Multi-Attack coated the user in powerful energy before it rammed into its opponent. The move's type changed depending on which Memory had been installed, and Silvally was currently a Fairy type. With a base power of 120 and absolutely no drawbacks, Multi-Attack was an incredibly fearsome move.
However, Silvally did not dare rush in recklessly. Conkeldurr was using Poison Jab, which already gave it the type advantage. On top of that, Conkeldurr's Guts Ability had activated, causing its Attack to soar. Under those circumstances, even if Silvally had been given a hundred extra doses of courage, it still would not have dared trade blows with Conkeldurr head-on. It could only wait for an opening.
"Conkeldurr!"
Conkeldurr had absolute confidence in its raw stats. It swung its concrete pillars with tremendous force, producing powerful gusts that stung Silvally's cheeks.
"Raaah!"
Silvally's momentum reached its peak. Normally, this would have been the perfect moment to attack, but when it saw Conkeldurr spinning its concrete pillars around like a pair of windmills, Silvally lost its nerve instead.
It genuinely could not beat this thing!
That brief moment of hesitation gave Conkeldurr the opening it needed. It brought its poison-covered concrete pillar crashing down with overwhelming force.
Silvally had no choice but to cancel Multi-Attack and jump backward. The moment it retreated, Conkeldurr's attack slammed into the ground.
Boom!
The earth trembled as a visible shock wave spread across the battlefield. Had Silvally not leaped high into the air, it would have been caught by the impact created when Poison Jab struck the ground.
However, Conkeldurr was capable of far more than simply smashing the floor. After its first attack missed, it immediately aimed at the airborne Silvally and thrust its concrete pillar upward like a spear. Poison covered the pillar, filling the air with a foul stench.
"Silvally, catch this!"
Even Gladion was intimidated by Conkeldurr's ferocious momentum. He hurriedly pulled out a Steel Memory and manually switched Silvally's type.
What skillful micromanagement!
Grey watched from nearby without issuing Conkeldurr another command, calmly observing Gladion's actions. Unlike Grey, who remained completely relaxed, Gladion had been forced to control every detail of the battle because Silvally's raw stats were too low. He needed to win while paying the smallest possible price. Otherwise, the consequences would be disastrous.
Silvally's cranial interface opened again. After receiving the Steel Memory, its type changed to Steel.
By then, Conkeldurr's attack had already arrived.
Bang!
A heavy impact rang out as the concrete pillar covered in poison struck Silvally directly on the head, leaving it dizzy and disoriented.
The Poison-type energy of Poison Jab could not harm it, but getting hit over the head with a concrete pillar still hurt tremendously. Even though Silvally was an artificial Pokémon, it still possessed a sense of pain.
Silvally staggered several steps and was about to use Aerial Ace when Conkeldurr seized its neck with its free hand.
"Conkeldurr, Brick Break!"
"Conkeldurr!"
Conkeldurr immediately swung its other concrete pillar and smashed it heavily into Silvally's waist.
A relentless series of dull, heavy impacts echoed throughout the Fighting Dojo. A moment later, Silvally lay on the ground with its tongue hanging out, completely unconscious.
"Silvally is unable to battle! Since all of the challenger's Pokémon have been defeated, the winner of this battle is Fighting Dojo Leader Grey!" Bumiao promptly announced.
The battle immediately attracted a great deal of attention online.
[When it comes to raw stats, if Grey's Pokémon call themselves second best, no one would dare call themselves number one.]
[Sweating.jpg. Seriously, could a Fairy-type Pokémon even survive more than a few attacks from this bunch?]
[I asked my Sylveon. It said everyone should relax because it'll step in when the time comes.]
[Your strength truly is remarkable. No wonder my mentor is always praising you! Grey, would you be interested in entering the Pokémon World Coronation Series?]
"Thanks to 'Unbeaten Monarch Leon' for purchasing a Captain membership! Wait, is that really Leon, the Champion of the Galar region? As for the World Coronation Series, I really am interested in entering."
Grey answered honestly. The World Coronation Series offered enormous prize money. If he could actually win the championship, he might finally be able to retire early.
Just thinking about it felt wonderful.
[Then I'll message you privately later, Grey.]
"Sure, no problem. We'll talk later, Leon."
After sending that message, Leon left the livestream. Grey did not end the stream immediately and continued chatting with his viewers.
It had been quite a while since his last broadcast. Had the Fighting Dojo not remained open and most of Grey's Pokémon not been freely roaming around Saffron City, many viewers would have assumed that he had abandoned everything and disappeared.
