Chapter 45: The League's Reward, Wallace's Challenge!

Wallace is the direct disciple of Sootopolis Gym Leader Juan and was once the Gym Leader of the Sootopolis Gym himself. Later, after Steven stepped down as the Hoenn Champion to travel around mining in various places, Wallace assumed the position of Hoenn Champion, while Juan returned to the Sootopolis Gym!

Never assume that Wallace lacks strength just because Steven stepped down and handed the Champion's position over to him!

On the contrary, he is likely the top-tier powerhouse in the Hoenn Region second only to Steven!

At the very least, the Elite Four are nowhere near Wallace's match; they are simply in completely different leagues!

Not to mention that alongside being a Champion, Wallace is also a top-tier Coordinator and the most formidable trainer in Pokémon Contests!

The fact that a single person can reach the absolute pinnacle in both fields speaks volumes about Wallace's exceptional capability!

In truth, among all regions, the Hoenn Region's strength should be considered the greatest, because Hoenn alone boasts two Champion-tier combat forces!

In other regions, even looking toward the future when their power is at its peak, there is actually only one Champion-tier or Master-tier powerhouse under the age of thirty!

Had it not been for the later Masters Tournament, where each region could only send a single representative, Wallace's strength would undoubtedly far surpass that guy Alain!

Kanto's Lance, Sinnoh's Cynthia, Unova's current Champion Alder who is getting older while Iris hasn't quite taken off yet, Kalos's Diantha, and Galar's Leon!

Therefore, only the Hoenn Region simultaneously possesses two top-tier trainers!

The Kanto Region used to be extremely strong, but as Kanto was split into Kanto and Johto, with the two regions separating, their individual strength naturally falls far short of the Hoenn Region!

(Ash represents Alola, so he doesn't count toward the Kanto Region.)

Because the Kanto region only has one Lance who qualifies as a top-tier powerhouse, and rumor has it that this guy Lance only went to serve as the Champion in the Johto Region because he couldn't beat Lorelei!

Tsk tsk tsk, how weak you are, Lance!

No wonder you went from being the strongest in Generation I to losing to Leon in the first Masters Tournament, ranking second, and then having your placement continue to plummet to fourth. By Ash's generation, you even became a first-round elimination fodder, with your strongest Pokémon turning out to be a shiny Gyarados!

Meanwhile, far away in the Kanto Region executing a mission, Lance couldn't help but let out a sneeze!

...

Before long, Arthur met this legendary Coordinator and current Hoenn League Champion, Wallace, at the Pokémon Center!

Wallace appeared to be around twenty-five years old, slightly younger than Steven by a year or two. He gave off an air of considerable elegance without feeling effeminate at all.

Upon seeing Arthur, Wallace took the initiative to walk toward him!

"You must be Arthur, the trainer with extraordinary strength whom Steven mentioned, and the one who saved Mauville City?"

Hearing Wallace's words, as Arthur expected, since he was remembered by this Champion, Steven must have been the one to tell him!

He just wondered if Wallace knew that he possessed Rayquaza?

"Steven shouldn't have such a fast mouth, right? Didn't he tell me himself not to let Rayquaza out casually so as not to draw the attention of interested parties?"

With a hint of bewilderment, Arthur spoke up!

"Mr. Wallace, I've specifically been waiting for you here in Mauville City. I heard from Officer Jenny that the League gave me a special reward because of the recent attack on Mauville City?"

"As for Steven, I have indeed crossed paths with him, and we can be considered friends now. My Metagross was actually a gift from Steven!"

Seeing Arthur bring up his reward right off the bat, Wallace felt a sliver of suspicion!

"Just what kind of charm does this roughly eighteen-year-old boy possess that makes a guy like Steven praise him endlessly and insist that I come test his mettle?"

Yet, hearing that this kid had now become friends with Steven, Wallace felt a faint prickle of acidity in his heart for some reason, coupled with intense curiosity!

Human nature is just like this—when a good friend suddenly starts constantly talking about someone new, you naturally develop a strong interest.

Not to mention, Steven had even given Arthur the Beldum with the most potential from his own private mine!

This made it impossible for Wallace not to feel curious about Arthur!

Moreover, since Steven's opening move was a pseudo-legendary Pokémon, the reward he, the Hoenn Champion, offered certainly couldn't fall short in caliber!

Thus, giving a light cough, Wallace spoke!

"In recognition of your efforts in stopping Aerodactyl's rampage in Mauville City, the Hoenn League has authorized a special set of Poké Balls, including a Master Ball, and grants you permission to apply for a pseudo-legendary Pokémon from the Pokémon League!"

"I brought the set of Poké Balls with me, but the pseudo-legendary Pokémon isn't on hand right now. It depends on what kind of pseudo-legendary you need, and I'll have to apply to the League for it!"

Upon hearing Wallace's words and learning that a Master Ball was included, Arthur felt a wave of joy!

Let alone the fact that he could also choose his own pseudo-legendary Pokémon?

Thinking of the lineup of pseudo-legendary Pokémon such as Tyranitar, Dragonite, Salamence, Hydreigon, Garchomp, and Dragapult, Arthur quickly made up his mind!

"If I really have to choose, I'd still prefer a pseudo-legendary from the Salamence evolutionary line. After all, this is a Hoenn specialty pseudo-legendary, so there should be individuals with high potential, right?"

Arthur had already given considerable thought to pseudo-legendary Pokémon. Since the Hoenn Region is abundant in Bagon and Beldum, the Pokémon League's reserves of pseudo-legendary Pokémon must surely be of exceptional quality!

Besides, how cool is Salamence? Using it as a flying mount suddenly made the Vibrava in his system space seem a lot less appealing!

After all, he originally captured Vibrava just because he hadn't encountered any Bagon-line pseudo-legendaries yet, serving merely as a backup plan!

Hearing Arthur's reply, Wallace smiled and nodded, then handed the set of Poké Balls to Arthur!

He immediately submitted an application to the Pokémon League to select a high-quality Bagon or Shelgon, to be delivered right away via the Pokémon communication machine!

With Wallace making the request, the staff at the Pokémon League naturally moved with great speed.

Even so, arriving in Mauville City would still take at least an hour!

"Alright, the reward has been applied for, and delivering the Bagon will take a little time. Since we have the opportunity, why don't we head out for a spar so I can see for myself how capable the person praised so highly by Steven really is?"

Facing Wallace's challenge, Arthur was slightly stunned at first!

Yet since Wallace was willing to be beaten, Arthur couldn't be blamed for obliging!

"Very well, it is my honor to spar with the Champion!"

With that, the two men each retrieved a Poké Ball and headed out toward the outskirts of Mauville City!

They ultimately chose an open field just outside the mountains of Mauville City as their battle arena—a place where no one would come to disturb them!

Meanwhile, back at the mine, Steven couldn't help but calculate in his heart: calculating the time, Wallace should have met Arthur by now, right?