"Kir…"
Hearing Aven whisper about his weakness, Kirlia's body trembled.
It looked down at the Tentacruel and the Tentacools, at Lilligant and Froslass in the distance, then finally at Aven.
It clearly felt the frustration radiating from him. But wasn't it the same for itself?
It knew—it wasn't that its companions weren't strong enough. It was that it was too weak. It had fallen far behind.
I don't want to drag my companions down anymore!
Kirlia stepped forward—its heart burning with intense desire.
For Aven… for its companions… it must become stronger. It must catch up!
As it walked, a faint white glow suddenly erupted around it—growing brighter from the horn atop its head, emotion energy surging and pouring into the light!
"Kirlia?!" Aven froze at the sudden transformation.
He stared at Kirlia's back. Its entire body trembled as it forced itself into evolution.
"Kirlia… you…" He opened his mouth.
But the next moment, Kirlia turned and met his gaze—its eyes unwaveringly firm.
Never had its will been so resolute.
"…Alright. I understand, Kirlia." Aven nodded gently.
He stepped forward and placed his hand on Kirlia's shoulder. "Go, Kirlia. I believe in you."
As he spoke, his psychic power surged outward, rainbow flecks shimmering within it. Aven poured every last bit of his power into Kirlia without reservation.
"Kir! Lia!"
Kirlia shuddered, emotion energy flowing gently.
Thank you… Aven!
At that moment, Kirlia's emotions shifted—subtly intertwining with Aven's psychic strength.
Aven… I can feel your strength!
BOOM!!
A brilliant white light burst from Kirlia's body.
Within the glow, Kirlia's figure shot upward—the hem of its skirt extending and flowing like a grand, elegant gown.
"Its evolution succeeded!" Aven's face lit with joy.
Even without looking directly, the form of the shiny Gardevoir was reflected clearly in his mind, their connection now deep and unmistakable.
The shiny Gardevoir's body was pure white, like a dancer dressed in a graceful evening gown. The inside of its skirt was blue. The horn used to sense emotions had shifted to its chest and back after evolution.
"Garde~ voir!"
Gardevoir slowly opened its eyes, a powerful mental wave rippling from its body.
Its gaze swept the battlefield below. It raised its hands—solidified psychic energy radiating outward like a tidal wave.
In the sea, a Dragalge burst from the water, jaws wide as it lunged at a Tentacruel.
But before it could touch its target, its body froze in the air, as though the very space around it had turned to ice.
Then agony contorted its face as an invisible force slammed into it, hurling the Pokémon sideways into another Dragalge. Both crashed into the water with a violent explosion!
"Garde—voir—"
Gardevoir gave them a calm glance.
It then extended its hand—two beams of condensed psychic force shot out like lances, striking both Dragalge dead-on.
The sea surface thundered. Two advanced level Dragalge were instantly incapacitated.
Just moments after evolving, Gardevoir unleashed overwhelming force—without question, it had stepped directly into the King level.
Having defeated two advanced level Dragalge in one breath, it turned its gaze to the remaining advanced level Dragalge. With its reinforced psychic might, none of them could withstand even a single attack.
"So strong… Kirlia has finally undergone its metamorphosis." Aven smiled.
He knew how hard Kirlia had worked lately. It never said a word, but Aven understood its jealousy toward Lilligant and Froslass.
Now, it had finally evolved, and stepped into the King tier. With its transformed psychic power, it was not inferior to any King-level Pokémon.
With Gardevoir joining the battle, the tide shifted instantly. The sea became a field of fallen Dragalge floating silently on the water.
Seeing this, the weaker Dragalge and the Skrelp immediately lost all will to resist, diving into the depths to flee. The creature in the sky was something they absolutely could not fight.
Splash—splash—
The Tentacruel tribe saw this and refused to let the escapees go.
Their tentacles extended, snatching the fleeing Dragalge and Skrelp.
The Dragalge were fast—but the Skrelp were slow, drifting more than swimming, and they were instantly caught, tied up tightly by Tentacruel and Tentacool tentacles.
"Garde—voir—"
With the nearby battle resolved, Gardevoir turned its gaze toward the Dragalge leader.
