Compared to Chien-Pao, among the four Treasures of Ruin, Wo-Chien and Ting-Lu are both defensively oriented Pokémon.
But unlike that old deer with the "big cauldron" on its head—packing an OHKO move like Fissure, plus terrifying defensive power—Wo-Chien's resistances are much shakier.
Its base stat spread, and the depth of its movepool, simply can't be mentioned in the same breath as Ting-Lu's. It's not only afraid of Fighting, Flying, Poison, and Fire—it's also afraid of Ice and Fairy, and it's four-times weak to Bug.
And in Paldea, there's one Bug-type Pokémon you see everywhere: the so-called "light of the Bug-type," Lokix!
If some passing Lokix hero runs up and smacks it with a First Impression, it'll kick Wo-Chien so hard it coughs up last night's dinner!
And if it doesn't cough it up, that just means Wo-Chien didn't eat much last night!
Now, it's true that the power of the Treasures of Ruin is frightening. After all, "ruinous disaster" isn't just about shaving HP—it can even mess with a living being's emotions and make them explode on the spot.
But it's also true that they can be "weak."
Just like Wo-Chien.
As long as you find the correct approach, in Paldea—this land of outstanding beasts and spiritual soil—if I raise my arm and call out, the ground is full of Lokix. One bug, one kick, and you won't explode on the spot?
Therefore, Wo-Chien's usual game plan is to use Leech Seed and Ingrain, pairing them with Leftovers plus Substitute and Protect, or Poison Powder plus Ruination. The key is one word: stall!
As long as I don't die, I can find a way to stay on the field. I really can't win in a straight-up brawl, but I can rely on these disgusting moves to grind down the opponent's HP again and again while restoring my own health!
With the Ability Tablets of Ruin, it can reduce the opponent's Attack by 25%. Combine that with its sky-high 100 Defense and 135 Special Defense, and even with that quadruple Bug weakness, it's not that easy to delete.
However…
"Pokémon, when they don't have a Trainer's command, often fight according to their own personality and thoughts."
"You're a wall. Why are you spamming attacking moves?"
That's right. Wo-Chien—so straightforward it borders on stubborn—didn't immediately go for the stall plan!
Instead, it charged straight in!
The key is…
Aren't you a snail? Why are you running this fast?
You're clearly a snail, yet your base Speed is 70!
That's double Charcadet's 35!
Charcadet was startled too. Staring at Wo-Chien, it felt like Wo-Chien's Speed shouldn't be fast—and it really wasn't as fast as Chien-Pao, but compared to Charcadet, it was still way faster!
Those two vine-whip tentacles glowing purple lashed through the air, snapping so hard they produced sonic booms and afterimages!
Each strike smashed a dent into the ground!
Power Whip! The user violently swings vines or tentacles to slam the target. It's one of the absolute nukes among Grass-type physical moves. A whopping 120 base power—aside from the somewhat shaky accuracy, there's basically no problem!
Charcadet kept dodging, rolling in place, slipping through Wo-Chien's airtight barrage while looking for a chance to sneak in hits with the flame hammer in its hand!
Flame Charge!
Charcadet repeated the same approach it used against Chien-Pao: high-speed harassment plus constant rolling. After the first Flame Charge landed, things gradually started to improve!
Wo-Chien slowly couldn't keep up with Charcadet's speed. Power Whip couldn't hit this little knight that ducked left and right. Its eyes darted around, but all it could see was a trail of fiery afterimages—while the burn damage kept stacking up!
Wo-Chien's eyes gave off a gloomy light!
Spite! The user bears a grudge against the move the target last used, reducing that move's PP by 4!
Charcadet's stamina began to drop, and it couldn't use Flame Charge anymore. But at the same time, Charcadet used Spite on Wo-Chien too!
Same thing—reduce your Power Whip's PP!
Smack!
The stamina cost of using Flame Charge wasn't that high, but Power Whip burned through far more energy!
That practically sealed Power Whip outright. Wo-Chien's body stiffened, and the wooden tablets on its back stopped spinning!
"Wo-chii…!"
Good grief. Wo-Chien was extremely wary now. This little fire goblin was harder to deal with than it expected.
But then—
A fierce green radiance erupted from Wo-Chien and struck Charcadet head-on!
Giga Drain!
"Ka, kadonk!"
In an instant, more than half its vitality was siphoned away. Wo-Chien let out a low, rumbling chuckle—wo-chii, wo-chii—as it shifted its battle style.
Then the "vines" whipped again!
