Mismagius finished casting Curse. A gray breath of death drifted toward Metagross, sinking into its body like a flash of lightning. Metagross had no time to dodge.
"Mita!!"
Metagross let out a low groan of pain as an ominous gray-black gas flared up on its body. The Curse had taken effect.
"Metagross! Psychic!"
Caitlin's current state was very strange. Powerful psychic energy surged through her body, but she was doing her best to suppress it. She kept trying to settle her emotions and force herself to stay calm.
Metagross endured the first erosion of the Curse. A deep blue light glowed in its eyes, and a wave of multicolored telekinetic energy surged toward Mismagius.
The Psychic move!
"It's useless," Damian muttered with a faint smile, looking down. "Protect."
A green barrier spread out in front of Mismagius.
Psychic slammed hard against the barrier, but it was no use. Protect steadily blocked Metagross's attack.
Caitlin's chest began to heave even faster, and the blue flashes in her eyes became more frequent.
"Bullet Punch!"
Since pure long-range attacks weren't working, she would use Bullet Punch to close the gap before attacking again.
Caitlin's reasoning was sound for a normal situation, but Metagross's current condition was anything but normal.
Metagross's massive claws glowed with a silver light—the priority move, Bullet Punch!
But before Metagross could travel far, its body suddenly jerked. The gray, ominous power of the Curse struck again.
Metagross let out another pained cry. The pain from the Curse's erosion was intense.
On the other hand, Mismagius gave a sharp, piercing cackle upon seeing Metagross suffer for the second time.
It was nothing but pure mockery!
Seeing this, Caitlin finally snapped. Her overwhelming psychic power erupted uncontrollably. She was going to teach this despicable Mismagius a lesson!
Caitlin reached out her pale right hand in a gripping motion. A visible blue psychic force suddenly clamped down on Mismagius, pinning it in place.
Mismagius didn't struggle. Instead, it tilted its head in confusion, staring at Caitlin with a dazed expression.
Wait, human psychic power could actually be this strong?
"Mita?"
Metagross turned its head. Seeing its trainer losing control again, it let out an anxious cry and flew toward Caitlin, trying to stop her.
"Mita!"
"Get away!"
But Caitlin shouted at it in anger. With a swing of her left arm, another surge of psychic energy erupted, blasting the defenseless Metagross aside.
"Going after your own? No wonder the League had to ban you from matches."
Damian watched the out-of-control Caitlin with great interest. As her psychic power poured out, Caitlin's magnificent blonde hair rose into the air, creating a heavy sense of pressure.
He finally understood why the League forbade Caitlin from Pokémon battles. With power like this, she was practically a human Pokémon. If she ever hit an opposing trainer, a normal person wouldn't be able to survive it.
"Gengar, let's move."
"Heh heh heh..."
A low, sinister chuckle rang out. In the shadow beneath Caitlin's feet, two crimson eyes lit up.
"?"
Caitlin sensed something was wrong. She gathered her psychic energy and looked down at her shadow, only to lock eyes with that pair of evil, blood-red pupils.
Her head suddenly felt heavy. The blue psychic light in Caitlin's eyes slowly faded, and her pupils became misty and unfocused.
Hypnosis. Gengar had used Hypnosis.
As Caitlin slowly collapsed, Gengar immediately used its own psychic power to catch her, guiding her body to float toward a bench at the edge of the training field.
"Mita?"
"Don't worry, I just put her to sleep. It won't have any lasting effects."
Damian walked over to Caitlin's side. Looking at the "sleeping beauty," he comforted the Metagross that had flown over with eyes full of concern.
Metagross breathed a sigh of relief, but a moment later, intense pain filled its entire body. The Curse was still working!
Metagross groaned in pain. This was the third strike of the Curse, and its condition was already very poor.
"I almost forgot about you. Let me find your Poké Ball."
As Damian spoke, he reached toward Caitlin's waist without hesitation.
"?" Metagross's eyes widened.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm just getting your Poké Ball."
Damian felt around Caitlin's waist for a moment, found several Poké Balls, and showed them to Metagross.
Yep, confirmed. Caitlin's waist was very soft.
"..." Metagross felt like something was definitely wrong.
"By the way, which one is yours?"
"Mita." Metagross raised its right claw and pointed to the ball on the far right.
"Alright, come back for now." Damian opened Metagross's Poké Ball and withdrew it.
The Cursed status would be cleared as long as the Pokémon was returned to its ball. This was one of the many wonders of Poké Balls.
