"You two want to battle?"
"That's fine. I was hoping to see Ralts' strength anyway."
Aven didn't object.
In the future world, battling was also a form of communication—and the most popular activity by far.
'There's nothing a good Pokémon battle can't solve. And if there is—just fight again!'
With Aven's approval, the two Pokémon quickly took positions on the battlefield.
Rhydon, seeing this, clicked his tongue in disappointment.
But then his gaze shifted to Luxio—maybe he could be his next opponent!
…
Soon, the two Pokémon were ready.
Acting as referee, Aven gave the signal to begin.
"Meow!!"
Sparks crackled across Luxio's body.
Thanks to his recent training, the electricity he emitted was much stronger than before.
Even his Thunder Shock move had evolved—into the more powerful Thunderbolt!
As Luxio unleashed the move, lightning surged toward Ralts.
Ralts was shocked by the intense electricity.
Its eyes suddenly flashed blue.
A wave of light-blue psychic energy burst forth, clashing with the incoming Thunderbolt.
For a moment, the attacks stalled midair—the psychic energy slowing Thunderbolt just enough to shift its direction.
The blast struck the ground near Ralts instead.
"Such powerful psychic energy!"
Watching the scene unfold, Aven was just as surprised.
Earlier, he had already assessed Ralts' development and found that it was still in its juvenile stage, with a relatively low level.
But now, the psychic power Ralts had just unleashed was far beyond what its level should have allowed—its strength was already comparable to that of an intermediate-tier Pokémon!
'It must be related to its Telepathy ability… and there's something unusual about Ralts itself too.' Aven thought to himself.
Telepathy was considered a very rare ability, only accessible to a small number of Pokémon, and even then, only a very small chance of naturally acquiring it.
One defining trait of Pokémon with Telepathy was their extraordinarily powerful mental strength, but Ralts' psychic power was far beyond even that!
…
"Ralts~"
After successfully blocking the attack, Ralts raised its hand again, concentrating its psychic energy.
This time, a faint blue glow began to emanate from Luxio, who was now being affected by Ralts' psychic power.
Under its control, Luxio's body slowly floated up into the air.
"Meow?! Meow!!"
It was Luxio's first time experiencing such an attack, and it was clearly startled.
Sensing its loss of control, Luxio began struggling, electricity crackling over its body.
As electrical currents surged around it, the psychic glow was quickly shattered, and Luxio's body dropped back to the ground.
Bzzzt—!
Sparks danced across Luxio's fur, muscles tensing and conducting the current through its limbs.
In the next instant, Luxio exploded forward with a burst of speed, using the electric current stimulation to trigger an instantaneous dash.
Ralts' eyes flashed blue as it immediately sensed the change in Luxio's movement.
Its survival instincts, honed through time spent in the wild, were sharp and responsive.
Without hesitation, it activated Teleport—and disappeared from where it had stood.
"Meow!"
Luxio lunged forward.
It didn't use any moves, just a simple pounce—it knew Ralts' body wasn't very durable.
And in terms of speed, Luxio was confident.
Even Froslass couldn't dodge it once he got serious, usually forced to take the hit head-on.
But this time, Luxio found itself striking at empty air.
Ralts had vanished.
Luxio looked around—but there was no sign of it anywhere!
Impossible!
Luxio was stunned.
Ralts was faster than it was?
Not only that—it hadn't even realized when Ralts moved!
That meant Ralts wasn't just a little faster—it was much faster!
It wasn't just Luxio who was shocked.
The other Pokémon who had been watching all had wide eyes—they had clearly seen Ralts vanish in place and reappear from Luxio's blind spot.
"Ralts!"
Now standing behind Luxio, Ralts launched another wave of psychic energy.
Caught off guard, Luxio was flung into the air, rolling several times before scrambling back to its feet, looking at Ralts in shock.
Ralts' eyes still glowed with a faint blue light.
Luxio blinked… then suddenly felt drowsy.
Its eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and moments later, its body slumped to the ground, completely asleep.
'That's… Hypnosis?'
Aven was stunned again.
That combination of Teleport, Psychic, and Hypnosis—Ralts had executed it so fluently, it was clearly a practiced tactic.
Apparently, during the many times it had encountered danger in the wild, this was how Ralts survived:
Use Teleport to dodge, put the opponent to sleep, and then escape calmly.
Of course, countering this combo was actually very simple—just avoid eye contact to resist Hypnosis.
The only troublesome part was Teleport.
In formal Pokémon battles, where the arena-imposed boundaries, constant attacks could shut down Teleport, since it couldn't be used repeatedly in rapid succession.
But in the wild, with no restrictions on space, Ralts could teleport over great distances.
A few consecutive Teleports would allow it to evade most threats.
…
"All right, let's call the battle here."
"Petilil, can you wake up Luxio—no, never mind. Let him rest a little."
