"Alright."
Hakuya accepted Steven's battle invitation without hesitation.
After all, he wasn't the only one eager; he too was incredibly impatient to test the true strength of his Mega-evolved little jet plane.
He also wanted to gauge whether his current level of power had actually reached the standard of a real-world Champion.
"Hmm... it's getting quite late."
Acting as the referee, Roxanne led Hakuya and Steven to the Gym's indoor battlefield, then glanced up at the clock.
She didn't mind staying up late occasionally, but she had felt a bit uneasy about bothering Hakuya and making him come over this late as the host. Not to mention, having a battle drag on this late into the night wouldn't be good for their health.
"Therefore, the rules for this battle will be a 2-on-2 format. The match ends when all of either Trainer's Pokémon are unable to battle. Do Mr. Hakuya and Mr. Steven have any objections?"
"I have no objections."
Steven shifted his gaze from Roxanne to Hakuya.
Although he originally intended for this battle to be a full 6v6 clash...
...considering the current number of Pokémon on Hakuya's team, and the fact that it was indeed quite late—a full battle might drag on until dawn, potentially affecting Hakuya's teaching performance tomorrow—Steven ultimately agreed to Roxanne's suggestion for a faster-paced 2-on-2 match.
As for a full 6v6 battle, they could save that for when Hakuya had collected all the Gym Badges and was preparing to take over his position as the Hoenn Champion.
"I have no objections either. Thank you for acting as the referee, Ms. Roxanne."
Standing on his side of the battlefield, Hakuya nodded and shot a grateful look towards Roxanne.
The faster we fight, the better. If I get back to the dorm early enough, I might even be able to squeeze in some progress in the randomized world.
Ms. Roxanne is truly considerate~
However, completely unaware that he planned to go back and continue grinding his life away, Roxanne thought Hakuya simply understood her underlying concern for his rest. The corners of her mouth instinctively curled up, her beautiful crimson eyes filled with a gentle, affectionate smile.
Steven: "?"
For a split second, Steven felt his thoughts were on a completely different wavelength than these two.
Unable to figure it out after a moment's thought, he decided not to dwell on it and directly pulled out his Luxury Ball.
"Come on out, Claydol."
Throwing the Poké Ball, a clay doll figure resembling something from outer space appeared on the battlefield.
The moment he saw the clay doll, its relevant information surfaced in Hakuya's mind.
—One of Steven's main Champion team members. Ground/Psychic-type. Highly likely to be a bulky, defensive build.
"I'm counting on you for this battle, Latias."
"Oh~ Latias, just as expected."
Just like Hakuya, Steven observed the Latias floating in mid-air right from the start.
Her sleek form and proud, high-spirited aura both represented an excellent level of care and training from her Trainer. The powerful aura radiating from her body also clearly signified that this Legendary Pokémon had definitely experienced some truly terrifying battles in the past.
"Then, let the battle officially begin!"
"Claydol, use Calm Mind."
The moment Roxanne's flag dropped, Steven preemptively issued his command.
"Now's our chance! Latias, use Draco Meteor repeatedly!"
Seeing the Claydol boosting its Special Attack and Special Defense right out of the gate, Hakuya also rolled out his own "wheelchair" strategy.
"Claydol, Light Screen."
As countless meteors trailing tails of fire plummeted downward, Claydol's eyes instantly lit up with a pink-purple glow.
Slowly raising its arms, a square, transparent wall of energy glass materialized directly in front of it.
But to the utter shock of Steven and Claydol, the immense force of the impact—even with the dual protection of Calm Mind and Light Screen—instantly sent Claydol flying backward several meters under the bombardment of the meteorites.
"I didn't expect this Claydol to be even tankier than I imagined."
Hakuya looked at the Claydol, which had managed to block the little jet plane's attack with its Light Screen, and expressed slight surprise.
Even though this is just the early-game probing phase where we stack Special Attack... for it to tank that head-on... this Claydol is no joke~
"..."
Hearing Hakuya's clearly audible sigh of admiration, the corners of Steven's mouth twitched slightly, and he broke into a cold sweat.
Faced with the little jet plane's terrifying, world-shaking offensive, he initially wasn't that surprised.
Latias was, after all, revered as a Legendary Pokémon. And knowing she possessed the luxurious battle record of sweeping a Gym Leader's entire main team 1v6, it was perfectly normal for her to completely suppress Claydol using an incredibly powerful Dragon-type move like [Draco Meteor].
But when he saw that the power of the [Draco Meteor] crashing down on Claydol hadn't diminished in the slightest—even after it had used [Calm Mind] and set up [Light Screen]—and that the Light Screen in front of it was even starting to show cracks after their fierce exchange, Steven fell silent.
The battle details Roxanne had relayed to him over the PokéNav earlier weren't exaggerated in the slightest. This thing was incredibly unnatural.
Doesn't the move Draco Meteor carry the negative side effect of lowering the user's Special Attack?!
