At that moment, Mimikyu realized that its initial Shadow Sneak attack had failed completely. Instead of landing a hit, it had only prompted Gardevoir to Teleport to a location entirely out of sight.
Mimikyu felt a surge of anxiety wash over it.
The situation had turned unfavorable—the enemy lurked in darkness while Mimikyu remained exposed. For a Ghost-type like Mimikyu, this was clearly disadvantageous, preventing it from utilizing its natural strengths effectively.
Roy immediately recognized the problematic situation. It was obvious that Mimikyu's combat experience fell short compared to Gardevoir's extensive battle knowledge. He quickly called out instructions.
"Mimikyu, use Aura!"
Mimikyu received Roy's command and understood immediately what needed to be done.
Aura was perfectly suited for handling this exact situation. Even if Gardevoir remained hidden somewhere nearby, it definitely wouldn't escape detection through Aura sensing.
A faint blue layer of energy manifested around Mimikyu's body almost instantly—the visible manifestation of Aura power.
At that precise moment, Caroline spoke calmly. "Interrupt it."
Caroline had encountered references to relatively ancient psychic abilities like Aura in her research materials and studies.
Even so, this was her first time actually facing Aura in a real battle situation. She didn't know the full extent of how far Aura detection could reach or what its limitations might be.
In the current circumstances, she needed to interrupt Mimikyu's technique as quickly as possible to regain control of the battle's rhythm and momentum.
Gardevoir emerged from the shadows once more, using Teleport to appear at a moderate distance from Mimikyu.
Along with Gardevoir's sudden appearance came a burst of purple psychic energy that erupted from Gardevoir's forehead, aimed directly at Mimikyu with precision.
Psychic.
Mimikyu's speed in activating Aura naturally wasn't as fast as an actual Aura Guardian would be. However, thanks to intensive training during recent weeks, Mimikyu managed to sense Gardevoir's position and the approaching psychic attack just one second before Gardevoir materialized.
Mimikyu fled back into the darkness, barely managing to escape the devastating attack.
At this point, while Mimikyu was well concealed in the shadows, Gardevoir had no immediate way to locate and capture the Ghost-type.
However, simultaneously, Gardevoir's psychic energy was accumulating steadily, clearly preparing to unleash its Stored Power technique.
Hidden in the darkness, Mimikyu felt increasingly uneasy. If this stalemate continued much longer, the moment it revealed itself would result in being struck by Gardevoir's accumulated attack, potentially ending the battle in an endangered state.
It needed to figure out a strategy...
"Use Double Team," Roy commanded.
From his third-person perspective as the trainer, Roy could see the battlefield dynamics more clearly. He naturally understood that the current situation didn't favor Mimikyu continuing to delay and hide.
Mimikyu emerged from the darkness instantly upon hearing Roy's command.
Simultaneously, it activated the Double Team technique, rapidly creating more than a dozen identical copies of itself, creating a dizzying display that would confuse Gardevoir's targeting.
"Shadow Claw."
Mimikyu moved with impressive speed, and all the clones mimicked the motion of using Shadow Claw against Gardevoir. However, in reality, only one true Mimikyu could actually inflict damage on the Psychic-type.
Gardevoir found itself in a difficult position with the substantial amount of energy already accumulated in its hands.
It was precisely because of this massive energy buildup that Gardevoir didn't dare use it recklessly. If the attack struck one of the clones instead of the real Mimikyu, all that careful accumulation would be completely wasted.
Therefore, this attack from Mimikyu represented both a significant danger and a potential opportunity for Gardevoir.
Gardevoir chose not to dodge or evade. Shadow Claw left a long, visible scratch across Gardevoir's pale green arm as the Ghost-type attack connected.
At the same moment, Gardevoir smiled slightly. By facing the direction from which Shadow Claw had struck, it instantly pinpointed Mimikyu's exact position and swiftly released the concentrated power it had been accumulating in its hands.
