It wasn't just Kieran who couldn't believe it.
In the spectator stands, Daimon shot to his feet as well, staring in disbelief at Tyrantrum being blasted backward.
"This… this is impossible!!!"
He stood frozen, the words spilling out before he could stop them. In all his years, Daimon had never witnessed anything this absurd.
An Advanced Pokémon—Greninja—meeting an Elite Tyrantrum head-on in a pure power clash…
And Tyrantrum actually lost?!
Head Smash carried a full 150 base power—and it had STAB on top of that.
And yet that slender black frog had shattered Tyrantrum's Head Smash with a non-STAB Ice Punch?
If someone had told him this beforehand, he would've laughed in their face.
"Grant… what the hell just happened?!"
Daimon spun around, glaring at Grant as he demanded an answer.
Grant's lips twitched. Inside, he swore under his breath.
How the hell should I know?!
But he did remember what Zane had mentioned—Aaron's awakened ability could grant his Pokémon unusual enhancements.
That was likely the real reason Greninja managed to overpower Tyrantrum.
"Ahem…"
Grant cleared his throat and looked back at Daimon with a faint, mocking smile.
"Greninja's just built different."
"What's wrong? Having trouble swallowing the loss?"
The worse Daimon looked, the more satisfied Grant felt.
Talked big—now you've got egg on your face.
"Hmph."
Daimon forced himself to steady his breathing and let out a cold snort.
"This round, you win."
With that, he turned and strode down toward the Pokémon battle arena.
...
Aaron looked at Kieran, who was still fuming, scratched the back of his head, and said helplessly,
"This is a League defense base. Do you really think I'd be dumb enough to use banned substances right in front of two majors?"
Seriously, this guy didn't think before he opened his mouth.
"You—"
The faint trace of disdain in Aaron's eyes only fueled Kieran's anger. He was just about to lash out when a cold voice cut him off.
"Enough."
"Kieran, that's enough. You're coming back with me."
Major Daimon stepped forward, his expression dark.
"Major Daimon… he—"
Kieran tried to protest.
"I said enough!"
Major Daimon snapped, his sharp gaze locking onto Kieran.
Kieran's face paled instantly. Realizing he had truly crossed a line, he swallowed the rest of his words.
"Yes… Major Daimon."
He recalled Tyrantrum, which was still lying on the field.
Major Daimon cast Aaron a long, penetrating look before turning and leaving with Kieran. If he stayed any longer, he might actually lose his temper.
Damn Grant.
Damn that brat…
Aaron just shrugged.
If you can't take a loss, don't strut around like you own the place.
"Ding~ Congratulations on completing the Mission: A Brutal Lesson from Reality!!"
"Rewards obtained: Sage Mode (Skill Card) ×1, Pokémon Candy (Intermediate) ×1…"
"Pokémon Training Space unlocked…"
"Ding~ Your Grovyle won the battle, gained a large amount of EXP, and leveled up. Current Level: Intermediate (Late Stage)."
The system's voice chimed softly in Aaron's ear.
A wide grin spread across his face.
Not only had he completed the mission, Grovyle had leveled up mid-battle.
Double win.
Without hesitation, Aaron used the Sage Mode skill card on Grovyle.
If he was going to be the First Hokage Lizard,
How could he possibly go without Sage Mode?
With Sage Mode unlocked, Grovyle's strength rose to an entirely new tier.
Aaron then took out the Pokémon Candy he had just received. Since it was Intermediate grade, Grovyle was the perfect candidate.
After swallowing it, Grovyle's Level rose to Intermediate (Peak Stage), just one step away from breaking into Advanced tier—
At that point, it would evolve into the cool and composed Sceptile.
Aaron couldn't help looking forward to it.
Finally, his gaze shifted to the last reward:
Pokémon Training Space.