Running away was impossible. It would never happen in this lifetime.
This was a government job, his bread and butter.
Besides, if Grey truly intended to leave, he would definitely hand the account and everything else over to Bumiao. After the Fighting Dojo merged its operations with Saffron Gym, Grey remained responsible for the dojo's half of the arrangement. Whenever he eventually decided to leave, he could simply hand his share over to Bumiao.
[Hey! Grey, you've been traveling all over lately, first Unova and then Hoenn. Now that the Indigo League Conference is over, you're really living it up, aren't you? I wanted to battle your bird, but I couldn't even find you!]
[Whoa! Another Pokémon battle!]
When Grey saw the comment fly across the screen, several dark lines appeared on his forehead.
"Hey, Lt. Surge! How many times have I told you not to shorten words that absolutely should not be shortened? Say Zapdos, not 'my bird'!"
No one other than Lt. Surge would post a message like that. The man was constantly thinking about battling Grey's Zapdos.
Had this been half a month earlier, Grey might have allowed Lt. Surge to visit the dojo and genuinely granted his request. Now, however, things were different.
How should he put it?
Coming here would only result in Lt. Surge getting completely crushed. Unless Lt. Surge had developed some unusual fondness for suffering, Grey would not recommend challenging Zapdos.
[So, are you staying in Saffron City for the next few days? I can visit when you're free, and we can catch up.]
Lt. Surge sent another comment.
Grey thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I'll probably have to visit Unova in a couple of days. I need to bring someone back."
[Oh? Who are you picking up? Do you need me to contact customs or anything?]
As a colonel from the Unova region, Lt. Surge believed he had plenty of useful connections. If Grey needed assistance getting through customs, he could arrange for someone to escort them and spare Grey the complicated procedures.
"Hmm, I'm going to bring Caitlin here," Grey said.
[Caitlin? Isn't she one of Unova's Elite Four?]
[You're bringing a member of Unova's Elite Four home with you?]
[Isn't Sabrina already living at the Fighting Dojo? Why are you bringing Caitlin over too?]
The viewers were baffled. Then, some of Grey's oldest followers suddenly remembered something.
Caitlin's nickname was Sleeping Beauty.
Wait a minute.
Wasn't Sleeping Beauty Grey's original top female supporter?
Countless viewers immediately began imagining all sorts of possibilities.
Grey had it far too good!
Still, why was a Fighting-type specialist constantly getting entangled with Psychic-type women?
Could this be some kind of unusual preference?
As they pondered the question, another comment from Lt. Surge appeared.
[Well, I really don't know her. If you were asking about Marshal or Grimsley, I'd know them.]
"That shouldn't be a problem. I really will be leaving town in a couple of days. After I return, I'll buy a few supplies for another trip. In about a month, I'll probably head to the Alola region."
Grey revealed his upcoming plans.
[You're that busy? That sounds exhausting.]
"I wouldn't exactly call it busy, but as for being exhausted, I definitely am."
Grey coughed several more times. Combined with the makeup on his face, the effect was rather shocking.
After chatting with his viewers for quite a while longer, Grey finally ended the livestream with honor.
Once the stream was over, Grey opened the creator dashboard and added Leon as a friend. He first invited Leon into the private group chat, then began speaking with him directly.
[Dojo Annihilape: Leon, could you explain roughly how the World Coronation Series works?]
[Unbeaten Monarch Leon: Of course. Basically, you download an app and register through it. After that, you can participate in the World Coronation Series. There are four separate divisions: Normal Class, Great Class, Ultra Class, and finally Master Class.]
[Unbeaten Monarch Leon: Since this is the inaugural World Coronation Series, everyone will be starting from zero. Do you have any other questions?]
[Dojo Annihilape: I do. Aside from me, which Elite Four or Champion-level Trainers have entered this year's World Coronation Series?]
[Unbeaten Monarch Leon: Elite Four members and Champions from all the major regions are participating. I'm certain you'll distinguish yourself among them!]
[Dojo Annihilape: I hope you're right.]
[Unbeaten Monarch Leon: All right, I'll send you the installation package.]
[Unbeaten Monarch Leon: World Coronation Series.apk]
It was even an Android installation package.
Grey happily downloaded and installed it, then followed the instructions to register.