Why is your Latias getting stronger the more she attacks?! And her power is so overwhelming that she can even ignore the damage reduction of Light Screen?!
"Latias, use Surf."
"Claydol, hold on! Use Trick Room!"
Sharply catching the change in the Pokémon's status, Steven immediately opted to change his strategy.
He had originally hoped to engage this Latias in a war of attrition using Claydol's basic Sandstorm + Light Screen + Calm Mind setup. But after just one round of exchanges, Steven realized the opponent's raw stats were absurdly, illegally high.
In his Champion team, Claydol was never meant to be the main attacker; its role was that of a dedicated support and utility setter.
And as a support, it naturally had to create an advantageous environment for the next Pokémon before it was defeated!
Jolted awake by its Trainer's roaring command, Claydol struggled to prop itself up. The entire square battlefield trembled alongside its movements. Like vines sprouting from the earth, countless alternating light blue and white diamond-shaped crystals surged forth from the cracks in the ground. These crystals piled up along the edges of the battlefield, forming glowing walls that climbed endlessly upward until they finally sealed the "roof."
[Trick Room: The user creates a bizarre area in which slower Pokémon get to move first for five turns.]
At this moment, Latias, who had just boosted her Special Attack thanks to [Contrary], furrowed her brow, feeling an invisible, oppressive energy enveloping her entire body.
Both her speed in gathering energy for moves and her physical movement speed were drastically reduced.
Under the battle mechanics established by the Creator God, this Trick Room strategy was an unsolvable, open conspiracy.
Too devious.
You realize you can't beat me in raw stats, so you secretly start playing tactics.
Seeing the Trick Room suddenly established on the battlefield, Hakuya instantly knew exactly what Steven was planning to do next.
"Claydol, Explosion."
"Latias, use your psychic power to form a shield and wrap yourself in it."
Standing in the center of the battlefield, Claydol's entire body suddenly erupted with blinding white light.
After the deafening sound of the explosion subsided and the thick smoke gradually cleared, Latias appeared in everyone's vision, completely enveloped in a pink-purple energy shield.
Aside from the chip damage taken from the Sandstorm on the field, after a full round of combat, Claydol hadn't even managed to scratch the little jet plane's health bar.
"Hakuya, your on-the-spot commanding skills are truly exceptional~"
Seeing Hakuya react instantly to [Explosion] just now, Steven couldn't help but praise him.
Being a qualified Trainer wasn't just about relying entirely on the overwhelming power of your Pokémon. Tactical arrangements before a match and on-the-spot commanding abilities during a match were incredibly important qualities for a Trainer.
"The feeling is mutual. Your commanding just now truly gave me a scare, Mr. Steven." Faced with the Champion's praise, Hakuya responded with equally high emotional intelligence, returning the flattery.
Unlike what was shown in the anime, the combat discipline of Pokémon Trainers in this world was noticeably much higher.
Since Claydol's health was already bottoming out, in order to avoid wasting the limited turns of Trick Room and ensure the subsequent Pokémon had the first-strike advantage, having it use [Explosion] to exit the field early was the absolute optimal choice.
And after doing so much setup, this Hoenn Champion's next Pokémon was undoubtedly...
"Metagross, prepare for battle!"
Accompanied by the flash of white light from a Luxury Ball, Steven's final Pokémon appeared on the battlefield.
The moment he saw the sparkling "Shiny" effect that symbolized a true sugar daddy, Hakuya nodded secretly to himself. While marveling at how incredibly rich Steven must be to procure a Shiny Metagross, he was inexplicably reminded of the Shiny Metagross he had encountered in the randomized world.
Although Steven's Metagross didn't possess the [Huge Power] ability, judging by the powerful aura radiating from its body, its strength was in no way inferior to the one from the randomized world. In fact, it was highly likely to be much stronger.
Hmm... I can only say it truly lives up to its title as the ace Pokémon of the Hoenn Champion.
"Mr. Hakuya... is he still not planning to switch out to his next Pokémon?" At this moment, Roxanne, who had been watching the battle intently from the sidelines, furrowed her brow.
Unlike Claydol, which served as a utility support, this Steel/Psychic-type Shiny Metagross was Steven's ace. Its strength was so immense that it could just as easily pull off what Latias did: a 1v6 sweep of her entire main Gym Leader team.
Not only were they closely matched in raw power, but in terms of type matchups, Latias was also at a distinct disadvantage.
Although she frequently told her students not to fear battles where they had a type disadvantage, that was usually in 1-on-1 scenarios.
Now, facing the Champion's ace Pokémon, Metagross, choosing not to switch out and instead continuing to use a Latias with a type disadvantage... no matter how you looked at it, it seemed like a highly unwise tactical decision.
Roxanne, who had become Hakuya's ultimate, dedicated fan, couldn't help but break a cold sweat for him.
However, the subsequent development of the plot caused Ms. Roxanne's eyes to widen instinctively.
"La-woo~"
"I know, I know. Let's test out our new power."
Being frantically urged by the psychic telegrams ringing in his ears, Hakuya couldn't help but smile helplessly.
