Chapter 2: A Mysterious Pokémon? Field Battle!

Unlike the special Raichu she had encountered in the Gym battle just moments ago, Cynthia was certain she had never seen any Pokémon similar to the one currently before her!

As she instinctively maneuvered her character forward, a sudden gust of wind swept across the flower field, and multicolored blossoms swayed, obscuring the spot where that Pokémon had been.

When the flowers returned to their original positions, the place Cynthia was gazing at was completely empty.

"Did you guys see that?"

Cynthia couldn't help but speak to the viewers in her livestream.

[See what?]

[I saw it! I thought I caught a glimpse of a green Pokémon, but for some reason, it suddenly vanished just now.]

[I saw it too! I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me!]

[So, what kind of Pokémon is this? It feels like I've never seen it before.]

Cynthia frowned slightly, then suddenly seemed to have noticed something:

Right on the ground where the little hedgehog-like creature had just been, a faint gleam of light was flickering, quite inconspicuous.

She maneuvered her character forward, and a prompt suddenly popped up right before her eyes.

[Something seems to be buried in the dirt. Would you like to dig it up?]

When Cynthia selected "Yes," an item was instantly presented before her eyes.

It turned out to be a... flower?

This flower was hexagonal, exhibiting a pale red hue, and pulsed with a pink radiance just like a breathing creature.

Clearly, the light Cynthia had seen earlier originated from here.

Yet in the next moment, the flower rapidly withered in Cynthia's character's hand, its glow dimming accordingly until it finally vanished completely!

Those petals also turned to dust, drifting and dissipating into the air.

However, that wasn't all—this flower had actually left behind a tiny red seed in the palm of her hand!

[You have obtained a special item: Gracidea Flower Seed x1]

Glancing at the system prompt before her, Cynthia paused for a moment, then seemed to recall something.

Gracidea Flower?

She always felt the name sounded somewhat familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before.

Yet upon careful reflection, she couldn't quite remember where she had heard it specifically.

After a brief moment of thought, she shook her head slightly and stowed the flower seed away into her backpack.

Since the system indicated it was a special item, she would keep it safe for now.

Perhaps there was some connection between this flower and that Pokémon she had just witnessed?

Moreover, her intuition told her that it probably wasn't an ordinary or common Pokémon.

Just as Cynthia was about to stand up after pondering, she noticed that among the flower bed beside her, several pretty and neat flowers had been knocked over haphazardly by the breeze that had just blown past.

She thought for a moment, inputting a command to make her character step forward and gently prop those flowers back up, restoring them to their original state.

The owner of this flower field... could surely be told that they meticulously cared for these blossoms.

Since that was the case, she didn't mind lending a small helping hand.

Yet the very next moment, just as Cynthia turned around to leave, a young girl in a dress came running from afar, a giant exclamation mark floating above her head.

Her voice, filled with smiles and gratitude, rang out:

"Hello there, miss! I just saw you helping me tidy up my garden. Thank you so much!"

"I figured you must be someone who truly loves flowers... Also, you must be a Trainer, right?"

"Since that's the case, take this as a token of my appreciation!"

Along with the girl's voice, a series of prompts suddenly popped up before Cynthia's eyes!

[You have obtained the TM—Grassy Terrain!]

[Grassy Terrain: When used, replaces the current battlefield with Grassy Terrain. On this terrain, all Pokémon recover 1/16 of their max HP at the end of each turn, while Grass-type moves have their power increased by 30%, and the power of Earthquake, Stomping Tantrum, and Magnitude is halved.]

Simultaneously, the chat room in the livestream had already begun scrolling madly.

[666, I've discovered this game's core philosophy is that good deeds get rewarded.]

[Isn't that how it's supposed to be? People who do good turns deserve rewards!]

[So wholesome, my family. Starting today, I'm going to help old ladies run red lights every day—oh, sorry, cross the street.]

