"Tauros is unable to battle. Pecharunt wins."
Lillie announced the result of the match.
Indeed, Aqua Breed Tauros had fallen. With severe poisoning and the confusion caused by Toxic Puppeteer, the poor Tauros never stood a chance.
Although Nemona had tried to fight back, her efforts were futile. Under the relentless assault of Pecharunt's Venoshock and the corrosive effects of toxic poison, Aqua Breed Tauros succumbed before it could snap out of its confusion.
"You're so strong, Gym Leader Dylan, just ridiculously strong!"
Recalling her Tauros, Nemona couldn't help but marvel—she had lost count of how many times she had said this already.
The overwhelming pressure Dylan exerted made her heart race, a feeling she had never experienced before—not even when battling her champion, Geeta.
Was this how powerful the gym leaders of Kanto were?
"Miss Nemona, you're an outstanding trainer yourself. It's been a long time since I've needed to use this level of strength to face a challenger."
Dylan didn't hold back on his praise.
"However, we're still in the middle of a battle. Show me how you plan to deal with Pecharunt."
He gestured for Nemona to continue.
"Heh~ Then let me show you my trump card!"
Nemona grinned, her expression sharp and brimming with excitement.
"Dragapult!"
With a flash of white light, a ghostly dragon appeared before Nemona, its icy stare fixed coldly on Pecharunt.
It was Dragapult, the pseudo-legendary Pokémon from the Galar region!
"Dragapult, huh."
Dylan raised an eyebrow. Dragapult's Ghost typing gave it a type advantage over Pecharunt, though the reverse was also true. Clearly, Nemona planned to attack head-on.
This Dragapult's strength and level were likely very high. Nemona's skill as a trainer was as exceptional as always.
After all, she was a prodigy—only the protagonist could truly outshine her in Pokémon Scarlet/Violet.
"A Dragapult with the Clear Body ability… this isn't going to be easy to handle," Lillie remarked as she studied Dragapult's data. She wasn't unfamiliar with Dragapult.
After all, her brother Dylan had a very powerful Dragapult of his own, so she was well aware of how formidable they could be.
"Pecharunt isn't well-suited for direct confrontations. It's no match for Dragapult in a head-to-head fight," Ilene mused aloud.
Dylan had mentioned before that while Pecharunt was a mythical Pokémon, its raw offensive capabilities weren't particularly outstanding.
Ilene trusted Dylan's assessment, especially since the previous battle had already demonstrated this.
Dylan had mainly used defensive and counter-offensive strategies with Pecharunt against Tauros, avoiding direct exchanges of power.
"But if Dragapult gets poisoned, Nemona will be in trouble," Iono chimed in.
On the battlefield.
"Dragapult, use Phantom Force!"
Nemona made the first move.
A black rift opened behind Dragapult, and it slipped inside, vanishing from sight.
The Ghost-type move Phantom Force.
"Withdraw."
Dylan's eyes glimmered faintly as he gave his command.
Pecharunt's mochi-like shell snapped shut instantly, a faint blue energy glowing around it—a Withdraw, bolstering its defenses.
"Dragapult!"
The spatial rift reappeared behind Pecharunt, and Dragapult, cloaked in ghostly light, lunged out and slammed into its target.
Bang!
Pecharunt was knocked backward by the impact. Its mochi shell opened, and two dark purple toxic chains shot out of its core, whipping toward Dragapult.
"I was ready for that!" Nemona grinned.
Dragapult immediately retreated with blinding speed, evading the Toxic Chains with ease.
Dylan wasn't surprised—Dragapult's exceptional speed was its greatest strength.
"Shadow Ball!"
While retreating, Dragapult began charging a Shadow Ball in its mouth.
The Ghost-type projectile sped toward Pecharunt. In response, Pecharunt swung its Toxic Chains to intercept.
Boom!
The Shadow Ball collided with the chains, shattering them, but was neutralized in the process.
"Dragapult, Phantom Force again!"
Nemona decided to test her hypothesis. Pecharunt's defense was simply too high after two uses of Withdraw. Even with super-effective damage, the previous Phantom Force hadn't done much.
With its already impressive natural defenses, Pecharunt was proving to be a tough nut to crack.
Dragapult disappeared into the shadows once more.
"Stay alert," Dylan muttered, his gaze sharpening. He knew Nemona was now fully aware of Pecharunt's capabilities and would be watching out for its Toxic Chains.