Aven shook his head at the sleeping Luxio, then walked over to Ralts with a smile.
"Well done, little one."
Hearing the praise, Ralts immediately chirped with joy, clearly delighted to be complimented.
Soon, the other Pokémon came forward to offer their congratulations too.
After all, displaying strength was one of the best ways to gain acceptance in a group.
"Rhy!"
Rhydon was particularly excited now, visibly itching for a turn.
Fortunately, Petilil stepped in to stop Rhydon before things escalated.
She also thoughtfully helped Ralts recover its energy, instantly earning a wave of goodwill from the little Psychic-type.
'Ralts' overall strength is at the level of a intermediate-tier magical beast.'
Aven observed.
'Its mental power is immense for its level—its potential is enormous.'
He glanced at the other Pokémon playing in the yard, then walked under the shade of a tree.
Pulling out a new notebook, he began recording Ralts' data.
At the same time, he realized that many of the other Pokémon's data needed updating.
For example, Luxio—its original training methods could no longer keep up with its current strength.
He also began reviewing his overall combat strength.
Among his Pokémon, those who had reached advanced-tier magical beast level include Froslass, Torterra, Rhydon and Bibarel. Petilil, when empowered by her Life Orb, could also reach the advanced-tier level.
As for the Pokémon with intermediate magical beast level strength, there are quite a few of them. Among them, Vileplume, Tangrowth, Luxio, and Mightyena all have the potential to reach the advanced-tier magical beast.
Ralts was also intermediate-tier, but due to its reliance on Teleport, Psychic, and Hypnosis, its actual combat power was slightly lower than others at the same tier.
Ralts strength is also at the intermediate magical beast level. Relying on Teleport, Psychic, and Hypnosis, it can defeat its opponents unexpectedly, but its overall combat power is still on the low side among the intermediate magical beast level.
The weakest members were: Cherrim, who is more of a support and Combee, still waiting to evolve
Cherrim, thanks to her Sunny Day and Flower Gift ability, could greatly enhance the team's power.
If Cherrim, Vileplume, and Tangrowth fought together, they could even reach advanced-tier strength as a trio.
Combee's goal now was to evolve into Vespiquen.
Once that happened, her true potential would be unleashed.
With the help of her hive support and proper strategy, Vespiquen could easily become advanced-tier.
…
"With the combat power of five advanced-tier Pokémon, I am now only one step away from having the combat power of a gym-level trainer."
"My next goal, aside from nurturing more advanced-tier Pokémon, is to raise one to the King-tier level!"
He recalled a rumor—the Ironblood Marquis, Marquis Hormay supposedly had a King-tier Pokémon.
Though the truth was uncertain.
But in Marina City, the Lord Kale had definitely been confirmed to possess King-tier strength.
And being the ruler of an ancient city, he likely had more than one such asset.
…
Aven fell into deep thought.
If it was about reaching King-tier, Froslass, could also achieve it by using its ghost-type energy.
However, there was a danger of losing control, and Aven did not want to risk that.
Aside from her, the most promising candidate was Rhydon.
If he could complete his evolution into Rhyperior, his racial advantage would give him a solid shot at breaking into King-tier.
Of course, King-tier didn't have to come from a single Pokémon's raw power.
If enough buffs were stacked into it, it can also be achieved.
Just like the Sunny Day and Flower Gift ability of Cherrim, plus Grassy Terrain and finally combined with auxiliary moves such as Growth, Quiver Dance, and Calm Mind—it could simulate King-tier strength.
But in large-scale battles, even King-tier Pokémon could be overwhelmed.
For example, during rainy weather, if a thousand Bibarel all used Hydro Cannon at once, even a King-tier Pokémon weak to Water could be severely injured in seconds!
"The Ironblood Marquis, huh…"
Thinking about the backer behind those magical beast merchants and magical beast hunters, Aven snorted coldly.
'Even if he has King-tier strength, so what? With the power of my current territory, I fear no one.
"It's time to deal with the hunters."
"Even after all the arrests, they still keep sneaking into my land…"
Aven took a deep breath and pulled out another notebook—this one containing information on the Gilded Fang Merchant Guild.
A particular name resurfaced in his mind: Matthew, a magical beast hunter.
'Maybe I can use Ralts' abilities for judgment.'
'With its emotional sensitivity, lie detection, and telepathy, it's perfect for trials.'
'In front of Ralts, no one can lie. She'd be the best judge for a trial!'
Aven's gaze shifted toward Ralts, who was happily playing in the distance.
Suddenly, he realized that Ralts could also become a huge asset for his farming ambitions.
With Ralts around, he could quickly build a trustworthy core leadership team, and distinguish friend from foe with ease.
The thought made Aven's eyes light up.
His gaze toward Ralts became burning with excitement.
To him, Ralts felt like a gift from Arceus.
(End of Chapter)