Double Payback—that was Norman's final trump card when backed into a corner. It was also his true finishing move!
Double Payback: Borrow the opponent's strength to return double the physical damage from their last attack!
It was a cheeky technique, no doubt, and his long-time partner, Vigoroth, who shared years of battle intuition with him, clearly understood the plan. During their last clash, it had deliberately held back some power. Borrowing the recoil from Miltank's strength, it was now making a fierce comeback!
"Sorry... but I'm taking this win," Norman thought, glancing at Ather with a tinge of guilt.
Unconsciously, he had brought out his full strength in this fight. To deliberately throw the match now would be an insult to Ather.
Besides, if a teacher loses to his student, how is he supposed to continue teaching? Where's the authority in that?
He had already made up his mind: after this battle, he would officially take this tactical genius under his wing and personally guide him.
BOOM—!
As Norman pondered, Vigoroth's glowing red arms slammed fiercely into Miltank's body. The lingering smoke on the battlefield flared up once again, engulfing the entire arena.
Seeing no movement from the arena, Norman smiled and opened his mouth, "Looks like I—"
"Miltank! Use your final move—Endure!"
Thud! A dull thump echoed as Vigoroth flew backward out of the smoke and crashed heavily to the ground, clearly having lost its ability to battle.
Norman: "Huh?!"
Caroline: "???"
Ather grinned mischievously, the same way he had during the earlier livestreams where he always read his opponents like a book. "Sorry, Norman-sensei. I predicted your Double Payback... Miltank's last move, which it hadn't used all battle, was Endure!"
Endure: Focus all body strength to guard vital points. Even if hit by a potentially fatal blow, the user retains enough energy to avoid fainting.
"Endure? When? You actually used it?!"
Norman was in complete disbelief. He couldn't accept it! He had already won! That kid cheated!
Ather walked up and gently patted Miltank's head. "Just a moment ago~ I've raised Miltank for three years now. A little unspoken coordination doesn't seem too far-fetched, right?"
He smiled and didn't say more.
In truth, he had already envisioned several tactics from the start.
The Defense Curl + Rollout combo was powerful, sure—but it would obviously be Norman's top priority to guard against.
So Ather had deliberately baited with Defense Curl. The opponent took the bait and exposed three of Vigoroth's moves: Encore, Bulk Up, and Focus Punch.
Admittedly, the sight of that charging Focus Punch had made Ather panic. But once Miltank successfully tanked it, the formula for victory was sealed.
The only unknown was Vigoroth's fourth move.
He couldn't be 100% sure, but he estimated with over 80% confidence that it would be either Slack Off or Double Payback.
That's also why he never ordered Rollout after the Defense Curl.
Sure, Rollout could've interrupted Focus Punch with speed, but with the opponent having already Bulked Up twice, even a strong Body Slam might not finish it off. At that point, with all four moves revealed, he'd just be a sitting duck.
One Double Payback from the opponent would've completely taken out Miltank in its weakened state.
This battle reignited Ather's long-lost thrill for planning and strategizing. He also gained a brand-new perspective on Pokémon battles.
Skill usage, dodging, timing, stamina management—it all made his blood boil with excitement.
Even the initial decision to stay defensive with Defense Curl was to see how Norman would seize momentum, giving Ather a chance to learn through observation. Jumping straight into offense would've only exposed his weaknesses.
Remembering all this, Ather carefully stored the precious experience in his mind. He gave Miltank another rub on the head. "Great job, Miltank. You were amazing!"
"Mooo~" Miltank beamed and handed him a bottle of MooMoo Milk.
It was its way of acknowledging his efforts.
"The battle is over! The winner is Ather and Miltank from Goldenrod City! As agreed, someone here owes Ather a mentorship now~" Mikiko announced playfully, making Norman's face flush with embarrassment.
"Ahem! That was an impressive performance. I didn't expect you to be so talented in tactics... Come with me."
Norman clasped his hands behind his back and walked toward the backyard like a proper mentor.
"Don't be fooled by his serious act. Inside, he's probably dying of embarrassment. Hahaha!" Caroline's voice rang out from behind.
Norman stumbled forward awkwardly. "Ather, hurry up! Honey, you—you—stop talking nonsense. And make sure to cook an extra portion for Ather at lunch!"
Caroline giggled behind her hand. "Look at you, all flustered~"
"Pfft..." Ather couldn't help but laugh too, then quickly followed Norman toward the backyard.
Ding! Cross-level challenge successful. Special Attack Talent +1!
Ding! Achievement Unlocked: First Victory! Master Points +10!
"Huh?" Ather blinked. "I can gain talent points too?"
From what he'd researched, talent values were a blend of individual and base stats. In other words, could he raise a Pokémon to max potential just through battles?
"Holy crap... this is insane." Ather couldn't help blurting out a bit of national slang.
"Huh? What did you say?" Norman turned around in confusion.
"Uh... I mean, Sensei, this courtyard design is really impressive!"
"Haha, really? Caroline always says I have no taste."
Norman beamed, seeing how smooth-talking his student was.
Who could possibly reject such a clever, talented, and respectful Student?
Soon, he led Ather to a huge tree. The thick trunk was surrounded by a troop of Slaking, Vigoroth, and Slakoth. Clearly, this was the nest of the Slaking family line.
Norman sat down cross-legged and said, "Tell me about your background so I can prepare a proper training plan."
Ather sat beside him and briefly shared his story—how he had spent years preparing and finally decided to go all-in at age 18.
"You rascal... You should've said so earlier. I'm not heartless, you know. Sigh... what a waste."
Norman sighed. In his eyes, Ather had lost 8 precious years. If they had met earlier, the kid might already be Champion-level!
"It's not so bad. At least now, I'm still chasing my dream with determination—and I've got plenty of opportunities."
Norman gave his shoulder a hearty slap. "Well said! Do you have a specific starter Pokémon in mind? I'll arrange one for you as a gift for becoming my student."
It was happening!
Ather tried to suppress his excitement and looked at Norman. "Actually... that's one of the reasons I came to find you. I'd like to choose Slakoth as my starter!"
.....
[300PS= 1Bonus chapter]
If you want to read 30 advanced chapters, check out my [email protected]/LO_IN (Replace @ with 'a')