Just as it was withdrawn, the Poké Ball opened on its own, and Metagross reappeared.
"Don't glare at me like that. If I really wanted to take advantage of your trainer, it's not like you could stop me anyway."
"I may like beautiful women, but I'm no thug."
Damian shrugged, thinking this Metagross was a bit too cautious.
"Mita!"
"You're right about that. Your trainer is so beautiful, I actually do like her quite a bit. It's only normal to have designs on her, right?" Damian completely agreed with Metagross's words.
Caitlin was refined and gorgeous. Although she didn't have an exaggeratedly curvy figure, she was slender and graceful with a noble, elegant aura. It was great.
"Mita??"
Metagross was stunned.
"Is it that strange that I can understand you? Don't make such a big deal out of it." Damian glanced at Metagross.
Metagross's mind was in a bit of a whirl. Was it not strange?
About ten minutes later.
"Ugh..."
Caitlin's brow furrowed as she slowly opened her eyes. That's strange. What happened to me?
Before her thoughts could fully clear, Caitlin turned her head and was met with Metagross's massive face.
"Metagross? Did I just...?" Caitlin rubbed her head and slowly sat up.
"You're finally awake. Do you feel any discomfort?" The male voice from the side made Caitlin freeze.
She turned her head quickly and saw the boy from the battle looking at her calmly.
Caitlin's memory instantly became clear. Right, it seemed like she had suddenly lost control of her emotions and snapped!
Caitlin bit her lip, her expression darkening. She still couldn't control that power...
"That was quite a shock just now. Such powerful psychic energy suddenly surged out. I didn't expect such a beautiful lady to be a psychic."
The teasing voice reached Caitlin's ears.
"Aren't you afraid of me?" Caitlin suddenly looked up at Damian.
"Why should I be afraid of you?" Damian tilted his head in confusion.
"My psychic powers..."
Caitlin's voice lowered. Although she didn't think she was inferior because of her powers, there were times she would sigh from the bottom of her heart.
Having no psychic power would be better than having power I can't control.
She was a young lady from a prestigious family. She was the pride—her family background, her looks, and her talent were all exceptional.
Yet it was precisely because of this powerful psychic ability that she was feared by others, called a "monster" behind her back, and even explicitly banned from competing by the Pokémon League.
For a trainer who loved Pokémon battles, how crushing and dismissive was that?
"You're so strange. Why worry about being feared when you have such a special ability?"
Damian asked back with a chuckle. He raised his right hand toward Caitlin, and green sparks of light began to glow, drifting toward her.
They made Caitlin feel as if her mind had instantly cleared. Even her body, which was a bit stiff from sleeping on the bench, felt much more comfortable. It was a feeling that was hard to put into words.
"You have psychic powers too?" Caitlin's eyes held a spark of joy—the joy of finding one of her own kind.
"Of course. Did you know? You shouldn't doubt yourself because of this gift. On the contrary, it is a blessing from the world."
Damian stared into Caitlin's eyes and spoke slowly with a smile.
"We are special! We are the lucky ones loved by the world! We can hold our heads high! We can tell ourselves, and we can tell others loudly, that we are the superior ones!"
"Only incompetent, mediocre weaklings complain about unfairness and fear the strong. It is precisely because we are strong that they fear us."
The boy's clear voice was deafening to her ears, but the psychic girl's pupils were trembling slightly at this moment.
Yes, she was trembling, not from anything else, but from excitement.
"But I... I can't control it..."
But soon, the girl inevitably began to worry again because of her past experiences.
"I've tried so hard. I really have tried so hard! I don't want this either. I want to control this power more than anyone, but they don't understand. They won't even let me participate in Pokémon battles."
In this moment, the glamorous noble lady let out all the accumulated grievances in her heart. Her eyes even began to well up with tears.
Who could understand? She truly, truly loved Pokémon battles.
Her best friend, Cynthia, had become the Champion of the Sinnoh region, the strongest person in Sinnoh, looking down on the entire region.
Yet she herself couldn't even participate in a normal Pokémon battle. How humiliating was that for a proud person?
"Then just work even harder."
Damian replied with a smile.
"Believe in yourself. Believe that you aren't inferior to anyone. Don't resist your power; accept it with your heart."
"Since they don't understand, then they don't need to understand. Please remember one thing, beautiful lady."
Damian's tone was very gentle.
"The strong don't complain about how the world is; they dictate how the world should be."
