"Wow, this young man is gutsy. Is he actually going to battle Diana?"
"The youth is too impulsive. You have to rember your place. That she-dragon may be arrogant because of her connection to Professor Rowan, but her strength is real. She's a Pro-level trainer, even if she was just recently promoted. I think you guys said that young man is a freshman, right?"
"Gasp~ A freshman? A first-year, who has only trained his Pokémon for a little over a year, is challenging a Pro-level trainer? That's pushing it!"
"It's hard to say. The young man may have just arrived, but he must have connections to get inserted into our team by the President himself. The top freshn reserves often reach the Advanced-level in a month or so. If he uses all six of his Pokémon in a relay battle, he might actually defeat one Pro-level Nidoqueen."
"That's a fair point!"
The crowd nodded, agreeing that a 6v1 battle might give Basalt a chance to win, though it would be a small one.
There was no way around it; Pro-level and Advanced-level were qualitatively different.
Most people watched the conflict between Basalt and Diana with an impartial, cold curiosity. They weren't close to Basalt, and they disliked Diana. The outco didn't concern them.
Only Quentin and Finn were worried. They exchanged a look and rushed out of the cave first, intending to persuade Basalt to stand down for now. A wise person avoids unnecessary conflict.
Diana, on the other hand, was initially furious at Basalt's challenge, but then she beca overjoyed. Defeating Basalt fair and square, humiliating him, and then calling him a "useless brat" to his face—that sounded incredibly satisfying. And the best part was, once Basalt was defeated, he couldn't talk back.
"Seniors, please co out and bear witness," Diana announced, clasping her hands and addressing the crowd. "It was Basalt who challenged out of spite. I have no choice but to reluctantly teach him a lesson. After all, I'm his senior. It's better he be taught by than by a stranger. He's simply too rash." Diana was shaless, twisting the truth, but her face was perfectly calm. With that, she strode out of the cave.
"Co on, guys! This drama is about to start. You have to see this while it's fresh."
"Let's go, let's go!" The research team mbers quickly poured out of the rock cave.
The sky was darkening, but the setting sun still cast a golden glow on the dunes. At the sa ti, the wind had picked up, and the swirling sand had turned into a full-blown sandstorm. Fortunately, everyone was wearing sand suits, so they weren't affected.
"Basalt, you have to calm down! Diana is just trying to provoke you and embarrass you. You can't fall for it."
"Finn is right. You're only Advanced-level, and the she-dragon is Pro-level. The gap in strength is huge. If you really can't back down, I suggest you contact President Mogan and let him step in for you."
"Seniors, I appreciate your concern, but this is a small matter. There's no need to bother President Mogan," Basalt said, looking up at the swirling sand with a laugh and shaking his head.
"Laugh? You're still laughing at a ti like this?" Quentin was exasperated. "If you lose, that she-dragon will humiliate you further. Your life here will only get worse."
"And if I back down now, will my life get better?"
Basalt's question left Quentin speechless. Would Diana let him off the hook just because he backed down? Highly unlikely.
"This won't work, and that won't work. I still think you should call the President and use your connections to end this." Quentin still thought calling the President was the safest bet. Finn agreed. Since they both had powerful backers, they might as well play that card. They preferred the junior, Basalt, over the arrogant Diana.
"No, there's another way." Basalt's eyes flashed.
"What way?" Quentin and Finn quickly asked.
"The way is... to defeat Diana." Basalt's eyes narrowed, a hint of murderous intent in his gaze.
"Defeat... Diana?" Quentin was so shocked he almost laughed at the absurdity of it.
He was about to argue, but it was too late. Diana had already led the crowd out of the rock hill. They ford a semicircle, eagerly awaiting the show.
"Co out, Nidoqueen!" Diana launched her battle-hardened Nidoqueen. Its powerful tail swept the ground, carving a deep trench in the sand.
"Don't worry, seniors. I wouldn't do anything I wasn't prepared for." Basalt said with a firm nod, walking up to Diana. He pulled out an Ultra Ball, and with a strong toss, launched it.
"Agh, what kind of trouble is this?" Quentin rubbed his temples, feeling lightheaded.
Finn, however, looked serious, and a flicker of hope rose in his heart. Maybe... Basalt can actually win?
"Dro-lisk!"
With a low roar, Excadrill, its iron head and claws gleaming, appeared. It crouched slightly, taking its fighting stance.