[Name: Grey]
[Identity: Kanto Region, Saffron City, Fighting Dojo Leader]
[Class: Normal Class]
[Registered Pokémon: None]
The information was extremely basic, and Grey would have to enter his Pokémon one at a time. Alternatively, he could directly import his information from the Pokémon League database.
Come to think of it, Grey had not updated his League records in a long time.
He had caught far too many Pokémon, and most of his more recent captures had been Legendary Pokémon. Whenever he registered a Legendary Pokémon, someone from the League would call to verify the information. After it happened repeatedly, Grey became so annoyed that he lost all desire to continue updating his records.
Now, however, it was finally time to register them.
Entering every Pokémon manually would be far too troublesome.
Before heading to the Pokémon Center, Grey still needed to see Wicke and Gladion off.
"Miss Wicke, my dear nephew, let me take you there."
"There's really no need. You're far too generous, Grey. The hotel we booked is very close to here."
Wicke waved her hand and politely declined. Gladion needed to visit Silph Co., so he left as well.
Seeing that they had everything under control, Grey grabbed several Poké Balls and headed toward the Pokémon Center.
"Hello, Nurse Joy. I need to have some Pokémon treated, and I'd also like to register some new information."
Grey handed over Heracross's and Conkeldurr's Poké Balls. He then took out the Poké Balls containing Groudon, Kyogre, Deoxys, and Koraidon so Nurse Joy could help him register them.
"Certainly. I'll register them for you now."
Nurse Joy gave him her signature smile. Soon afterward, the information was uploaded to the Pokémon League's central database.
At Pokémon League headquarters, Lorelei was responsible for reviewing the newly uploaded records.
She was on duty today, and when she saw the new Pokémon information submitted under Grey's name, she casually opened it to see what he had caught.
"Groudon, Kyogre, Deoxys, and Koraidon?! What the hell is this?!"
Lorelei rubbed her eyes, initially believing that she must be seeing things.
Groudon and Kyogre were Hoenn's top-tier Legendary Pokémon!
Grey had visited Hoenn once, so how had he returned after catching the region's most powerful Legendary Pokémon?
Lorelei shot to her feet and immediately called Lance over.
Lance hurried into the records room. When he saw the Pokémon information Grey had uploaded, he sucked in a sharp breath. He began pacing back and forth, looking strangely regretful.
"What's wrong with you, Lance?" Lorelei asked, raising an eyebrow.
Judging by Lance's reaction, he seemed just a little anxious.
"Ah."
Lance merely released a long sigh.
Had Grey been standing in front of him, Lance would have desperately wanted to say something.
You caught Groudon and Kyogre, so why didn't you bring Rayquaza back too?
Rayquaza was a Dragon- and Flying-type Pokémon. Either of those types made it perfectly suited to Lance.
He could have borrowed Rayquaza from Grey and ridden it around for a few laps.
That would have felt incredible!
Unfortunately, Grey had not caught Rayquaza. Otherwise, given Grey's personality, he definitely would have used this opportunity to upload Rayquaza's information too.
Lorelei's eyes shifted thoughtfully before she sent Grey a message.
[Ice-Type Lorelei: Grey, I heard you caught Kyogre.]
[Dojo Annihilape: I did. What's wrong, Lorelei? Do you need me to take a photograph for verification?]
The last time Grey registered a Legendary Pokémon, he had been required to provide photographic proof. He wondered whether Lorelei had contacted him for the same reason.
[Ice-Type Lorelei: No, nothing like that. I just wanted to ask whether you might have some free time later, and whether you would let me ride Kyogre.]
If one rounded generously, Lorelei practically counted as half a Water-type specialist. Faced with the opportunity to ride Kyogre, she could hardly contain her envy.
[Dojo Annihilape: Of course. The next time I visit League headquarters, I'll contact you. Bring Lance along too. I'll call Rayquaza over and let him ride it.]
Lorelei and Lance had frequently used their influence to make things easier for Grey. Naturally, he was willing to grant such a small request.
It was just a shame about Groudon.
Did no one want to ride on its back?
Grey thought Groudon looked extremely imposing. Aside from its inability to fly, there was nothing else to criticize.
The Master Ball containing Groudon suddenly shook.
Some insolent commoner was talking behind its back again!
Back at League headquarters, Lorelei showed Grey's message to Lance.
"Grey, I can't believe you still remembered me."
Seeing that Grey had not forgotten about him and was even willing to call Rayquaza over from Hoenn just so he could ride it, Lance was deeply moved.
Grey, from now on, whatever you need, just say the word!