Cynthia stood in place, her golden hair slightly disheveled by the wind. Her eyes, which usually carried wisdom and composure, were now filled with indescribable shock.
Her mind raced.
What had just happened?
A human had dodged a sneak attack from a Gym Leader Level peak Crobat.
Then, with a single punch, he had driven it into the composite steel-and-wood deck.
Was this something a human could do?
She recalled the legendary heroes who could use Aura, but no, there was no trace of Aura on Ariel.
That was a purely savage, unreasonable physical power.
Where did this power come from?
Steven's mouth hung slightly open. He looked at the indentation on the deck, then at Ariel's fist, which appeared completely unremarkable.
As the successor of Devon Corporation, he knew the strength of various materials like the back of his hand.
To withstand the storms at sea and the destruction caused by Pokémon, the deck of the poseidon used a composite structure of ironwood and steel plating; its hardness was extraordinary.
How much instantaneous impact force would it take to punch a Crobat into it?
He quickly ran data comparisons in his mind.
This power was already equivalent to the full-strength blow of a Quasi-Elite Level Pokémon.
A human...
Steven's gaze became unprecedentedly grave.
He had always thought Ariel was just a top-tier Trainer with astonishing talent in battle and raising Pokémon, but now it seemed he was wrong.
This man himself was a monster!
He found it increasingly difficult to see through the man before him!
Wallace subconsciously adjusted his collar, a gesture that helped him slightly calm the turmoil in his heart.
He did not analyze the power and speed; he saw something else.
Composure.
Facing a lethal sneak attack, Ariel did not show the slightest bit of panic.
From the moment he picked his ear, everything had been under his control.
Dodging, punching—it was all one fluid motion, without a single wasted movement, filled with the aesthetics of violence.
He was like a lion, casually crushing an offending insect while patrolling its territory.
That arrogance and confidence, carved into his very bones, gave Wallace an inexplicable sense of trepidation.
This man was a hundred times more terrifying than he appeared!
The one most devastated was One-Armed Shark.
His wild laughter froze on his face, his mouth wide open, enough to fit a fist inside.
He stared blankly at the Crobat on the deck, then at Ariel, his eyes unfocused, muttering unconsciously.
"My... Crobat..."
"It was Gym Leader Level peak... wasn't it?"
"One-shot by a human... with a single punch..."
He could not understand, nor could he accept it.
This overturned everything he had known about the world for over forty years.
Weren't Trainers supposed to be fragile beings who hid behind their Pokémon?
Why? Why was it like this?
Ariel had no interest in the shock around him.
He was just savoring the feeling of that punch.
Just now, Mega Gyarados had completed its Mega Evolution, and its typing changed from Water/Flying to Water/Dark-type.
His ability called "Malice" had also taken effect.
For every Dark-type Pokémon he owned, he gained one-tenth of its power as feedback.
His Krookodile and Malamar were already at the Quasi-Elite Level, and they were at the top tier, capable of taking on three opponents at once.
Plus, there was a level 64 Honchkrow.
Now, there was an additional Quasi-Elite Level Mega Gyarados.
One-tenth of the power of three top-tier Quasi-Elite Pokémon stacked onto him.
Plus his other Pokémon...
Ariel estimated that, currently, he was pretty much a genuine, humanoid Quasi-Elite Level Pokémon.
A Quasi-Elite using one punch to one-shot a squishy Gym Leader Level peak Crobat.
Yeah, that made sense.
Ariel glanced coldly at One-Armed Shark.
A chill shot up One-Armed Shark's spine.
It was not the cold from the sea breeze, but from Ariel's eyes.
Those eyes were black as an abyss, devoid of any emotion, simply and calmly using Lock-On on him.
He felt as if he were not being watched by a person, but by a prehistoric beast that had just finished its meal and was considering whether to have some dessert.
The instinct for survival overcame everything; One-Armed Shark roared and threw his last Poké Ball.
With a flash of red light, a Fearow appeared above the deck, emitting a sharp cry.
He vaulted onto the Fearow's back, the fastest movement he had ever made in his life.
"Go!"
The Fearow beat its wings, about to soar into the sky.
"Trying to run!"
Cynthia reacted extremely quickly, her cold voice carrying a command.
"Garchomp! Take him down!"
The Garchomp standing beside her let out a low Growl, its shark-fin-like arm blades already glowing with energy, about to pursue.
But another voice was faster than Garchomp's movement.
"Stay right there for me, meow!"
A cat's cry, yet filled with unquestionable dominance.
Everyone looked toward the sound, only to see Meowth on top of the giant cannon on the poseidon's deck, its two small paws operating the control panel rapidly.
The cannon muzzle rotated quickly, precisely using Lock-On on the Fearow that had just flown up less than ten meters.
Even Ariel was stunned.
"Bang!"
A muffled cannon blast rang out, followed immediately by a compressed cannonball trailing a white streak, hitting the Fearow's wing with precision.
"Chirp—!"
The Fearow let out a shrill scream, its wing snapping instantly, and it spiraled down toward the sea like a piece of rag.
One-Armed Shark's scream followed, disappearing into the sea surface together.
Ariel watched this scene, feeling somewhat shaken.
This accuracy, this decisiveness...
Was this the power of jealousy?
Earlier, when Cynthia commanded Garchomp, this little thing's whiskers had been curled up in anger.
Before anyone could react, a huge shadow surged from under the sea.
Wallace's Swampert extended its muscular arms out of the water and, like holding a little chick, grabbed the drenched and half-drowned One-Armed Shark, tossing him onto the deck.
Soon, the deck of the poseidon returned to a temporary calm.
One-Armed Shark and the six remaining surviving pirates on the ship were tied into a string with rough ropes and thrown into the center of the deck.
On the deck, blood and seawater mixed together, making a sticky sound underfoot.
One-Armed Shark looked at the six remaining subordinates beside him, each one ashen-faced with hollow eyes.
He couldn't help but feel a surge of sorrow.
Just a few hours ago, his One-Armed Pirate Crew was a massive team with hundreds of people and over a dozen ships, whom no one dared to provoke in this sea area.
Now, there were only these few stragglers left.
He was finished.
Completely finished.
"Kill me or slice me up! Do whatever you want!"
One-Armed Shark coughed up a few mouthfuls of seawater, instead shouting at the top of his lungs, trying to cover his fear with his voice.
"Hmph! I, One-Armed Shark, have roamed the seas all my life and made countless enemies! Getting caught by you today is just my bad luck! Anyway, even if you let me go, my enemies won't let me live!"
His voice echoed on the empty deck, sounding exceptionally weak and fearful despite his bluster.