Lydia let out a long sigh, shaking her head as an evident smirk was written on her face. Obviously, Satoshi was totally looking down on her and her Frost Elephant despite his tamed beast having a clear type disadvantage. 'I'm going to prove him wrong for looking down on me.' Lydia said to herself.
"Frost Elephant, keep on using ice domain and then use blizzard!" Lydia then called out.
Even though it'd be physically draining for the Frost Elephant to use these two moves at the same time, she still went through it just to increase the likelihood of inflicting damage on the Alpha Red Salamander.
At this point, Satoshi stepped backward and swiveled off his foot, turning around after giving his Alpha Red Salamander the stare. In return, the Alpha Red Salamander nodded towards Satoshi before facing the Frost Elephant, letting out a soft shriek that echoed in the area. With calmness, Satoshi sat on the ground, facing the audience before he closed his eyes.
"Satoshi! What are you doing?! You're going to lose!" Midori screamed from the sidelines. Hiroshi and the others also joined in on the frantic screaming but Satoshi flat-out ignored them.
Unbeknownst to them, Satoshi was actually kidding when he put the wager. Of course, there's no way he'd be able to win against the Frost Elephant if he let his Alpha Red Salamander do its thing. That's why he still communicated with the Alpha Red Salamander in his mind— a two-way exchange that happened instantaneously.
Meanwhile, the Alpha Red Salamander was more than willing to fight even without Satoshi's guidance. He thought that this may be a test put up by his master in order to prove his worth. There was no way he'd back down to the challenge even though the Frost Elephant was more formidable compared to him.
Intense heat started coming out of the Alpha Red Salamander's skin, mixing in with the snowstorm that enveloped the entirety of his body. Intense steam started filling up the open area. Black smoke then billowed all over the Alpha Red Salamander before the fire erupted, encasing his entire body with a shield made out of pure flames. Compared to the Frost Elephant, the Alpha Red Salamander was expending more energy but it was way more stable. This was because the Alpha Red Salamander was using only one move, while the Frost Elephant used two just so it could deal damage to its foe.
'Yup, just continue doing that,' Satoshi assured his Alpha Red Salamander in his mind, to which the Alpha Red Salamander responded with a squeal that sounded almost like a purr.
"Just let the Frost Elephant do what it could, and try to hold off on attacking until then. Once it seemed exhausted, you go on the offensive and unleash your most powerful attack. Show that Frost Elephant just how strong an Alpha Red Salamander is."
The Alpha Red Salamander prided itself as an apex predator. Fighting a common Frost Elephant is an insult to him, and that's why there's no way he could possibly lose to it. After all, the Alpha Red Salamander was the beast that laid waste to Emma Leisenberg's homeland. That fact alone should prove how powerful it is.
Just like how Satoshi predicted it, the Frost Elephant ran out of fumes much faster than expected. The Alpha Red Salamander felt it as soon as the blizzard and the ice domain started losing their power.
It was time for a counterattack.
'Alpha Red Salamander, use your fire domain.' Satoshi finally called out.
Meanwhile, Lydia still hasn't gotten over the fact that Satoshi faced her with his back during the match. She felt insulted, and her attention was divided between the match and Satoshi. That's why she momentarily forgot about her Frost Elephant and didn't give it a new command.
Everyone was taken by surprise when the Alpha Red Salamander suddenly burst into flames. Its defensive strategy took a turn for the better and lava immediately filled the entire open area, negating the ice domain that the Frost Elephant had. Because of that, the Frost Elephant was forced to back away since its ice attacks didn't stand a chance against the sheer literal firepower of the Alpha Red Salamander.
The fight that was supposed to be interesting for a finale ended rather unexpectedly with the Frost Elephant tucking its tail and running as its body melted. It fainted in an instant, and the Alpha Red Salamander was forced to withdraw its attacks since it might kill the Frost Elephant.
Speechless, the spectators watched as the Alpha Red Salamander returned to its neutral state while letting out a gurgle out of its mouth. Even though it didn't understand the intricacies or the rules of the unofficial beast tournament, it knew that it had won, and it couldn't be any more proud of itself.
"AND THE WINNER OF THIS UNOFFICIAL BEAST TOURNAMENT IS—!" Kim Jin Seok screamed, pointing his hand at Satoshi who still had his back to Lydia. "Midoriyama Satoshi and his Alpha Red Salamander! What a splendid fight!"
A smile appeared on Satoshi's face as he stood up and dusted himself. "You did well, Alpha Red Salamander." He muttered before returning the Alpha Red Salamander inside Orb Oboros's dimensional storage. "Now get some rest, you overextended yourself, right?"
Even though it didn't seem like the Alpha Red Salamander was damaged, it actually almost lost due to the coldness that the Frost Elephant unleashed. Fortunately, the Alpha Red Salamander won the waiting game and it pulled off a surprise attack. At that moment, if the Frost Elephant survived the fire domain that the Alpha Red Salamander made, it'd have had a chance at winning the beast tournament.
"That was a great fight, Satoshi. Your Alpha Red Salamander was a formidable opponent for my Frost Elephant." Lydia said. There was no need to hold a grudge against Satoshi. After all, they were friends since childhood so they could be considered childhood friends (ah yes, the floor here is made out of floor). She didn't harbor any ill-will when she lost. But then again, she did her best, and her Frost Elephant did the same as well. It was an honest loss, simply speaking.
"It was a good fight." Satoshi returned.
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