Anabel stood in the trainer's box, her expression serious. "Gary, Mr. Scott told me yesterday that you're the strongest challenger in the history of the Battle Frontier. He asked me to face you with everything I have."
"I won't disappoint you in this match, so I hope you'll give it your all too."
After she said this, Gary glanced toward the audience. He spotted Scott turning his head to the side, feigning ignorance. Gary could only sigh. He'd only taken a few gold coins off the man—why did it have to come to this?
Still, this actually worked in his favor. The stronger the Pokémon the Frontier Brains sent out, the richer the system's task rewards would be. And Anabel was strong. Gary even suspected she might have a Champion-level Pokémon on her team.
"Miss Anabel, rest assured. Facing you, I wouldn't dare grow complacent. I'll defeat you with everything I've got," Gary replied.
[Ding! Mission issued: Obtain the Ability Symbol. Reward: High-grade Rare Candy ×6, Ability Enhancement Stone ×1, Silver Crown ×1, Self-selected Permanent Move Learner ×1!]
The system task appeared. Seeing that the reward only listed high-grade Rare Candy, Gary guessed that Anabel either didn't have a Champion-level Pokémon, or she had one but didn't intend to use it.
"Alright, let's begin," Anabel said, signaling the referee.
"Next, the Frontier Battle between challenger Gary and Frontier Brain Anabel will now commence. Each side may use three Pokémon, and only the challenger has the right to substitute Pokémon—"
"Hold on!" Gary suddenly cut in.
"Huh? Is something wrong?" The referee blinked, momentarily worried he'd made an error in his announcement.
"Let's drop the substitution rule. Miss Anabel should be able to switch too. Since we're both going all out, it'll be fairer that way. I don't want to take advantage. And let's release our Pokémon at the same time," Gary said.
Scott: "Oh...! ∑(OvO)!!"
Scott was taken aback. He hadn't expected Gary to request a change to the rules. The kid was that confident.
"Alright, I'll do as you suggest," Anabel agreed. As a Trainer, whenever she met a rival on her level, she had no desire to be bound by the usual restrictions. She just wanted a proper fight.
"Then allow me to announce it again." The referee nodded. "The Frontier Battle between challenger Gary and Frontier Brain Anabel will now begin. Each side may use three Pokémon, and both sides may substitute at will. Please release your Pokémon simultaneously."
As the words fell, Gary called out, "Eevee, you'll start us off."
Eevee dashed out of the trainer's box and into the arena.
Anabel threw a Poké Ball. In a flash of light, a Metagross appeared—Hoenn's pseudo-legendary.
[Lv. 64 Metagross / Champion Potential]
Since the very first Pokémon she sent out had Champion-level potential, the strength of her remaining two would surely be no lower than Metagross. Given another five or six years, Gary thought, Anabel could easily earn a seat among the Kanto Elite Four.
"An Eevee?" Anabel was secretly surprised. As a Psychic-type specialist, she knew Eevee well, and in her mind, it simply wasn't qualified for a battle like this.
Seeing both Pokémon on the field, the referee announced, "Ready... Go!!"
The moment he finished, Gary ordered, "Swift!"
"Vee!" Eevee swung its tail, and countless golden stars condensed in an instant, homing in on Metagross on their own.
Anabel didn't give a single command. Metagross acted on instinct, raising a steel arm sheathed in metallic energy. The energy formed into a comet-like arc, and with one sweep of its arm, all the stars shattered.
But Swift had only been a feint. While Metagross was busy destroying the stars, Eevee closed in fast.
Anabel saw it coming and frowned, syncing her mind with Metagross. Its eyes flared with blue light as it unleashed a powerful surge of psychic energy. Eevee sensed the danger instantly and leapt aside, dodging the invisible force.
"What!"
Both Anabel and Metagross were stunned. Neither could believe Eevee had dodged Psychic.
"Fire Blast!" Gary pressed the attack.
"Vee!" Fire welled up in Eevee's mouth, and it spat out a huge fireball that came crashing down.
Boom!! The enormous blast left Metagross nowhere to hide, and it took the Fire Blast head-on.
"What?! Fire Blast?!" Now not only was Anabel confused, but even Scott was shocked.
As the smoke cleared, Metagross was still standing, but it had been badly wounded by the attack.
"Metagross, use Agility to close in on Eevee," Anabel ordered.
Metagross used Agility, its psychic power boosting its speed as it flickered around Eevee. Yet Eevee stayed perfectly calm, sensing no real threat.
"If you feel Metagross attacking, block it with Reflect," Gary said.
The instant he spoke, Metagross materialized behind Eevee, its fist coated in thick steel energy and hurtling in like a comet.
Eevee spun around and conjured a transparent Reflect barrier.
Clang!! Metagross's Meteor Mash slammed into the Reflect and was stopped cold.
"Fire Blast!" Eevee spat out another blast.
At such close range, Metagross had no room to escape and was struck directly once more.
Boom!! The explosion erupted, and Eevee was thrown back by the shockwave.
"Nngh..." Metagross wheezed, its mouth open as it struggled to breathe. It couldn't hold up under the relentless Fire Blasts.
"Metagross is nearly done. Finish it with Flare Blitz," Gary said, seizing the moment.
"Vee!!" A scorching heat burst from Eevee's body, wreathing it in flames as it charged straight at Metagross.
"Metagross, use Hyper Beam!" Anabel shouted.
"Meta!!" Metagross opened its huge mouth, an orange energy ball forming inside before it fired a destructive beam of light at Eevee.
Eevee sidestepped the Hyper Beam with a lightning-quick movement.
"What!" Anabel was shaken. Eevee had dodged yet another of Metagross's attacks. Its evasion rate was absurdly high.
Bang! Eevee crashed head-on into Metagross. Small as it was, the impact still sent Metagross sliding back several meters.
"Meta!!" Metagross collapsed to the ground, its eyes closing. It couldn't get back up.
"Metagross is unable to battle! Eevee wins!" the referee declared.
Anabel stared at Eevee in disbelief. Her Metagross had been defeated by an Eevee.