Cynthia stared at the prompt, taking a good while to recover her senses.

—What kind of timing was this? Did she get a pillow right as she started feeling sleepy?

This TM happened to solve her biggest immediate problem!

Just as she prepared to turn around and thank the girl from before, she found that the other party had already walked far away.

She guessed that the creator must have intentionally placed this TM in this exact spot.

It served as a tutorial of sorts, teaching players the importance of "Terrain."

Yet... speaking of which.

In reality, could such "Terrain moves" possibly exist?

After a brief moment of thought, Cynthia shook her head slightly, her gaze already shifted.

With this TM, Electric Terrain... would no longer be an issue!

Then.

Let's challenge the Gym once more!

Two minutes later.

The Gym battle commenced once again.

"Back down on the ground and you're already back on your feet so fast? Splendid! Let me see your improvement!"

With Wattson's enthusiastic announcement, he once again deployed that uniquely formed Raichu as his lead Pokémon.

And the Pokémon Cynthia sent out in response was Grovyle!

Electric Terrain began to swirl and crackle beneath the feet of the two Pokémon, instantly activating the field!

The events of the first turn held no suspense. With the ability activated, Raichu once again took the initiative to use Fake Out, successfully forcing Grovyle to skip its first turn while chipping away a little less than 1/4 of its HP.

At the start of the second turn, Raichu acted first once again. This time, due to Grovyle's resistances, it bypassed Thunderbolt and instead used the move "Volt Switch"!

As its body transformed into a yellow bolt of electricity crashing into Grovyle, the health bar above the latter's head dropped by another small notch, while Raichu turned into a red beam of light and returned to its Poké Ball.

[A message suddenly popped up—Magneton is sent into battle!!]

With a flash of red light, a brand-new Pokémon had appeared in the spot previously occupied by Raichu.

It was none other than Magneton, boasting both Electric and Steel types and capable of resisting Grass-type attacks!

However, in the next moment, Grovyle raised both of its claws.

Cyan radiance surfaced beneath its feet, and blooming flowers along with lush grass sprouted out of thin air, covering the entire terrain and replacing those volatile, restless electrical currents!

[Grovyle used Grassy Terrain!]

[The field is covered in lush grass!]

[The power of Grass-type moves has increased! The power of certain Ground-type moves has decreased! Pokémon will experience continuous HP recovery!]

Accompanied by this prompt, two deep-green specks of light emerged from the ground and merged into the bodies of both Pokémon.

The HP bar above Grovyle's head visibly recovered a small section instantly!

Following closely, the third turn began.

Cynthia did not attack; instead, she chose to switch Pokémon, directly sending out "Ludicolo" onto the field!

Simultaneously, the opposing Magneton let out three sharp, uniform cries, and a dazzling pale radiance burst forth from its body, striking directly at Ludicolo!

[Magneton used Flash Cannon!]

This was a high-power Steel-type special attack. Logically speaking, given Magneton's exceptionally high Special Attack stat, it should deal massive damage!

However, this blast landing on Ludicolo only dropped its HP bar by less than a third!

Because Ludicolo's Water typing provided a resistance against Steel-type moves!

And as this turn came to a close, green specks of light emerged once again across the field, restoring a bit of HP to Ludicolo.

The next moment, a new turn began. The one moving first this time was naturally the faster Ludicolo!

"Ludicolo used Teeter Dance!"

It performed a swaying left-and-right dance amidst comical musical notes, and instantly, a giant swirling vortex of golden stars and several little ducks appeared above Magneton's head.

[Magneton became confused!]

[Magneton hurt itself in its confusion!]

Watching the health bar above Magneton's head drop by a significant chunk due to hitting itself, Cynthia knew her opportunity had arrived.

She took a deep breath, once again opting to switch Pokémon, sending out Stufful onto the field.

Even though the biggest problem in this battle—Electric Terrain—had been resolved, the numerical disadvantage of a 4-versus-3 Pokémon count remained unmitigated.

