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Boom!
An explosion erupted across the grass.
Kael's water-blue figure shot forward like a miniature missile, rushing straight toward Dwebble.
The brilliant white light gathered around his right fist was like a meteor in the night sky, leaving a dazzling trail through the air.
Screech.
The air blocking his path was torn apart with ease, letting out a pained wail.
At a speed impossible for human eyes to catch, Kael arrived in front of Dwebble in an instant.
His right fist clenched tightly, and the powerful energy contained within it even made the surrounding air faintly blur.
He swung down.
Bang!
A deafening roar suddenly rang out as the fist wrapped in dazzling white light made intimate contact with the hard rock covered in a thin layer of Water-type energy.
Could it block the attack?
Of course not.
Kael's physical condition, enhanced by system items, had already surpassed the limits ordinary Pokémon could reach.
His level 15 strength was also a height most players could not currently attain.
This Pound, which he had spent a large amount of time and energy preparing, could confidently be said to be something ninety-nine percent of players at the current stage could not withstand.
Crack.
The thin energy barrier was shattered with ease, turning into countless scattered, powerless blue points of light that splashed into the surrounding air like sparks from a forge.
Bang. Crack.
A huge dent appeared on Dwebble's dark-brown rock, and spiderweb-like cracks spread outward.
The shelter rock Dwebble had spent so long polishing had been turned into useless scrap in an instant under Kael's violent strike.
Kael withdrew his fist at extreme speed. His small body was still suspended in the air from the leap he had made to attack, and his clear blue eyes stared down at Dwebble beneath him.
Although that punch had not injured Dwebble's actual body through its heavy shell, it had completely broken through the opponent's defense.
To truly end the battle, with Dwebble's embarrassing defensive ability after losing its shell, all he needed was one ordinary punch.
Strength gathered in his arm. He drew it back and prepared to strike again.
But at that moment, Dwebble moved.
"Now!"
At the edge of the field, the gloomy-looking player's eyes were bloodshot as he roared in madness.
He knew his strength was not enough.
Even Noan had failed to defeat Sobble, so his own chances of winning were even slimmer.
Because of that, if he wanted to fight for the slightest chance of victory, he could only use a trick.
Sobble's unmatched mobility was something Dwebble could never compare to.
Only by sacrificing Dwebble's most important defensive ability could he obtain a brief opportunity to bring Sobble close and pursue that final chance of victory.
"Sand Attack!"
Dwebble raised both claws, and dense yellow sand formed from Ground-type energy was suddenly thrown toward Kael in midair.
The range was not especially wide, but it was more than enough to block Kael's vision.
"Bad."
Kael's heart suddenly jumped.
The dense sand rushing toward him reduced his vision to the lowest possible level while also severely limiting his flexibility.
"I have to create distance."
Under gravity's pull, Kael's small body landed back on the ground.
Before he could move, a bone-chilling cold surged toward him like a winter gale, and his danger alarm screamed wildly.
"Fury Cutter!"
The yellow sand filling the air was suddenly split apart by two X-shaped streaks of sharp green light.
Dwebble, carrying the already broken dark-brown rock on its back, had crossed its sharp claws in front of itself. Green Bug-type energy covered the tips like two poisoned assassin daggers.
Cold, razor-sharp light bloomed from them.
At that moment, Dwebble and its Trainer's true intention was completely exposed before Kael's eyes.
At the start of the battle, they had taken a defensive position and deliberately shown weakness, luring Kael into close range.
Then, at the cost of Dwebble's hard shell, they had consumed Kael's energy and obtained the opportunity for close combat.
Next, they used Sand Attack to block Kael's sight.
Finally, they released Fury Cutter to seize that one thin chance of victory.
Each of the four steps is connected tightly with the next. If even one part had been missing, the entire battle plan would have collapsed.
But fortunately for them, nothing had gone wrong.
The current Kael had completely fallen into the enemy's deadly trap.
In one second…
No, in only half a second, when those sharp blades wrapped in green energy landed on his soft water-blue skin, he would be severely injured, lose the ability to battle, and suffer his first defeat at the hands of a player.
Time seemed to freeze.
Kael's clear blue pupils, like the two most beautiful glass beads in the world, reflected the two X-shaped green blades in front of him.
His thoughts raced.
At that moment, images flashed through Kael's mind like slides. In the span of a lightning spark, countless countermeasures appeared, only to be eliminated one after another.
"Cover my body with Water-type energy and take the attack head-on?"
"No. I can't block it. Impossible."
"Ignore the slash and attack instead, using offense as defense?"
"No. Too late."
"…"
Precious time vanished in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, only one usable method remained in Kael's mind.
"Dodge."
Such a simple word required a level of physical strength and bodily energy that ordinary people could not imagine.
But right now, this was the only option left to Kael.
His eyes suddenly became hollow.
It was not because he had lost focus. On the contrary, it was proof that his concentration had reached an extreme level.
He gritted his teeth and used every bit of strength to control his muscles, tilting his body backward.
Including the broad tail behind him, his two small legs pressing against the ground erupted with force.
At this critical moment, Deoxys Speed Forme's Cosmic DNA, which Kael had exchanged for in the reincarnation space, played a massive role.
This item had raised his agility by a large margin above his original foundation.
And agility included exactly what Kael needed most at this moment.
Reaction.
Explosion.
Dexterity.
Under its effect, Kael's body actually broke through common sense. Like it had shifted sideways through space, it suddenly retreated by a short distance.
Slice.
The X-shaped green light cut down, but it only tore through several afterimages in the air.
Dwebble and its Trainer's long-planned final killing move was barely resolved by Kael's calm response.
Kael seized the opportunity to retreat quickly and pull away from his opponent.
The dangerous scene, like walking along the edge of a cliff, remained vivid in his mind and made his heart pound wildly.
Fortunately, although it had been somewhat ugly, he had dodged it.
But at that moment, the gloomy player at the edge of the field, whose plan had failed, suddenly moved.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
(Just remove the - hyphen to access normally)
Thank you so much for your support and for reading!