"Huh? An Excadrill? That's a rare Pokémon in the Alliance! Looks like Basalt is going to rely on a type advantage. Steel-type Excadrill is basically immune to Poison-type attacks, and its Ground typing is super effective against Nidoqueen."
"You're not telling the whole story! Don't forget Nidoqueen is also a Ground-type, which counters Excadrill. Theoretically, neither has an absolute type advantage."
"Hey, guys, look at the red patches on that Excadrill. They're too vibrant. It looks like... a shiny Pokémon!"
"A shiny Pokémon? This young man really does have sothing going on. No wonder he dared to challenge Diana."
"Not just that! Look at its size. It's almost 1.5 ters tall! That's more than twice the size of a normal Excadrill!"
...
Compared to the unremarkable Nidoqueen, Excadrill was the focal point. Everyone was talking about it.
"Excadrill, is it? It's certainly big, but it's still no match for my Nidoqueen!" Diana sneered, not taking Basalt or Excadrill seriously. In her mind, all she needed was one Earthquake to catch Excadrill off guard, and then a Water Pulse to finish it. An easy victory.
"Brat, I won't play dirty. I'll let you attack first!" Diana laughed confidently, certain of her victory.
"You'll let attack first?" Basalt paused, then sneered.
If he fought fair, he had only a 60 or 70 percent chance of winning and would still have to bring in Cradily and Bronzong to wear Nidoqueen down. But with Diana's concession, Basalt was 100% confident. One Excadrill was enough to take Nidoqueen down.
"Dro-lisk!" Even though it knew Nidoqueen was strong, this blatant condescension annoyed Excadrill.
"Go, Excadrill!" Excadrill's eyes narrowed, locking onto Nidoqueen. At Basalt's command, it finally moved, running at full speed.
In the natural sandstorm, Excadrill's Sand Rush ability was already maxed out.
"Nidoqueen!" Nidoqueen braced itself, its tail digging into the sand, ready to absorb the impact.
"Dro-lisk!" Excadrill's lips curved slightly. It suddenly accelerated, moving so fast it was like a blur.
"How is it so fast?" Diana's eyes widened in horror. She hadn't expected the speed to be this insane. Even if she had accounted for Sand Rush, an Advanced-level Pokémon shouldn't be this fast. It was so fast that Nidoqueen had no ti to use a move in response.
VMMMM!
At the sa ti, the running Excadrill suddenly spun, its claws and iron head forming a hardened "drill" of pure steel. It slamd into the surprised Nidoqueen with trendous force. Surrounding the steel drill was a swirling aura of yellow energy—Ground-type energy!
BOOM!
The sharp, grating sound barely registered before the drill hit its target. The terrifying speed and power of the Drill Run were too much. Even though Nidoqueen braced itself with its tail, it was still sent sliding back, carving a deep furrow in the sand.
At first, Nidoqueen's hard scales blocked the attack, but as the drill continued to spin, focusing its force onto a single point, Nidoqueen finally couldn't take it anymore.
"Nido-queen!" Nidoqueen's face twisted in pain. Its eyes squeezed shut as it was sent flying several ters.
A deep gouge was visible in the skin of Nidoqueen's arm, where it had tried to block the drill. This was the wound left by Excadrill's drill.
Nidoqueen wasn't knocked out instantly, but it was close. It lay on the sand, supporting itself with its arms, unable to get up.
Excadrill's Ground-type Drill Run was super-effective against the Poison-type Nidoqueen. And after months of absorbing the pure energy from the Groudon scale, Excadrill's strength was beyond compare.
With the advantage of the first strike, the weather, the terrain, and the elent of surprise, there was no way Basalt could lose.
"Excadrill, Earthquake!" Basalt's lips curved, delivering the final command.
RUMBLE!
The sand dune shook violently. As the shockwave reached Nidoqueen, it simply closed its eyes and fainted.
The beginning and the end of this battle were completely different from what everyone had imagined.
"Gasp~"
The only thing consistent was that every person present sucked in a cold breath at the sa ti, their movents perfectly synchronized.
Basalt won? Excadrill won the match by taking Nidoqueen down in two moves?
Their eyes were wide with disbelief. This was completely illogical.
Diana, especially, was stunned, standing motionless as if she had lost her soul.
"Lady, it seems your Nidoqueen wasn't all that great, was it? You said you were going to teach a lesson, but you got taken down in two moves." Basalt tilted his head and smirked at Diana.
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