"Hisuian Goodra has lost its ability to battle. Iron Valiant wins!"
The referee announced the result.
The moment the decision was made, the entire stadium erupted into thunderous cheers.
"Holy crap—Selene!!"
"Selene is insane! She actually took down one of Champion Dylan's Pokémon first!"
"That was awesome! Iron Valiant is way too cool!"
"Let's go, Demon King's disciple! The burden of defeating the Demon King rests on you!"
"That Hisuian Goodra was absurdly tanky though!"
To be fair, a lot of the crowd were actually Dylan's fans—but that didn't stop them from cheering for his opponent.
After all… Dylan was just too invincible. Seeing a challenger who could really push him was rare and exciting.
"As expected of Selene. She actually scored the first knockout,"
Wallace said happily from the stands, clearly pleased.
"Mm, but Iron Valiant isn't in great shape either,"
Steven observed quietly, watching Iron Valiant.
Although it defeated Hisuian Goodra, the price it paid was huge.
Enamorus was already worn down, and Iron Valiant was the same—having taken both Iron Tail and Thunder, it was now badly injured.
Winning under these conditions couldn't really be called an advantage.
Still, no matter what, forcing Dylan to lose a Pokémon first was worth celebrating.
"Rest well."
Dylan recalled Hisuian Goodra, speaking gently to it.
He knew this wasn't because Hisuian Goodra hadn't tried hard enough.
A heavy, defensive, counter-focused Pokémon like Hisuian Goodra was simply limited by its nature—against Enamorus and Iron Valiant, it just didn't have much room to operate.
"Being able to defeat my Goodra, Selene—you did well,"
Dylan said with a smile as he put away the Poké Ball.
"Hehe~! Of course I did!"
Selene beamed, her small face glowing with pride.
"Then next," Dylan continued,"how do you plan to deal with this one?"
He took out an Ultra Ball and flicked it forward.
"Your next opponent… is this!"
"Arcanine! Prepare for battle!"
With a powerful roar full of vigor, a Pokémon resembling a majestic lion leapt onto the field, landing in front of Dylan and staring down Iron Valiant with imposing presence.
"This is… Arcanine?"
Selene blinked.Another Hisuian one, right?
Its fur was gray-black, its overall silhouette like a massive male lion. Though it retained Arcanine's familiar features, this one looked far more ferocious and imposing than the noble, heroic look of the modern form.
Hisuian Arcanine.
『Ding—Arcanine (Hisuian Form), Fire/Rock type, Legendary PokémonAbility: IntimidateMoves: Raging Fury, Extreme Speed, Fire Blast, Crunch, Morning Sun…Description: It lunges at prey with violently burning flames wrapped around its fangs. Despite its massive size, it uses agile feints to toy with opponents, moving as if it were dancing.』
"Tch—figures it's Hisuian Arcanine too,"
Leaf said enviously as she looked at the fierce yet majestic Pokémon.
This was already the third Hisuian Pokémon Dylan had used in this match.
Seriously—did he go to Hisui to stock up or something?
Leaf was already wondering whether this Hisuian Arcanine was male or female, and whether it could breed with her own Arcanine.
The offspring would definitely be incredible!
"Hisuian Arcanine—Fire and Rock type. Selene, this one's much harder to deal with than Hisuian Goodra,"
Dylan said, giving her a brief warning.
"Fire… Rock?"
Selene's expression turned subtle.
Because that typing was actually very easy to target.
In truth, Hisuian Arcanine's typing was kind of awkward.
Regular Arcanine was pure Fire. While it had fewer resistances, it didn't suffer from Hisuian Arcanine's glaring weaknesses.
Hisuian Arcanine gained more resistances—but also picked up brutal four-times weaknesses to Ground and Water.
And those were extremely common attacking types.
That was where Terastallization came in.
Once it Terastallized, Hisuian Arcanine's typing would change, eliminating those crippling 4× weaknesses and massively boosting its viability.
That's why Terastallization was said to have "saved" so many Pokémon—letting their true power shine.
"Arcanine."
Dylan took out a black Tera Orb, making Selene click her tongue.
As expected—he was going to Terastallize it.
Those two four-times weaknesses were basically an open invitation to be targeted.
Dylan tossed the Tera Orb toward Hisuian Arcanine. Crystal-like light flared, followed by a sharp chime.
