"Come back, Enamorus!"
After a moment's thought, Selene recalled Enamorus.
"Iron Valiant! I'm counting on you!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Selene threw her third Poké Ball.
The future Pokémon Iron Valiant—gripping its gleaming energy blade—landed in front of Selene, coldly staring down Hisuian Goodra.
Fairy- and Fighting-type Iron Valiant!
"Selene is seriously decisive—no hesitation at all."
Seeing Selene switch straight into Iron Valiant, Nemona couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
This girl was far too decisive.
Although she also believed that it was already difficult for Enamorus to defeat Hisuian Goodra, Enamorus had boosted its Special Defense three times with Max Quake.
Pulling off that kind of triple boost in a normal battle wasn't easy, so most people would've been reluctant to switch it out.
But Selene didn't hesitate in the slightest. The moment she judged the situation to be unfavorable, she acted immediately.
"But her choice was the right one," Qing said quietly.
"If Hisuian Goodra is allowed to keep boosting like this, it'll become truly hard to deal with. Enamorus simply doesn't have enough tools to defeat it quickly."
At this point, Hisuian Goodra was sitting at +3 Special Attack and +2 Defense, and it still had Life Dew for recovery.
Coupled with its already excellent Special Defense, it was extremely difficult for Enamorus to bring it down in a short time.
Once Hisuian Goodra finished setting up completely, it would be a nightmare to handle.
"Exactly. Now's the best chance to take it down. Iron Valiant's offensive pressure is perfect for this," Geeta nodded.
Of course, they were spectators—clear-headed observers.
Geeta knew that if they were actually in Selene's position, they might not have been able to make such a decisive call either.
That was why Nemona was so impressed by Selene's resolve.
On the field.
"So you've switched to Iron Valiant, huh?"
Dylan examined the Iron Valiant he had personally handed over to Selene in the past, smiling faintly.
Compared to the last time she challenged his gym, this battle-hardened Iron Valiant was clearly much stronger now.
Iron Valiant smoothly shifted its radiant blade from its right hand to its left and slowly raised it, its razor-sharp aura chilling to the bone.
Hisuian Goodra seemed to sense the danger emanating from Iron Valiant and let out a low growl.
"Come on."
Dylan raised his arm and gestured invitingly at Selene and Iron Valiant.
Let me see how strong you've become.
"Iron Valiant!"
Selene curled her lips into a sharp grin, her eyes blazing.
"Charge in—Aura Sphere!"
Iron Valiant's gaze remained cold as it started forward, its steps quickening until it broke into a sprint toward Hisuian Goodra.
A blue Aura Sphere formed at the tip of the blade in its left hand and was fired straight at Hisuian Goodra.
A Fighting-type Aura Sphere!
Hisuian Goodra's Steel/Dragon typing gave it phenomenal resistances—but it was weak to Fighting!
"Flash Cannon!"
Hisuian Goodra charged energy in its mouth, firing a metallic beam head-on at the Aura Sphere.
Boom!
Flash Cannon and Aura Sphere collided violently—but it was the Aura Sphere that was forcibly blasted apart.
Against a Hisuian Goodra with +3 Special Attack, Iron Valiant's special offense simply couldn't compete.
The Flash Cannon continued onward toward Iron Valiant.
"Dodge!" Selene shouted.
Iron Valiant slid to the side, moving with fluid precision as it avoided the beam and closed the distance to Hisuian Goodra.
At the same time, it raised its shining blade horizontally, slotting both arms into the weapon as the single blade split into twin arm-blades—making it look even more like Gallade.
The distance between Hisuian Goodra and Iron Valiant rapidly shrank!
The entire stadium's attention locked onto the field.
Close combat was about to begin!
"It's coming! Goodra!" Dylan called out.
Hisuian Goodra growled at the charging Iron Valiant, bracing itself.
"Shelter!"
"Brick Break!"
Hisuian Goodra withdrew fully into its shell once more, metallic light flaring—Steel-type Shelter!
Meanwhile, Iron Valiant's twin arm-blades gleamed white as it accelerated again, slashing straight down at Hisuian Goodra.
A Fighting-type Brick Break!
The strike slammed hard against Hisuian Goodra's shell, sending a jolt up Iron Valiant's arms—it felt like cutting into solid steel.
Much like Blastoise's shell, Hisuian Goodra's shell was incredibly tough—especially while Shelter was active.
Hisuian Goodra emerged again, its Defense rising once more.
But Iron Valiant had been waiting for that exact moment.
Twisting its footing, it swung its right arm-blade through the air, slashing viciously toward Hisuian Goodra.
"Flash Cannon!"
Hisuian Goodra showed no fear, metallic energy surging in its mouth.
It was preparing to trade damage.
After using Shelter twice, Hisuian Goodra's Defense was extremely high—even a super-effective Brick Break was manageable.
But Iron Valiant's Special Defense was low. Trading hits here was clearly advantageous.
"Iron Valiant!"
Selene understood that perfectly.
No way was she allowing a damage trade.
Iron Valiant adjusted the angle of its blade mid-swing and smashed it straight into Hisuian Goodra's face, forcibly knocking its head to the side.
