Chapter 111: Challenging Group A Again
"Why? How did that jerk Basalt win again?"
The moment the result was announced, a wave of despair washed over the crowd. The heavens were truly blind.
"Whoa! Look, Basalt's heading over to Luna again!"
After their initial outcry, someone spotted Basalt on the move, and their anger flared anew. Unfortunately, they noticed too late to stop him.
But in the end, Basalt didn't get to say anything to Luna. Her face was a dark thundercloud, and he had a feeling that if he said another word, she would actually explode. For his own safety, he decided to wait for her to cool down. They were in the same group now; there would be plenty of opportunities to talk later.
After the dust settled, Mr. Chen left with the members of Group C. The only ones remaining in the battle court were Mr. Leo, Forrest, Basalt, Finch, and the newest member of Group B's lower tier, the fuming Luna. The unfortunate Blossom had already been demoted.
After a simple welcoming ceremony, Mr. Leo looked at Basalt and Forrest. "Alright, now it's your turn to challenge the members of Group A. Skye and Fletcher. Pick one."
"Let Basalt choose first. It doesn't matter to me," Forrest said with a shrug. Whether he faced Fletcher or Skye, he didn't have much of a chance of winning. He had already accepted his fate. His goal now was to just hold onto his spot in the upper tier of Group B and get a ticket to the provincial tournament.
"I'll choose... Fletcher," Basalt said without much hesitation.
"You're choosing Fletcher?" Everyone was stunned. With Bronzor's Gravity, he had a huge advantage against Skye's Pidgeotto.
"Are you serious, Basalt?" Mr. Leo asked, his brow furrowed.
Basalt smiled. "I'm sure, sir. I fell there before, so I want to get back up there. It's a hurdle I want to try to overcome." The unspoken meaning was clear: he wanted a rematch. If it didn't work out, he'd choose Skye next time.
"Alright then," Mr. Leo nodded. He understood. Geniuses were like that; they never gave up easily. That pride, that backbone, was often the driving force behind their rapid growth.
"In that case, Basalt will challenge Fletcher, and Forrest, you will challenge Skye," Mr. Leo declared. "Take a half-hour break to think about your strategies. Then we'll head over to challenge Group A."
"Yes, sir!"
Basalt found a corner and closed his eyes to rest. His strategy was already set, and his chosen Pokémon, Drilbur, was at full strength. All he had to do was stay calm and execute his plan.
Half an hour later, Mr. Leo led them to another private battle court. The Group A instructor, Mr. Shane, and his four students were already waiting. Mr. Shane was a burly man in his late forties with a fierce aura, bulging muscles, and a nasty scar on his forehead.
He shot a dismissive glance at Mr. Leo. "Leo, what's the lineup today?"
"Forrest is challenging Skye, and Basalt is challenging Fletcher," Mr. Leo replied, getting straight to the point. He knew Mr. Shane was a man who respected strength and hated small talk.
"Alright, let's get to it," Mr. Shane said, nodding to Skye.
Skye was a tall, fair-skinned girl with long hair, dressed in all white. She and Forrest took their positions on the field and sent out their Pokémon.
"Pidgeotto!" A loud cry echoed as a large bird with a three-tufted pink crest appeared, its wings beating rapidly as it zipped back and forth through the air.
"So agile," Basalt thought, impressed. He was no stranger to Pidgeotto; his own father had one. But this one was on a completely different level. Its wings were powerful, its beak and talons were sharp, and its feathers were vibrant. It was clear that it had been raised with exceptional care.
"Hera..." Forrest's Heracross, on the other hand, had a clear look of fear in its eyes. The 4x weakness to Flying and the natural predatory instinct of its opponent were making it very uneasy.
"Both trainers, ready! Battle, begin!"
"Heracross, Rock Tomb!" Forrest commanded first. Four rocks shot out, with a fifth hidden behind them, a four-one formation that Mr. Leo had clearly taught him. It was a logical opening move against a Flying-type. If it hit, Pidgeotto would not only take a lot of damage but also have its speed lowered.
But Skye's Pidgeotto was not so easily caught.
"Pidgeo!" With a cry and a flap of its wings, it effortlessly dodged all the rocks. Forrest's hidden fifth rock was also useless. The Pidgeotto was so fast that it left an afterimage in the air as it appeared behind Heracross, creating a new angle of attack.
"That's Pidgeotto's Aerial Ace," Finch noted. As a former upper-tier B-group member, he had challenged the A-group before and was familiar with Skye's moves.
"A feint to set up an attack?" Basalt's eyebrows shot up.
"Brick Break to counter!" Forrest shouted.
"Hera-cross!" Heracross's right fist opened into a hand-chop, glowing with a thick Fighting-type energy as it slashed through the air with a thunderous sound. Its attack power was terrifying.
But Pidgeotto was not about to meet it head-on. With a slight tilt of its body, it deftly avoided the full-force blow. The moment Heracross missed, Pidgeotto changed direction again, a feint within a feint. Its cries grew louder and higher-pitched as its speed increased.
"So the first attack was a trap, and this is the real one?" Basalt was stunned. He was finally seeing firsthand how difficult Skye was to deal with. It wasn't just about speed; Pidgeotto's flying skill was on another level, allowing it to change direction in a tight space even at high speeds.
BAM!
Aerial Ace struck Heracross in the back, sending it crashing to the ground. When the dust settled, it was, as expected, unable to battle. A 4x weakness was just too much to overcome.
"Heracross is unable to battle! The winner is... Skye!"
Group B's first challenge had ended in failure.
"Leo, your Forrest has a serious problem," Mr. Shane said with a frown, even though his own student had won. "I feel like he's lost his competitive edge. If he doesn't change, he won't be able to hold onto his spot in Group B."
"This..." Mr. Leo was speechless. He had noticed it too but hadn't paid it much mind. After all, not everyone could make it to Group A. Forrest was already in the upper tier of Group B; he hadn't wanted to push him too hard.
"Leo, if this is the level of your group, then there's no need for the next match. You can just go back where you came from," Mr. Shane said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
"Shane, you can't know the outcome of a battle until it's been fought," Mr. Leo said, puffing out his chest, though his voice lacked conviction. "My next student won't go down as easily as the first."
"I hope so," Mr. Shane said, shaking his head. If even the instructor had no confidence, what could he expect from the student? Besides, he had heard that this Basalt had been soundly defeated by Fletcher upon his arrival. What did it matter if he had made it into Group B? Group A and Group B were on completely different levels.
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