Therefore, to secure victory in this battle, she had to find another way.

She had mentioned earlier that the most critical unit in this battle was Grovyle.

That was true.

Yet in reality... not entirely.

At this moment, Stufful took the stage, golden stars once again popped up over Magneton's head, and it slammed its own head directly into the ground.

[Magneton hurt itself in its confusion!]

Two consecutive turns of confusion caused it to inflict self-harm equal to half its health!

However, the Goddess of Fortune couldn't possibly stand by Cynthia's side forever.

As the next turn began, the golden stars above Magneton's head vanished.

[Magneton snapped out of its confusion!]

—The confusion status, which normally could have lasted for 3 to 5 turns, was prematurely lifted right then and there.

Yet Cynthia's expression didn't fluctuate in the slightest; a slight smile even tugged at the corner of her lips.

"Against a Fighting-type Pokémon, Magneton is at an extreme disadvantage."

"In that case, it will definitely choose to switch Pokémon."

"Since that's the case."

"Our chance has arrived! Stufful, Bulk Up!"

Just as Cynthia finished speaking, the opposing Magneton turned directly into a red beam of light and was recalled by Wattson.

Replacing it was once again that familiar silhouette—that uniquely styled Raichu!

Yet Stufful didn't initiate an attack, instead raising both arms right where it stood as a deep crimson radiance mingled with a blue glow manifested around its body.

[Stufful used Bulk Up, raising its Attack and Defense stats!]

A new turn began, and Raichu used the move "Fake Out" once again.

However... this time, aided by the boost to its Defense stat, this strike caused very little damage aside from making Stufful flinch, shaving off merely a sliver of its health.

Ordinarily, taking this as chip damage would be fine, but when the turn ended, a beam of green light rose from the field and sank into Stufful's body, directly restoring its health completely back to full!

Just like that, Raichu's "Fake Out" had failed to achieve any actual tactical effect!

Cynthia took a deep breath and chose the move "Bulk Up" once again!

Raichu moved first yet again. Even without Electric Terrain to trigger its ability, its base speed appeared remarkably high.

Dazzling electrical arcs struck Stufful in a flash, draining the majority of its HP.

Yet acting as if it didn't care in the slightest, it raised its arms once more, performing an up-and-down weightlifting motion as red and blue lights glowed around its body again.

[Stufful's Attack and Defense stats rose again!]

Normally, given Stufful's endurance, even after completing a second reinforcement, it would mean nothing in front of Raichu.

Because this move provided physical defense, while Raichu's Thunderbolt was a special attack, meaning whatever damage it dealt would remain unchanged.

In other words, acting second with Stufful's current health bar sitting below half meant it would stand no chance of surviving Raichu's second "Thunderbolt" next turn.

Yet, as the turn ended, green specks of light surfaced across the field once more, merging into the bodies of both Pokémon!

Stufful's HP, thanks to this bit of recovery, crossed right back over the half-health mark!

Relying on the continuous recovery effect of Grassy Terrain, it had successfully nullified the damage from Raichu's Fake Out while simultaneously escaping the lethal threshold of the opponent's second Thunderbolt!

And this meant that having completed two rounds of stat boosts... it had earned the right to strike back!

The next moment.

Howling electrical radiance flashed once more as Thunderbolt struck Stufful, causing its HP to plummet rapidly.

Yet just as its health bar looked on the verge of hitting rock bottom, the downward descent stopped abruptly!

—Leaving only the tiniest sliver of health remaining!

Amidst a roar, Stufful raised both of its claws high!

"Stufful used Payback!"

Rich, deep-black radiance surged upon its claws, slashing down toward the opposing Raichu!

Payback was a Dark-type move.

The base power of this move was only 50, but when used after the opponent had already attacked during the turn, its power would double directly to 100!!

Coupled with the effect of two stages of Attack enhancement.

