The ghostly purple flames swayed gently, floating with the wind.
In the very next instant, after a powerful gust of wind caused by the move Tailwind swept through—
all the Litwick completely disappeared, leaving no trace behind!
"Did they... disappear?"
Ethan watched the scene before him with obvious astonishment.
Just as he was feeling confused, an intense electric current began to surge through Meltan's body. From the nut on its head, a bolt of lightning shot straight into the void.
At the same time, out of nowhere, a blazing flame suddenly erupted, colliding head-on with the electric attack.
BOOM!
With a deafening roar, the flames and the lightning collided, triggering a violent explosion.
When the smoke cleared, an intense purple light illuminated the area.
A Litwick appeared once again before Ethan, but this one was different: the flame atop its head burned with a terrifying intensity, almost forming a kind of fiery hat that enveloped its entire body.
"This Litwick has an incredible presence!"
Upon seeing that figure, Ethan's pupils contracted sharply.
Fuuuh!
Forced to reveal itself, Litwick seemed quite irritated and blew a burst of flames directly toward Meltan.
Meltan immediately responded—the electric bolt shot forth and dispersed the flames head-on.
Just as the lightning was about to strike Litwick, it extended its small hand, and suddenly, a Litwick wrapped in purple flames appeared in front of it.
BOOM!
The electric bolt struck the flame-wrapped Litwick squarely, exploding instantly.
"Is that... Substitute?"
Ethan's eyes widened slightly as he recognized the move.
At the same time, he understood what had happened: the Litwick that had disappeared earlier were undoubtedly clones created by this Litwick.
"Zzzt!"
Meltan realized it as well; its eyes spun rapidly, and then it used the move Substitute.
In the blink of an eye, another Meltan appeared floating in the air, causing Litwick's eyes to widen in surprise.
Once again, Litwick used Substitute, and within seconds, there were two Meltan and two Litwick floating in the air.
"Just as I thought, it's Substitute. Meltan, stop playing around. Finish it."
Ethan's eyes shone with determination as he gave the order.
Meltan immediately became serious. Its Magnet Pull ability activated, and it controlled the Meltan substitute, hurling it straight toward Litwick.
Fuuuh!
Litwick suddenly opened its mouth and spat a burst of flames at the Litwick substitute.
In an instant, the substitute ignited completely, transforming into a massive fireball that collided head-on with the Meltan substitute.
BOOM!
Both substitutes collided in midair and exploded violently.
Fuuuh!
Litwick's small eyes narrowed as it let out a shrill cry.
Then, it slightly opened its hand, and suddenly, more than ten substitutes appeared condensed in the air.
Flames erupted, and all those Litwick substitutes ignited, turning into multiple fireballs that shot toward Meltan.
Meltan's eyes flew wide open, nearly popping out of their sockets. Creating more than ten clones at once was practically cheating!
"What an interesting Litwick..."
Ethan's gaze gleamed. This Litwick's mastery of the move Substitute was simply astonishing.
Even though it was only a Litwick, its combat power was extraordinary. With just a combination of substitutes and fireballs, it had managed to suppress Meltan for a short period of time.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Next, Meltan and Litwick became locked in a fierce battle.
Even using only Electric-type moves, the two Pokémon were fighting almost evenly.
"The endurance of this Litwick is outrageous!"
"Under normal circumstances, a Litwick at this level should have already evolved into Lampent. It could even have become Chandelure if it had a Dusk Stone!"
The more Ethan observed, the more astonished he became. This Litwick was already far beyond what was considered normal for its species.
Moreover, the legend of the Confusing Bell had been circulating in Obsidian City for a long time. This Litwick had clearly lived for countless years—it was a true old ghost.
"If I could capture this Litwick..."
Ethan's heart began to pound. This Pokémon perfectly matched his preferences.
"Meltan, Electromagnetic Cannon!"
Having made his decision, Ethan ordered Meltan to attack with full force.
"Zzzt!"
Electricity once again enveloped Meltan's body, and its figure transformed into an electric spear aimed directly at Litwick.
Fuuuh!
Litwick also seemed to sense that Meltan was about to unleash its ultimate attack and became serious.
Suddenly, numerous Litwick substitutes appeared in the air, all igniting at the same time.
But it didn't end there.
The fireballs began to float around Litwick's body, and a powerful force of attraction emanated from it, drawing all the flames toward the center. The purple flame atop its head surged violently upward.
"Is that... the Flash Fire ability?"
Ethan's eyes widened in shock. This Litwick had devised a way to use Substitute to generate flames and then absorb them with the Flash Fire ability, instantly increasing its power to achieve an explosive boost.
Just as Litwick was absorbing the flames, Meltan finished charging. A flash of electricity streaked across the battlefield—and vanished!
Time seemed to freeze.
In the blink of an eye, Meltan appeared behind Litwick.
The gigantic flame towering several meters above Litwick's head came to an abrupt halt—and was cleanly severed by Meltan.
The flames shot up into the sky and then slowly faded, while Litwick's body fell from the air and slammed into the ground.
"Phew, we did it!"
Ethan's face filled with joy.
Fortunately, Meltan had executed the Electromagnetic Cannon a moment earlier. If Litwick had finished absorbing all the power from the substitutes, the outcome of the battle would have been completely uncertain.
The strength of this Litwick simply defied all logic.
"Then... become my Pokémon."
Ethan took a deep breath and threw the Poké Ball.
Pop!
Litwick turned into a red beam of light and was absorbed into the Poké Ball.
Beep... beep... beep...
The Poké Ball rocked several times, indicating that Litwick had not yet exhausted all of its energy.
Even in that state, its endurance far surpassed that of others of its kind.
Finally, the red light slowly faded.
Ethan had successfully captured that Litwick.
(End of chapter)