Leon almost felt numb. The cheers and cries of the stadium faded away, leaving only silence. Defeating silence and the sound of his wild heartbeat in his ears. It almost felt like everything he’d worked towards this last decade just crumbled to dust before his eyes. His championship was something that was very dear to him, after all.

He wanted to cry. To scream. To yell and demand a do-over. He was shaking from — was it anger? Anxiety, maybe? Furious adrenaline?

But how could he be so cruel as to demand something that he had no right to have? His opponent won fair and square. Not only that, they looked so elated, hugging their partner Pokémon, tears of joy streaming down their face, letting out a sharp cry of triumph as confetti filled the air. For a moment, time seemed to stop as he stared at them. Victory was a great look for them.

Color returned to his world, and so did the lively, wild cheers of the crowd. He stopped shaking for a moment, and let himself smile. Yes, this was the reason he became a Pokémon Trainer to begin with, how could he have forgotten? To see others be better than him, better than the Trainers of the past. It was his dream to make the Trainers of Galar be the best they could be. He’d achieved that in a way, hadn’t he? He’d pushed this opponent of his to beat the unbeatable.

Leon smiled bright, holding out his hand for them to shake. “Fantastic,” he beamed, shaking their hand eagerly. “You’ve managed to beat the unbeatable! I offer you my most heartfelt congratulations.”

His heart was broken in two, but he also felt such a surge of pride. What an odd combination. Perhaps it’s time I started looking ahead, myself.