Taking the stage was the Fighting-type Gym Leader of Dewford Town, Gym Leader Brawly.
His opponent was no slouch either, but Gym Leader Brawly's fighting style was like the ocean waves of the south—fierce and continuous.
His Fighting-type Pokémon, such as Machamp and Hariyama, displayed extremely high tactical proficiency, resulting in a clean and decisive victory.
Ariel saw it clearly: people like Gym Leader Brawly, Lance, Steven, Cynthia, and including himself, had likely been designated as "seeded players" by the League.
To ensure the spectacle of the tournament and the excitement of the finals, the League's drawing system would be artificially manipulated to prevent these top powerhouses from meeting too early in the preliminary stages.
After all, if two people destined for the finals fought each other in the Round of 64, what would be left to watch in the subsequent matches?
"Next match! The contestant about to take the stage is—"
The host's voice rose high again, drawing everyone's attention.
"He advanced easily in the qualifiers with a perfect record! His fighting style is bizarre and unpredictable, leaving people unable to defend against it! He is the mysterious Trainer of commoner origin but immensely powerful—Ariel!"
Finally, it was his turn.
Ariel stood up, and amidst the encouraging words of "Good luck" from Steven beside him and under the calm gaze of Cynthia, he walked slowly toward the contestant tunnel leading to the arena.
The tunnel was dimly lit, with only a patch of brightness at the end.
With every step he took, the Roar from outside became clearer.
One step, two steps...
As he walked out of the tunnel, the blinding sunlight and the deafening, tsunami-like Roar instantly engulfed him.
In that moment, the eyes of the tens of thousands of people in the entire arena were all focused on him alone.
Ariel narrowed his eyes slightly to adjust to the light, his gaze sweeping over his opponent who was also walking into the arena.
It was a young Trainer with an arrogant expression. Judging from the information introduced by the host, he was a successor to a certain Count's family in the Kalos region, famous for his flamboyant tactical style.
At this moment, that aristocratic Trainer was eyeing Ariel with a critical look, his eyes carrying a hint of disdain.
"Hmph, a Trainer from the countryside, is it?" He snorted dismissively.
Ariel ignored him.
His gaze passed over his opponent and landed on a figure in the contestant seating area.
Lance was sitting there quietly, his eyes like torches, staring at him unblinkingly.
Ariel suddenly found it somewhat amusing.
Being targeted by this guy really put on quite a bit of pressure.
But at the same time, it also ignited an unprecedented fighting spirit.
You want to see?
Then I'll let you see clearly.
See what kind of person I, Ariel, really am.
"The match begins!"
The referee's flag swung down sharply.
The aristocratic Trainer opposite him bowed elegantly and threw out a Poké Ball with a flick of his hand:
"Show your splendor, my knight! Come out, Aegislash!"
Aegislash floated in the middle of the field, its golden shield shining with royal brilliance, its blade sharp, and an invisible pressure swept toward Ariel.
The aristocratic Trainer wore a stylized smile, as if he had already foreseen his own flamboyant victory.
Ariel watched that King's Sword changing forms in the arena, the corners of his mouth curling into a subtle arc.
With a flash of red light, a fierce-looking Pokémon appeared on the field.
Its entire body was red and black, its thick limbs sank deep into the ground, and beneath its sunglass-like eye sockets was an unconcealable ferocity and brutality.
Krookodile!
"Roar!"
As soon as Krookodile took the stage, it let out a violent Roar toward the sky, the hoarse sound waves making the air buzz, and a fierce aura instantly dispersed the royal majesty created by Aegislash.
The aristocratic Trainer opposite frowned, his elegance nearly failing to hold up.
"Vulgar Pokémon."
He commented in a low voice, then commanded loudly, "Aegislash, use Sacred Sword!"
What he pursued was to use flamboyant attacks to highlight his own tactical proficiency.
However, Ariel didn't give him that opportunity at all.
"Earthquake."
Ariel's voice was very soft, even somewhat nonchalant, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.
Krookodile received the command, its wide-open mouth curling even further, and it slammed its thick arms onto the ground!
"Boom!"
The entire battle arena shook violently!
The hard rocky ground rolled like waves, and terrifying cracks visible to the naked eye spread crazily in all directions with Krookodile at the center.
That destructive power achieved a Lock-On on Aegislash, not giving it any time to react at all.
Aegislash's just-assumed King's Shield stance was as fragile as a thin sheet of paper in the face of the earth-shattering shockwave.
The golden shield was instantly covered in cracks, and then with a "crack" sound, it completely shattered.
Aegislash let out a mournful cry, its massive body was lifted high by the violent energy, then slammed heavily onto the ground, directly losing the ability to battle.
One hit.
Just one hit.
Double effectiveness, a direct one-hit KO!
The entire arena fell into an eerie silence.
Everyone had their mouths wide open, looking at the huge pit in the middle of the field and the incapacitated Aegislash beside the pit, their minds unable to process it for a moment.
The host held the microphone, his mouth opening and closing several times, but he couldn't say a single word.
The vocabulary he had prepared to praise the aristocratic Trainer's flamboyant tactics was now all stuck in his throat, appearing incomparably ridiculous.
"How... how could this be..."
The color instantly drained from the aristocratic Trainer's face, his elegant smile frozen on his face, looking worse than crying.
His trump card, his pride and joy, the knight, was defeated in one move just like that?
By a Pokémon he called vulgar, using the most savage, most unreasonable method!
And just at this moment, a faint red aura erupted from the Krookodile on the field.
Moxie ability, activated!
After defeating an opponent, Attack increases!
Krookodile's momentum was even fiercer than before; it turned its head, its crimson gaze locking onto the aristocratic Trainer opposite, as if its eyes were saying: Next.
"This... this is impossible!"
The aristocratic Trainer finally snapped out of his shock, humiliation and anger twisting his face, and he roared almost losing his composure, throwing out his second Poké Ball.
"Go, Espeon! Use Psychic on it!"
An elegant-looking Espeon appeared, and energy instantly gathered in its mouth.
However, it was too late.
"Stone Edge."
Ariel's voice remained calm.
Krookodile didn't even move; it just slammed its front paws onto the ground, and countless sharp stone spikes shot up from the ground like bamboo shoots after rain, instantly piercing Espeon's body.
Before the energy could be fired, Espeon let out a miserable cry and lost the ability to battle.
Another one-hit.
The whole audience was in an uproar!
If the first time was luck, a type advantage, then this time was pure, overwhelming power!
"Moxie... every time it defeats a Pokémon, its Attack becomes stronger..."
In the contestant seating area, someone muttered to themselves, their voice filled with horror.
People finally understood Ariel's tactics.
Or rather, this wasn't a tactic at all.
This was just a one-sided slaughter!
The aristocratic Trainer completely broke down; like a madman, he threw out his remaining Poké Balls one after another.
The third, Talonflame, was knocked out of the sky by a Dark Pulse from Krookodile.
The fourth, Marowak, had its pride-and-joy defense torn apart by a single claw.
The fifth...
The sixth...
The combat process became shorter and shorter, and the red aura on Krookodile became more and more intense; by the end, it had almost turned into a red and black whirlwind of death.
Every attack was accompanied by the cracking of the ground and the mournful cries of its opponents.
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