The competitors' area was set up on the west side of the venue, separated from the spectator stands by translucent partitions, forming a relatively independent rest area.
To ensure the competitors could battle in better condition, the wealthy Dicolik Family had placed more than a dozen comfortable sofas in the rest area.
A small coffee table stood in front of each sofa, stocked with bottled water, drinks, and clean towels.
At this moment, quite a few people were already seated in the competitors' area.
Some leaned back on the sofas with their eyes closed to rest, some spoke quietly, and others gave their Pokémon final checks—grooming their fur, confirming their items, and offering soft encouragement.
Xinhai and the others found an empty set of sofas in a corner and sat down.
Eevee lightly jumped down from his shoulder, paced back and forth across the soft sofa cushions a few times, then lay across the backrest, his large brown eyes curiously surveying the surrounding competitors and Pokémon.
"Eevee..." (There really are a lot of people...)
"Yeah, looks like there are twenty or thirty people." Xinhai glanced over the number of people in the competitors' area and nodded lightly. "But it's an elimination tournament. Round after round, the winners will be decided soon enough."
Ryosuke Onodera leaned against the sofa, sweeping his gaze around the competitors' area as he lowered his voice. "The other competitors aren't bad either. I took a quick look earlier, and most of their Pokémon are around levels thirty-seven or thirty-eight."
Rika Yuzuki gently stroked the thorns atop Roselia's head, her gaze passing over the unfamiliar faces in the competitors' area. "I wonder if we'll run into any especially strong opponents."
Yuma Kamiya's expression turned expectant at those words, and his gaze swept across the trainers around them