The dust slowly began to settle.
Ceruledge lay in a cracked crater, its armor shattered and its body covered in wounds.
It struggled to stand. The twin blades trembled as it tried to prop itself up, but its strength had run dry. After two attempts, it collapsed with a heavy thud and lost consciousness.
"Phew…"
Cynthia exhaled softly, calming her slightly uneven breathing.
With elegant composure, she slipped the lipstick containing her Key Stone back into her pocket. Light once again enveloped Mega Garchomp, its savage and ferocious form receding as it reverted to its normal state—though the intimidating aura surrounding it still made people uneasy.
The referee's voice rang out, filled with shock and reverence.
"Battle over! Ceruledge is unable to battle! The winner is—Champion Cynthia!"
"That was a wonderful battle. You perfectly displayed the presence expected of a Champion."
Rei Akagi watched Cynthia walk over from the battlefield. His gaze also caught the glaring Garchomp behind her before he added:
"And of course, the unstoppable Miss Garchomp as well."
Cynthia's smile deepened, while Garchomp snorted through its nose, blowing out a stream of dusty air—barely acknowledging Rei Akagi's flattery.
Fantina recalled Ceruledge into its Poké Ball and handed it to a nearby apprentice for emergency treatment before striding over as well.
But as he listened to Rei Akagi's words, a wave of dissatisfaction rose in his chest.
This brat…
Does he have no sense of social etiquette?
Why didn't he praise this old man a little too?
Even if I lost to Champion Cynthia, I still held out for quite a while!
After a moment's thought, Fantina suddenly spoke in a loud voice, smiling with the warmth of an elder.
"Champion Cynthia, it's rare for you to visit the Hearthome Gym. Why not let your assistant take a Gym Badge as a souvenir? That way the trip won't be in vain."
Cynthia chuckled softly. Her gaze shifted toward Rei Akagi, and she said with subtle meaning:
"Leader Fantina is too kind. Mr. Rei Akagi is my friend. As for the Gym Badge… that depends on whether he wants it."
Rei Akagi returned her smile, then walked over to Fantina.
"You flatter me, Leader Fantina. My name is Rei Akagi. I'm currently just a Novice Trainer, and I only have one Pokémon—Gastly. It wouldn't really be appropriate for me to challenge a Gym."
"Oh—?"
The moment Fantina heard "Novice Trainer" and "only one Pokémon," his eyes lit up instantly.
Perfect.
Rookie Trainers are exactly the kind I want to fight.
I may not be able to beat Champion Cynthia…
But surely I can beat you, you little brat!
Without another word, his large fan-like hand wrapped enthusiastically around Rei Akagi's shoulder as he burst into hearty laughter.
"Ahahaha! Young man, I feel an instant connection with you! What you said isn't a problem at all. One Pokémon means a 1v1 battle. Come, come, let's go!"
Rei Akagi didn't shake off Fantina's arm and allowed himself to be half-dragged toward another battlefield.
Partly because he noticed Cynthia trying—and failing—to hide her laughter after successfully stirring things up.
And partly because he felt a pushing force from Gastly behind his waist.
"Father, be careful. He… is really strong."
"Boss will win for sure! I've been annoyed with Dad for ages—go crush his arrogance!"
The voices of Fantinaand Fantina came from behind them.
Fantina frowned as anger surged in his chest.
He's just a rookie trainer.
Why does Fantinahave so little faith in her own father?
No matter what, I'm still an Elite Four–level trainer. How could I possibly lose?
And as for Fantina…
Just wait, you little brat. Once there aren't any outsiders around, I'll break your legs!
Both sides took their positions as the referee announced the rules.
"1v1 Pokémon Battle! Each Pokémon may use up to four moves! The battle ends when one Pokémon is unable to continue fighting!"
"Go, Gastly."
As Rei Akagi spoke, Gastly popped forward with a boing, bouncing from beside him into the center of the field. Its signature wide grin spread across its face as it let out a strange cackle.
"Go, Misdreavus."
Fantina calmly tossed out a Poké Ball. A small and adorable Misdreavus, with a red beaded necklace on its head, floated lightly above the battlefield.
He wasn't crazy enough to use his Elite Four main team against a rookie trainer.
Mainly because the rumors would sound terrible if that got out.
Pokémon: Misdreavus
Type: Ghost
Category: Screech Pokémon
Gender: Female
Ability: Levitate
(Levitates above the ground, making it immune to Ground-type moves.)
Known Moves: Growl, Confusion, Astonish, Sucker Punch, Calm Mind, Confuse Ray, Mean Look
Mood: Happy
Fun Fact: Misdreavus actually isn't very good at scaring people. (Probably.)
"Misdreavus, use Sucker Punch."
Fantina spoke first.
Right from the start, he planned to suppress Rei Akagi with full pressure—to show him the difference in trainer levels.
And what true social finesse looked like.
Sucker Punch allows the user to strike first when the opponent uses an attacking move. And Dark-type moves are super effective against Ghost-types.
If it hit Gastly, that single blow could easily knock it out.
However…
Rei Akagi didn't issue an attacking command.
"Gastly, dive into the shadow and use Confuse Ray."
Misdreavus's eyes instantly darkened with ominous black energy as it prepared to unleash Sucker Punch the moment Gastly attacked.
But all it saw was the black Gastly suddenly plunge into its own shadow like a diver entering water, disappearing without a trace.
Just as Misdreavus froze in confusion at the vanishing target—
Smack!
A twisted, chaotic burst of multicolored light suddenly slammed into its cute little face from some unknown corner of the shadows.
Instant visual overload.
"Predicting the move…?"
A trace of surprise flashed in Fantina's eyes.
This kid…
He's got some skill.
But since Sucker Punch had failed, Fantina didn't dwell on it and immediately adjusted his tactics.
"Ignore Gastly. Use Calm Mind!"
"Gastly, stay hidden and use Spite."
Rei Akagi issued his command leisurely, seemingly unconcerned with Fantina's attempt to boost his stats.
In the shadows, Gastly's sinister face appeared to show an extremely devious grin.
It silently made a mocking face toward Misdreavus, and an invisible wave of resentful energy quietly wrapped around it.
Once finished, Gastly disappeared back into the darkness as if nothing had happened.
Misdreavus closed its eyes, calming the dizziness caused by the blinding light. A thin veil-like aura of mysterious energy began to form around its body.
The aura slowly merged into it, raising its Special Attack and Special Defense.
Spite?
He actually used that move.
Was that a mistake?
Fantina smiled.
So he really is just a rookie trainer.
Hiding around like this is nothing more than stalling for time.
"Misdreavus! Use Calm Mind again!"
"Now! Gastly—Clear Smog!"
Rei Akagi smirked slightly, folding his arms across his chest.
He had been waiting precisely for this moment.
Misdreavus closed its eyes again as the familiar shimmering aura began to gather, attempting to push its Special Attack and Special Defense even higher.
But the instant the energy was about to stabilize—
Gastly suddenly jumped out of its shadow.
Opening its huge mouth, it inhaled sharply and spat out a cloud of gray-white sticky smoke straight onto Misdreavus's face the moment it opened its eyes.
The smoke seemed to possess a strange purifying effect.
As Clear Smog swept across it, the streams of energy surrounding Misdreavus were erased as if wiped away by an invisible eraser.
All the stat boosts from Calm Mind vanished instantly.
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