As the rounds progressed, it soon became the turn of the Pokémon Nightstar Club representing Ironvale City.
To secure victory at this stage, the club decided not to send Ethan at the start, but instead let the other members go first to probe and wear down the opposing team, leaving Ethan as the final trump card in the rear.
The development of the initial match was quite smooth. In the first round, Ethan didn't even need to participate: with just eight of their members, the Club won the matchup outright.
It was only in the second round that problems arose. The battle was extremely close, and in the end everything came down to one last showdown: only Ethan and the opposing captain remained without having participated.
"So, you're my final opponent?"
Standing before Ethan was a middle-aged man.
Seeing the young man who still looked somewhat inexperienced, the man curved his lips into a confident smile. Clearly, he believed this battle was already his.
"A Golbat that specializes in speed, huh?"
Ethan observed the Pokémon flying in the sky, narrowing his eyes.
With any of his powerhouses, he could win easily. But after thinking for a moment, he took out Vibrava's Poké Ball and released it into the field.
"Vibrava?"
Seeing his choice, the members of the Pokémon Nightstar Club changed their expressions.
In their memory, that Pokémon wasn't among the ones Ethan normally used; clearly, it was one he had trained recently.
And in such a decisive battle, instead of sending Sandslash, Cacturne, or Slowking, he chose to send Vibrava! This caused some displeasure among them.
Although, they immediately remembered that last time Ethan had also used Cacnea when no one believed in him... and he still won. That eased their worries a bit, though concern was still evident on their faces.
"Seriously, Vibrava?"
"Its wings aren't even fully developed. How is it supposed to be a match for my Golbat?"
The opposing trainer was delighted with Ethan's choice, completely convinced of his victory.
In a duel between flying Pokémon, the one with the greatest flying capability gains an overwhelming advantage.
"Vibrava, show them what you can do."
"When it comes to mastering flight, I don't think you're inferior to that Golbat."
Ethan smiled. If it were another type of battle, he might worry about Vibrava's underdeveloped wings.
But if it came down strictly to flight skills, Ethan knew that a Pokémon that could already float by itself and that mastered both the Levitate ability and the move Tailwind would not be inferior.
"Start the battle!"
"Golbat, use Air Cutter."
The opponent gave the order without hesitation.
Five blades of air appeared almost instantly, shooting toward Vibrava. The five were so close together that they practically sealed off every escape route: a demonstration of mastery over Flying-type energy.
"Evade them."
Ethan's voice remained calm, showing absolute confidence in his Pokémon.
Vibrava focused...
But to everyone's surprise, it remained suspended in the air without moving!
"Did it freeze up?"
"Move! Get away! You're going to get hit!"
The audience, who had heard Ethan's command perfectly, grew nervous seeing Vibrava floating motionless.
But in the next instant, Vibrava was pushed backward, causing a collective gasp.
"This Vibrava... is it stupid?"
"N-no! It didn't get hit!"
Sometimes, the inexperienced only see the spectacle; the experts see the details.
Some more skilled trainers understood immediately: that wasn't the impact of the attack. Vibrava had perfectly detected the airflow generated by the wind blades and let itself be carried by it, dodging the attack with precision.
"It worked... Taking him out every day to get some air wasn't in vain."
Ethan smiled.
The idea had come to him while walking around with Vibrava: when he held it, it was so light that it felt like a helium balloon. It reminded him of how dandelion seeds float with the wind, always drifting just out of reach of anyone trying to catch them.
The principle was simple: Reduce its weight to the minimum using the Levitate ability,
Become as light as fluff, And let the wind carry it away from the enemy's attack.
But achieving this was extremely difficult: it required completely canceling out its body weight, detecting the correct airflow with precision, and letting it take you. If Vibrava rode the wrong current... or got caught between two opposing currents... it would end up falling uncontrollably to the ground.
"Damn it, how did it dodge!?"
The opponent also noticed something was off. His confident smile froze, and his expression darkened.
"Vibrava, use Sonic Boom."
Just as Golbat was left rigid after its aerial attack, Ethan gave his order.
BOOM!
A blast echoed in the air. Golbat bent violently as if struck by a projectile and was sent flying backward.
"Huh? Did Golbat also get blown away?"
The audience didn't react immediately. After seeing Vibrava "fly backward" earlier, they hesitated for a second.
But in the next moment, Golbat plummeted to the ground... unmoving.
The answer was obvious.
Even though Vibrava wasn't a Flying-type, its natural flight talent was far superior to Golbat's.
And when Golbat lost in the very thing it prided itself on...
Defeat was inevitable—utter and complete!
(End of chapter)