"Hoo—"
Standing on the battlefield, Lance took a deep breath.
As a veteran trainer who has experienced countless battles and faced rookie challenges at the Indigo Conference over a dozen times, a mere semifinal match was far from enough to make him nervous.
So, his deep breath had another reason—
Using a new tactic in public for the first time, even Lance felt some pressure.
However, as long as he could secure victory, everything would be worth it.
With this thought, his gaze gradually became resolute.
"Mr. Lance quickly adjusted his state and appears ready for battle!"
Aiden keenly noticed this change, looking astonished.
What's going on? Did you have an epiphany before the match?
Even if you are a protagonist, don't show off your cheats so obviously!
"The fighting spirit on both sides is very intense."
Cynthia looked down below, her eyes intensely focused, patiently waiting for the battle to officially begin.
Soon, the host's introduction ended.
The Poké Balls in both trainers' hands were simultaneously thrown out.
"Mr. Drake's starter is—Flygon!"
A flash of red light later, a Pokémon that looked like a giant dragonfly but actually possessed the noble Dragon-type appeared.
Flygon, a Ground/Dragon-type Pokémon, thanks to its wings, also possessed flying capabilities, with Levitate being its ability in the Pokédex.
As one of the earliest Pokémon discovered in the deserts of Hoenn, it was normal for Elite Four member Drake to have this Pokémon.
As for Lance's starter...
It was no surprise—it was the seemingly gentle yet incredibly powerful Dragonite.
[By the way, I remember the Pokédex description of Dragonite says it's rare, right? But there are Dragonite mail carriers in Paldea and Galar, so they seem pretty common?]
[Huh? Seeing a Dratini once in our area is like hitting the jackpot!]
[Actually, Dratini are rare in most regions, let alone evolving into Dragonite...]
"To be fair, that's true."
Aiden nodded in response to the chat's discussion.
Dragonite evolves from Dratini.
Though it was one of the earliest confirmed pseudo-legendaries, its existence remained shrouded in mystery for a long time.
Until...
Someone accidentally caught a wild Dratini while fishing.
The anglers in this world still maintain their persona; indeed, they can catch anything but fish.
Oh, perhaps that's not entirely accurate.
Since Magikarp is the baseline code in the Pokémon water ecosystem, anglers probably catch them 99% of the time...
Of course, though the Pokédex description of Dragonite reads as such, it's not entirely correct.
The reason is simple—
Who was the first person to edit the Pokédex? Professor Oak from the Kanto region!
In the environment of the Indigo Plateau, raising a Dratini would be a miracle...
If he visited Casseroya Lake in Paldea, he'd discover places where Dratinis are as common as stray dogs, and the Pokédex entry might get rewritten.
This situation isn't uncommon.
"After the battle begins, Lance's Dragonite initiates the attack, using the move..."
"Ice Punch!"
The two Pokémon on the field quickly began their respective actions.
Aiden's gaze followed Flygon, which kept flapping its wings at high frequency and skillfully dodging Dragonite's lethal attacks.
Being fellow members of the quadruple Ice-weak family, Dragonite's Ice Punch in a dragon civil war was enough to devastate all opponents.
However, Elite Four member Drake dared to send out this Flygon for a reason.
The logic was simple: Dragonite couldn't keep up with Flygon's speed.
This was ironic because Dragonite was described for its incredible speed.
But in battle, it was a different story.
Dragonite's large body, although surpassing many Pokémon in top speed, lost flexibility when turning.
Several punches that seemed perilous were easily dodged by Flygon with a slight change in direction.
The two Pokémon darted and dodged in the air, yet no effective attack landed.
Soon, Aiden immediately noticed something amiss with Dragonite.
Its movement speed had unknowingly slowed significantly, and it hesitated noticeably when throwing punches.
Gazing at Flygon's rapidly vibrating wings, which seemed to emit ultrasonic frequencies inaudible to human ears, he quickly realized and exclaimed:
"Supersonic!"
No doubt about it, Dragonite's reaction earlier clearly indicated it was about to fall into a confused state, so all of this was within Elite Four member Drake's calculations!
Confusion is a very troublesome status condition; sometimes confused Pokémon even attack themselves.
"Mr. Lance noticed this too. He now dares not gamble on whether his Dragonite can catch up with Flygon, so he decisively recalled it."
"Letting the Pokémon cool down inside its Poké Ball naturally resolves many conditions."
As Aiden spoke, Lance threw out another Poké Ball.
The Pokémon that emerged was the same as before, just another, more ferocious-looking Dragonite.
Daring to use two identical Pokémon in the Master Tournament could only be done by someone as confident in their abilities as Lance.
Of course, Dragonite's terrifying move pool was also a factor.
The opponent couldn't guess its configuration; whether Ice Punch or Ice Beam, both were extremely threatening in a dragon civil war.
After years of battling Lorelei, enduring hits alone might have taught Dragonite this move.
Lance's switch was anticipated by Drake, and the covert Supersonic's purpose was precisely to force the opponent to make substitutions.
If not switched, confusion might cause Dragonite to lose a significant portion of its prized Multiscale.
"Flygon, Dragon Dance!"
Seizing the opportunity, Drake chose to directly strengthen.
As a powerful move only strong dragons could learn, the pressure brought by Dragon Dance far exceeded Dragonite's previous Ice Punch.
Because once strengthened, Flygon had the potential to sweep the team.
However, Lance showed no reaction to Drake's command.
In this critical moment, the corners of his mouth began to twitch violently.
Because...
The thought of what he had to do next made him a bit uncontrollable.
Watching Flygon perform the ancient dance, without the trainer's command, Dragonite also didn't dare to act rashly.
Only when Flygon was about to finish strengthening did Lance suddenly speak, his voice extremely sharp—
"Dragonite!"
"Again!"
As if rehearsed countless times before, Dragonite quickly spat out pure energy, taking advantage of Flygon's post-Dragon Dance momentum to strike instantly, soon merging into the opponent's body.
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