Pokémon from Galar

Following the commands of both trainers, Chirp withdrew its claws from the other, ignoring its injuries, and wind pressure and flames erupted once again centered on the two Pokémon!

Boom boom boom—!!

The wind fanned the flames, and the towering inferno completely engulfed the two Pokémon. Marie and Onion simultaneously lost track of their Pokémon.

I touched it

Writing about battles is a headache, playing Genshin Impact is a headache too, and it seems like not many people read the battle sections anyway. I guess I'll have to shorten the battle chapters in the future.

Go study and calm down.

One hundred words ...

Chapter 226 The Final Match: Baloo vs. Gengar

When the flames died down, unsurprisingly, Xiao Qiu had already fainted in the pit he had smashed himself.

However, the Crystal Lamp Spirit floating nearby didn't look too good either, after all, it was hit head-on by the Divine Bird's fierce attack and the Drill Pecking Technique, so it wasn't in good shape either.

"……Thanks for your hard work."

Pressing the switch, Mary retrieved the unconscious Little Bird back into the deluxe ball to rest temporarily. She then fastened the ball to her waist and removed the Moon Ball.

"Ichi-chan, it's all yours now!"

"Ee-!" (I understand!)

Onio, however, did not make any substitutions. Instead, he kept Chandelure on the field, even though his special attack ability had been significantly reduced.

"provocative!"

"Purgatory".

Without being told, Ichigo started running. The opponent's Purgatory was overwhelming, and standing still was not a good choice.

However, the Crystal Lamp Spirit's condition was significantly worse than before, and the power of Purgatory was no longer as awe-inspiring.

Carefully dodging the oncoming flames, Ichigo boldly closed the distance between the two Pokémon and successfully used Taunt, temporarily preventing her opponent from using status moves.

"A wave of evil!"

The deception that has been in use has been temporarily put on hold, and the physical attack ability of the Crystal Chandelier Spirit may not necessarily be stronger than that of I-chan.

"Big character bursts forth, stop him."

Seeing the dark brown energy attack launched into the air, the Crystal Lamp Fire Spirit quickly responded, its somewhat waning flames rising rapidly and transforming into a fireball that was shot out once more.

boom--!!

The Flame Burst was detonated in mid-air by Dark Pulse, and the huge flames and explosion temporarily separated the trainers and Pokémon on both sides.

"Self-motivation and vigilance."

"Hot wind".

Mary naturally let Yi-chan start boosting her power, since she couldn't see the other's movements, so she decided to play it safe.

On the other side, the action was much more proactive. A wind pressure, like sparks, pressed down on the smoke in mid-air, turning it into a rolling heat wave that rushed towards Ichigo.

"Dash past in a flash! Then give chase with vicious intent!"

The opponent's hot air was almost identical to the inferno, covering most of the field. There was a barrage of wind pressure and raging sparks. Trying to dodge would only put you at a disadvantage.

Ichigo knew this too, took a deep breath, and then charged out! The opponent's special attack wasn't much of a burden for her at the moment.

Charging against the gale, every spark that landed on Ichigo's body felt like a high-temperature fire. Even with Normal-type energy surfacing on her body, she still couldn't escape the damage from the flames.

Fortunately, the wind layer was not thick, and Ichigo successfully broke through the range of the hot wind. When she felt the resistance from the front suddenly lighten, she quickly began to activate her Dark-type energy.

However, controlling the wind wasn't so easy; he quickly changed direction and kept up. Onio decisively gave up.

"Flame jet".

As Onio's voice rang out, raging flames rushed toward Ichigo. Ichigo ignored the slight burning sensation and used his lightning-fast movements to dodge the barrage of flames as much as possible.

Then, she leaped into the air, the white light around her dissipating and quickly being covered by dark energy. Her entire body became deep and unrecognizable, her face obscured. I-chan opened her mouth wide, revealing fangs formed from condensed energy, and her entire body, carrying immense speed, crashed headfirst into the crystal chandelier spirit in mid-air.

The energy erupted instantly, and the Crystal Lamp Spirit was forcefully repelled by I-chan, who easily flipped over on the spot and landed steadily on the ground.

"Self-motivation!"

Without pausing for a moment, Mary gave orders, gazing at the Crystal Chandelier Spirit that had been maliciously pursued and blasted away. It seemed to be still conscious, but had almost completely lost the ability to continue fighting.

Even though I-chan's offensive ability isn't strong, being hit by this move still doesn't feel good.

Seeing this, Onio didn't delay and quickly recalled Chandelure and took the last Poké Ball.

"It's the last Pokémon I have. I feel so lonely... so sad... so scared..."

Silently looking down at the Poké Ball in his hand, Onio murmured to himself. The familiar touch on his fingertips allowed Onio to release some of his emotions. Of course, Marie couldn't hear Onio's voice at all.

I was just a little confused, wondering what the other person was doing at that moment.

However, Marie's doubts didn't last long, as Onio threw out his fourth Poké Ball, and a chubby Gengar appeared on the field.

"I-chan, take over!"

"Ee~"

Marie held up the Moon Ball, looking with a touch of emotion at the Gengar in the center of the field, who had a mischievous smile on his face. She had once thought about whether or not to catch a Gastly.