In the face of pure, raw strength, the tsundere little jet plane was noticeably much more honest than usual.
Responding to the little jet plane, who couldn't wait to unleash her full power, Hakuya's eyes sharpened. Without hesitation, he revealed the Mega Bracelet on his wrist, allowing a dazzling, seven-colored light to erupt from his hand.
Facing a challenge from one of the strongest Trainers in the world, the Hoenn Champion, he naturally had to go all out.
Only an opponent of this caliber was worthy of being their very first Mega Evolution battle!
"Respond to my heart, Latias! MEGA EVOLVE!"
"LA-WOO!!!"
On the massive battlefield, a brilliant light as gorgeous as a rainbow violently erupted.
The moment their hearts linked, Latias's dragon roar perfectly overlapped with Hakuya's voice.
Subsequently, the Mega-evolved little jet plane, having unleashed her complete power, glided excitedly through the air. Illuminated by the dazzling white light of her magatama beads, Metagross suddenly felt its body grow inexplicably weaker.
"Is this... Mega Evolution? It's so beautiful—"
Looking at the white magatama beads orbiting around Latias, even though she didn't consider herself shallow when it came to looks, Roxanne couldn't help but let her eyes shine, offering genuine, heartfelt praise.
Standing directly opposite Hakuya and Mega Latias, Steven also experienced a brief moment of dazed awe.
"Mega Evolution. An evolution that surpasses the current limits of Pokémon evolution. A higher tier of evolution, also known as 'the evolution beyond evolution'. So this is Latias's super-evolved form... Mega Latias."
Steven looked at the figure bathed in dazzling white light, his expression filled with excitement.
As expected, Hakuya has already mastered Mega Evolution~
Ever since he learned of the appearance of Mega Evolution in the Kalos region, he had developed a profound interest in the phenomenon.
In fact, the reason he had rushed here recently—besides wanting to meet this genius Trainer, Hakuya—was largely because he received news that ruins harboring the secrets of Mega Evolution's origins were located near Rustboro City.
And now, to be able to directly battle a Trainer who had mastered Mega Evolution... how could he not be thrilled?!
However, the excited Steven quickly snapped back to reality.
His research into Mega Evolution would have to be put on hold for now. After all, the battle before him had not yet ended.
"Metagross! Let's show Mr. Hakuya our power! Full power Meteor Mash!" Taking advantage of the Trick Room effect while it still lasted, Steven launched a fierce attack without hesitation.
In the next instant, the Metagross hovering in mid-air hardened its gaze. Like a cannonball fired from a barrel, it charged violently toward its opponent.
"Latias, block it with your psychic power."
The attack, which whipped the surrounding air into sonic booms like rippling waves, was completely blocked by Latias's psychic light shield.
Amidst a series of violent clang, clang, clang impacts, the barrage of [Meteor Mash] punches unleashed by Metagross—which kicked up fierce, chilling gusts of wind—was entirely nullified. The pink-purple psychic light shield stood like an impenetrable fortress, effortlessly halting the terrifying tide of offense.
"Hmm... I have a rough idea now."
Standing on the battlefield, Hakuya nodded secretly to himself.
It wasn't that he didn't want to attack; he simply intended to use this opportunity to thoroughly test the practical combat effectiveness of Mega Evolution.
Compared to her base form, after Mega Evolving, Latias not only received a massive boost to her base stats, but her control over Dragon and Psychic-type energy was also significantly higher than before.
Even while passively facing the relentless assaults of a Champion's ace Pokémon, she could still effortlessly neutralize them.
On the other hand, as the battle progressed, Hakuya also discovered that he had quickly adapted to the massive stamina drain caused by Mega Evolution while in a combat state. Mega Evolving multiple Pokémon consecutively in a single battle would absolutely not be a problem for him.
Having obtained the test results he wanted, Hakuya issued his command.
"Latias, full power Draco Meteor."
Her already sufficiently stacked Special Attack stat, combined with the [Beads of Ruin] ability that lowered the Special Defense of everything on the field, elevated the power of Latias's Draco Meteor to an unprecedented, terrifying height.
Tucking her wings and accelerating to dodge the wind pressure of her opponent's punches, Mega Latias's mouth glowed with an intense blue light. Accompanied by a deep, rumbling tremor that shook the entire battlefield, the sphere of Dragon-type energy fired into the sky completely illuminated the dark night for hundreds of miles around.
BOOM!!!
The Draco Meteor, symbolizing the ultimate strike, crashed down.
The seemingly indestructible Trick Room shattered into pieces the very instant the meteors made impact!
Even tactical rules established by the Creator God were still hopelessly fragile in the face of overwhelmingly broken stats.
Looking at the Trick Room that was completely shattered before its duration had even expired, and his Metagross that had been instantly one-shot by Mega Latias's single move, Steven let out the exact same sigh of despair that Roxanne had when she was 'two-stocked' by Hakuya.
"...The science of Pokémon battling no longer exists."