But although it looked like vines, it was actually Knock Off!
Knock Off removes the target's held item, preventing it from being used until the battle ends. And if the target is holding an item, Knock Off's damage is boosted!
That means it's a 130-power Dark-type move, plus the 1.5× STAB bonus!
That single lash nearly spun Charcadet like a top. Its big hammer flew away with a loud crack, and the little knight itself tumbled across the ground several times before it finally staggered back up, trembling!
It hurt like hell! Charcadet clenched its eyes shut, its whole body shaking!
Even in armor, it still hurt! Like its body had been rattled apart!
"Although Wo-Chien's offensive stats aren't particularly high, when it uses high-power moves of its own type, the damage is still very respectable."
"Especially since you're just a fragile little thing."
Charcadet's base stats were too low. Even with training, unless it used some off-the-field tricks, it was still miles behind these boss Pokémon in a head-on fight.
"Against Chien-Pao, it was because that kitty liked to play around—and played itself into a loss."
"But against the big snail in front of us, Wo-Chien clearly doesn't play as greedily as that kitty. It's very cautious. It opened with big moves to show respect!"
Hearing Hikari's commentary, Wo-Chien even nodded slightly.
You humans do have eyes, after all!
But what do you mean I'm being cautious?
If Ting-Lu were here, it would open with Whirlwind, so you couldn't even fight it—then it would just turn around and leave!
That's what you call "winning without fighting"!
Wo-Chien's withered-leaf body clattered loudly. It spewed out a long stream of powdery dust!
"Quick, drink your Orange Juice!"
"Kadonk!"
Charcadet didn't hesitate. It immediately popped medicine—downed a Full Heal, entered a Safeguard-like state, and charged straight through the dust!
Paralysis powder, poison powder—ignored, all of it!
Eat this—Fire Blast!
Charcadet brought out its newest training result!
Fire Blast, mastered under Entei's guidance, launched forth in a blazing inferno as Charcadet threw a punch!
No hammer? You think that means it can't fight?!
"Wo-chii~!!"
Wo-Chien was hit by Fire Blast, and its withered leaves flared up in flames. And in that very moment—
Payback!
A charging attack. If the user moves after the target, the move's power doubles!
That counterstrike—dark energy slamming in—sent Charcadet flying again. The little knight had taken two heavy hits and was now a candle in the wind!
It panted hard, then drank another Full Heal, barely patching up a bit of life.
But Wo-Chien's expression changed slightly.
It was now burned.
A burned Pokémon has its Attack halved, and its HP is steadily chipped away!
Not good. Wo-Chien considered the situation grimly.
To prevent the little knight from turning the tables, the big snail used Rain Dance!
Dark clouds gathered.
A torrential downpour poured from the sky!
The flames on its withered leaves gradually vanished, becoming wisps of greenish smoke. Rain can put out fire, but it can't cure burn—unless the afflicted Pokémon has the Ability Hydration.
Status: Rain.
In rain, Water-type moves are strengthened, and Fire-type moves are weakened.
"Wo-chii…!"
Rain is up. The apocalypse for Fire-types has arrived.
And for a Grass-type like itself—sure, it can't use Solar Beam or Solar Blade, but that doesn't matter at all.
Rain weakens fire. What waves can a little knight like you possibly make?
Then Wo-Chien saw Charcadet take a fighting stance.
Its heart tightened slightly.
Don't tell me you, a rookie trainee, can use Close Combat or Focus Punch or something?
But even if you can, so what? I have Giga Drain.
And then, psychic light appeared in Wo-Chien's eyes.
Light Screen, up. Reduces special damage.
Reflect, up. Reduces physical damage.
Growth, up. Boosts Attack and Special Attack.
Ingrain, activated. Roots into the ground and restores HP each turn.
None of these required any big motions from Wo-Chien. It simply stayed put—and while Charcadet was thinking, it completed all of these defensive measures.
Add Leech Seed on top of that, and the fortress is complete.
However, considering the opponent is Fire-type—even in rain, Leech Seed might get "burned away," which would be troublesome.
A Pokémon like Charcadet is high-temperature burning charcoal from head to toe. Seeds can't even latch onto it.
"So that's how it is. The boss fight has reached phase two, huh."
Hikari said, "Even though Wo-Chien has many weaknesses, once it's not restricted in move usage, the advantage of all the weird techniques it knows really starts to show."
"Precisely because it has so many weaknesses, it also has so many damage-reduction tools."
Watching Wo-Chien set up, Hikari could have switched in right here.
