Pokémon Court

Clang!

The Stantler, charging in with Zen Headbutt, was suddenly struck by a barrage of six rapid slashes from Gallade’s dual blades, attacking from above!

Tamer Kyōsuke stared blankly at the scene, rubbing his eyes in disbelief. Gallade… had dodged the move using Teleport?!

How was that possible—

Kyōsuke knew better than anyone how much pressure his Stantler could exert on faster opponents when under Trick Room. Without Trick Room, his Stantler wouldn’t have stood out in the League Conference, let alone the Champion League.

But with Trick Room in play, this bulky, slow-moving Stantler seemed to have its beastly instincts awakened, greatly enhancing its agility!

Coupled with the strength gained through subsequent training, it was more than capable of delivering a severe blow to any opponent with the element of surprise.

“Dodged it…”

Battle Girl Mito looked at the arena with an astonished look in her eyes.

Gallade had successfully dodged it once, which was surprising, but since it was Terrance’s Pokémon, Mito could accept it.

However, what Kyōsuke and she found unusual was that under Trick Room, Stantler’s battle instincts were fully awakened, and even if the opponent managed to dodge an attack, Stantler could quickly react and continue to inflict fatal damage!

In Kyōsuke’s battle experience, very few opponents could surpass Stantler’s reaction speed under Trick Room.

But it was the first time they had witnessed an opponent who, after successfully dodging, chose to save time by directly attacking Stantler with their body!

Gallade, without using any moves, ignored the strange fluctuations of Trick Room that hindered energy gathering and instantly appeared next to Stantler and launched a rapid series of attacks, so fast that Stantler couldn’t even react!

Gallade completed the combo, and both it and Stantler crashed down. Although the attack wasn’t powered by a move, Stantler still suffered immense pain.

To gain dominance under Trick Room, Stantler had traded speed and power for its bulky frame, but its durability hadn’t improved much. Its layers of fat became its sole weakness.

When Gallade couldn’t use its moves, all it did was practice swinging its blades, and in terms of honing its own body, Gallade reached a certain limit. Without its blade training, it would be impossible for Gallade to possess such strength and speed in the moves it mastered later such as Slash, Close Combat, and Leaf Blade.

Stantler’s Trick Room sealed off the blade moves that Gallade is intensely proud of, but that only unleashed Gallade’s raw physical prowess!

Without relying on any energy, it simply attacked using its blades!

This time, there was no need to worry about gathering energy, no concern for energy recoil, and no issue with the coordination of both blades attacking simultaneously. Targeting Stantler who was in the middle of Zen Headbutt, Gallade poured its full strength into the attack, landing six consecutive strikes. The rapid series of attacks sent Stantler crashing to the ground, eliciting a miserable cry. ℞âꞐȰ฿ĚS̩

“Not good!”

Kyōsuke’s heart sank. Gallade’s final attack landed directly on Stantler’s horns!

That was the source of controlling Trick Room.

A low hum reverberated in everyone’s ears. The sudden change in the arena made many realize—Trick Room had vanished.

At that moment, Stantler, the first to fall towards the ground, frantically flailed its body, enduring the pain as it tried to land steadily. But a loud shout from its Trainer heightened Stantler’s alertness to the maximum!

“Re-establish the Trick Room immediately!”

“Gallade, Close Combat!”

Though Gallade was a moment behind Stantler in falling to the ground, under Terrance’s command, it vanished from sight in a flash, leaving everyone stunned. In the blink of an eye, it reappeared beneath the falling Stantler, its arm blades radiating a deep crimson energy, and ruthlessly struck Stantler!

Bang!!!

The 100kg Stantler was sent flying straight into the sky amidst an exaggerated, miserable scream!

“Clang!” Gallade retracted its blades and stood silently in the arena. Moments later, with another loud thud, the Stantler crashed to the ground, knocked unconscious. Kyōsuke stood speechless, unable to utter a word.

Battle Girl Mito watched the entire battle in shock. At first, she didn’t fully grasp what was happening, but upon reflecting on the battle afterward, she realized there were many things that didn’t make sense!

“This Gallade…how could it have mastered Teleport to such a level? How is that even possible?!”

Gallade… and Teleport?!

Mito had never heard of such a combination, and what was with the sheer speed of those ordinary attack combos? Even without Trick Room, how could Gallade chain Teleport and Close Combat so quickly…?

If there is no Trick Room, is there really any Pokémon fast enough to react to an attack right after Teleport?

Mito was stunned. From the moment Stantler launched its Zen Headbutt to Gallade executing Close Combat, it had all happened in just a few seconds. Everything was so fast—this kind of high-speed battle was rare even in the Champion League, requiring specific circumstances and Pokémon.

Yet now, Mito couldn’t believe that Stantler of Champion League Trainer Tamer Kyōsuke, someone she greatly feared, could be countered by normal attacks.

Even in Kyōsuke’s losing battles in the Champion League, Stantler’s Trick Room had never been broken by normal attacks!

“Haha, he must be feeling awful right now. Since only one Pokémon can be sent out, he can’t fully utilize his spatial tactics.” Mito chuckled.

Indeed, after Gallade returned to Terrance’s side, Kyōsuke could only silently recall his unconscious Stantler.

“I never thought… Gallade could break the Trick Room with normal attacks.” Kyōsuke gave a bitter smile. “There’s still more to Gallade’s strength, isn’t there? If you were to compete in the Champion League, you might have a chance to advance to the final rounds of the first half.”

The Champion League was divided into two stages, with the latter stage often jokingly referred to by spectators as the Elite Four Challenge Competition, Elite Four Battles, Elite Four Championship, and so on.

The gap in skill between Trainers in the first stage and those in the second stage was immense.

Trainers like Tamer Kyōsuke and Battle Girl Mito were among those striving to break through the first stage and reach the second stage. Since Terrance had reached the level where he could defeat Trainers with Champion League qualifications, it meant he wasn’t far from advancing to the next stage.

Six months? A year?

Kyōsuke and Mito still don’t know Terrance’s full strength. A 1-on-1 battle doesn’t reveal much, but if Terrance is also proficient in full-team battles, that would be terrifying for someone his age.

Trainers who made it to the latter stage but failed to secure an Elite Four position were given a special title.

Elite Four Candidates. Over the past decade, fewer than a dozen such Trainers had emerged in Hoenn’s Champion League.

“That was a close battle, Gallade was nearly in trouble too. I look forward to our next battle,” Terrance said to Kyōsuke.

You can read ahead upto 25 chapters on my patreon and I’ve also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon.

Become a Patron!

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!