Julian had no idea that the Coke can he casually threw away had caused panic among the three people from Babath, and that they even thought they had found a way to deal with it.
After spending most of the day exploring, Julian had already found twelve treasures using his Dowsing Machine.
At this moment, he was standing in front of a massive waterfall. The entire waterfall was about five to six hundred meters high and nearly a hundred meters wide. The sight of water falling from such a height was truly magnificent.
Under the sunlight, mist swirled in the air, forming a vibrant rainbow that spanned across.
Beneath the waterfall was a huge pool of water, resembling a small lake. The endless water from the falls crashed into it with a deafening roar.
Julian was standing in front of the pool with the Dowsing Machine in hand. The red dot on the screen indicated that the treasure was right at the bottom of the pool.
Judging by the size of the red dot, the treasure was already very close to an Ultimate-grade item.
However, there were nearly a hundred Bruxish in the pool, their bodies half exposed above the water surface, all glaring at Julian with fierce eyes.
This pool was their territory, and any foreign creature would either be driven away or killed.
Among the nearly one hundred Bruxish, one had already reached the early Elite stage.
That one was clearly the leader of the group.
If Julian wanted to retrieve the treasure at the bottom of the pool, he'd have to defeat them first
"Met—"
Just as he was about to speak, a Poké Ball at his waist suddenly shook a few times.
Then the Poké Ball containing Kartana opened on its own.
Kartana: "Let me handle this."
It had been resting and recovering from its injuries all this time. Not only had it not fought, it hadn't even had a chance to spar with Julian's other Pokémon.
Now its injuries were mostly healed.
And, the sight of so many opponents in front of it—even if only one was worth cutting down—cutting through this many enemies would surely feel satisfying.
Julian thought for a moment and nodded.
He was mainly still a bit worried about Kartana's injuries.
But considering this was its first time actively requesting a battle, as its trainer, Julian didn't want to turn it down.
"Fine, you can fight, but you have to follow my commands," Julian said.
If it were Metagross or another of his Pokémon, Julian would have let them fight freely against such opponents, he only gave commands when they were facing strong opponents.
Even with its injuries, Kartana had enough power to defeat that early-stage Elite Bruxish on its own.
So technically, Julian didn't really 'need' to command it.
But the reason he insisted on doing so was to help Kartana gradually get used to listening to his commands during battle instead of relying solely on instinct.
Kartana had grown up and reached the Elite level on its own in the wild.
Its battle experience came from countless real fights, honed step by step. While that wasn't a bad thing.
But things were different now. Kartana was no longer wild, it had been captured, and Julian was now its Trainer.
If they encountered a strong opponent and its fighting style clashed with Julian's instructions, what then?
For a Trainer, it was critical that their Pokémon followed their commands. In battle, Trainer and Pokémon were a single unit.
If a Pokémon had its own ideas and acted independently during a fight, then the battle was already lost from the start.
That's why Julian needed to gradually break Kartana's habit of fighting solo and get it accustomed to his commands.
This approach was specifically for Pokémon like Kartana—those who had grown strong in the wild before being captured.
Pokémon like Metagross or Dragonite, who were raised by humans from birth, would never disobey their Trainer's commands.
Unless, of course, the Trainer's command skills were so abysmal that the Pokémon outright refused to follow them.
Kartana hesitated.
Although it now saw Julian as a partner, the idea of being restricted during battle—of having to follow commands—made it feel confined.
"I'll only give commands occasionally, I won't be micromanaging the whole fight," Julian assured.
Kartana's independent combat skills were exceptional, better than most of Julian's other Pokémon. After all, it had done nothing but fight its entire life.
It was either in a fight or on its way to one.
And the fact it had survived this long said a lot about its strength—and its luck.
After a brief moment of thought, Kartana nodded: "Fine."
If Julian had planned to command the entire battle, Kartana wouldn't have liked it. But if he only gave occasional instructions, that was acceptable.
'I'll end this in a flash, before you even get a chance to give an order.'
With that thought, Kartana rose into the air, floating dozens of meters above the pool, looking down on the hundred or so Bruxish.
Kartana: "No one starts at the top. Not you, not me—not even gods. But the throne of heaven has been vacant long enough. From today onward… I will stand at the summit."
As it said those words, a huge wave of satisfaction surged through Kartana.
Looking at the silent Bruxish below: 'They must be stunned by my words,' Kartana concluded smugly.
Then—
WHOOSH!
All of the Bruxish, led by their early Elite-stage leader, simultaneously fired Water Guns upward.
The Water Gun of an early stage Elite, fused with nearly a hundred others, instantly surged in power to nearly match that of a late stage Elite move.
Seeing this, Julian's eyes lit up.
Fused moves weren't just about stacking power—there was a artistry to it.
The power, timing, and number of moves being fused—these factors were all crucial. A single misstep wouldn't just cause the fusion to fail; it could even weaken the original attacks.
The pond's water was crystal clear, brimming with a lot of water-type energy, it should have been a favorite place for many water-type Pokémon.
Yet, only Bruxish occupied it, and no other water-types were in sight.
Presumably they must all have been driven away by them.
And even if a powerful water-type Pokémon tried to claim this territory, the Bruxish leader's ability to fuse attacks—amplifying their combined force—made it nearly unbeatable here.
The fact that it could merge nearly a hundred Water Guns proved its absolute dominance over the group and the unwavering trust of its followers.
Facing a Water Gun with power approaching the late stage of Elite-tier, Kartana remained arrogantly unshaken, even finding time to keep up its theatrics.
Kartana: "Only the weak doubt their own strength."
With that, its blade-like left arm slashed forward in a swift motion.
At least it hadn't completely lost its head—it avoided using its still-injured right arm.
A crescent-shaped air blade tore through the space in front of it.
SHIIING—!
The Air Cutter collided with the Water Gun.
For a brief moment, the attacks held each other at bay, until the Air Cutter was shattered by the Water Gun.
Kartana blinked: "...Huh."
Kartana was stunned, this wasn't the outcome it had expected.
Fortunately, its reflexes were sharp. It twisted midair, narrowly dodging the remaining force of the Water Gun.
*****
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