The health bar of the physically frail Raichu plunged like a roller coaster, plummeting straight to zero!

And that wasn't all.

A berry flashed briefly in front of Stufful, transforming into a beam of light that entered its body and directly lifted its bottomed-out health bar back up past thirty percent!

[Stufful's held Sitrus Berry activated!]

[Its HP was restored!]

Following closely, another green speck of light emerged from the terrain, bringing Stufful's health back up to nearly half.

The remainder of the battle proceeded logically.

The hardest-to-handle Raichu had already been taken down by a single punch from Stufful.

As for Magneton, which held a Grass-type advantage, it had already self-inflicted half its health away through two consecutive rounds of confusion.

With Stufful in that kind of state, Wattson naturally didn't dare to send Magneton out, being forced instead to deploy Electrike.

Although Electrike's speed surpassed Stufful's, as an unevolved Pokémon, its Special Attack output clearly lacked punch. Coupled with the loss of Electric Terrain's amplification, after a single Thunderbolt landed, Stufful's health bar was left with just a sliver once more...

Just like that, no sooner had Electrike entered the fray than it was promptly sent packing by Stufful's "Payback."

Shortly after, although Wattson deployed his trump-card Pokémon, "Electabuzz," using the priority move "Mach Punch" to barely scavenge away Stufful's very last remaining drop of health...

It was abundantly clear that neither Electabuzz nor the half-health Magneton could do anything at all against Ludicolo.

Just to be safe, Cynthia even sent Grovyle out once more to set up another Grassy Terrain before tagging Ludicolo back in.

And so, after a few turns, as Magneton collapsed amidst Ludicolo's Bubble Beam...

This Gym battle finally reached its climax, proclaiming Cynthia's victory!

The moment the battle concluded, Wattson rose directly from his seat, laughing heartily as he applauded.

"A magnificent battle! The youth of today are truly formidable!"

"It seems you've grasped the importance of terrain in battle, and the coordination between you and your Pokémon is truly admirable, making me feel as though I'm looking at my own youth..."

Saying this, Wattson produced a lightning bolt-shaped badge and handed it to Cynthia.

"Take this. This is the Dynamo Badge. With it, your Pokémon's level cap will rise to 30, and it will also allow them to use the Hidden Machine 'Rock Smash'."

"As a side note, if you want to learn that move, you can head down to the house of a researcher just below my Gym and look for him. It's his proudest work, and he'll be more than happy to teach you."

Following that, Wattson slapped his forehead and produced another TM disc.

"Besides that... take this."

"This is the TM for Thunderbolt. That's right, it's that exact move I love using so much. Not only is its power high, but it also has a chance to paralyze the opponent's Pokémon. Be sure to let your Pokémon make good use of it."

"Well then, I have some business to attend to and must head into the city first. If there's a chance later, you're welcome to come challenge the Gym again."

With those words, Wattson laughed heartily, turned around, and departed.

"Hahaha! Keep it up... youngster! The future belongs to you!"

Leaving Cynthia standing right where she was, staring at the Thunderbolt TM in her hand with a rather complicated expression.

To be completely honest, at first... that move really had left her completely electrified and numb.

Pity that within her current team, there wasn't a single Pokémon capable of learning this move, making it temporarily unusable for now...

Yet thinking up to this point, she suddenly reacted to something.

Wait a second?

Wand's Pokémon... seemed to be entirely Electric-type, didn't they?

Doesn't that mean—

—The moment she finished this Gym, she could make all of her Pokémon learn Thunderbolt??

Picturing that exact scene, Cynthia couldn't help but shiver slightly.

No matter how fierce an NPC in this game might be, unless their primary Pokémon were Ground-type, who could possibly withstand a whole team of Electric types frantically blasting them with Thunderbolt??

Who could possibly stop her now?

—No way, she had to pick up the pace and speed things up!

She took a deep breath, maneuvered her character, and hurried out of the Gym.