LRAB Chapter 336 The Poison Cycle – Infection
Chapter 336 The Poison Cycle – Infection
Chapter 338 The Poison Cycle – Infection
Before setting off for the League headquarters, Douzi asked her senior, Azure, who had much more life experience than her, "Azure, what kind of lines do those Champion substitutes, who temporarily fill in as stand-ins, usually say when facing challenging trainers?"
"How would I know? I've never been a champion."
"But Sister Lan, don't you know a lot of champions? When those people sit on their thrones to welcome challengers, they can't possibly not say a single appropriate word, can they?"
"That's not necessarily true." The senior looked somewhat troubled.
Finally, unable to resist her junior's repeated requests, the chestnut-haired girl managed to recall the entrance lines of a childhood friend who had faced a similar situation.
Douzi really liked these arrogant lines that had the feel of a final boss in a game, so she memorized them completely in no time.
However, unlike the original owner of this line, the girl is not a "proxy champion" with the true qualifications of the league's top champion, but a "champion proxy" hired by a detective who has no actual combat ability.
The difference in word order represents a difference in nature.
The champion is the rightful champion, while the champion's agent is just an ordinary agent responsible for handling miscellaneous matters that are beyond the champion's reach.
It's truly remarkable that Hugo could play word games to such an extent, digging up similar regulations from the archives of Pokémon Leagues around the world, blurring the concepts with a mix of persuasion and coercion, so that the Unova League's top brass reluctantly accepted his proposal.
Logically, the acting position should have been filled by Azure, a more powerful and experienced trainer. However, considering factors such as the sensitivity of their identities, Hugo ultimately decided to have Douzi, a native Unova trainer, serve as the acting representative.
After all, unlike Bilan, who is doing legitimate detective work, Douzi, who claims to be involved in the film and television industry, is idle all day long. Rather than having her run around participating in amateur competitions, it would be better to take a large portion of the league champion's salary and have her stay at the league headquarters to welcome challengers from all directions.
She, as a "prize hunter," also has a certain reputation in the Unova battle arena, so having her as the champion's representative would actually be more convincing. Moreover, among the two girls, Touko is relatively easier to win over.
As for combat ability, the gap between her and Azure is not that insurmountable.
In fact, because most of his early solo films didn't do well at the box office, Touko was always traveling to various cities in the Unova League to participate in Pokémon battle tournaments with high prize money in order to raise funds for filming.
Compared to the league's regular season, such tournaments often have a more compact schedule and are more intense. As a result, Douzi's main team has undergone a rigorous and arduous process, developing exceptional resilience and the ability to sustain continuous combat.
In terms of individual trainer abilities, compared to Azure, who unknowingly climbed to the top in pursuit of monsters, this girl who relies on intuition has mastered more skills in maintaining her mindset and seizing opportunities in evenly matched battles. Apart from lacking experience in battling truly top-tier opponents, she is almost flawless.
Therefore, during the time after completing their Pokédex collection journey, compared to Blacklink, who was learning various skills and attending various training sessions in order to become a Gym Leader, Fighting was the one who accumulated more practical experience.
It's impossible for me to be at a disadvantage in a reunion battle with my childhood friend—that should be the case in theory.
However, in just their first encounter with Hei Lian, Douzi sensed something ominous.
The Mongoose Slash was indeed powerful against the Greatsword Demon's "hard-hitting" attack, but it was still withstood by the latter, who was fully prepared to defend.
When its health is low, the Greatsword Demon, which excels at defense and counterattacks, activates its "Torrent" ability. Two longsword-like foot blades emerge from its forepaw armor and unleash two powerful "Shell Blades" as it passes by its opponent.
Having suffered a fatal slash, the already poisonous Mongoose Slash managed to hold on for a moment after landing, but finally succumbed to exhaustion and fainted.
However, just as the Mongoose Slash fell to the ground, that ominous purple light simultaneously appeared on the Greatsword Demon's body.
It's a "throwing" move!
Douzi immediately realized what had just happened. In the brief moment between her water-type partner releasing two "shell blades", Zangoose Slash took advantage of everyone's blind spot and "threw" the poisonous orb she was carrying, infecting the Greatsword Demon with the deadly toxin.
Is this the tactic that Black Company prepared in advance to deal with the champion?
"I see. So the items you carry are leftovers? You've been hiding dried and crushed tree fruits in the gaps of the Greatsword Demon's armor, licking them up while sharpening your sword to slowly restore your strength. You're even more cunning than before."
A childhood friend retrieved the fallen Zangoose into its Poké Ball, keenly noticing something amiss in the Samurai's subconscious movements after being injured.
"Pokémon battles are not just about moves and types, but also about abilities and tactics. That's what you taught me in the past, right? I've learned a lot from you, Blackie."
The girl also recalled the Greatsword, which was suffering from severe poison damage, back into its Poké Ball. Its stamina was already low, and even if it managed to stay on the field, it would be difficult for it to pose much of a threat to the Pokémon that Blacklink would field next.
In this round of combat, she seemed to have a slight advantage, but in reality, Samurai was already one of the top Pokémon in the Fighting team.
