After putting away Pikachu's Poké Ball, Caster sent out his next Pokémon. "Go, Gyarados!"
"ROAAAR~"
The massive Gyarados appeared with a fierce roar, its terrifying pressure sweeping outward.
Immediately after, Gyarados was struck head-on by Stealth Rock.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Sensing the new Pokémon's appearance, the giant boulders set around the field instantly floated up and pummeled Gyarados before it could even land.
"ROAAAR~"
Gyarados cried out in pain.
Stealth Rock was a status move that couldn't stack, but it had one key characteristic—it was affected by type matchups. The Flying-type Gyarados was precisely weak to Rock-type attacks.
After the painful hit, Stealth Rock settled back into position. Gyarados's body trembled as it floated down toward the ground.
But the battlefield below wasn't safe either—Nidoking's Toxic Spikes still covered the ground.
"It's over! Nidoking's trap setup is too perfect—Gyarados has no chance to fight back."
"Stealth Rock plus Toxic Spikes—how can there be such a disgusting Pokémon as Nidoking?"
"Who is this young man? With such terrifying tactics, he surely can't be a nobody."
Viewers in both Caster's and Iono's live streams were captivated by the battle. The number of followers on Caster's stream and account was continuously rising—skyrocketing, in fact.
"Gyarados, use Surf to wash away this poison!"
Caster's voice suddenly rang out.
If it were an ordinary Gyarados, it would have already landed by now and fallen into Nidoking's trap. But Caster's Gyarados could fly. Even though it couldn't fully display this ability at the moment, it could still slow its descent, giving it precious time to react.
Splash!
Water-type energy surged through Gyarados. A massive wave appeared out of nowhere and crashed onto the clearing.
In an instant, the purple poison haze was swept clean by the water.
THUD!
Gyarados landed, the ground trembling slightly. Whether in size or weight, Gyarados clearly surpassed Nidoking.
"ROAAAR~"
An enraged dragon's roar echoed across the battlefield.
Gyarados had been ambushed the moment it entered. Now thoroughly displeased, it glared at Nidoking with dark, ominous eyes.
"ROAAAR~"
Not to be outdone, Nidoking glared right back.
The two Pokémon were old acquaintances. Meeting now, they were especially hostile.
"Nidoking, use Roar again!"
Gary's voice rang out, carrying a hint of coldness.
"A forced switch tactic? I won't let you succeed!"
Caster raised an eyebrow and snorted. "Gyarados, Taunt!"
The Roar move was extremely powerful. It forced the opponent to switch Pokémon, breaking stat boosts and causing chip damage when combined with entry hazards like Stealth Rock, Spikes, or Toxic Spikes. But it had one weakness: it was rather slow to execute.
In game terminology, its priority was -6, the slowest tier.
Facing Gyarados's Taunt, Nidoking's Roar immediately failed and was forcibly replaced with an attacking move.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Several massive rock spikes came hurtling forward with tremendous force.
It was the Rock-type attack move Stone Edge!
"ROAAAR~"
Facing the attack, Gyarados showed joy instead of worry. It immediately twisted its body and weaved across the battlefield.
Gyarados moved with graceful agility, lithe as a swimming dragon. It dodged Stone Edge while dancing in a peculiar rhythm.
From the distant viewing platform, a sharp voice cut through the air. "That is—Dragon Dance!"
Lorelei's expression had turned serious. Her trained eye recognized the technique immediately.
This feeling—she was all too familiar with it!
"Is this young man a member of a Dragon Tamer clan?"
Lorelei pushed up her metal-framed glasses with her slender, pale fingers, her eyes narrowing slightly.
But soon, she shook her head. Dragon Tamer clan members exclusively trained Dragon-type Pokémon. An Electric-type Pikachu didn't seem to be their cup of tea.
Suppressing her curiosity, Lorelei decided to keep watching.
"This Gyarados can move so nimbly even on land?"
After a moment of surprise, Gary immediately shouted, "Sludge Wave!"
Since single-target attacks weren't working, he'd go for full-field coverage. Gary believed in overwhelming force.
Buzz!
A dark purple energy orb condensed in Nidoking's mouth. But just as it launched the attack, Gyarados flicked its tail. A terrifying storm formed instantly and swallowed the energy sphere whole.
"Hurricane? It knows that too?"
Gary's mouth went dry.
He'd thought his Pokémon's move pools were already quite extensive, but compared to Caster's Pokémon, they fell far short.
Whoooosh!
The Hurricane swept out, transforming into a tornado that engulfed the Sludge Wave. Before long, the originally white Hurricane turned dark purple, clearly tainted with deadly poison.
Then the Hurricane hit Nidoking, forcing it to suffer from its own attack.
Whoooosh!
The Hurricane continued to rage!
"Rain Dance!"
Taking advantage of the Hurricane's rampage, Caster decided to change the weather to create a more favorable situation.
"ROAAAR~"
Gyarados raised its head and roared. The previously clear sky immediately became overcast with dark clouds.
Patter patter! Patter patter!
The weather changed in the blink of an eye. Moderate rain began to fall, and soon rainwater soaked the ground.
Seeing this, Gary's lips curled into a satisfied smile. "Nidoking, use Thunder!"
As soon as the words fell, Nidoking suddenly raised its arms. The dark purple Hurricane was instantly dispersed.
"Thunder?"
Caster's pupils contracted sharply.
He knew—he'd been tricked!
So Nidoking wasn't unable to break free from the Hurricane. Gary had simply seen Gyarados use Rain Dance and decided to go along with it, giving it the opportunity to execute.
While rainy weather could greatly boost Gyarados's combat power, it also made Thunder a guaranteed hit.
Seeing Caster's shocked expression, Gary felt a surge of satisfaction. He declared loudly, "Caster, after our last battle, I began special training with Nidoking on Electric-type moves. Your Gyarados is the perfect opponent to test my results."
BOOM!
In the dark clouds, thunder continuously gathered until it formed a massive lightning bolt that struck straight toward Gyarados.
Caster's expression changed. He hastily shouted, "Gyarados, Protect!"
Bzzt!
A translucent light shield appeared, completely blocking the terrifying lightning outside. Gyarados wasn't harmed in the slightest.
"Thank goodness I made it in time!"
Caster breathed a sigh of relief.
At critical moments, the god-tier defensive move was the most reassuring.
As a non-Electric-type, Nidoking couldn't use Thunder repeatedly in quick succession.
This gave Caster an opening!
But Gary was still smiling. Caster's confidence faltered.
"Nidoking, Thunderbolt!"
Gary's face was full of smiles, but his eyes were cold.
He knew Gyarados had mastered the Protect move and never expected Thunder to hit with one strike. His real killing move was the slightly weaker Thunderbolt.
After all, Gyarados had a quadruple weakness. Even if Thunderbolt was slightly less powerful, it definitely couldn't withstand it.
Nidoking's mastery of Thunder wasn't very deep, making its accuracy normally unreliable. That was why he needed rainy weather.
Crackle!
A thick electrical current shot from the horn on Nidoking's forehead, striking toward the massive Gyarados.
"Caster, can you block my Lightning Double Strike?"