Mimikyu internally cried out in alarm, realizing the danger too late. There was no time to escape. It could only endure Gardevoir's powerful Stored Power attack before desperately retreating back into the protective darkness.
Gardevoir appeared somewhat surprised that its accumulated blow hadn't pushed Mimikyu into a critically endangered condition as expected.
It sensed something familiar—a Totem aura being utilized in an unexpected way.
So the Totem aura could be employed defensively like this?
Gardevoir didn't realize that Mimikyu, now hiding once again in the shadows, had used the defensive technique it had learned just days ago—Totem armor—which had barely allowed it to survive and maintain the opportunity to continue fighting.
At this point, unable to locate Mimikyu's hiding place, Gardevoir constructed a transparent psychic barrier around itself to prevent any sudden attacks from unknown directions.
Light Screen.
This particular defensive technique would be especially effective at resisting some of the Ghost-type attacks that Mimikyu could unleash.
Observing the current state of the battle, Roy understood that Mimikyu probably had no viable angle from which it could defeat Gardevoir at this point.
He withdrew a red Poké Ball and called out, "Alright, Mimikyu. Come back."
The air fell silent for several seconds. Mimikyu, no longer stubborn about continuing despite the unfavorable situation, obediently transformed into white light and returned to its Poké Ball.
Inside the Poké Ball, Mimikyu rested with lingering frustration. However, it had to admit the truth—it had genuinely lost to Gardevoir this time.
Roy put the Poké Ball away, naturally understanding that Mimikyu still felt dissatisfied with the outcome. He gently poked the surface of the Poké Ball with his index fingertip in a comforting gesture, then decided not to disturb his partner any further.
Seeing Roy conclude the match, Caroline's Gardevoir slowly descended from the air and gracefully returned to Caroline's side.
"Garde, Gardevoir~" it sang out happily.
Gardevoir swayed its elegant white dress with visible joy, appearing quite pleased with the battle's outcome.
The corners of Caroline's mouth lifted ever so slightly, as if infected by Gardevoir's positive emotions. She reached out and gently patted Gardevoir's head in approval.
Gardevoir's face flushed with happiness, its eyes narrowing contentedly at the affectionate gesture.
"Congratulations. We lost this time," Roy acknowledged with genuine sportsmanship.
Caroline nodded in response, her expression returning to its typical emotionless state.
She faintly sensed that Roy's Pokémon hadn't been using its full strength during the match, as if deliberately trying to hide or hold back certain capabilities.
This feeling made Caroline somewhat uncomfortable, but due to her reserved personality, she chose not to question Roy about her suspicions.
If Roy had known what Caroline was thinking, he would have definitely protested his innocence quite loudly.
Who wouldn't want to win a battle? Besides, when facing such a suitable training partner—and especially given that this person was Caroline—wouldn't anyone want to challenge her eight or nine times out of ten given the opportunity?
However, Mimikyu had been constrained by Gardevoir's battle rhythm from the very beginning. Even after escaping into the protective darkness, it couldn't find an effective method to break through Gardevoir's multilayered defenses.
The situation had even forced Mimikyu to utilize the Totem armor technique it had only recently learned, purely for defensive purposes rather than as part of an offensive strategy.
They were practically at their limit—nearly at the end of their rope, so to speak.
Continuing to battle in such conditions would only waste both Pokémon's strength unnecessarily. It might even cause Mimikyu to suffer more serious injuries or damage to its confidence.
It was better to accept the situation gracefully while they could. This outcome would leave Mimikyu in a properly motivated, if somewhat unwilling, mindset that could actually help supervise and drive its daily training efforts going forward.
If there truly was any hidden trump card that Mimikyu possessed, it would probably only be Aura Sphere.
However, Aura Sphere was extremely powerful—far too powerful for a friendly sparring match like this. The situation hadn't reached the point where such a devastating technique would be appropriate or necessary to use.