Despite this, it was almost traded one-for-one by Black Lian with a Mongoose that had only been tamed recently and was significantly weaker in both endurance and combat power. This means that the battles to come will only be more difficult than they are now.
Moreover, Douzi's team composition hasn't changed much since the beginning, and as her old rival, Heilian knows her inside and out, while she has absolutely no idea what kind of Pokémon her childhood friend is carrying today.
Lost in thought, my childhood friend, who had already taken off his glasses and looked more mature than before, raised his fingertips with a spirited air—
"Since you've learned so much from my past self, then today I'll teach you another lesson!"
Ignoring Douzi's next lineup, Hei Lian confidently and decisively sent out his second Pokémon.
This lesson is called "One by One".
A massive, dark blue rock appeared in the center of the site, while sharp, orange crystalline stones rose up like steep, axe-cut peaks.
"Weather and venue!"
As if in response to the black-haired youth's voice, a yellowish-brown dust began to rise and fill the air above the rocky ground.
During a sandstorm, Rock-type Pokémon gain approximately 50% more Special Defense. All other Pokémon on the field except those of the Rock, Ground, or Steel types will take constant damage during this weather.
"Hmph, I see. So that's the purpose of sending out Pokémon first?"
Dou Zi's eyes flashed, then she let out a cold snort, and a green figure floated out from beside her.
The sharp "Stealth Rock" revealed its true form amidst the sandstorm, but was ignored and bounced away by this Pokémon whose entire body was wrapped in blue cell membranes.
With the "Magic Guard" ability, it can only be damaged by direct attacks from the opponent. Furthermore, neither sandstorms nor hidden reefs on the field will reduce its stamina in the slightest.
"The artificial cell egg, after all these years it has finally evolved," Hei Lian sighed with a touch of emotion.
"Your giant rock monster is an old rival of ours, isn't it? It's time for it to take a break! Artificial cell egg, 'Energy Ball'!"
The moment Douzi gave the order, Heilian switched the Pokémon in his hand, and a Normal-type Buffalo with a headshot took the stage. The Buffalo was hit squarely by the Grass-type attack from the artificial cell egg, but was completely unharmed.
Instead, the headbutt Pokémon opened its mouth wide and bit off the Grass-type energy that was emanating from the shattered "Energy Ball," swallowing it whole.
The "Herbivore" ability. When the user is attacked by a Grass-type move, they will not take damage, but their Attack will be increased instead.
Is it another Normal-type Pokémon that he hasn't used before?
"Ha, Blackie, are you planning to succeed Aloe Vera as the leader of the Normal-type Gym?"
Under the glare of the buffalo with its bulging head, Douzi jokingly adjusted his hat, using the action to secretly wipe the sweat from his forehead.
This childhood sweetheart is really too difficult to deal with.
Ultimately, the entire match lasted an hour longer than scheduled. As the champion's representative, Miss Touko, with an extremely narrow advantage, relied on her partners' slightly higher training level than Blackman to barely win the Gym Leader's assessment battle and uphold the dignity of the Unova Champion.
When Douzi finally arrived at the chief reception room of the Alliance headquarters, as scheduled, it was already afternoon.
"Sorry I'm a little late, due to some reasons."
The girl, dragging her childhood friend who looked helpless, and Mr. Khaki, who was acting as the supervisor, swaggered into the waiting room where the guests had been waiting for a long time, waving and greeting the neglected visitors.
He was a blond young man wearing glasses. He was dressed in a white lab coat, and his striking hairstyle featured a strand of blue-streaked hair that was wrapped around the back of his head, like a satellite ring orbiting a planet.
At this moment, the visitor had his eyes closed, seemingly deep in thought.
In front of him was a piece of draft paper with something written on it, and he had drunk half of the coffee provided by the alliance staff. He was now propping his head up with his hand and sitting back in the armchair of the reception room, ignoring the three people who came into the room.
I recall Hugo mentioning that this visitor was the person in charge sent by Team Plasma to monitor him, but apparently, the detective used false information to keep him at the Alliance headquarters doing odd jobs.
Is he angry and ignoring me because he waited too long? Or does he feel that there's no point in discussing things with me since Hugo himself isn't here?
With these thoughts in mind, the girl took the initiative to step forward and greet him, "Mr. Akromma, I am the champion's agent appointed by Hugo. I am directly responsible for most of the affairs at the league headquarters."
What message are you trying to convey by coming here?
The bespectacled youth remained silent, standing still.
Douzi thought he was asleep, so he walked over to Akromma's side, first waved his hand in front of him, and when there was no response, he shook the latter's shoulder a little harder.
The result was a series of plops!
The stable balance was broken by the shaking.
The head, sporting an exquisite hairstyle, had barely left the support of her elbow when it slammed onto the table in front of her. Akromma landed face-first on the table with a startlingly loud thud.
The liquid in the coffee cup was knocked over and spilled, staining the contents of the manuscript paper completely black.
Was he dead?
The acting champion stared wide-eyed; the event had happened so suddenly that she forgot to even scream.