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"Dratini! That thing dared to mess with us! We absolutely can't forgive it! Charge in and use Wrap!"
"Dratini!"
At Delia's command, Dratini shook the dust off its head with force, then twisted its slender body and shot like an arrow toward the nearby Delibird.
"Here we go again! Delibird, use Present!"
Kim watched the charging Dratini and grinned as she called out to her Pokémon.
"Deli! Deli!"
Delibird soared into the air again. One stubby hand reached into its tail repeatedly, pulling out colorful glowing orbs and hurling them down toward Dratini like bombs.
"Dratini, dodge! Then use Twister!"
Delia wasn't flustered as she looked at the barrage of Presents raining down. Instead, she clenched her fists tightly and gave her command in a calm and steady voice.
"Dratini!!"
Upon hearing the order, Dratini twisted its body with remarkable agility. Small and nimble, it weaved around every glowing orb with ease—none of them landed a hit. The missed Presents exploded one after another around Dratini, quickly forming a dense cloud of smoke.
"Dratini!!"
But then came a sharp cry. A twister spun to life from within the smoke, scattering it in an instant. The sudden gust caught Delibird midair, dragging it into the whirlwind and subjecting it to its full force.
Watching this unfold, Liam nodded with a faint smile. He was clearly pleased with Delia's performance, eyes filled with approval. His time spent coaching her had clearly paid off.
"Now, Dratini! Go in for the Wrap!"
Caught in the gust, Delibird was forced to descend. As it neared the ground, Delia spotted her chance and called out decisively.
"Dratini!!"
Dratini gave a spirited cry and launched itself like a spring, streaking through the air toward the falling Delibird.
"Heh, so naïve! Delibird, use Icy Wind!!"
Instead of panicking, Kim chuckled darkly and shouted toward her Pokémon caught in the twister.
"Deli!"
Though it wore a pained expression within the vortex, Delibird suddenly flapped its delicate right wing. It gripped its tail tightly with its left wing and began rhythmically shaking it. With that motion, a chilling wind surged forth—Icy Wind—and it collided head-on with the diving Dratini.
"Dratini!!"
With just one hit, Dratini let out a pained cry before being frozen solid into a block of ice. As the Twister faded, the icy sculpture crashed heavily to the ground, gleaming brilliantly under the sunlight.
"Dratini is unable to battle! Delibird wins!"
The referee quickly ran to the frozen Dratini. Seeing the swirls in its eyes through the ice, he stood up and announced the result.
"Wh-What?! How is that possible?!"
Delia ran to Dratini's side in disbelief, eyes wide in shock as she saw her Pokémon frozen solid.
"It's not that surprising. Dratini is Dragon-type, and that Delibird is Ice- and Flying-type—it's a natural disadvantage. Plus, Delibird used the Ice-type move Icy Wind. Dratini had already taken some damage. It was just too much to withstand."
Liam finally spoke, calmly explaining the situation to Delia.
"Oh? You really know your stuff, huh. Just as you said, my Delibird can use Ice-type moves, which makes it perfect against Dragon-types like Dratini. That's why I warned you not to underestimate my Delibird at the beginning."
Kim gave Liam a curious look. Since Delia claimed she was from Kanto, Liam, her fiancé, must be as well. And Kanto didn't have wild Delibirds. Yet Liam clearly understood Delibird's typing—and earlier, when Delibird used Present the first time, Kim had noticed he seemed to hold back some advice, likely because he was already familiar with the move.
For a Kanto native to be so knowledgeable about Johto-region Pokémon genuinely impressed her.
"Hmph! So it was just a type advantage after all! No way my Dratini would've lost so easily otherwise!" Delia puffed her cheeks slightly, still unsatisfied, but obediently recalled Dratini. "You did great, Dratini. Take a good rest. Now it's time for my next Pokémon! Let's use type advantage too! I choose you—Cyndaquil!"
"Cynda~ Cynda~!"
Cyndaquil emerged from the PokéBall, visibly excited. Even before the battle began, flames erupted from its back—it was clearly fired up and ready.
"Whoa, a Cyndaquil this time? The Pokémon you have are surprisingly rare. You're quite the lucky girl! A Fire-type like Cyndaquil really does have an edge over my Ice-type Delibird. But don't get too cocky, Delia. This is a Flying-type Gym. My Delibird isn't limited to just Ice-type moves~"
Kim had grown used to being surprised by Delia's Pokémon by now, only offering a casual sigh at yet another rare one.
"Challenger's Pokémon is ready! Final battle at the Violet Gym—begin!"
With both sides down to their last Pokémon, the final round would decide the match.
"Let's greet them properly, Delibird—send over a Present!"
"Deli!"
Taking the initiative again, Kim's Delibird pulled a colorful orb from its tail, hugged it between its wings, lifted one foot like a baseball pitcher, and hurled it hard toward Cyndaquil.
"Cyndaquil, dodge it! That thing explodes—get out of the way, quick!"
"Cyn-da!"
At first, Cyndaquil looked a bit confused by the incoming object, but Delia's shout startled it into action. Panicking slightly, it scrambled to the side just in time to avoid the glowing orb.
BOOM!!
The Present exploded shortly after missing, and Cyndaquil, now sweating, wore a look of relief at its narrow escape.
"Hehe, did you like our gift? Delibird, send over a few more!"
"Deli! Delibird!"
Kim grinned at Cyndaquil's reaction and cheerfully gave her command. Several more Presents rained down from Delibird.
"Don't be scared, Cyndaquil! Use Smokescreen to hide, then follow up with Ember!"
"Cynda! Cyndaquil!"
Following Delia's orders, Cyndaquil calmed down, opened its mouth, and released a thick cloud of smoke that quickly spread across the battlefield. The Presents vanished into the haze, followed by a series of loud explosions—but no other sound.
"Deli?"
Delibird landed gently, peering into the smoke in confusion and tilting its head.
"Stay alert, Delibird—an attack could come at any moment."
Kim narrowed her eyes, keeping a close watch on the silent battlefield.
"Cyn-da!"
Just as Kim finished speaking, a young but determined cry rang out from within the smoke. Then, blazing Embers burst forth like flower petals in the wind, raining down toward Delibird.
"Delibird! Use Icy Wind!"
Kim's reflexes were sharp—she called out her counter immediately as the flames came into view.
"Deli!"
Delibird swung its tail rapidly, whipping up another frigid Icy Wind that clashed midair with the incoming Embers. The two attacks collided in a series of light explosions, black smoke billowing outward and shrouding the battlefield in darkness within seconds.