However, after Balu quickly joined the team, Mari gave up on the idea.

Seeing Gengar appear before her now, its round body stirred a sense of nostalgia in Mary. She really did want to have one. After all, Mega Gengar is really cool.

"Roar—! (Finally, it's my turn!)"

As soon as Balu appeared, after receiving two layers of enhancement from Ichigo, he subconsciously roared at his opponent.

Facing Baloo, who had been boosted twice upon entering the battlefield, Onio inexplicably felt a surge of fighting spirit. Before the Poké Ball he was holding could be retrieved, it was lifted up again.

"Gengar, Gigantamax... Let darkness completely engulf everything..."

The Dynamax Band was activated, and Dynamax energy was rapidly injected into the Poké Ball.

Seeing this, Mary also raised the first-chance ball in her hand and shouted loudly:

"Baru, let's come too."

"Roar—! (Yes!)"

Both sides activate Dynamax at the same time!

Marie turned around a beat slower and threw the Poké Ball in her hand with force, then looked up and watched as Bal's body was magnified a hundred times.

Two massive gusts of wind, carrying dark purple Dynamax energy, swept across the entire area.

Turning around to look at Gengar opposite, its Gigantamax form... to be honest, it looks a bit like a haunted house. Half of its body seems to have sunk into the ground, its hands are raised to its sides, and its mouth is enlarged and opened to the maximum extent, like a huge gate.

Despite its seemingly rooted appearance, it is actually quite agile, much like the talent of Ghost-type Pokémon. Even after Dynamaxing, it moves more easily than other Pokémon.

Mary tugged uncomfortably at her still-damp collar. Most of the aftershocks of the crystal chandelier's flames had been blocked by the protective shield, and Mary was still soaked to the bone.

This is the last match, it might not be easy.

Chapter 227 Taking a Shower

In the end, Baloo and Gengar fought to a draw in this relatively small arena.

Both sides were unable to completely avoid the Dynamax Ghosts on both sides. After several consecutive bombardments by the Dynamax Ghosts, both Palmon and Gengar were forcibly deactivated from their Dynamax state and fell into a state of exhaustion.

So, with only two Pokémon left to fight, Marnie unsurprisingly won the challenge.

Mary pulled herself out of the corridor, clutching her collar, and seeing Yuri about to pounce on her, she quickly dodged to the side.

"No, I'm still soaking wet."

"Oh, this is it! I borrowed a bathroom from the older sister. I'll take you there!"

However, Yuri still grabbed Mary's wrist, greeted the older sister, and pulled Mary toward the dressing room.

"..."

Mary looked at Yuri, who was walking ahead and pulling her along. She wanted to offer to give her directions so she could get there by herself, but she swallowed the words back.

She went to the changing room to get her clothes, but didn't change them immediately. Instead, she followed Yuri to a bathroom that was probably used by the staff and went inside.

Mary stood in the dressing room, bent down to take off her wet shoes and socks, and stepped barefoot onto the floor. Feeling a slight unease, she pinched the hem of her dress and pulled the fabric away from her body. After casually pulling it off, she turned to Yuri, who was standing beside her seemingly doing nothing, and asked in confusion:

"……What's wrong?"

"Ah...no, it's nothing."

Yuri blushed when Mary suddenly called her over and quickly looked away. Mary didn't mind and took off all her wet clothes in one go, throwing them into the laundry basket, planning to pack them up and take them back to the hotel to wash later.

"I'm going to take a shower now."

Although she didn't know what Yuri was planning to do by staying there, Mary still reminded her before taking her towel and going into the bathroom in the inner room.

"Ah...oh, I—"

Yuri, slow to realize what was happening, only found out when she finally spoke up that Mary had already gone into the inner room, leaving her alone there, blushing and embarrassed.

"..."

Reaching out to hold onto the wooden frame beside her, Yuri rubbed her temples, wondering what kind of nonsense she had been thinking about... It's not like she hadn't taken a bath with Mary before, so why was she so unsettled this time?

Thinking this, Yuri also raised her hand and unbuttoned her clothes.

……

The bathroom was a public bathroom, so it was quite spacious, but at this time of day, almost no one would come. Mary felt a little awkward having the place to herself.

Standing under the showerhead and rinsing her body, feeling the warm water soothe her skin, made Mary feel much better. She had been soaked to the bone during the competition, and if it weren't for the hot weather, she might have caught a cold today.

Today's battle made Marnie realize a few minor issues; she still doesn't have a good strategy for Dynamax battles.

It's basically a clash of special moves, and dodging is difficult due to the terrain. The aftershocks of the attacks will still affect the Pokémon, though Pokémon with relatively good resistances are a little better off.

Like today, two Ghost-type Pokémon used Max Spectral Bomb on each other. Even if they anticipated each other's Max Guard, there wasn't much skill involved.

Even without a direct hit, just a few bursts of aftershocks can leave both sides in a state of considerable exhaustion.

Ultimately... after Dynamaxing, all the moves of various types are assimilated into the same moves, and it's impossible to build a battlefield as large as the Dynamax areas in the wild.

Tactical changes have indeed become much less frequent.

However, it is possible to use normal special moves after Dynamaxing, but that requires a high level of strength and energy control from the Pokémon, and not many can do it.