was heading out for his own match.
Steven had intended to offer some words of comfort, but seeing the smile on Aoki's face, he swallowed them back.
Aoki wasn't so easily discouraged.
"Good luck!" Aoki raised a fist.
Steven blinked in surprise before grinning and bumping his own fist against Aoki's. "Watch me."
With that, the two went their separate ways.
Steven versus Lorelei—Aoki was confident in Steven's chances. Steel and Rock-type Pokémon both resisted Ice-type moves, and Steel-types had an additional resistance to Ice.
True, many of Lorelei's Ice-types also carried Water as a secondary type, but Steven's Metagross was nearly unstoppable, wasn't it?
Entering the private lounge, Aoki assured the others he was fine.
He, Wallace, and Phoebe gathered by the window to watch Steven's match.
Without any hesitation, Steven and Lorelei began battling the moment the referee gave the signal.
Steven's team consisted of Armaldo, Cradily, Skarmory, Aggron, Metagross, and… Aerodactyl!
Lorelei's team, meanwhile, was Walrein, Jynx, Slowpoke, Piloswine, Lapras, and Cloyster.
It had to be said that Lorelei's Pokémon were, on average, at a higher level than Steven's—his Armaldo and Cradily were still only at the Elite tier.
But Steven's strongest Pokémon surpassed Lorelei's.
Cloyster's Shell Break made its offensive power terrifying, but Metagross wasn't just a Steel-type—it could track Cloyster's movements with its full psychic awareness.
If it caught the fragile Cloyster after a Shell Break, it would only take two moves at most to finish it off.
Most importantly, Steven had never truly revealed his Aerodactyl's full strength before. This battle was its real debut.
From this distance, Aoki couldn't scan Aerodactyl's exact data, but based on its speed and move power, he could make some rough estimates.
This Aerodactyl was undoubtedly at the peak of the Quasi-Champion level—the same as Altaria. Just one step further, and it would reach Champion-tier.
Steven had hidden this trump card well. Even Aoki and the others knew little about this Aerodactyl, and Steven rarely spoke of it.
It was almost as if Aerodactyl was a taboo subject for him.
Yet, this Aerodactyl was undoubtedly Steven's own Pokémon. The way it responded to his commands showed absolute trust, and Steven clearly understood its capabilities perfectly.
As for the battle itself?
It was chaotic.
Unlike Aoki, who had trained in the wild for years, neither Steven nor Lorelei had as much real combat experience.
Their full-scale battle quickly devolved into individual skirmishes, with each Pokémon fighting its own opponent, occasionally assisting teammates when possible.
In the end, victory would come down to raw strength.
Steven's Aggron was a defensive powerhouse, but Lorelei exploited its weakness by having Piloswine hammer it with Ground-type moves.
Still, Aggron successfully held the line against several of Lorelei's Pokémon.
As the battle raged on, the outcome became clearer.
With nothing left to stop it, Steven's Metagross, supported by Aerodactyl's overwhelming pressure, secured the win. By the time Lorelei's last Pokémon fell, Steven still had both Metagross and Aerodactyl standing.
Steven had won—he was through to the finals.
Lorelei didn't seem upset by her loss. If anything, she seemed to respect Steven's strength. When they shook hands, a faint smile even appeared on her usually stoic face.
A photographer managed to capture that rare smile, projecting it onto the big screen for a full ten seconds before it was taken down. Even so, the audience erupted into cheers.
Aoki and Lorelei had been stopped in the semifinals. Tomorrow, Steven and Cynthia would face off in the final battle—the last day of the Sinnoh Championship.
As the crowd filed out of the stadium, discussions about today's battles filled the air.
Aoki's Politoed, summoning torrential rains.
His Florges, the so-called "Fairy Queen" of his team.
Cynthia's Garchomp, Sinnoh's native pseudo-legendary, fighting with terrifying ferocity.
And Milotic, the most beautiful of all Pokémon.
Steven's shining Metagross, his stalwart Aggron, and the living fossil Aerodactyl.
Lorelei's Cloyster, whose Ice-type attacks bloomed like crystalline flowers under the sunlight.
Everyone was eager for tomorrow's final.
Once they returned, Wallace and Phoebe left Steven to rest, not wanting to disturb him before the big match. Aoki, however, stayed behind to help Steven treat his Pokémon's injuries.
"Aoki… do you have questions about Aerodactyl?" Steven asked hesitantly as Aoki tended to Aggron's wounds.
Aoki glanced up briefly before returning to his work. "No. Aerodactyl is your Pokémon. The bond between you two is strong—that's all that matters."
Steven blinked, then smiled. "Yeah. That's enough. Even if there are… complications with Aerodactyl, they don't seem too serious now."