The recruitment prompt popped up a second time:
[Recruit? Selecting 'Yes' will trigger related dialogue with the target!]
«Note: General-level Pokémon refresh randomly and do not remain in the same territory for long. If the player wishes to recruit one, please do so promptly. Each general-grade Pokémon has different recruitment conditions. Players must fulfill the conditions they set in order to bring them under their command...»
With a mindset of giving it a try, Caleb selected 'Yes'.
The next moment, the Tyranitar seemed to receive some kind of signal, turned around, then looked directly at him and let out a roar.
Though Caleb couldn't understand the words, he somehow grasped their meaning.
Tyranitar: "You, are the master of this place?"
Caleb nodded, "Yes."
Tyranitar: "Want, to subdue me? Simple, defeat me, you are, my master."
Caleb: "…"
'Is Infinite World acting as a translator?' He wondered. Though the translation was awkward, the meaning wasn't hard to understand.
Caleb nodded slightly and said, "Alright."
As soon as he spoke, a notification from Infinite World rang out:
*Ding!*
[Tyranitar's Combat Trial has been triggered!]
[Objective: Defeat Tyranitar within three minutes. Success will grant you General Tyranitar!]
Both sides prepared simultaneously, and the surrounding light instantly dimmed.
The tavern's noisy sounds vanished, along with all the tables and chairs. In the blink of an eye, only a dark space remained.
Caleb and Tyranitar stood at opposite ends of the darkness... this was their battlefield.
Tyranitar roared toward the sky, and a dense sandstorm began to whip through the dark space.
- Ability: Sand Stream. When the user enters battle, the weather becomes a sandstorm...
How do you fight a Rock/Dark dual-type Tyranitar? The answer was obviously Fighting-type.
"Lucario!" Caleb pulled a Poké Ball from his inventory.
With a flash of dazzling white light, Lucario landed on the ground in a cool pose.
The battle officially began...
Neither side moved immediately.
Under sandstorm conditions, Lucario's vision was somewhat impaired. He calmly watched Tyranitar across the field, waiting for his trainer's command.
Tyranitar's figure was shrouded in the dim sandstorm, hidden by the darkness, making it impossible to see its exact movements at first glance.
"Do you remember what I told you before?" Caleb asked.
Back in the Collapsed World, he had specifically trained Lucario to master and use Aura according to a custom regimen.
For example, sensing the surroundings using only Aura, without relying on sight. As the saying went, "More skills are better than less."
The battle environments in Instances were often overly complex. Darkness, weather, and terrain could easily affect a Pokémon's performance, disrupting their vision, hearing, and smell.
Learning to fight using Aura without external conditions was a training Caleb had recently given Lucario.
Dragonite and the others were a different story. Unlike Lucario, they didn't possess special powers like Aura, so Caleb's plans for them were different.
Take Hydreigon, for instance... Caleb intended to train it into an airborne mobile turret, using its ability to fly to unleash relentless attacks from above.
Hydreigon already had high Special Attack IVs, and Caleb had given it several Special Attack boosters. If it went all out, even Celebi might not be able to match it.
Not to mention Dragonite's daily personal guidance. With such excellent Pokémon, Caleb found things incredibly efficient and worry-free...
Upon hearing his words, Lucario nodded. He instantly understood what Caleb meant.
Invisible Aura spread outward from his body. The moment he activated Aura, time itself seemed to slow down. Everything around him rapidly surfaced in Lucario's mind... from the tiniest dust particles in the air, to Tyranitar hidden in the sandstorm.
White particles began to gather in Tyranitar's mouth. At that moment, Lucario's eyes snapped open.
Tyranitar was aiming to use Hyper Beam!
At the same time, Lucario heard his trainer's calm voice echo in his mind:
"Left side, twelve o'clock! Dodge!"
Lucario's body moved instantly.
In perfect sync with Caleb's thoughts, he understood his intent even before the words were spoken.
"Next up… Dodge, then close in with Quick Attack, followed by a point-blank Aura Sphere."
Sensing Caleb's plan, Lucario sprang into action. After easily dodging Tyranitar's Hyper Beam, he transformed into a sharp white streak, charging toward Tyranitar at incredible speed.
Before Tyranitar could react, Lucario collided head-on with it, and an Aura Sphere instantly formed in his hand, blasting straight into Tyranitar's face.
The hit landed, and after such a rapid combo, Tyranitar staggered. But its footing was too solid. The attack didn't knock it down. Instead, as it retreated, it swung its thick, powerful tail covered in armor-like scales.
That was the Dragon-type move, Dragon Tail!
Lucario was struck and thrown backward...
As he regained his footing, a wave of malicious energy surged from Tyranitar's mouth. It sliced through the sand and hit Lucario.
Seeing this, Caleb raised an eyebrow in surprise, "This Tyranitar's reaction speed is impressive. Its Dark Pulse charge time is fast too..."
Caleb had seen other Pokémon use Dark Pulse before, and they usually had a clear two-to-three-second wind-up.
But this Tyranitar's charge time was only about 1.5 seconds. It was so fast, that Caleb almost didn't react in time.
Still… no matter how strong Tyranitar was, this battle was entirely under Caleb's control... Letting Lucario take that Dark Pulse was a deliberate move by Caleb and Lucario.
Otherwise, with Lucario's agility, he could have easily recovered mid-fall and dodged it.
Which brings us to Lucario's hidden ability...
- Ability: Justified... When the Pokémon is hit by a Dark-type attack, its Attack stat is boosted by its sense of justice...
And now it was Lucario's turn!
"Lucario!" Caleb called out.
>..Yes!..<
Lucario responded telepathically.
"Use Extreme Speed to close in, then use Close Combat to end this battle!"
Close Combat has a base power of 120. With type advantage, the damage was already high.
Add in the ability's Attack boost and the Gigantamax Slayer title's amplification, and even a full-health Tyranitar likely couldn't withstand the blow...