Stephen gnced at the Houndour inside the Poké Ball and said without hesitation,

  "Absolutely not."

  "Why!? With the power you just used, healing this Pokemon shouldn't be a problem!"

  Rihua's voice grew increasingly emotional. She had witnessed firsthand the miraculous power Stephen had dispyed. No ordinary healing spray could compare.

  "First, I don't like that dog. It's got a rotten attitude. If it weren't for it, the situation wouldn't have spiraled out of control.

  Second, I'm not skilled enough with that power yet. Healing the three Houndour earlier was already my limit. If I use it again, I'll be putting myself at risk. I'm not about to risk my life to save a dog I don't even like."

  Despair spread across Rihua's face, her eyes welling with tears.

  "Then what about this Pokemon? Are you just going to let it fend for itself?"

  Stephen ignored her.

  Is this little girl out of her mind?

  Why not just take it directly to the Pokémon Center?

  Why are you bothering me?

  "Joker, they're coming," Will warned.

  Stephen followed the direction of Will's pointing finger.

  Altair was here.

  And so was his Marowak.

  "Unfortunately for you, there's no escape. Surrender now."

  Altair strolled forward, his movements steady but menacing. His aura was distinct from his cold, stoic brother.

  "Is that so, Mr. Altair?"

  Stephen responded with a sly smile.

  "Then... Marowak, Earthquake!"

  Altair decided to deal with them first and talk ter.

  Marowak raised its bone club high and smmed it heavily into the ground.

  Earthquake!

  The sheer force caused the entire courtyard to tremble violently, with invisible shockwaves spreading in all directions. Even those inside the mansion were thrown off bance.

  "They're at the back door!" shouted Cir in the hall. She turned to Elder Dragon, and decred,

  "Master! I'm going to catch that guy and avenge my cousin!"

  "Hey, Cir!"

  Her father tried to stop her, but Cir had already jumped out of the window.

  "Father… he's going to be okay, right?"

  He asked nervously, gncing at Elder Dragon.

  "Should be fine. After all, Caishen's sons are already on it. Cir probably won't run into anything too dangerous. To be honest, even I'm a bit curious."

  The Elder Dragon Master stood on tiptoe, trying to see farther into the distance.

  He shared one trait in common with Giovanni: he loved nurturing young talent.

  The Dragon Cn had a secret tradition.

  When they spotted a challenger with great potential at their gym, they would invite them to the family's sacred grounds — the Dragon's Cave.

  If the challenger passed the trial set by Elder Dragon, they would be rewarded with a Dratini hatchling.

  How generous, right?

  But in truth, this strategy was a long-term investment.

  Only trainers with exceptional skills would ever earn such a reward. These trainers would always be grateful to the Dragon Cn for giving them a Dratini.

  So, if Elder Dragon or the Dragon Cn ever needed help in the future, these trainers would come running without hesitation.

  ...

  "Jynx!"

  Back at the courtyard battlefield, Will's eyes sharpened as he called out loudly.

  From behind him, a Jynx suddenly leaped forward.

  "Ice Beam!"

  At Will's command, Jynx gathered silvery-white energy at her thick lips and fired it at the ground.

  The cracks in the ground caused by the Earthquake were sealed up with ice, mitigating the damage from the tremors.

  "Rock Slide!"

  Altair quickly changed his approach.

  Marowak struck the ground with its bone club again, unching sharp stone fragments into the air, raining them down like a violent storm toward Jynx.

  "Psychic!"

  Jynx's body shimmered with a faint purple glow, and rippling waves of energy spread out in all directions.

  Rock Slide cshed with the psychic waves, but it didn't st long.

  In just two seconds, the force of the falling stones overpowered the psychic barrier.

  By the third second, the barrage of rocks completely overwhelmed Jynx's defenses.

  But...

  "Umbreon, go!"

  Stephen's calm command echoed through the battlefield.

  Jynx stepped aside, opening a path. Suddenly, an Umbreon darted out from behind her.

  It was smaller in size, but her body was packed with dense, taut muscle. Veins bulged along her limbs like they were about to explode.

  Umbreon charged head-on into the rain of stones.

  The rocks hit her squarely, but Umbreon didn't slow down or break stride. She kept advancing.

  "It used those few seconds to power up, didn't it?"

  Altair narrowed his eyes, seeing through the strategy.

  "Bone Rush!"

  Altair ordered his Marowak to act.

  Marowak charged forward, swinging its bone club in a horizontal arc aimed directly at Umbreon.

  "Sharp Cws!"

  Umbreon spun rapidly in mid-air, her cws fshing as it twisted like a drill.

  At the moment of impact, Umbreon's cws cshed with Marowak's club.

  The sheer force from Umbreon's cws made Marowak grit its teeth in frustration.

  How could such a little fox-like Pokémon apply this much pressure?

  "Water Pulse!"

  While Marowak and Umbreon were locked in a standoff, Will gave a sharp command from behind.

  Altair's heart skipped a beat as he raised his head.

  Jynx was forming a dense water sphere between her hands.

  "Throw it!"

  Jynx unched the water sphere into the ground.

  SPLASH!

  A massive wave, five meters tall, surged toward them.

  "Marowak! Fall back!"

  Altair shouted.

  But before Marowak could move, Umbreon's cws dug into its shoulder, pinning it to the ground.

  The wave surged forward.

  CRASH!

  The water engulfed both Umbreon and Marowak.

  "Are they insane? Willing to drown their own Pokémon!?"

  Altair was shocked.

  The powerful tide engulfed everything.

  "Dark Pulse!"

  Stephen's sharp command cut through the chaos.

  BOOM!

  A wave of dark energy erupted from the center of the flood.

  To Altair's shock, a silhouette leaped out of the water and nded gracefully in front of Stephen.

  It was Umbreon.

  Altair stared at the soaking-wet Umbreon, who looked no worse for wear. Even as water dripped off her body, her expression remained stoic.

  No way.

  Marowak, on the other hand, was kneeling on one knee, using its bone club to steady itself on the wet ground.

  Although Marowak had a higher overall level than Jynx and Umbreon, it was weak to water. On top of that, it had just taken a direct hit from Dark Pulse.

  "Ability swap…?"

  Altair finally understood.

  One of Jynx's abilities is Dry Skin, which grants immunity to water-type moves and even heals from them.

  Those few seconds weren't spent powering up — they were spent swapping abilities.

  The attack earlier may have hurt Umbreon, but with Jynx's Dry Skin ability, the water healed it.

  That was why Umbreon could endure the Rock Slide and even the onsught of water.

  By swapping abilities, they had completely reversed the type of matchup.

  Altair finally realized how much he had underestimated these kids.

  "To think you'd come up with such a strategy in just seconds. I believe it now… that poke ball disruptor remote you made… it was your invention."

  His voice was tinged with admiration and a hint of bitterness.