Boom!
The metallic beam blasted out—but straight into the sky.
"Nian!!"
Hisuian Goodra let out a furious roar.
"Iron Valiant! Low Kick!"
Iron Valiant's eyes were icy as it dropped low and swept its leg hard into Hisuian Goodra's footing—a Fighting-type Low Kick!
Bang!
Hisuian Goodra cried out in pain as its massive body tilted and crashed toward the ground.
Seeing this, Selene's grin widened.
The heavier the opponent, the stronger Low Kick became—and Hisuian Goodra was definitely no lightweight.
The damage from that strike was substantial.
"Goodra!" Dylan suddenly called out.
As Hisuian Goodra fell, the shell on its back turned flexible, its tail extending outward.
"Iron Tail!"
In the next instant, Hisuian Goodra's tail gleamed with metallic light and whipped violently toward Iron Valiant.
A classic monster move—smacking the hero with a tail while falling.
Steel-type Iron Tail!
"Iron Valiant!" Selene's pupils shrank.
This was completely unexpected.
Even Iron Valiant couldn't evade it in time.
The Iron Tail struck squarely, sending Iron Valiant flying backward.
Steel-type Iron Tail dealt super-effective damage to Iron Valiant.
"This is bad—that Iron Tail actually landed."
Wallace frowned slightly. Hitting Iron Valiant like that wasn't easy.
"Yeah, that hit must've hurt. Iron Valiant's defenses aren't great—it was clearly prepared in advance," Steven nodded.
Naturally, they were rooting for Selene.
After all, Dylan the final boss—everyone knew how terrifying he was.
"But Low Kick did a lot of damage too. Hisuian Goodra should be in pretty bad shape now," Rosa said, watching Hisuian Goodra crash heavily to the ground.
Its sheer weight made Low Kick especially punishing.
"Just keep it steady—Iron Valiant can win this," Rosa said confidently.
That Iron Tail had been a surprise, but Iron Valiant still held the advantage.
Against a high-defense, counter-focused Pokémon like Hisuian Goodra, a fast dual-attacker like Iron Valiant controlled the pace.
And unlike something absurdly agile like Gliscor, Hisuian Goodra lacked the mobility to consistently catch Iron Valiant.
"Now it comes down to Selene's execution," Steven agreed.
On the field.
"Iron Valiant, are you okay?" Selene asked.
Iron Valiant gave a low cry, indicating it was fine. The Iron Tail had been heavy, but at full health, it could take a hit like that.
Selene let out a breath of relief.
Good thing it was Iron Tail and not Flash Cannon—Iron Valiant's Special Defense was truly awful.
"Iron Valiant, Aura Sphere!"
Selene turned her gaze to the Hisuian Goodra slowly pushing itself up.
Because of that Iron Tail, she'd missed a perfect follow-up opportunity—but it didn't matter.
Hisuian Goodra was already on its last legs.
It couldn't take much more!
Iron Valiant raised its right arm, forming an Aura Sphere and firing it straight at Hisuian Goodra.
"Flash Cannon!"
Hisuian Goodra immediately fired back.
Flash Cannon smashed through Aura Sphere and surged toward Iron Valiant—but Iron Valiant nimbly dodged again, accelerating as it closed in.
"Gyro Ball!"
Hisuian Goodra spun rapidly, transforming into a metallic, spinning sphere.
Steel-type Gyro Ball—its power increased the slower the user was.
Hisuian Goodra was far slower than Iron Valiant, so this Gyro Ball hit hard.
But for Selene, this was actually an opening.
"Close Combat!" she shouted.
Iron Valiant surged forward, limbs glowing white as it unleashed a flurry of punches, slashes, and kicks against the spinning Gyro Ball.
A brutal Fighting-type Close Combat!
Under the relentless assault, Hisuian Goodra's rotation slowed, until Iron Valiant's final strike forcibly brought it to a halt.
"Focus Blast!"
"Thunder!"
Dylan gave the order without hesitation. At this distance, Thunder was far more likely to hit.
Iron Valiant cupped its hands as a Fighting-type Focus Blast formed and slammed directly into Hisuian Goodra's chest.
At the same time, crackling lightning surged over Hisuian Goodra and struck Iron Valiant.
Boom!
Focus Blast and Thunder detonated almost simultaneously.
Smoke billowed from the explosion as Iron Valiant was blasted backward by the Thunder.
Thud!
Iron Valiant hit the ground, rolling twice before barely regaining its footing.
Thunder had done serious damage.
With its low Special Defense—and Hisuian Goodra's massive Special Attack—the hit hurt badly.
Iron Valiant was heavily injured.
But—
As the smoke slowly cleared, Hisuian Goodra's figure came back into view.
"It's still standing?!"
Everyone was stunned.
How was that possible?
Just how much damage had this Hisuian Goodra taken from start to finish?!
Gasps echoed across the stadium.
Selene clenched her teeth, about to order Iron Valiant to attack again.
No matter what, this Hisuian Goodra—already barely hanging on—had to go down.
But then…
"Nian…"
Hisuian Goodra's body finally went limp, collapsing to the ground with a heavy crash.
In the end, it couldn't hold on anymore.