Chapter 10 Mistake Happens

Professor Rowan's final Pokémon was Beedrill.

As a Pokémon with full health, Beedrill had to create an opportunity for the subsequent Pokémon to win the match. With Clefairy's 4 times Calm Mind, Roy wouldn't switch out Clefairy. Clefairy, now poisoned, has been set on a timer.

Roy couldn't help but shiver at the sight of Beedrill on the field. In the comics, the Boss Giovanni had a Beedrill that was quite the powerhouse, capable of taking down even Dragonite in a flash. While Roy knew this Beedrill couldn't possibly be as formidable, out of respect for Giovanni's legendary Beedrill, he decided to play it safe.

"Swords Dance," Professor Rowan commanded.

Roy hesitated for a moment. Was Professor Rowan really testing the new Trainer with this move? Starting with information gathering, and now going for a Swords Dance setup?

Roy finally understood. This match was not some novice Trainer assessment. He might be a poison-protect-substitute cheezy trainer, but Professor Rowan is essentially the same.

"Clefairy. Use Shadow Ball."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Roy froze. Was he an idiot? He could have just Encore on Beedrill and moved on.

Professor Rowan chuckled. In high-intensity battles like this, both Trainers needed to invest immense focus. Over time, they often fell into the rhythm set by their opponent.

This move from Professor Rowan also carried a bit of an emotional response. He wanted to challenge Roy's mental game by going for Swords Dance first. Yet, to Roy's surprise, he had forgotten that he could just Encore on Beedrill and then proceed with his move.

Beedrill deftly dodged the Shadow Ball, skimming the trajectory and flying straight towards Clefairy.

"Pin Missile."

Although Clefairy, with its reduced speed, tried to follow Roy's command to dodge, it still took a significant amount of damage as it took off, with Beedrill darting in and out, not giving Clefairy the time to retaliate or release a move.

Professor Rowan dared not continue using Swords Dance. He instructed Beedrill to engage in aerial skirmishes with Clefairy, knowing full well that Roy was waiting for an opportunity.

Clefairy, buffed by four uses of Calm Mind, only needed one Psychic or Shadow Ball to take out Beedrill. However, Beedrill, with just one Swords Dance, didn't have that much room for error.

The battle started to look ugly, with Beedrill and Clefairy exchanging Pin Missiles and Shadow Balls. As for Fire Punch, which was highly effective... well, unless Clefairy could fly, it wouldn't hit Beedrill.

Despite Clefairy's decreased speed, its battle experience and Roy's judgment were enough to successfully evade Beedrill's attacks. Beedrill was much faster than Clefairy, but it didn't dare to get into a distance where it could accurately strike Clefairy.

This led to both sides exchanging attacks for nearly five minutes, with neither side landing a hit on the other. The battlefield was filled with flying dirt and dazzling lights like fireworks in the air, but neither side managed to touch the other.

This stalemate-like situation was a result of caution from both sides, but it was Roy who was at a disadvantage.

Although Ariados was taken out by the fierce Shadow Ball, it left Clefairy with a lingering Toxic that continued to drain its health. Initially, Clefairy could easily dodge Beedrill's Pin Missiles, but gradually, due to the effects of Toxic, it started to make mistakes.

After narrowly avoiding another Pin Missile that almost hit Clefairy, Roy finally made up his mind to change tactics. If he didn't seek a change, Beedrill could simply maintain its rhythm and then hit Clefairy with a Swords Dance when its health was low. Roy knew that if he didn't make a move, his remaining Pokémon would be waiting for a sweep.

Roy looked at the ragged battlefield and had an idea: "Use Shadow Ball on the battlefield."

Professor Rowan glanced at Roy and then at the pockmarked battlefield due to the battle, unable to understand the purpose of this Shadow Ball.

The Shadow Ball hit the ground where Clefairy stood, creating a huge cloud of dust and debris.

"Get into the fog."

"I won't let you have your way." Professor Rowan pointed at Clefairy charging into the fog and commanded Beedrill, "Use Pin Missile directly into the smoke."

Professor Rowan had encountered this battlefield strategy before, and he knew that Roy wanted to use the flying debris and dust to launch a surprise attack on Beedrill. So, Professor Rowan decided to keep Beedrill at a safe distance and continuously fire Pin Missiles without much thought.

"Continue using Shadow Ball on the battlefield."

Several Shadow Balls shot out from the fog, covering a larger area of the battlefield with the haze.

Not just the audience, even Roy and Professor Rowan, the two trainers on the sidelines, could no longer see clearly what was happening on the battlefield.