A Fire-Tera Hisuian Arcanine now stood proudly on the field.
"Iron Valiant, be careful," Selene said seriously.
Iron Valiant raised its twin arm-blades, fully alert.
"Alright then, Selene,"
Dylan smiled.
Hisuian Arcanine lowered its body, muscles tensed.
An invisible pressure spread out.
A layer of white light dispersed from Iron Valiant's body—Intimidate had lowered its Attack.
"Extreme Speed!"
In the next instant, Hisuian Arcanine shot forward like an arrow, so fast it left only a red afterimage.
Normal-type Extreme Speed!
"Iron Valiant—Quick Guard!"
Selene shouted immediately.
Fighting-type Quick Guard could block priority moves.
Iron Valiant locked onto the blazing red streak, taking a defensive stance.
In a blink—
White light flared in front of it.
Quick Guard!
But—
Whoosh!
The rush of wind brushed past Iron Valiant's face.
There was nothing in front of it.
Iron Valiant's pupils shrank.
Hisuian Arcanine hadn't rammed into it at all—it had slipped right past!
It had been played.
"Iron Valiant! Watch out!" Selene yelled.
The Arcanine that had sprinted past immediately pivoted, charging back in from behind—
Still Extreme Speed!
Iron Valiant barely had time to turn before Hisuian Arcanine slammed hard into its chest.
Bang!
Iron Valiant staggered backward. Already weakened, that hit hurt.
"Fire Blast!"
Using the recoil to leap back, Hisuian Arcanine gathered flames in its mouth.
A blazing, gigantic 大-shaped inferno crashed down.
Fire-type Fire Blast!
"Iron Valiant, Brick Break!" Selene's expression changed.
Iron Valiant steadied itself, crossing its arm-blades in front of its body.
Boom!
Fire Blast smashed directly into Brick Break.
Blazing flames surged violently—Fire-Tera Fire Blast was terrifyingly powerful.
Iron Valiant gritted its teeth, bursting with strength as it hacked forward, forcibly splitting the inferno apart.
The flames exploded outward, blasting Iron Valiant backward.
"Extreme Speed."
Before Iron Valiant could even regain its footing, a red figure burst out of the flames.
Hisuian Arcanine ignored the lingering fire entirely, charging straight through it and slamming into Iron Valiant again.
Iron Valiant let out a pained grunt as it was sent flying.
"Flamethrower!"
Hisuian Arcanine didn't stop.
While sprinting, it leapt and unleashed a roaring pillar of fire downward.
Boom!
Flamethrower hit cleanly.
Flames and shockwaves exploded outward.
Hisuian Arcanine landed almost soundlessly, its Fire-Tera crystal body gleaming red, head held high like a proud, ferocious lion.
The flames dissipated.
Iron Valiant lay unconscious.
"Iron Valiant has lost the ability to battle. Hisuian Arcanine wins!"
The referee raised the flag.
The crowd exploded.
"It's so cool!"
"I still think normal Arcanine looks better, but damn—this one fighting at full sprint is insanely cool."
"It beat Iron Valiant that easily? Is Champion Dylan getting serious now?"
"Compared to the passive Hisuian Goodra, this Hisuian Arcanine's pressure is on a whole different level."
The stadium buzzed with discussion.
"That's rough—this Hisuian Arcanine is strong,"
Nemona said, eyes sparkling with excitement.
She had a special enthusiasm for Pokémon she'd never seen before.
"Mm. Iron Valiant wasn't at full strength, but Hisuian Arcanine's performance was outstanding,"
Geeta analyzed calmly.
"The pressure from Extreme Speed is intense, and its follow-up speed is frightening. This is going to put a lot more pressure on Selene."
Extreme Speed → Fire Blast → Extreme Speed → Flamethrower.
That was all Hisuian Arcanine had used.
Yet the sheer high-speed oppression it displayed was terrifying.
Sure, Iron Valiant was injured—but that didn't diminish Hisuian Arcanine's overwhelming dominance.
"Hisuian Goodra fought defensively. Hisuian Arcanine fights proactively. Of course the pressure's different,"
Blue shook her head.
An attacker and a defender created completely different kinds of stress for their opponent.
"I wonder how Selene plans to deal with this Hisuian Arcanine,"
Nemona rested her chin on her hand, eyes shining.
This kind of battle—
It was just too good to watch.