The tournament had already ended, but the spectators on-site had not left yet, because there was still a closing exhibition match.
The two main figures of the closing match were not any of the tournament participants, but Drakoria's Julian and Celestria's Williams.
One was a 22-year-old Champion, the other a 35-year-old Champion—the two youngest Champions.
The closing match would be an exhibition between these two Champions.
---
> "A battle between Champions—just thinking about it gets me excited!"
> "It's just an exhibition match, don't take it too seriously. They definitely won't even send out Champion-level Pokémon."
> "In a Champion-level battle, the venue's protective barrier wouldn't last long."
> "It'd already be impressive if both of them sent out Pseudo-Champion-level Pokémon."
> "This Williams guy isn't even as handsome as me."
> "He's indeed just average-looking."
> "My husband is the best in the world!"
---
Just as some people pointed out, this was only an exhibition match, so Julian and Williams won't be sending out Champion-level Pokémon.
After all, no matter how much Champion-level Pokémon suppressed their power, even a few casual moves would likely overload the venue's protective barrier.
The tournament staff had already communicated with Julian in advance, suggesting he use a Pokémon at the late-stage Elite-level or peak. Williams received the same advice.
As for why not use Pseudo-Champions—well, everyone knew by now that Julian, even when his Pokémon were at the Pseudo-Champion level, could manage to defeat Champion-level opponents.
Julian's main Pokémon were all already Pseudo-Champions, so if he wanted something at the Elite-level, he could only choose from his secondary team.
A Poké Ball at his waist began to shake—a Pokémon was already volunteering. Seeing this, Julian no longer hesitated and threw out the Poké Ball.
With a flash of white light, the fierce yet striking Garchomp appeared on the field.
Julian smoothly caught the Poké Ball as it bounced back.
---
Pokémon: Garchomp (Dragon/Ground)
Level: 77
Potential: Blue
Ability: Rough Skin
Held Item: Dragon Fang
Gender: Male
Moves: Sand Tomb, Tackle, Sand Attack, Dragon Breath, Sandstorm, Bulldoze, Bite, Slash, Take Down, Dragon Rush, Crunch
TMs: Double-Edge, Scary Face, Protect, Fire Fang, Thunder Fang, Metal Claw, Rock Tomb, Dragon Tail, Stomp, Outrage, Shadow Claw, Dragon Pulse, Brick Break, Earthquake, Hyper Beam, Giga Impact, Swords Dance
Egg Moves: Draco Meteor, Twister, Dig, Dragon Claw
Note: Has consumed a Diamond Core, increasing the power of Rock- and Ground-type moves by 10%.
Note: Has consumed a Dragon Scale Fruit, Defense doubled.
---
> "Garchomp is my favorite Pokémon, but Champion Walker's Garchomp rarely makes an appearance!"
> "For Champion Walker, Garchomp is actually a bit weak now."
> "Why isn't it a Steel-type? Isn't Champion Walker a Steel-type trainer?"
> "You fake fan! Don't you know Champion Walker's secondary type is Dragon?"
> "My husband's dragons are number one in the world!"
---
Julian's opponent, Williams, came from a powerful family in Celestria. His achievement of becoming a Champion at such a young age was mainly due to the country utilizing a certain amount of its national resources to facilitate his growth.
Of course, this didn't mean he had a weak foundation. Celestria would never produce a Champion with unstable base just for speed.
Williams was a Fire-type trainer. It was unclear whether Celestria had specifically trained a Fire-type specialist to counter Julian's Steel-typing, or if it was just a coincidence.
After all, Fire-type trainers were the third most common, right after Bug- and Grass-type trainers, with Water-type trainers ranking fourth.
However, since Julian's rise with the Steel-typing, the number of Steel-type trainers had been increasing.
After nodding to Julian in acknowledgment, Williams sent out his own Pokémon—a level 79 female Pyroar.
Sensing no hostility from Williams, Julian also nodded back in return.
Setting aside international relations, it was likely that most trainers held a high level of respect for Julian, the youngest Champion.
From a record standpoint, the feats Julian had accomplished were incredibly difficult to surpass:
- Defeating an Elite trainer as a Pseudo-Elite.
- Defeating a Champion trainer as a Pseudo-Champion.
- Commanding the First-class Legendary, Kyogre to repel another First-class Legendary, Groudon.
While some might achieve the first, the second was far more challenging, and the third? Well, that was in a league of its own.
Pyroar exhibited dimorphism based on gender. Williams' Pyroar was female, characterized by the absence of a mane and a generally more slender and agile build compared to the male.
"Gar!"
Garchomp was extremely excited—it hadn't battled in a while, and a fierce fighting intent surged out from its body, rushing toward Pyroar.
Pyroar met its gaze without flinching, completely unaffected by the intimidating aura.
In Pyroar prides, the females typically took on the role of hunters, while the males protected the pride from external threats. Thus, in terms of pure combat skills, female Pyroar were often more proficient, though males possessed greater explosive power.
Even though this was just an exhibition match, Garchomp's fighting spirit was soaring. Julian didn't want to dampen its enthusiasm by telling it to hold back. Glancing at the opposing Pyroar, he could only hope it was strong enough to avoid being quickly overwhelmed by Garchomp.
"Pyroar, Flamethrower!"
Flamethrower!—a classic opening move, and one of the most common phrases uttered by Fire-type trainers at the start of a battle.
It was a ranged attack that allowed them to maintain distance from the opponent while also testing the opponent's strength, gleaning insights from their response.
As the flames came rushing in, the scorching heat instantly evaporated the moisture in the air. Yet, Garchomp showed not the slightest intention of dodging.
"Slash," Julian said calmly.
"Chomp!"
With a powerful swing of its blade-like fin, Garchomp unleashed a crescent-shaped, milky-white energy blade that met the Flamethrower head-on.
There was no stalemate between the two moves—the moment they collided, the Flamethrower was cleanly sliced in half by the Slash.
However, the move's power was also diminished significantly afterward, allowing Pyroar to easily evade it.
Boom!
Garchomp pushed off the ground with both feet, charging straight toward Pyroar.
In the blink of an eye, it closed the distance, raising a claw brimming with Dragon-type energy.
Dragon Claw!
Pyroar remained exceptionally calm. Its slender body twisted and shifted with agile movements, managing to dodge a series of Garchomp's consecutive Dragon Claw strikes.
"Pyroar, Take Down!"
Seizing an opening in Garchomp's assault, Pyroar slammed hard into Garchomp's abdomen. It expected to send the opponent flying—
—but Garchomp merely staggered back a few steps before stabilizing itself.
Only then did Pyroar realize it couldn't budge Garchomp at all.
Having consumed the Dragon-Scale Fruit, Garchomp's defense had doubled. If the attacker had been a Snorlax or an Aggron—Pokémon with massive weight—then maybe it could have been sent flying.
But Pyroar clearly lacked the mass to achieve that.
Sensing the danger, Williams immediately shouted, "Hyper Voice!"
He attempted to use a sound-based attack to damage Garchomp, but his command came a split second too late. Before Pyroar could even open its mouth, Garchomp's Dragon Claw was already pressing down on its head.
BOOM!
With a deafening crash, Pyroar's body was sent flying back dozens of meters.
After steadying itself, Pyroar shook its head groggily. Garchomp was strong, but not to the extent of defeating it in a single move.
*****
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