"You are beautiful, and you are powerful. That is who you are. You don't need to care about the opinions of others."
"What you should do is change—and make them eat their words!"
Hearing Damian's words, Caitlin's heart shook violently. Her eyes were filled with nothing but the figure of the boy before her.
I am beautiful, and I am powerful?
"Also, one more thing..."
Damian stepped forward and picked up the pink lady's hat from the bench. He walked up to Caitlin and looked down slightly at the movingly beautiful girl.
He could clearly perceive a ripple in the girl's eyes as he approached.
Damian placed the hat on the girl's head and straightened it. Caitlin's breath seemed to stop at that moment.
This was the first time... this boy... he was too close!
Caitlin could feel her heart beating very fast. Fortunately, it only lasted for a few seconds.
Taking two steps back, Damian nodded in satisfaction. Caitlin really was beautiful wearing that hat.
"Be elegant. No matter the time, you must always remain elegant. Elegant and refined—that is your true self."
Damian spoke with a smile.
"Naturally. I have always received perfect scores in my family's etiquette classes."
Caitlin took an unnoticeable deep breath. She clasped her hands naturally in front of her waist, her tone steady and her posture noble.
Just as Damian said, she was an elegant and noble young lady. She should maintain her elegance.
The way she looked just now... was truly pathetic.
"How rude of me. I haven't introduced myself to you yet. I am Caitlin, from the Sinnoh region."
Caitlin reached her hand out to Damian.
"Damian. My name is Damian."
Damian took Caitlin's hand.
"Speaking of which, I originally just wanted to help you with some special training. I didn't expect things to turn out like this."
"Yes. I am truly grateful to you today, Mr. Damian. You have taught me a lot."
Caitlin carried a slight smile that was exceptionally beautiful.
"You're from Sinnoh, so why did you come to Alola? Are you here on a trip?" Damian asked out of curiosity.
"No, just because of some unhappy matters. I came here on vacation to relax."
Caitlin shook her head, then hesitated for a moment.
"Mr. Damian, may I ask you a question?"
"Of course."
"To be honest, I have a very close friend. No matter how hard I try, I can't defeat her. Should I continue to chase after her?"
Caitlin bit her lip and asked Damian in a soft voice.
Damian arched an eyebrow, instantly knowing who the friend she was talking about was—the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia!
After all, Caitlin really only had one friend, Cynthia. Even Darach was just her employee.
"Chasing everything is the beginning of unhappiness. It's important to know that while there are things you can't do, there are also things you can."
Those were the words Caitlin told the player at her villa in the game.
In reality, Caitlin had been chasing after Cynthia for a long time, but no matter how hard she worked, she could never defeat her. This reality gradually made Caitlin realize that she had to accept the result—moving from explosive anger at failure to calm acceptance.
"Why do you ask? I can't make that decision for you, Caitlin."
Damian looked directly into Caitlin's eyes.
"The one you should be asking is your heart. After failing time and time again, are you truly satisfied?"
Damian pointed toward Caitlin's heart. His clear voice made her bite her lip tightly.
"I..."
Thinking of the many battles with Cynthia and the many defeats, Caitlin's breathing unknowingly became heavy again. her chest rose and fell rapidly, and the blue light in her eyes flickered in and out of existence.
"Be elegant."
Damian's voice came again. The green sparks of light drifted over, clearing the thoughts of the emotionally turbulent Caitlin. The blue light in her eyes slowly vanished.
Be elegant!
But after coming back to her senses, Caitlin tilted her head a bit dazed, staring blankly at Damian.
Huh? What just happened?
Caitlin's eyes were a bit lost. How did she suddenly "come out" of that emotional turbulence?
Was it Mr. Damian's ability?
"If the result wasn't what you desired, there's no harm in trying again. You should be able to hear the voice in your own heart, Caitlin."
"...Yes. I actually... I'm very unwilling to give up."
Caitlin was silent for a moment before finally facing her own heart.
"Then go work for it. Improve yourself, and once you become stronger, go challenge your friend again."
"Mr. Damian, how did you become so strong?"
Caitlin now understood that this boy was very strong!! Even though he looked younger than her.
"Me?" Damian let out a light chuckle.
"When you face the darkness and reality of the world, you naturally grow stronger."
"The darkness and reality of the world?" Caitlin looked confused; she didn't understand.
"Yes. Allow me to ask one thing, Caitlin."
The corners of Damian's mouth slowly curled up, and a thick sense of malice surfaced.
"Do you crave power?"