"Boy, since you're from out of town, you should just relax. I'll teach you a lesson later—not everything in this world is yours for the taking," Clay warned.
Gary: ???
What am I supposed to be taking?
I just want the Gym Badge.
You're Clay, the boss of a mining development company. The Badge is worth pocket change to you.
"Let's get started."
Clay gave the signal to his employee.
The older man who had brought Gary and the others in immediately announced, "The Gym battle between challenger Gary and Gym Leader Clay is about to begin! Each side will use three Pokémon. The battle ends when all of one side's Pokémon are unable to continue. Only the challenger has the right to substitute Pokémon."
[Ding! Mission released: 1. Obtain the Driftveil Gym Badge / Rewards: Mid-Level Rare Candy x5, Bulldoze Permanent Move Tutor, Premium Soft Sand x1!]
[2. Obtain the Driftveil Gym Badge using only Unova Region Pokémon / Rewards: Mid-Level Rare Candy x5, Ground-type Self-Select Permanent Move Tutor, Random Held Item x1, Ability Expansion Stone x1.]
Gary was mildly surprised by the system's reward tier. He'd assumed Clay's strength would be roughly on par with Elesa's, but the rewards actually included five Mid-Level Rare Candies.
That meant Clay's three Pokémon likely included at least two above Level 40.
This finally gave the recently caught Chandelure a chance to shine. However, Chandelure was weak to Ground-type moves, so it wouldn't be an easy match.
"Time to teach the younger generation a lesson. Go, Excadrill!" Clay drew a Poké Ball and threw it out.
Go!
[LV33 Excadrill / Elite]
Gary was surprised to see Excadrill on the field.
Excadrill was Clay's Ace Pokémon, and he'd led with it right away.
This Excadrill had high potential, but its level wasn't great. It must have been a recent addition to Clay's team—probably raised for no more than six months.
"Since it's Excadrill, I'll leave this one to you," Gary said, tossing out his own Poké Ball.
Go!
[LV49 Chandelure / Champion]
Chandelure appeared, its ornate chandelier-like form hovering in the air. Even without Levitate as an Ability, Chandelure could naturally fly, allowing it to sidestep most Ground-type moves.
"Don't think staying in the air will save you. Excadrill, use Drill Run!" Clay ordered.
Excadrill's steel claws combined into a sharp drill, and it launched itself upward, streaking toward Chandelure at high speed.
Chandelure wasn't as fast as Excadrill. Even if it tried to dodge, it would eventually be caught.
"Use Fire Spin. Wrap yourself in flames," Gary ordered.
"CHAN!"
The flames on Chandelure's arms split into a swirling purple blaze, which encircled its body under Chandelure's control—forming a protective barrier of fire.
Bang!!
Excadrill's tackle slammed to a halt against the wall of flame.
"That won't stop me! Spin!" Clay shouted.
"Drill!"
Excadrill spun its body, its sharp drill tearing through the fire barrier under the rapid rotation. It struck Chandelure and knocked it several meters through the air.
Excadrill then bounced back and landed on the ground.
"Perfect. Keep pressing—Drill Run!" Clay pressed the attack.
"Bot...!"
Just as Excadrill was about to move, a burst of fire erupted from its own body, interrupting its motion.
"What?! A burn!" Clay saw Excadrill's problem instantly and realized that Chandelure must have the Flame Body Ability.
"You damned little brat—as long as I, Clay, am here, I'll never let you take Lacey away!" Clay shouted angrily.
Gary: ???
Lacey: ???
What on earth is he talking about?
"Dad, what are you saying? When did I ever say I wanted to leave with Gary?" Lacey couldn't help but ask, thoroughly bewildered.
"Isn't this kid your classmate?" Clay asked.
"No! He's a Trainer we ran into on the way here. He just happened to be challenging the Gym today, so I brought him in. We only just met—stop making up nonsense!" Lacey said firmly.
"What?! He's not your classmate?!" Clay was shocked.
"Yeah, that's right! I'm Lacey's classmate!" Benga quickly interjected.
Clay looked over at Benga and immediately relaxed. "Then I've got nothing to worry about."
Gary: (⊙_⊙)!
...
Although he had no idea what had just happened, Clay had clearly misunderstood something major.
Indeed.
When Clay had heard Lacey say she'd brought a classmate home, and then saw that "classmate" was two boys, he'd suddenly felt like he was about to lose something precious. And Gary being as handsome as he was had only made that feeling stronger.
But... now everything was fine. It had all been a misunderstanding, so Clay's fatherly heart could rest easy.
As for Benga—Clay was fully confident that his daughter would never fall for a boy like that. With Benga's shabby appearance, Lacey would definitely look down on him.
If Gary had known what Clay was thinking about Benga, he really would have loved to tell Clay that Benga was Alder's grandson.
"You've calmed down? Weren't you going to fight Lacey's classmate? Then I should be up next," Benga shouted.
"Nope."
Clay shook his head, refusing.
"Why?!"
"Because the battle has already started. You'll get your turn after this one's over," Clay said.
"So boring..."
Benga pouted and stopped talking.
"So... can we continue the battle?" Gary asked.
"Sure."
The moment he said that, Clay immediately ordered, "Horn Drill!"
"Drill!"
Excadrill transformed into a steel drill once more and hurtled toward Chandelure.
Clay really was ruthless—launching a sneak attack like that mid-conversation was thoroughly unsporting.
If that was how he wanted to play it, Gary wouldn't hold back either.
"Fire Blast!"
Flames surged across Chandelure's body, and a massive fire-shaped blast erupted forward as a counter. The enormous flames engulfed Excadrill in an instant, swallowing it whole.
Boom!!
With the explosion, Excadrill was slammed down onto the ground. Its physical attack had already been halved by the burn, which drastically weakened its condition. Trying to power through Fire Blast simply wasn't realistic.
"Flame Burst," Gary ordered.
"CHAN!"
Chandelure spat out a fireball that behaved like a firework. Even if the flames didn't strike the target directly, they exploded on contact with the ground, causing massive splash damage.
As the smoke cleared, Excadrill lay on the ground, unconscious.
"Excadrill is unable to battle! Chandelure wins!" the referee announced.