Chapter 47: VS Rhyhorn
"First, let me introduce contestant number 1, Lance, a student from Seaside County First High. His starter Pokémon is the Rock/Ground dual-type, Rhyhorn. He won his preliminary match with ease, and his strength is formidable."
"Contestant number 2, Basalt, is a student from Seaside County Second High. His starter Pokémon is a Drilbur, a Pokémon rarely seen in our country, a Ground-type…"
As Basalt and Lance walked onto the battlefield, the commentator gave the audience a brief introduction based on the contestants' information and their performance in the preliminaries. At the same time, the large screen showed footage of the two contestants.
"Wow! That guy is so handsome, and his fashion sense is so good. He looks so trendy!"
"Huh? Aren't those J&L clothes? I think my boyfriend has worn them before. The style and cut look the same, I remember."
"To make it to the main tournament, it means the handsome guy's skills are also strong. He's both handsome and powerful!"
"Go Basalt, go! Basalt is the best!"
…
When Basalt's face was projected onto the big screen, the clamor in the venue instantly rose a level, showing his immense popularity. This not only put huge pressure on Lance but also left Basalt a little bewildered.
"What's going on? I really didn't hire any bots!"
Basalt looked at the banners and cheers in the audience, completely baffled. Even if all his classmates came to cheer for him, they couldn't possibly create this much noise, right? As for his parents, Basalt hadn't told them at all. He wanted to get a good ranking first and then give them a surprise.
In the front row of the audience, Jack, wearing sunglasses, revealed a slight smile. As expected, he had made the right move. The key was that Basalt's fan base seemed to be much better than he had imagined. Just around him, he had heard several girls chatting, saying they wanted their boyfriends to dress like Basalt in the future. So trendy!
"I hope Basalt can last a few more rounds," Jack pushed up his sunglasses, his heart full of expectation.
"Come on out, Rhyhorn!"
"Let's go, Drilbur!"
With the referee's command, the two threw their Poké Balls at almost the same time.
"Chari~" (^ω^)
Drilbur entered the field, as flamboyant as ever. But besides the flamboyance, this time there was also a burning fighting spirit in the little mole. Before the match, Basalt had told it that if it could win the championship, he would reward it with a complete Ground-type Gem.
Oh my god! This was a Type Gem! Drilbur simply couldn't refuse. It still remembered the taste of the gem fragments from before. That flavor was absolutely divine!
So, the Rhyhorn in Drilbur's eyes was no longer a Rhyhorn; it was a stumbling block on its path to obtaining the Type Gem… It had to be destroyed! Drilbur spread its claws, eager for battle.
"Hmph~ hmph~"
The opposing Rhyhorn suddenly sneezed, shaking its head. It looked at the little dot opposite it dismissively, not taking it seriously at all.
Rhyhorn was a quadrupedal, beast-like Pokémon. Its entire body was gray, covered in impenetrable gray armor used for protection and attacking enemies. A piece of armor on its back had a curved notch. It had a small horn on its head, short limbs, and a very small tail.
"Both contestants, take your positions. Let the battle begin!"
With the referee's command, the first match of Group C officially started.
"Rhyhorn, use Rock Tomb!"
Lance waved his hand, taking the initiative to attack.
"Drilbur, we'll counter with Rock Tomb as well!"
To everyone's surprise, Basalt also chose the same move.
On the commentary platform, the host was astonished, shouting into the microphone, "Did I hear that right? Contestant Basalt has also chosen to counter with Rock Tomb?"
"But the problem is, Rhyhorn is a Rock-type Pokémon, so it should be more proficient at using a same-type move, whereas Drilbur doesn't have the Rock type."
"Is this a command error from contestant Basalt? Or does he really have the strength to clash head-on with his opponent? Or perhaps, hidden beneath this Rock Tomb is a tactic we don't yet know?"
It was clear that this commentator's professional skills were very high. With just a few sentences, he had roused the emotions of the entire audience, and his knowledge of Pokémon was also very solid.
On the guest panel, Officer Tanaka, sitting in the middle, looked at the two on either side of him. "Gentlemen, what are your thoughts on this match?"
"Contestant number 2 will win," Coach Miles said without even thinking, the words tumbling out.
"Oh? Manager Miles, why do you say that?" Officer Tanaka raised an eyebrow, quite surprised. The match had just begun, and the first clash between the two contestants hadn't even started. Why was Coach Miles so certain that contestant number 2 would win?
At this moment, Victor Wei also fixed his gaze on Coach Miles. Could it be that Miles saw something that they hadn't? That's not possible, is it? Neither I nor Officer Tanaka saw any problem, so how could he have seen it?
Victor Wei secretly gritted his teeth. As the managers of the two most famous clubs in Seaside County, the two of them had been competing openly and secretly for many years. At first, Victor could suppress Miles, but Miles's potential was clearly greater than his, and he was younger. Now, his momentum was strong, and he was on the verge of catching up. This was a sore point for Victor, but there was nothing he could do about it.
"This contestant number 2… I'm his coach," Coach Miles said calmly, his tone full of nonchalance.
"This…" Officer Tanaka was at a loss for words but couldn't refute it. Although Coach Miles was a rising star, he was still a Professional-level trainer. If he were to fully dedicate himself to teaching a newcomer, he could probably make even a pig look impressive. So it was obvious that this Basalt's strength was not simple.