But Charcadet needed to drink medicine, and its stamina was already at the bottom. The little sun knight was completely constrained under rain—this was exactly where rain showed why it's stronger than snow.
Weather is always the meta answer. It never rotates out.
Of course, since it was rare to have rain—
Hikari opened a Cherish Ball and released the gluttonous Archaludon.
Oh! Rain, huh!
Seeing Charcadet in a disadvantaged position, Archaludon understood immediately.
Last time, Larvesta provided sunlight for Charcadet. That field support made the fire's power surge.
Riolu used Coaching, raising Charcadet's Attack. And after understanding Chien-Pao, the little knight fought with everything it had—only then did it defeat Chien-Pao.
So this time, let me support you!
Everyone wants to jump in, but right now it's rain!
What the Trainer is thinking, I, Archaludon, know perfectly!
"Kadonk?"
Charcadet looked at its partner.
It absolutely wanted to defeat these formidable enemies with its own power, but without help from its partners, even if it fought to the bitter end, it might not win.
It still needed to keep training—through battles, through failures, through victories—growing again and again until it became a true sun knight!
"Gwooh!"
Archaludon patted its chest.
Leave today's assist to me!
I'll help you fire off the single biggest burst of damage. Even if a Grass-type resists Electric-type moves, this attack will still make it hurt!
Besides, up to now, we haven't truly fired this move for real yet!
"Iron Valiant, you help too."
"[Roger! Electric Terrain, deployed!]"
Iron Valiant's pixel eyes flickered once. She stepped forward and slashed downward with her light blade!
Intense electricity blanketed the muddy ground, making crackling sparks dance beneath their feet!
For five turns, the field becomes Electric Terrain. Grounded Pokémon cannot fall asleep, and Electric-type moves are boosted by 30%!
However, Iron Valiant's electrical energy was driven by future-tech. Hikari thought that if they met Miraidon someday, they could analyze its Hadron Engine—and maybe, just maybe, tweak Electric Terrain's boost back to Generation VIII's 50%!
"Archaludon," Hikari said to the steel dragon, "use Electro Shot!"
"Gwooh!"
At Hikari's command, Archaludon dropped low, like a miniature Skyarrow Bridge!
Electricity surged in from all directions, snapping and crackling as it gathered on Archaludon's back. The lightning shifted from gold to blue, like a steel lattice supporting a bridge!
"[Archaludon] absorbed electricity!"
"[Archaludon]'s Sp. Atk rose!"
Electro Shot normally charges on the first turn, raising the user's Special Attack by one stage. On the second turn, it fires the high-voltage power to attack the target.
But when the weather is rain, it can skip the charge and fire immediately!
Electro Shot's base power is a massive 130!
And inside Archaludon's mouth, a golden, glittering gemstone even appeared!
An Electric Gem! When using an Electric-type move, it boosts the power of that move by 30%!
"Gwooh!"
We're always picking stuff up everywhere. Electric Gems are grab-and-go!
Concentrated blue lightning compressed into a cyan-blue orb packed with high-voltage power—then it fired like a cannon!
Rain-boosted instant cannon fire!
A Certain Scientific Railgun!
In that instant, it was as if even the heavy rain was blasted apart. The violent electricity formed a shockwave that scorched and shook the surrounding earth—and as Wo-Chien watched that ferocious lightning coming straight at it, the indifferent eyes it always kept half-lidded widened at last!
Uh… you've got some nerve. You know I resist Electric and you still dare to fire this—
Holy—what is this power?!
The withered leaves all over its body nearly ignited under the high-voltage current. Heat and electricity pierced through it, even scorching the wooden tablets on its back black!
Hey, that's my true body! Who said Grass resists Electric anyway?! And I even put up screens—this is way too outrageous!
"Wo… wo-chii?!"
Wo-Chien's withered leaves trembled. It was blown back by the blast, then struggled up from the mud in a sorry state.
"Nice! That move's power is enormous. And that blue current is kind of similar to Fusion Bolt. You might be able to learn Zekrom's move someday."
Entei praised from behind. Electro Shot's power just now was truly shocking! Even with Electric resistance, Wo-Chien was nearly left in critical condition from a single hit!
But that big snail was really tough. After taking a move like that, it still wanted to keep fighting. If it were Pao-pao, it'd already be thinking about making peace.
"[Next is up to you. Good luck!]"
Iron Valiant looked at Charcadet. The little trainee knight immediately snapped to attention!
Yes, holy knight onee-san!
(End of Chapter)
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