Pecharunt carefully scanned its surroundings. Soon, a shadowy distortion appeared behind it, and Dragapult emerged, cloaked in ghostly energy.
"Foul Play!"
Pecharunt turned sharply, its body gleaming with dark energy.
The Dark-type move Foul Play—a technique that uses the opponent's Attack stat to calculate damage.
Bang!
Foul Play collided head-on with Phantom Force, dark energy spilling out from Dragapult and feeding into Pecharunt's attack.
The clash of forces created a shockwave, ultimately throwing both Pokémon backward.
"Toxic Chains!"
"Shadow Ball!"
Two thick, dark purple chains shot out from Pecharunt's mochi shell, aiming for Dragapult. Meanwhile, Dragapult launched a Shadow Ball at the incoming chains.
This time, however, Pecharunt played smarter. The first chain spun rapidly, forming a shield.
Boom!
The Shadow Ball exploded against the shield chain, shattering it, but the second chain shot through the smoke and debris, heading straight for Dragapult.
"Dragapult!" Nemona's expression shifted.
The second chain struck Dragapult directly, detonating in a burst of purple energy.
The toxic energy rippled across Dragapult's body, forcing it to grunt in pain.
The chain's damage wasn't significant—only residual energy had hit Dragapult. But everyone knew that Dylan's goal wasn't to deal damage.
"Will it be poisoned?"
Iono watched Dragapult nervously, her heart in her throat.
Dylan, on the other hand, seemed unconcerned. If it didn't work the first time, he could simply try again. With the high probability of Toxic Chains inflicting severe poison, Dragapult was bound to succumb sooner or later.
As everyone—Nemona, Iono, and the viewers watching the live stream—held their breath, a sinister purple glow began to flicker across Dragapult's sleek, blue-green body. Its expression twisted in pain as dark purple blotches appeared on its skin.
Nemona frowned deeply, and Iono gasped, her mouth agape.
Dragapult had been badly poisoned!
"It seems your luck isn't on your side this time, Miss Nemona," Dylan said with a raised brow.
The toxic corrosion set in quickly, but even worse, a wave of dizziness overwhelmed Dragapult, muddling its mind.
Under the effects of Pecharunt's Toxic Puppeteer ability, Dragapult had now become confused as well.
"Return, Dragapult!"
Nemona's reflexes were lightning-fast. She withdrew Dragapult immediately, leaving Dylan momentarily surprised—he had been about to command Pecharunt to use Mean Look.
Nemona's quick reaction was impressive.
"It seems you're not giving up, Miss Nemona," Dylan said with a small laugh.
"Battling is my favorite thing. No matter the situation, I'll never give up!"
Nemona flashed a bold, fiery smile.
"Even if the odds are against me, as long as I haven't lost, I still have a chance to win!"
Nemona's determination and fighting spirit were unwavering, and even Dylan couldn't help but admire her.
While he believed in analyzing the battlefield and making rational decisions, he also respected her relentless will to fight and her belief in finding a way to turn the tide in even the direst of situations.
"I'll give you my full effort," Dylan said with a smile. It was his way of showing respect.
However, the situation was dire for Nemona. She only had two Pokémon left, both of which were already poisoned.
And her opponent was still Pecharunt, a Pokémon with sky-high defenses and access to Recover. While recalling her Pokémon could reset the poison's effects, it would only delay the inevitable "countdown to defeat."
"Dragapult is unable to battle. Pecharunt wins."
"Miss Nemona has lost all five of her Pokémon, so the winner of this Rota Gym Challenge is my brother."
Lillie announced the final result of the battle.
"Huh? So in the end, I still couldn't defeat Pecharunt," Nemona muttered, patting her head in slight exasperation.
Despite losing, she didn't seem particularly upset.
Nemona loved Pokémon battles, and while she always pursued victory, she wasn't the type to dwell on failure. Whether it was losing to a powerful Gym Leader like Dylan or even to a rookie, Nemona didn't mind—in fact, she often found it thrilling.
What did disappoint her, however, was that even after Dragapult and Flygon had given their all, she still couldn't take down Pecharunt.
"You've already done amazingly, Miss Nemona! After all, you managed to defeat Okidogi, which is a Legendary Pokémon," Lillie said with a soft, polite smile, covering her mouth as she spoke.
"Huh?" Nemona froze for a moment, but then her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Okidogi is a Legendary Pokémon? Gym Leader Dylan, are you actually a trainer who's captured a Legendary Pokémon?!"
Trainers who successfully captured Legendary Pokémon were an incredibly rare "species"!
