"Do you want that set of Elemental Gems?"
Seeing Haunter's excitement, Johan asked with a smile.
"Ka-kah~~"
Haunter scratched its head, the armor on its body making clinking noises as it shifted. The gems were secondary; Haunter was simply eager to battle and test its new abilities after evolving.
Well then.
Haunter had become clever—it was hard for Johan to discern its true motives. Or maybe, Haunter wanted both the battle and the reward.
However…
Johan also wanted to gauge Haunter's strength.
It's said that Haunter is a dimensional creature, capable of slipping into other dimensions. Some trainers who owned Haunters often had them hide in their shadows as a form of protection. Agatha, one of the Elite Four, was particularly skilled in this technique. It's rumored that not even those close to her knew how many Ghost-type Pokémon were hiding in her shadow.
In this world of Pokémon, a trainer must always be vigilant. When facing opponents who specialize in wild, no-holds-barred battles or those skilled in ambush tactics, even the Elite Four could be caught off guard.
From Johan's recollection, the most striking example of this was Gold from Pokémon Adventures. In normal battles, Gold often struggled, but when it came to no-holds-barred situations, his precision and stealth were terrifying. Then, of course, there's Agatha and Lance—though Lance is more of a cautionary tale.
Now that Gastly had evolved into Haunter, it was like having an extra layer of protection for Johan.
"Wanna give it a shot?"
"Ka-kah!!"
Haunter let out a manic laugh, twirling its long tongue in excitement.
It was hunting time!
Hearing this, Steven's eyes lit up.
Normally, he wasn't too interested in participating in school festival battles. But if Johan was joining, he couldn't help but get intrigued.
However, to Steven's surprise, Johan didn't head towards the 1V1 or 2V2 arenas.
Instead, he walked straight toward the "Tower Climb Zone," which had fewer people around.
The "Tower Climb Zone" is self-explanatory: challengers had to progress through a series of increasingly difficult opponents, like climbing a tower. There were no breaks, and no healing items could be used in between battles. The higher a challenger climbed, the more rewards they earned at each stage.
More importantly, with each stage, the opposing Pokémon would be slightly stronger than the previous ones. It was a test of both the trainer's strategy and their Pokémon's capabilities.
Since the event was organized by the Academy, the opposing Pokémon were carefully selected to match the challenger's Pokémon strength. The early rounds wouldn't just consist of weak opponents.
"Ka-kah?"
Haunter looked around at the relatively quiet area, puzzled, and turned to Johan for an explanation.
Here?
Holding Vulpix in his arms, Johan offered a simple reason:
"As a teacher, battling students wouldn't look good. People might think we're bullying them—especially some of those big baby-like opponents."
Steven: "??"
Why did it sound like Johan was calling out specific people?
"Ka-kah~~"
Haunter nodded with understanding, having developed a good rapport with Johan.
One thing was clear:
Steven had his eye on them, so they were keeping a low profile.
Before challenging, Johan needed to confirm Haunter's new moves after evolving. At Johan's direction, Haunter's eyes glowed faintly.
In Johan's line of sight, Haunter's updated Pokédex entry appeared.
While not many changes were immediately visible, Haunter had gained the move "Shadow Punch."
Of course, it was a Physical move, and Haunter excelled in Special Attack, so "Shadow Punch" was mostly negligible.
Still, the full extent of Haunter's evolution needed to be explored through further training and real battles.
"Professor Johan, climbing the tower?"
The bored-looking advisor of Class 2, Year 1 of the Battle Department, Isaya, perked up with interest.
She had previously worked in the Battle Frontier's Battle Factory, making her well-versed in various Pokémon and their capabilities. She was perfect for overseeing the Tower Climb Zone.
The two weren't close friends, but they were familiar enough as fellow faculty members to exchange more than a nod in passing.
"Professor Isaya."
Johan greeted her with a friendly nod.
"Don't expect me to hold back," Isaya cautioned.
"Of course." Johan agreed easily. "I just want to test Haunter's strength. It recently evolved."
Isaya seemed to understand.
She clapped her hands on a button set in the wall of the Tower Climb Zone.
Boom!
A large screen on the wall of the zone lit up, displaying a giant zero.
The noise caught the attention of a few nearby students.
Originally, they weren't very interested, but upon seeing Johan step up to the challenge, they became curious.
Simultaneously, Isaya held a Pokéball in her hand.
Seeing that Haunter had only just evolved…
"Then the first opponent will be Beedrill!"
In a flash of red light, a Beedrill with sharp, needle-like forelimbs appeared on the field.
"Haunter," Johan called calmly.
With its typing advantage, Haunter was in a good position.
"Ka-kah!!"
Haunter shed its knight armor and set it aside, grinning wildly with excitement.
Finally, my time to shine!
(｀<´)
Bring it on!
"Beedrill, Agility!" Isaya commanded, waving her hand decisively.
Buzz, buzz, buzz—
Beedrill's wings vibrated rapidly, its form flickering as it moved at high speeds, appearing at various corners of the battlefield.
But neither Johan nor Haunter moved. Haunter's eyes kept following Beedrill's movements, trying to pinpoint its position.
At the same time, Johan's line of sight revealed Beedrill's full Pokédex entry.
The only Dark-type move it possessed was "Payback."
It had a fair amount of Bug- and Poison-type moves, but Haunter, being part-Poison itself, didn't need to worry about the Poison-type attacks. As for Bug-type moves, Haunter quadruple-resisted them.
Seeing Haunter's lack of movement, Isaya frowned.
It made things difficult for her.
"Beedrill, Focus Energy!"
"Hypnosis!"
Just as Isaya's command to focus was given and Beedrill stopped moving, Johan's order cut through the air.
"Ka-kah!"
Haunter let out a sharp cry.
This caught Beedrill's attention for a split second.
And that was all Haunter needed.
Beedrill's once-intense gaze softened, becoming foggy, and then drowsy.
"Haunter, Hex."
Haunter's eyes turned blood-red, the crimson glow reflecting within Beedrill's mind.
Boom!!
An ominous, muffled explosion echoed from within Beedrill. It fell to the ground, fainting on the spot!
"Ka-kah! (｀д′)"
Next!
Boom!
The screen displayed "1" as the number zero turned into one.
Isaya recalled Beedrill, casting a contemplative look at both Haunter and Johan.
Just a single "Hypnosis" followed by "Hex" had taken down her Beedrill.
While Beedrill was naturally a bit frail, this still indicated that Haunter's power wasn't to be underestimated.
"In that case, the second opponent will be Kingler!"
A Kingler with massive pincers materialized on the battlefield.
"Kingler, use Bubble Beam!"
A Kingler with the "Sheer Force" ability?
The Academy certainly had a wide variety of Pokémon.
But Johan's strategy this time was entirely different, so when Isaya gave her command, he already had his instructions in place.
"Haunter, hide in its shadow."
As Kingler spat out bubbles, Haunter had already reappeared behind it!
At close range, Haunter unleashed a "Clear Smog," enveloping Kingler in toxic fumes. It had no chance to escape.
A sickly purple glow spread across Kingler's body, indicating its poisoned state.
"Finish it with Hex."
The same move to close the battle once more.
It wasn't that Johan didn't want to use other moves. It's just that with Haunter mastering paralysis, poison, confusion, sleep, and flinch-inducing techniques, there wasn't a move more suitable than "Hex."
"Ka-kah!"
Haunter stood triumphantly atop the unconscious Kingler, sticking out its tongue.
Do you know the power of an ambush from behind?
Boom!!
The number on the screen jumped from "1" to "2."
The repeated noise drew even more attention.
"Ka-kah!"
I'll take on ten of them!
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