Bonus Chapter!---Gengar's Mega Evolution was a success on the first try.
There was no embarrassing failure to evolve, which likely meant Luo Yuan and Gengar's bond had met the conditions for Mega Evolution.
His Charmeleon already had a strong connection with him; once it evolved into Charizard, it would probably meet the Mega Evolution requirement as well.
The only question was his Gyarados, which he'd captured along the way.
It was time to start working with Gyarados to strengthen their bond for Mega Evolution.
On the other side of the field, Sabrina stared in surprise at Gengar's new white form.
"Your Gengar is a Shiny?"
"You're only realizing that now...?" Luo Yuan had thought she'd already noticed.
Sabrina was speechless. How would she know?
Normal Gengar did have color variations based on their development and age, so Sabrina had just assumed Luo Yuan's Gengar was a slightly darker shade.
It wasn't until it evolved into Mega Gengar that she realized it was a Shiny.
"A white Gengar... it's actually quite beautiful," she admitted.
Though she appreciated the aesthetic, Sabrina didn't hesitate to continue the battle.
Despite the friendly nature of this match, it had come too far for either of them to hold back now.
"Alakazam, Psybeam!"
With a swift gesture, Sabrina repeated her earlier tactic.
The red gemstone on Alakazam's forehead glowed, and the five spoons floating above it spun in unison. Five beams of psychic energy converged into a single, multicolored wave, far stronger than before.
Facing the oncoming Psybeam, Gengar didn't flinch.
Though Mega Evolution had cost Gengar its Levitate ability, its lower half now merged with a shadowy dimension, granting it new power and an enhanced ability.
"Shadow Claw!"
Two shadowy claws emerged from Gengar's form.
Compared to when it used Shadow Claw on the St. Anne, Gengar's attack was now larger, its energy more intense.
Whoosh!
The shadowy claw lunged forward, gripping the Psybeam and crushing it into glimmering particles before swiping toward Alakazam.
Alakazam didn't flinch, its eyes gleaming with blue light as its spoons rotated.
Five Psychic Blades shot out, slicing Gengar's Shadow Claw into fragments that dissipated into dark energy before continuing their trajectory toward Gengar.
While Mega Gengar was faster than before, it had lost some agility, making dodging more challenging.
"Those are powerful Psycho Cuts... but it's pointless. Gengar, into the shadows! Close in!" Luo Yuan commanded.
Even without Levitate, Gengar had other ways to maneuver. Now, it could traverse the shadows even faster than before.
As for getting up close... no one knew Mega Alakazam's weaknesses better than he did.
Mega Alakazam was vastly different from its unevolved form.
Though its psychic strength had skyrocketed, it had come at a price. Mega Alakazam lost all its "non-essential" traits, including... muscle.
Even in its base form, Alakazam wasn't known for physical power or durability.
After evolving, Mega Alakazam had converted all its muscle strength into psychic energy.
Thus, competing in an energy duel wasn't Luo Yuan's first choice.
Instead, he aimed to engage Alakazam in close combat!
Shwoom!
With a sinister grin, Gengar blurred and melted into a shadow, vanishing from sight.
In seconds, a dark shape darted along the ground toward Alakazam.
"Alakazam, fly! Put some distance between you and Gengar!"
As Alakazam's trainer, Sabrina was well aware of Mega Alakazam's physical vulnerability.
Mega Alakazam's ability had changed to Trace upon evolution, copying Gengar's Levitate ability and boosting its agility.
Under normal circumstances, it would have no trouble evading Gengar's ambush.
However... Alakazam had barely risen when it abruptly stopped in place.
Seizing the moment, Gengar appeared behind it, fist cloaked in dark energy, and struck Alakazam with a powerful Shadow Punch.
Alakazam hastily raised a Reflect barrier, designed to deflect physical attacks.
But Gengar's Ghost-type move was super effective against Psychic types.
The Reflect shattered almost instantly.
Bam!
The punch landed squarely, sending Alakazam flying.
Even three of its five spoons were knocked to the ground.
Mega Alakazam grimaced in pain, clearly severely hurt.
"Alakazam, Psychic!"
There was no time to wonder why Alakazam had stopped. Sabrina issued her command to buy time for Alakazam to use Recover.
But Sabrina's thoughts were not lost on Luo Yuan.
Seeing through her intentions, he ignored the Psychic assault entirely.
"Gengar, Phantom Force!"
Whoosh!
Gengar vanished once more.
When it reappeared, it was already behind Alakazam.
Bam!
Another punch.
After taking two full-force Shadow Punches from Gengar, Alakazam finally fainted.
"I lost."
Sabrina sighed, recalling Alakazam and walking over to Luo Yuan.
"You were close. You were just a hair's breadth away," Luo Yuan said, reassuring her.
To be honest, if it hadn't been for his desire to win the reward, he wouldn't have minded losing this match to Sabrina.
But since the system was so merciless, he let it take the blame, dispelling his guilt as he pocketed the Keystone and tucked Gengar back into his shadow.
"By the way, what happened just now?" Sabrina asked, puzzled. "Why did Alakazam suddenly stop?"
Sabrina knew her Pokémon well, and Alakazam would never make such a simple mistake, so the issue must have come from Luo Yuan's side.
"It's Shadow Tag," Luo Yuan explained with a slight smile. "Mega Gengar's ability is Shadow Tag!"
"Shadow Tag... I see."
It all made sense now.
Mega Evolution hadn't been widely studied in Kanto, and Sabrina was only familiar with her own Alakazam's Mega form. She knew little about Mega Gengar's Ghost-type traits.
She was aware of Shadow Tag as an ability that prevented opponents from switching or escaping. If she had known, she would have prepared a counter.
And she really had been just a hair's breadth away...
After all, Shadow Tag didn't work on Pokémon with the same ability.
If Sabrina's Alakazam had Mega Evolved after Gengar, it could have traced Shadow Tag, nullifying its effect and allowing Alakazam to escape.
But it was too late now...
Still, Sabrina was pleased that Luo Yuan had won.
"Here's your badge."
Pinning it to his chest herself, Sabrina added:
"I've arranged things with Silph Co.; tomorrow, once the formalities are done, you'll officially be a Silph Co. shareholder."
---
Thanks for reading! Let me know if you spot any mistakes or inconsistencies!
Posture and water check! Review or your frigging dead to me
If you wish to support me or read ahead here's a link! [patreon.com/WiseTL]