Let me sum things up...
Um... ever since the Battle Zone arc began, this book's numbers have kept dropping...
This arc really has been a bit difficult to write, mainly because I have to come up with the rules myself, so there are bound to be loopholes. It has also lacked some excitement, and the pacing has been a little tight.
I originally wanted to just write something quick and wrap it up as soon as possible, but after revising it over and over, I still ended up having to write this arc properly.
There's no way around it. On the one hand, I need to tie up loose ends and plant foreshadowing. After all, the protagonist is now at a stage where he's both building up his strength and reaping the rewards. On the other hand, I also need to flesh out the Gym Class and Elite Four level settings, make them clearer, and pave the way for him to reach Elite Four level next.
Some of you readers might not enjoy this part, but there's nothing I can do about it now...
Also, the original series barely depicted the Sinnoh Region's Battle Zone. Palmer did appear, but there wasn't much about the rest. After looking up the game settings and the official material, I found that the Battle Zone's rules were absolutely terrifying! Without making my own adaptations, the Battle Factory alone would require challenging fifty Trainers... can you believe that...? That's completely different from the rules and format of the Battle Frontier that Ash and Paul challenged later on! So I couldn't draw on that either; it wasn't useful as a reference.
All the settings and rules in this arc are my own adaptations based on the games and official material. They might be unreasonable or have