They had reached a deadlock.
Machop was on the verge of collapse.
How were they supposed to deal with the seven remaining Gastly? Gastly had already absorbed vitality from five of them and was at its limit.
[Shadow Hypnosis] couldn't be used either, since those seven Gastly were solely focused on Machop and not paying attention elsewhere.
The only option might be to wait. Once Machop was defeated, the Gastly would naturally shift their attention. At that point, [Shadow Hypnosis] could finally work.
That was the plan in Tetsuya's mind.
No matter how urgently Raine called for Tetsuya's Gastly to assist Machop, Tetsuya remained completely unmoved.
With a final burst of willpower, Machop launched a desperate counterattack, grabbing the tongues of two Gastly mid-Lick.
Relying on its strength, Machop easily pulled the two Gastly in and slammed each one to the ground with Knock Off. With just this tiny opening, it took down two Gastly in an instant.
The performance was so "impressive" that it sparked a competitive fire in Tetsuya's Gastly!
From within the Night Shade cloud, dozens of tiny glowing orbs shot out like fireflies, floating outward and surrounding the remaining five Gastly. The lights tightened and pierced into their bodies.
Immediately, all five Gastly fell into confusion.
'Oh… Confuse Ray.'
Tetsuya nodded. Gastly had learned a new move mid-battle.
The five confused Gastly stumbled and swayed. Fueled by fury, Raine and Machop didn't hesitate.
Machop unleashed Knock Off with all its strength. The fragile Gastly couldn't withstand the blow. They were all eliminated.
Meanwhile, Ditto, using the speed it had developed through long-term training, managed to defeat the remaining Haunter.
Two Haunter. Twenty Gastly.
All defeated!
---◓---
After eighteen days, Tetsuya and Raine finally cleared the first floor of Brass Tower.
In his previous life, Tetsuya had attempted this countless times with repeated failures. But this time, success ignited a deep, long-buried excitement within him.
Even more satisfying was that Gastly had learned the highly practical move Confuse Ray. Unlike Hypnosis, which required eye contact -face-to-face- and had a relatively low success rate, Confuse Ray could lock onto targets more effectively. Unless the opponent was extremely fast, it almost always hit.
They walked out of Brass Tower.
Morty was waiting outside. "Congratulations to both of you for clearing the first floor of Brass Tower! My father is waiting for you in the study. Please follow me."
'The study?'
Tetsuya and Raine felt a surge of anticipation. It had been almost twenty days since they arrived at Ecruteak Gym. Every morning they cleaned the place, and aside from Matsuba's study, they'd inspected every corner without finding anything out of the ordinary.
Naturally, they had already pegged Matsuba's study as their target. But the door was always locked, and they didn't dare act rashly. That meant that until now, they'd found no leads about any Ghost-type manuals.
Now they were being invited into Matsuba's study. Tetsuya and Raine were more alert than ever!
Following Morty, the two of them entered Matsuba's study.
Inside were only two sets of chairs and desks.
Normally, only Matsuba and his son were allowed in. The room had no windows, just walls lined with bookshelves filled with all sorts of books. The only light came from lamps, giving the room a dim, cold atmosphere. It hadn't seen sunlight in years.
From the moment they stepped into Matsuba's study, Tetsuya and Raine were scanning the room from top to bottom. Their expressions feigned curiosity, but their intentions were anything but innocent…
"Two people, eighteen days, and you've cleared the first floor of Brass Tower… that's a rare achievement. But don't let your guard down. The second floor will be much harder!"
Matsuba looked at Tetsuya and Raine with clear satisfaction. Indeed, this result was enough to please him. In past years, many couldn't clear the first floor even after a year. The fastest record before this had been a month. Tetsuya and Raine had now set a new one.
"Since you've cleared the first floor, it's time for me to keep my promise. The five TM discs on the left are moves Gastly can learn. Tetsuya, pick one. The five on the right are for Duskull. Raine, you pick one too."
TMs discs were used together with learning devices.
This industry was monopolized by the League.
The League employed specialized Researchers and Breeders to raise a variety of Pokémon. In short, these Pokémon would demonstrate and "explain" certain moves, highlighting the techniques, mechanics, and how to use them. That "knowledge" was then recorded onto a disc. Each TM could be used only once before being erased.
Because of this, TMs were incredibly expensive and strictly single-use. Reuse was completely impossible.
The League earned enough revenue from TMs sales each year to rival the annual budget of third- and fourth-tier cities.
Tetsuya and Raine both understood the value of these TMs, which made them even more cautious in their selection.
The five TM discs presented to Tetsuya were:
[Psychic: A Psychic-type Special Attack move that strikes the opponent with strong telekinetic force. Has a 10% chance of lowering the target's Special Defense by one stage.]
[Shadow Ball: A Ghost-type Special Attack move that hurls a shadowy blob at the opponent. Has a 20% chance of lowering the target's Special Defense by one stage.]
[Sludge Bomb: A Poison-type Special Attack move that throws sludge at the opponent. Has a 30% chance of inflicting poisoning.]
[Double Team: By moving rapidly, creates multiple afterimages -or clons- to confuse the opponent, raising evasion.]
[Embargo: A Dark-type status move. Prevents the target from using Held Items for a period of time. Trainers also cannot use Items on that Pokémon.]
The probability percentages listed on the TM descriptions were just statistical summaries. With proper use, even a move with a listed chance could hit every time. Conversely, against high-level opponents with strong defenses, those effects might never land at all…
Among the five TMs, three were offensive, and two were status moves.
For Tetsuya, the choice was clear.
First to go was Shadow Ball. Gastly would naturally learn it as it "leveled up". Using a precious TM on it would be a waste.
Double Team could be learned naturally if the Pokémon had enough Speed. Plus, it wasn't a particularly expensive TM, so it wasn't worth choosing.
Sludge Bomb? 'Heh…' Tetsuya shook his head. He intended to personally teach Gastly that move. In his previous life, he'd spent half his career "specializing" in Poison-types. His understanding of Poison moves far exceeded anything a "modern" TM could offer.
Psychic was undeniably powerful and practical. But it didn't synergize well with Gastly's current move set. And since it also had a Poison typing, careless use could lead to severe backlash from opposing telekinetic forces and Psychic-type energy.
Which left Embargo… a move that sounded unimpressive based on its description.
But in reality, on Pokémon, Embargo used an overwhelming Dark-type "aura" pressure to stun the opponent, leaving their body stiff and their movements restricted. The duration of this effect varied depending on the opponent's nature.
For Tetsuya's current Gastly, Embargo was by far the most applicable. It could restrict the opponet's movements, increasing the success rate of [Shadow Hypnosis] to its maximum potential.