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Taro, riding his Dragonite, shattered the Combat Hall's glass with a resounding crash and swiftly entered.
As the leader this time, he bore the responsibility of ensuring Trainers' safety. He never anticipated that even with him present, someone would dare to provoke them, and it was none other than the Dark Guild.
The Dark Guild, a repulsive yet persistent organization, had long been on Taro's list for elimination. However, opportunities were scarce, leaving him no choice but to gradually weaken their influence over time.
What infuriated Taro the most was the behavior of Ellie region's Trainers. From above, he could see them standing aside as mere spectators, showing no intention of assisting, while helplessly watching the Sebas Trainers being besieged by numerous Dark Guild members.
Hundreds of individuals with Pokemon encircling just two dozen Trainers and their Pokemon—yet the Ellie region's Trainers merely observed.
Taro felt his anger boil; if he had been there, the Ellie region's Trainers wouldn't have dared to act so passively. But in his absence, their true nature was fully exposed: selfish and indifferent!
However, there was some solace in seeing numerous fallen Pokemon on the ground; undoubtedly, this was thanks to the Sebas region's Trainers' efforts. Facing so many Dark Guild members and achieving such a feat brought immense satisfaction.
Most importantly, it appeared that no Trainer from the Sebas region had suffered any casualties, with only a few Pokemon losing their combat capabilities.
"Dark Guild, excellent! Not a single one of you will leave today!" Taro's voice resonated with uncontrollable fury. As an Elite Four trainer, he represented the pinnacle of power in his region. Even if all the Dark Guild members attacked together, he remained undaunted.
This presented a rare opportunity for Taro to capture every member of the Dark Guild at once, including several high-ranking executives and possibly even the guild master himself—a chance not to be missed.
"The guild master, Taro is back!"
Fear washed over the Dark Guild members instantly. Their greatest concern during this operation was Taro. They thought they had successfully diverted him, but due to delays, he arrived unexpectedly.
Kentra, witnessing the failed assault moments ago, stared at his incapacitated Charizard, nearly driven mad—once again, this Charizard had thwarted his plans.
With Taro's return, Kentra felt utterly terrified, instantly contemplating escape. Facing Taro, they stood no chance and could only flee.
However, Kentra was unwilling to give up, as he hadn't secured the Z-Ring yet and had already lost numerous Pokemon.
Despite his reluctance, Kentra made a decisive choice. With their plan foiled, it was better to avoid getting captured here; thus, their only option was to run.
"Retreat!" Kentra had no desire to continue fighting, having never witnessed Taro's true strength firsthand. He underestimated just how terrifying an Elite Four trainer could be—they were on completely different levels.
Following Kentra's command, the Dark Guild members lost all heart for further combat. The damage inflicted was substantial, and with Taro joining the fray, continuing would only lead to even greater losses.
The Dark Guild swiftly scattered, heading towards the exit of the Combat Hall, including Kentra and the executives who immediately departed.
However, now that the tide had turned, there was no way Trainers from Sebas would let the Dark Guild members escape without pursuit, quickly giving chase.
Taro wasted no time and joined the pursuit, directing Dragonite to unleash a powerful Dragon Pulse. A terrifying blue shockwave surged towards the fleeing Dark Guild members.
With a loud boom, numerous Dark Guild members were struck by the shockwave, sent flying and emitting cries of agony.
As the Dark Guild fled in disarray, Taro led the Trainers in pursuit. The Sebas Trainers, fueled by anger, especially Taro, vented their fury on the retreating Dark Guild members.
Kalia didn't immediately join the chase; instead, she turned her attention to the unconscious Charizard. Without its timely intervention against Staraptor's attack, the consequences would have been dire. Thanks to Charizard's resistance, she had narrowly escaped harm and held out until Taro arrived, ensuring no Trainer suffered injury.
"Charizard, thank you." Kalia recalled Charizard into its Poké Ball. The Combat Hall was now in chaos, utterly devastated, but temporarily safe as the Dark Guild had retreated.
The failure of the Dark Guild's plan was undoubtedly fortunate. Had they successfully obtained the Z-Rings and managed to escape, the loss for the Sebas region would have been immense, dealing a severe blow to the participating Trainers in the exchange competition.
"Let's recover our Pokémon first," Kalia said as she recalled her Ninetales. She noticed Sceptile hadn't left but remained near her instead. Without explicit orders, it couldn't follow Taro and others to pursue the Dark Guild.
"After this incident, relations between the Ellie and Sebas regions will likely worsen significantly," Kalia murmured. The indifference of the Ellie Trainers during such a critical event would undoubtedly fuel resentment from the Sebas region.
It wouldn't just affect them; once news spread back in Sebas, a large number of Trainers might begin harboring hostility towards the Ellie region.
This was a matter of life and death. Although there were minimal casualties, it was solely due to the Sebas Trainers' Pokemon risking their lives to resist, with little contribution from those from the Ellie region.
Without Charizard's crucial Fire Blast move, the battle would not have been so easily won. The sheer number of Dark Guild's Pokémon alone could have overwhelmed them effortlessly.
The potential consequences were too dire to contemplate.
Upon reaching the Pokémon Center, Kalia promptly healed her Pokémon. Meanwhile, Taro led a group of Trainers to chase after the Dark Guild, successfully apprehending a significant number of its members.
However, the Dark Guild's guild master and executives possessed considerable strength. Although Taro could chase them on his Dragonite, these executives scattered to evade capture.
Taro had no choice but to apprehend some members while allowing others, including the guild master, to escape using Staraptors.
"Next, it's time to settle accounts with the Ellie region." Taro was furious; now that the immediate threat of the Dark Guild was dealt with, losing so many members significantly weakened their organization. With only a few executives remaining, one could argue that the Dark Guild was effectively crippled.
Over the past few years, relentless raids by the League had already drastically reduced the Dark Guild's membership. Leaving behind even more ordinary members this time made recruiting new ones extremely challenging.
Unfortunately, they failed to capture the Dark Guild's guild master; otherwise, the guild would have truly been on the brink of extinction.
Soon, Taro returned to the Combat Hall with the Trainers from Sebas, as the previous group from the Ellie region had dispersed earlier.
Their dispersal proved futile, though, since there was a registered list of participating Trainers. Utilizing his authority, Taro swiftly gathered all the competing Trainers together.