It was still deep in Outrage, attacking Lilligant with crazed ferocity as confusion overtook it.
Gardevoir vanished in an instant—reappearing beside Lilligant.
"DRAAAAAA!!"
The Dragalge leader let out a frenzied roar.
But just as it was about to pounce again, countless azure lights appeared around its body—locking it in place!
"Lil—?!"
Lilligant stiffened briefly, glancing at the suddenly appearing Gardevoir.
But now wasn't the time to question anything. She immediately summoned grass energy.
Vines burst forth—dozens, then hundreds—wrapping the Dragalge leader layer upon layer.
Soft green light shimmered as she activated Giga Drain, rapidly draining the beast's stamina.
"DRAAA—!!"
Feeling its body restrained, the Dragalge leader thrashed wildly.
Although it had burst free from the psychic restraint through sheer rage, the thick vines wrapped around its body could not be torn apart in such a short time.
"Lilli!"
Lilligant's expression grew solemn. She was using her full strength to restrain the Dragalge, while her gaze shifted toward Gardevoir at her side.
She understood clearly that her Grass-type moves were four times resisted by Dragalge. Therefore, she entrusted the task of offense entirely to Gardevoir with its Psychic-type attacks that could deal double damage to Dragalge!
"Garde—voir!"
Hovering in midair, Gardevoir nodded heavily.
All of its psychic energy was mobilized at once, causing the surrounding space to twist faintly.
"DRAAA!!"
Perhaps sensing an immense threat, the Dragalge slowly snapped out of its confusion.
Its gaze lifted toward the sky, toward the overwhelming pressure bearing down upon it. Its pupils shrank violently, and deep terror erupted in its eyes.
But at this moment, its body was still bound tightly by vines. Dodging was impossible. All it could do was stare helplessly as a beam of light tore through the sky, ripping through the air itself—
—and struck it head-on.
Agony exploded through its entire being—body and soul alike felt as though they were being shredded apart. The next second, unable to withstand the unbearable pain, its consciousness plunged into endless darkness.
BOOM!
The Dragalge leader's massive body crashed heavily into the surface of the sea.
This ferocious beast, whose strength had reached the King tier, now floated like a lifeless fish—belly upward—lying motionless upon the water.
"..."
For an instant, every conscious creature on the battlefield turned its gaze toward the fallen Dragalge leader. Silence instantly swallowed the entire scene.
"The leader… lost."
The remaining Dragalge and Skrelp felt their minds spin blankly, their thoughts completely shutting down.
Their invincible leader, the one who had guided them across countless seas to arrive in this place, had fallen just like that. It was something they simply could not accept.
In contrast, the Tentacruel and Tentacool froze in shock for a moment, and then erupted in joyous cries.
All this time, the Dragalge tribe had pressed down on them like a towering mountain, suffocating them, leaving them with not even the slightest ability to resist—even when facing death itself.
But now, that mountain had finally collapsed with a thunderous crash. For the first time in forever, they felt an overwhelming lightness wash through their hearts.
It was over. Everything was finally over.
"Go—Poké Ball!"
In the distance, Aven had also arrived above the fallen Dragalge leader.
With a light toss, the Poké Ball in his hand struck the creature, pulling in the Pokémon that had brought chaos to the seas. Without any resistance, the ball clicked shut and locked firmly.
"Successfully captured the King-level Dragalge… Now for the other three quasi–King ones." Aven let out a relieved breath.
If this King-level Dragalge had managed to dive back into the ocean, capturing it would have been almost impossible. And a wild, violent, King-level Pokémon roaming the seas would be an immense threat.
At this moment, the three quasi–King-level Dragalge were also gradually regaining consciousness. But the instant clarity returned to them, they froze in complete shock—staring blankly at their fallen leader.
Immediately afterward, a chilling cold burst down upon them.
A terrifying frost swept through the waters around them, instantly freezing everything solid. Before they even had the chance to dive into the sea to escape, the water had turned to ice.
Faced against three King-level opponents, they had no ability to resist whatsoever. All three were quickly defeated and captured into Poké Balls, signifying that this once-mighty king level clan of the sea had been nearly wiped out in its entirety.
(End of Chapter)