"In the upcoming World Championship, I will probably encounter all kinds of Pokémon. Maybe battling here against Pokémon I've never seen before will help me understand them better."
Ethan's eyes moved slightly, and he began to feel the urge to battle.
Just at that moment, the battle in front of him ended.
An Emboar struck its opponent with the move Fire Punch, sending it flying out of the field.
After the victory, its trainer did not seem to intend to leave.
After allowing Emboar to recover some energy, he once again challenged other trainers on the field.
Seeing this, Ethan became interested.
With the field full of spectators, it seemed like a great opportunity to battle.
So he signed up without hesitation.
The opposing trainer was surprised to see Ethan, noticing that his appearance was different from most people.
That sparked his interest, and he immediately accepted the battle.
Ethan quickly stepped onto the battlefield, briefly greeted his opponent, and sent out his Pokémon.
"Rhyypperrior!"
With a deep roar, Rhyperior appeared on the field.
"Huh? What Pokémon is that?"
"It also seems to be a Pokémon that's uncommon in the Federal League."
The students from Harvard Pokémon University began discussing among themselves.
In those days they had seen many unfamiliar Pokémon due to the arrival of students from other Leagues, so they did not show too much surprise.
Evidently, they had not realized that Rhyperior was the evolution of Rhydon, and they took it as a completely new Pokémon.
"A Pokémon from the Asian region?"
"It looks a bit like Rhydon. If that's the case, it's probably Rock and Ground type."
The opposing trainer began analyzing Rhyperior's information.
Then he immediately ordered: "Emboar, Brick Break!"
From the perspective of types, Emboar is a Fire/Fighting type, and Rhyperior's Rock type resisted fire, so using a Fighting-type move was the best option. But Fighting-type moves had a big disadvantage: they had to be executed at close range.
"Rhyperior, catch it directly!" Ethan ordered.
It was the perfect moment to test the results of the recent training.
After hearing the command, Rhyperior roared, the muscles of its arms swelled, and it extended its hand to catch Emboar's strike.
In the next instant, before the stunned gaze of everyone present, Rhyperior grabbed Emboar's hand.
When it tightened its fingers, the flames on Emboar's fist went out.
Its hand was completely trapped in Rhyperior's grip.
"Emboorr!"
Emboar's face showed an expression of pain.
No matter how hard it tried to break free, Rhyperior's fingers held it firmly, without moving even a millimeter.
"T-that strength is terrifying!"
The trainers around were shocked.
Emboar was a Fighting-type Pokémon, famous for its strength.
And yet it couldn't break free, which meant the strength of the Pokémon on the field was far greater.
"Could it also be a Fighting-type Pokémon?"
Some students began to speculate.
While they were discussing, Rhyperior raised its other arm.
With its muscles tensed, it launched the move Hammer Arm straight at Emboar's head.
BOOM!
With a deafening crash, Emboar was slammed into the ground, raising a huge cloud of dust.
When the dust settled, Emboar was lying on the ground... completely motionless.
"H-he defeated it with a single blow!"
The audience burst into exclamations.
The trainer on the field was a regular fighter there, and many people knew his strength. But such a powerful Emboar had been instantly defeated.
"That Asian trainer is very strong... he's probably an Advanced-level trainer."
Some students from Harvard Pokémon University who were gathering information about participants from other universities began making their own evaluations.
After winning, Ethan did not leave the field but instead looked toward the audience.
Although he did not speak the language of the Federal League, everyone understood his intention.
After a brief silence, a student wearing the Harvard Pokémon University uniform stepped onto the stage.
As soon as he appeared, the audience let out a murmur of surprise.
It was clear that he was also a fairly famous student at the university.
Seeing the new opponent, Ethan smiled slightly, not worrying too much, and indicated that he would continue using Rhyperior.
The opponent nodded.
After greeting each other politely, he sent out his own Pokémon.
The Pokémon that appeared had a mostly black body, a purple face, eight disks around its head, and a horn on its forehead. Behind the horn it wore a white bow, and its body was covered by a kind of black dress similar to a Christmas tree, giving it an elegant appearance.
It was the Psychic-type Pokémon characteristic of the Federal League: Gothitelle.
"Gothitelle?"
"It seems he thinks my Rhyperior is a Fighting-type Pokémon."
Ethan showed a curious expression.
Although Rhyperior's strength seemed like that of a Fighting-type Pokémon, it was actually the result of his recent training.
The principle was a weakened version of the move Rock Wrecker.
After Ethan had explained that move in detail to Professor Harris, the professor had studied it thoroughly.
During that process, the professor had managed to partially deduce the principle of the move Rock Wrecker.
The reason Rhyperior possessed such terrifying strength was that it had mastered the technique of energy accumulation before firing the Rock Wrecker move, turning it into an ability to instantly increase its strength.
Since it did not fully execute the Rock Wrecker move, the side effects of that move were almost nonexistent.
"Gothitelle, Psyshock!" the opposing trainer ordered as the battle began.
They only saw Gothitelle clasp its hands in front of its chest. Psychic-type energy condensed and transformed into a mental shockwave that shot straight toward Rhyperior.
"Rock Tomb!"
Observing Gothitelle's movements, Ethan deduced that it was about to attack and gave the command.
Rhyperior responded by stomping heavily on the ground, and with a loud rumble a stone wall rose in front of it.
BOOM!
The shockwave swept across the field.
After a loud explosion, the stone wall completely shattered.
At the same time, the psychic wave also dissipated across the field.
"Such powerful control of Rock-type energy!"
The students were momentarily stunned, their expressions serious.
Being able to create a defensive rock wall of that level meant that this Rhyperior was even stronger than they had imagined.
"Rhyperior, use Rock Blast!"
After hearing Ethan, Rhyperior let out a low growl.
It opened one of its hands, revealing the rocky cavity inside.
Then a huge amount of Rock-type energy concentrated there and, as the muscles of its arm tensed, it suddenly fired the attack.
On the opposite side, Gothitelle once again launched the move Psyshock, creating a powerful wave that sliced through the air.
BOOM!
The two energies collided in midair.
Fragments of rock shot in all directions, while the stones launched pierced through the psychic wave.
Although the wave eliminated many rock fragments, it failed to completely stop the Rock Blast move.
Then, before everyone's astonished gaze, the attack struck Gothitelle directly—who was also surprised—and violently sent it flying through the air.
Once again, with a single move, the seemingly powerful Gothitelle was instantly defeated!
Seeing this, the entire audience gasped sharply.
The student who had stepped onto the field was a genuine Advanced-level trainer. Although he had only recently become one, no one expected him to be defeated so easily.
(End of chapter)