"Not just Okidogi—Pecharunt is a Mythical Pokémon as well. So, Miss Nemona, you're already incredibly strong," Dylan replied, gently patting Pecharunt's head. The Pokémon squinted its eyes happily, clearly enjoying the praise.
"!!" Nemona was both shocked and delighted.
"I figured as much. As the new Champion-level trainer from the Paldea region, I knew your strength must be remarkable, Miss Nemona. But you've still managed to surprise me."
"This was your first time facing my Poison-type team, and I even used Legendary Pokémon. Miss Nemona, I believe your strength fully qualifies you to receive this badge."
Dylan walked over to Nemona and opened an ornate box containing the Poison Rota Badge.
The exquisite green badge sparkled under the sunlight, its intricate design inlaid with deep purple gemstones shaped like dripping poison. Coming from a prestigious family, Nemona immediately recognized its high value.
Of course, what she loved most about the badge wasn't its price—it was its design!
"But I didn't actually defeat you, Gym Leader Dylan. Isn't it inappropriate for me to accept this badge?" Nemona asked, restraining herself despite her excitement.
"And this badge… Gym Leader Dylan, what kind of family are you from?"
Nemona looked at Dylan with a mix of doubt and curiosity. Based on her rough estimate, the badge's value was incredibly high—not just in terms of its symbolic significance but also in terms of its material cost.
"No, it's entirely appropriate. I fully recognize your skill, Miss Nemona, and this badge is proof of that."
Dylan smiled warmly as he spoke.
"Additionally, this is just my Poison-type badge. If you challenge me again in the future, Poison-types won't be part of my team. Similarly, if you want to earn other Rota badges, their difficulty will progressively increase."
"Wait, Gym Leader Dylan, your badges are divided by type?" Nemona was stunned.
Standing nearby, Iono was completely flabbergasted. Was this really how Gym Leaders worked? Why didn't she know about this?!
Iono fell into a deep contemplation. It seemed like her own position as a Gym Leader was completely different from Dylan's.
"Yep! Nemona, this Poison Rota Badge can only be earned when my brother uses a Poison-type team. If you had drawn a Dark-type challenge earlier, you would've received a Dark Rota Badge instead. There's also another way to get badges, but… well, I wouldn't recommend it."
Lillie giggled adorably.
"This is way too interesting!!" Nemona exclaimed, feeling like she was falling in love with the Rota Gym.
Why didn't Paldea have Gyms like this?!
"Nemona, stop looking at me like that—it's making me nervous. I'm just a streamer!" Iono stammered, feeling a strange pressure as Nemona's gaze landed on her. For the first time in her life, she felt a chill run down her spine.
I mean, who even runs a Gym like Dylan does?
What is he trying to do? Is he trying to make the rest of us regular Gym Leaders look bad?
Luckily for me, I'm just a streamer, and being a Gym Leader isn't all that important anyway.
Thinking this, Iono suddenly felt at ease. No problem here.
"Then I'll gladly accept this badge, Gym Leader Dylan! Heh~ I really love it!"
Nemona didn't hold back anymore. With her cheerful and straightforward personality, she had no issue accepting the badge once Dylan said she deserved it.
Taking the ornate box, she carefully removed the beautiful Poison Rota Badge and admired it. The more she looked at it, the more she loved it.
She loved it more than all the other badges she had ever earned—combined!
"This badge is so gorgeous. The materials must be extraordinary," Iono said as she leaned in to get a closer look, blinking curiously at the Rota Badge.
Gym badges were typically designed by the Gym Leaders themselves, with subsidies available from the Pokémon League for material costs. However, exceeding the budget would mean paying out of pocket.
"It's definitely special. Just the purple gemstone alone must be worth a fortune. Gym Leader Dylan, you still haven't told me about your family," Nemona said, blinking with curiosity. Coming from a wealthy family herself, she could easily tell the badge's value.
"It didn't cost that much," Dylan replied with a casual smile.
How much is "not much"?
Both Iono and Nemona tilted their heads in confusion.
"A newly crafted Rota Badge costs about 10 million Pokédollars, and the special Legendary Badges are around 30 million." Dylan's tone was calm and matter-of-fact.
"??????"
Iono's face was full of question marks, practically wanting to plaster them all over Dylan.
A 10-million-Pokédollar Gym badge?
Seriously, Dylan, are you trying to crush the rest of us regular Gym Leaders?
And you come from a family like this, yet you're a Gym Leader?
(End of Chapter)