Seeing the level 91, early-stage Champion-level Mega Metagross, William couldn't stay calm anymore, cursing inwardly that Mega Evolution was downright cheating.
Unfortunately, neither Serperior nor Leafeon had Mega Evolution forms, and even if they did, their true trainer was already dead.
Given William's shallow bond with them, there was no way he could trigger a Mega Evolution with them.
"Mega Metagross—Meteor Mash!" Jake commanded.
In a flash, Mega Metagross appeared right in front of Serperior. This wasn't teleportation—it was sheer speed.
Serperior reacted swiftly. Facing Mega Metagross's Meteor Mash, its slender body coiled like a whip, moving as fast as lightning. It met the attack head-on with an Iron Tail.
BOOM!!!
The collision of two Champion-level Pokémon's moves sent shockwaves rippling outward like a tsunami, obliterating everything within a ten-kilometer radius—rocks, trees, all reduced to debris.
Even some nearby mountains were partially destroyed by the sheer force of the aftermath.
The overwhelming scale of the battle made William's face turn pale.
This was the first time he'd ever witnessed two Champion-level Pokémon fight at such close range.
BANG!
Serperior felt an immense force slam into its tail. After a brief struggle, its Iron Tail was overpowered by Meteor Mash, sending its body flying backward.
Mega Metagross transformed into a silver streak of light, chasing it down relentlessly.
Moltres glanced at Jake's Mega Metagross, then at the one beside it. 'Hmm… even though they're both Metagross, the difference is kinda big.'
Well, no kidding. After all, even as a monster, Julian's Metagross was only an early-stage Pseudo-Champion—expecting it to defeat an early-stage Champion was asking too much.
If it was a mid-stage Pseudo-Champion, Julian believed it could pull it off—but at this stage, it was just unfair to Metagross.
Mega Metagross: 'What are you looking at?'
Moltres: 'Just… admiring the scenery.'
"Hey! Get moving—finish that one off for me!" Julian pointed at Leafeon.
With Serperior tied up by Jake's Metagross, only Leafeon remained. If it was just one early-stage Champion Pokémon left, he had nothing to worry about.
Hearing this, Mega Metagross and Moltres instantly locked their gazes onto Leafeon.
'Just now, you and Serperior thought you were so tough with your level advantage, huh? Let's see how you handle the two of us now.'
"SCREECH!"
Moltres let out a piercing cry as flames erupted from its body, raising the surrounding temperature immediately.
When it was two-on-two, it hadn't been too confident. But now that it was two-on-one, its confidence surged at once.
Flamethrower!
Dark crimson flames roared forward, the heat waves rolling and distorting the air.
Leafeon: 'You think I'm afraid of you two?'
Even if it was alone, it didn't believe for a second it would lose to two Pseudo-Champions. It would make these two clueless upstarts understand just how vast the gulf was between Champion and Pseudo-Champion.
Gathering energy in its mouth, Leafeon fired an Energy Ball, meeting the Flamethrower head-on.
The moment the two attacks collided, the Flamethrower barely held for two seconds before being overwhelmed. The Energy Ball pushed forward through the flame without pause.
"Protect!"
Though the Energy Ball eventually broke through the Flamethrower, Moltres had already activated Protect, shielding itself from the attack.
"Meta!"
Mega Metagross's Bullet Punch came crashing down from above. But Leafeon's nimble body dodged past the Bullet Punch by a hair's breadth. Then—
Double Kick!!
Its hind legs lashed out with explosive force, slamming into Mega Metagross and sending it crashing into a nearby cliffside. Huge chunks of rock tumbled down as the impact shook the mountain.
Leaf Blade!
Leafeon leapt high into the air—its tail, shaped like a leaf, transformed into a crescent-shaped emerald blade. The sharp edge sliced through the air with a piercing screech.
Glaring at Mega Metagross still half-buried in the rubble, Leafeon snarled: "Die."
But just as the Leaf Blade descended—
Psychic!
Mega Metagross's eyes flared with an intense blue light. A sudden wave of psychic energy bound Leafeon in place for a split second. Although it quickly broke free, that moment of restraint threw off its aim.
The Leaf Blade missed Mega Metagross, instead carving into the cliffside beside it.
CRACK!!
A massive fissure split open across the cliffside, spreading in an instant to cover the entire mountain.
BOOM!!
The entire mountain was split in half from the sheer force of the Leaf Blade.
If that had struck Mega Metagross directly, it really would have dealt serious damage.
Leafeon's expression darkened as it whirled around, already charging another Energy Ball. But before it could fire—
Heat. An overwhelming wave of heat suddenly washed over its back.
It didn't even need to look—it knew it was Moltres trying to ambush it. Just as it tried to dodge, that same wave of psychic restraint seized it again.
Leafeon's eyes widened in alarm.
Then—
Overheat!!
A tsunami of flames engulfed Leafeon. This was no ordinary fire—this was a Fire-type nuke, heat so intense it could melt steel and vaporize stone.
"LEAF—!!"
A pained shriek rang out from within the flames.
Even as a Champion-level Pokémon, Leafeon couldn't completely shrug off a type disadvantage—the searing agony of Overheat was unbearable.
"Metagross—HAMMER ARM!!" Julian roared.
This was their chance—and Mega Metagross knew it too. Its metal body appeared right above Leafeon, not even waiting for the flames to fade. Its massive arm smashed downward like a meteor, the sheer force of the blow splitting the air—so violent it extinguished the remaining flames around Leafeon.
At such close range, Leafeon had no time to dodge.
Hammer Arm smashed down onto its back, the raw force driving straight through its body and into the ground below.
CRACK—CRACK—!!
The earth beneath it kept shattering, the impact triggering shockwaves comparable to an earthquake.
Leafeon coughed up blood, its body trembling from the damage. Though badly injured, it wasn't out of the fight yet.
Suddenly, a pulsing green glow emerged from its body—then wrapped itself around Mega Metagross.
Giga Drain!
Mega Metagross's stamina was siphoned away, funneling energy back into Leafeon.
The Grass-type's wounds partially mended, but its eyes narrowed in suspicion. This thing… after all the stamina I just drained—and the constant fighting—Why isn't it showing any signs of exhaustion?'
The answer? Today's sunlight was strong.
Thanks to the Blacklight Core it had absorbed, Mega Metagross could constantly absorb sunlight to restore its stamina.
Of course, if its stamina consumption outpaced recovery, it would still eventually run dry.
And it wasn't as if it wasn't exhausted—it was—but it was hiding it well enough that Leafeon couldn't see through the facade. Having its stamina drained by a Champion-level Pokémon was no joke.
For Leafeon, using Giga Drain on Mega Metagross felt like being connected to a big living battery—and the energy it regained from that one move was even greater than it had expected.
Still, stamina recovery didn't mean injuries were healed, but it did ease some of the pain enough to keep fighting.
---
Meanwhile, though Jake was focused on commanding his own Metagross, he kept an eye on Julian's side as well.
Seeing that Julian had now forced Leafeon into a desperate position, he suddenly realized:
'If this kid finishes off Leafeon first, then where will this old man's pride go?!'
"Metagross—GO ALL OUT!" Jake roared.
*****
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