"There's no point in winning a match against an ordinary contestant. If he can't make it into the top four, it's all for nothing. I'm starting to look forward to it. I wonder what will happen when contestant number 2 meets the seed player, Wade." Victor Wei stroked his mustache, a smug look on his face. The seed player for Group C, Wade, had been personally coached by him.
Of course, Wade's family was also well-off and could afford many precious resources for his training, which was an important part of his strength. A large part of a Pokémon's strength is built on resources.
"To be honest, I'm looking forward to it too," Coach Miles turned his head and gave Victor a big smile, tinged with a hint of mockery.
Seeing that the atmosphere between Miles and Victor was getting a little tense, Officer Tanaka quickly changed the subject. "Gentlemen, look! The Rock Tomb clash between Rhyhorn and Drilbur seems to have a winner!"
On the field, Rhyhorn had only managed to form five rock projectiles, each only the size of a human head. In contrast, Drilbur had an impressive seven projectiles, and each one was as large as a watermelon, radiating power.
BOOM!
Drilbur's Rock Tomb instantly crushed Rhyhorn's, then continued on unstoppably towards Rhyhorn, forming a circle that trapped it.
"Rhy~ Rhy~"
Rhyhorn was injured. Its iron-hard skin was smashed with small white chips, and stone fragments flew everywhere. Not only that, but as a white light flashed across its body, Rhyhorn's stats were also weakened. Besides dealing damage, the move Rock Tomb also had the additional effect of lowering the target's speed.
This added insult to injury for Rhyhorn's already meager speed!
"How is this possible? Why is Drilbur's Rock Tomb so much more powerful than the Rock-type Rhyhorn's? This isn't scientific!" Contestant number 1, Lance, was on the verge of a breakdown. Losing a clash of same-type moves was a bigger blow to him than losing the match itself. Rock Tomb was Rhyhorn's own type move!
He didn't know that Drilbur's body had been transformed by the Smooth Rock Crystal, and its affinity for Rock-type energy had been completely reborn. In terms of pure elemental affinity, Drilbur's was definitely higher than that of an ordinary Rock-type Pokémon. But for a Rock-type Pokémon, this was so frustrating. You're a Ground-type Pokémon, yet your affinity for Rock energy is higher than mine? Does that even make sense?
Seeing Lance's dejected look, Basalt knew this was a good opportunity. He waved his hand and said loudly, "Drilbur, get behind Rhyhorn now and use Metal Claw!"
"Chari~"
Drilbur nodded and ran quickly around to Rhyhorn's back. Steel-type energy gathered in its right claw, which instantly turned a metallic color.
"Rhy~ Rhy~"
Rhyhorn wanted to fight back, but its head was still spinning from the barrage of rocks, and it was still dazed. On top of that, as a tank-type Pokémon, while its attack and defense were high, its weakness was also obvious: it had difficulty turning. Especially now that its speed had been lowered, it was even harder. Faced with the rapidly running Drilbur, it really couldn't keep up.
BAM!
Metal Claw hit Rhyhorn's back. The terrifying force bent its body, and its four limbs trembled, nearly causing it to kneel. The Steel-type Metal Claw was super-effective against the Rock-type Rhyhorn. If it weren't for the fact that Metal Claw was a physical move and Rhyhorn's physical defense was very high, another Pokémon might not have been able to withstand this hit. After all, Drilbur's attack power was also very high!
And this Drilbur, which dug holes every day and almost achieved a move-like effect with just brute force, had an attack power that was off the charts for its level.
A thick-skinned, iron-armored Rhyhorn? Sorry, that won't work on me.
"Drilbur, finish it with one last Metal Claw!"
Looking at the panting Rhyhorn, Basalt felt it was time to end this.
BAM!
Another Metal Claw was unleashed. Rhyhorn's knees finally gave out, and it collapsed to the ground. As for its eyes, they were already swirling.
"Rhyhorn is unable to battle. The winner of this match is… contestant Basalt!"
The referee went up to observe for a moment and immediately announced the result.
In the audience, a wave of shouts and cheers erupted in response. In terms of popularity, Basalt was no less popular than the seed players.
"This Drilbur is really something else! So far, none of the moves it has used have been its own Ground-type moves. It seems its strength is far from what it has shown," Officer Tanaka said with a hint of surprise in his eyes.
Basalt was the first non-seed contestant who had made him feel expectant.
"Hmm. His strength is alright, but if he runs into a seed player, he'll probably still get crushed. This contestant number 2 probably won't make it out of the group stage." Victor Wei crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and continued nonchalantly, "It's just bad luck for this kid to be assigned to Group C. If he were in Group D, against that Meowth, he would have a chance of winning."
After speaking, he shot a subtle glance at Coach Miles. The meaning was clear: Your student is no match for my student!
"My opinion differs greatly from Manager Wei's," Coach Miles sighed and spoke up just then.
"Here we go again…" Officer Tanaka slapped his forehead, looking extremely pained.
Damn it! I knew I shouldn't have come to be a guest commentator. And what's with the organizers? Why did they have to put my seat in the middle? I'm so done!