All that remained in the battlefield was the buzzing sound of Beedrill's wings, but there was no sound of Clefairy. Beedrill flew around in the dusty, foggy battlefield, launching Pin Missiles into the haze. Professor Rowan and Beedrill couldn't determine Clefairy's position, so they could only keep flying and shooting Pin Missiles blindly into the smoke, hoping to hit Clefairy.

The sound of Pin Missiles and the high-frequency buzzing of Beedrill filled the air, but there was also a quiet sound of footsteps. These footsteps would sound each time after a Shadow Ball was launched. Initially, they were in the center of the battlefield, but now the sound was much farther away.

After watching Beedrill blindly shoot Pin Missiles into the smoke once again, Roy knew he only needed to give one command.

"Shadow Ball."

In the astonished gaze of Professor Rowan, a dark purple ball of energy hit Beedrill directly from below.

A sudden attack, and Beedrill, still trying to attack blindly through the smoke, was sent flying before it could react. It hadn't even landed before it lost its ability to battle.

Sachiko raised the flag with an expression of disbelief. "Beedrill is unable to battle, Clefairy wins."

No one really understood what happened in this clash, including Professor Rowan. Besides the Shadow Ball, Roy didn't issue any other commands, meaning that this attack was actually carried out by Roy and Clefairy separately.

"How did you do it?" Professor Rowan felt a sense of unreality.

Roy pointed to his ear.

"Sound?"

"I heard Clefairy's footsteps when it was first hit by Pin Missile in the smoke. From that moment, it didn't move erratically again. Of course, the dust kicked up by the Shadow Ball obscured our vision, which worked in my favor."

"But you didn't command Clefairy to change positions. Was this also part of your plan?"

Roy shrugged. "I'm not a prophet, how could I do something like that? In that situation with no visibility, perception was hindered. Clefairy chose its own attack position, and I was only responsible for choosing the timing of the attack, that's all."

Professor Rowan opened his mouth as if to speak, then hesitated, and finally, he gently clapped his hands.

"You win, the match ends here."

Roy felt a rush of excitement, stunned for a moment before asking, "Do I qualify for the Pokédex now?"

Professor Rowan exchanged glances with the researchers beside him. "Do you know what level of skill it takes for a new trainer to directly defeat the Institute's examiner in their first battle?"

"Qualified...?" Roy tentatively answered.

Professor Rowan smiled wryly. "So far, fewer than ten people have become trainers and defeated the Institute's examiner on their first day. Well, if that's a bit hard for you to grasp, let me put it another way. The last person who debuted and defeated me on their first day was named Cynthia. Now, she's the Sinnoh Champion."

Roy's mouth was wide enough to fit an egg. He had really let things get out of hand. Initially, Roy's idea was to slowly build up his team of Pokémon, then run off to assist Ash Ketchum, defeat the Legendary Pokémon Trainer Tobias, and fulfill a childhood dream. After watching Ash become the Champion, he'd send him straight to the Kalos region to meet Serena, play matchmaker, and then comfortably return to the Sinnoh region, joining the League as a member of the Elite Four and lazily enjoying his time.

The script and title were all written, his joining the League as a Champion was all set, and then he'd just lounge around, relax, collect cute and powerful Pokémon from all over, and casually mentor some newbie trainers. Maybe even find a cute trainer girl to settle down with.

But now, it seemed like none of that was happening. Professor Rowan looked at him with such fiery enthusiasm. If it wasn't for some special hobby of his, then he must have thought Roy was a real talent, a diamond in the rough.

His brain, overheated from the victory, had a moment of clarity. Professor Rowan mentioned during the battle that there was another trainer similar to him in the past who had achieved. He didn't need to think twice to know it was Cynthia. He had really gone too far.

Reaching the peak of his debut, it sounded pretty cool to hear, and it was pretty cool in reality too. But you had to consider who was reaching that peak.

Cynthia at the peak of her debut. Every work told us what kind of fierce character Cynthia was. Her six Pokémon were all formidable, well-trained, and bonded. The TV series was best at bringing out Pokémon like Garchomp to educate people. None of the Elite Four challengers who faced her passed the test.

With such a powerhouse standing there, anyone wanting to challenge her had to think twice. Except for the TV series' rival Paul, who was a high-level chuunibyou patient wanting to take on Garchomp with six Pokémon, in the entire series, there was no one dared to challenge her!

What level was Roy at? Just someone who watched a bit of battles, understood some strategies, an average player at best, not even close to being hardcore. Now, besides the baby Dragon Slayer Azurill, all he had was a Ralts.

If it was known that Roy achieved the same results as Cynthia back then, wouldn't everyone who wanted a shot at challenging her be knocking on his door? Defeating the Star of Hope to prove oneself... Surely, if you can't beat Cynthia, why not try Roy instead?