"The match begins! Aiden Flint moves first! The battlefield is the Ice Arena! Each trainer may use three Pokémon!"
As the referee's voice rang out, Aiden Flint clenched a Luxury Ball in his hand.
The next moment, a streak of light flashed through the air.
Absol—the Disaster Pokémon—appeared on the battlefield.
As Absol emerged, its portrait lit up on the giant screen under Aiden's profile.
"So it's Absol… then I'll go with you. Come on out, Scyther!"
"Ding! Scyther's current stats are as follows:"
Pokémon: Scyther
Level: 52
Ability: Swarm
Type: Bug / Flying
Potential: Purple
Mega Evolution: Locked
Moves: Swords Dance, Fury Cutter, False Swipe, Wing Attack, Slash, X-Scissor, Double Hit…
Seeing Hu You's Scyther, Aiden couldn't help but feel a hint of admiration.
As expected of last year's Hoenn League semifinalist—level 52 already, almost on par with Gym Leaders.
But against him… it still wasn't enough.
"Scyther, use Swords Dance!"
"Absol, we'll do the same—Swords Dance!"
The moment both trainers issued their commands, Absol and Scyther began boosting their attack power simultaneously.
As their strange, sharp movements ended, Swords Dance was complete.
"Scyther, use Quick Attack and follow up with Fury Cutter!"
Bug-type moves had an advantage against Dark-types, so Hu You's choice of Scyther was undoubtedly smart.
But if a trainer could only win by relying on type advantage, there was nothing truly impressive about that.
"Absol, use Air Slash and stop it!"
As Scyther charged forward at blinding speed, Absol swung the blade-like horn on its head, releasing a violent cutting wave!
Boom!
The attack slammed directly into Scyther, interrupting both Quick Attack and Fury Cutter mid-action.
"Well done! Keep going—Flamethrower!"
"Scyther, dodge it!"
At the critical moment, Scyther relied on its speed to narrowly evade Absol's Flamethrower.
Seeing this, Hu You finally let out a breath of relief.
Only then did Aiden realize something.
Now that the battles had reached the top sixteen stage, his opponents were indeed far stronger than before.
If he continued using non-core Pokémon, instant victories were no longer guaranteed.
"Absol, use Future Sight!"
Following Aiden's command, Absol let out a sharp cry as a terrifying surge of psychic energy shot into the sky.
The once-clear sky darkened instantly.
Lightning crackled wildly in the clouds.
Two turns later, this Psychic-type ultimate move would descend and strike Scyther directly.
"Damn it! Scyther, go all out! Charge in and use X-Scissor!"
Knowing Scyther had already been targeted by Future Sight, Hu You had no choice but to gamble everything on an all-out assault.
Scyther's blade-like arms glowed with intense Bug-type energy as it rushed forward.
But Absol didn't retreat at all.
"Air Slash again!"
Boom!
A violent Air Slash erupted, colliding head-on with Scyther's charge.
Taking advantage of the recoil, Hu You immediately threw out a Poké Ball and recalled Scyther.
Since Scyther couldn't defeat Absol, the only option left was to use a Dark-type Pokémon to neutralize Future Sight.
In the next instant, a powerful Crawdaunt appeared on the battlefield.
Aiden naturally checked its stats.
"Ding! Crawdaunt's current stats are as follows:"
Pokémon: Crawdaunt
Level: 55
Ability: Hyper Cutter
Type: Water / Dark
Potential: Purple
Mega Evolution: Locked
Moves: Swift, Bubble Beam, Swords Dance, Guillotine, Crunch, Blizzard, Dark Pulse…
With Crawdaunt's appearance, Future Sight instantly lost its threat.
Dark-type Pokémon were immune to Psychic-type moves.
Moreover, Crawdaunt was far stronger than Scyther.
Keeping Absol on the field would no longer give Aiden any advantage.
So he switched Pokémon.
Absol was recalled.
Glaceon stepped onto the battlefield.
Compared to Absol's level 49, Glaceon was one of Aiden's second-tier core Pokémon—its strength already at peak pseudo-Elite level.
Facing the aura radiating from Glaceon, Hu You's expression changed completely.
At this moment, he no longer cared about the pride of being last year's semifinalist.
He only felt one thing—
His journey in this Hoenn League might truly end here.
"Crawdaunt, use Crabhammer!"
"Glaceon, Ice Beam!"
The battlefield itself was the Ice Arena, giving Glaceon a natural advantage.
A terrifying wave of freezing energy surged forward.
In the next instant, Crawdaunt was completely frozen solid.
One strike.
Instant defeat.
Crawdaunt still maintained its charging posture inside the ice, but its battle had already ended.
"Ding! Glaceon has defeated Crawdaunt and gained 857 experience points. Level unchanged. Current level: Lv.59!"
"Crawdaunt has lost the ability to battle! Glaceon wins!"
Hearing the referee's announcement, Hu You could only helplessly send Scyther back onto the field.
The next moment, the Future Sight that had been hanging in the sky finally descended.
Lightning crashed down violently, engulfing Scyther in a storm of psychic energy.
When the sky cleared again, Scyther lay charred on the ground, completely unconscious.
The battle was over.
…
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