Nathan would never make such a mistake.
"Panchaa!"
Pancham let out a cry, reacting swiftly. It immediately stopped pushing, lifted its foot, and used Low Kick, aiming directly at Mareep's legs.
A powerful strike caused Mareep to cry out in pain.
But this Mareep gritted its teeth and endured. It didn't fall but instead continued unleashing its electric attack, the yellow lightning striking Pancham squarely.
Nathan spoke in a firm voice. "Pancham, endure it and keep using Low Kick!"
"Panchaa!"
Pancham cried out in pain. Even with its thick skin and sturdy body, the electric shock wasn't easy to withstand. Fortunately, it was tough enough to bear it.
Although Pancham hadn't yet mastered Iron Body (Tekkai), the focused training for it had improved its durability.
Grinding its teeth and enduring the pain, Pancham delivered another powerful Low Kick.
This time, Mareep let out another pained cry and finally collapsed. It could take one hit, but not two.
"Don't give it a chance. Finish the battle."
"Use Shave to accelerate and follow up with Tackle!"
The principle behind Shave was to rapidly stomp the ground dozens of times in a split second to generate explosive reaction force for high-speed movement. Because of that, Shave could be paired with Tackle, greatly enhancing its power.
"Panchaa!"
Pancham shouted, leaping back to create some distance between itself and Mareep.
At this moment, Oliver looked anxious. "Mareep, get up!"
Hearing its trainer's voice, Mareep struggled on the ground.
But Pancham wasn't about to give it the chance to recover.
A sharp whooshing sound filled the air.
Like a rocket, Pancham accelerated using Shave, turning its whole body into a weapon as it charged at Mareep.
Bang!
With a full-powered Tackle, the just-rising Mareep was sent flying and crashed to the ground in the distance. This time, it didn't get back up—it had lost the ability to battle.
…
"Incredible! Contestant Nathan's Pancham just used a never-before-seen move. This technique allowed Pancham to burst forth with an unbelievable speed—possibly even faster than Quick Attack—and it was perfectly combined with Tackle, resulting in a devastating blow. Contestant Oliver's Mareep was instantly defeated!"
"This is amazing. Nathan's strength is clearly extraordinary. Though a rookie, he's managed to help his Pokémon learn a brand-new move…"
The commentator's voice trembled with awe.
Though not spoken aloud, his eyes revealed pure envy.
Why?
Because any newly discovered move proves the trainer's talent. And with Nathan being just a high schooler about to enter university...
That move alone was enough to attract the attention of top-tier Pokémon universities in the nation—like those in Magic City or the capital.
As long as Nathan performs decently, once he accepts a university offer, he'll have access to abundant resources.
Resources...
Unless you're born into a wealthy family, no trainer dislikes resources.
They're simply too valuable.
Most rare resources come from secret realms.
And secret realms are often accompanied by danger.
If you can't afford to buy resources, then you gamble your life to earn them.
Amid the cheers of the audience, Oliver sent out his second Pokémon.
It was a Geodude.
Being a Rock/Ground type, it was naturally weak to Fighting-type moves. The second match was completely one-sided and ended within five minutes.
With just Pancham, Nathan defeated both of his opponent's Pokémon and claimed victory.
...
"This kid is interesting." In the audience, a man watched Nathan walk into the contestant tunnel, his lips curling into a smile.
"That move earlier... it used a special explosive technique to achieve short-range burst speed? Not bad. For Fighting-types, that's incredibly useful. Looks like this year's Trial Tournament is going to be fun."
With a quiet murmur, the man stood and left the stands.
A day passed in the blink of an eye.
Nathan was lucky. He began his third match right after and dominated his opponent, winning three times in a row and successfully advancing to next week's Top 16 qualifiers.
The preliminary round lasted three days, and not everyone could progress on the first day.
After three matches, it was already evening.
For Nathan, today had been incredibly rewarding.
…
[Name: Pancham!]
[Ability: Iron Fist (Boosts punching moves)!]
[Type: Fighting!]
[Description: Hot-tempered and impulsive, it won't tolerate bullying the weak. Uses a leaf to read opponents' movements and charges forward even when hurt, using enough strength to snap a power pole.]
[Level: 17 (11 → 20: Growth)!]
[Moves: Tackle, Leer, Arm Thrust, Taunt, Low Kick, Shave.]
Pancham had gained several levels, making Nathan consider taking it to a secret realm before the next round.
In this world, wild Pokémon in areas near any city were usually beginner-level—around level 1 to 10.
Stronger Pokémon lived deeper in the mountains.
The stronger the Pokémon, the farther they were from human civilization.
Frigid tundras.
Deserts.
Ancient forests.
These were the domains of powerful wild Pokémon.
With Pancham's current strength, pushing through to the finals was nearly impossible. It needed to grow stronger.
And to grow stronger, it needed battles.
Fighting weaker Pokémon yielded little.
At this stage, only in a secret realm could Nathan find Pokémon of similar strength.
Luckily, there was one near Poplar City.
A D-rank Secret Realm.
The letter and number represented the realm's level and ID.
A D-rank realm was a basic, small-scale one.
In such realms, Pokémon were generally of moderate strength—not too weak, but not overly strong either. Still, for rookie trainers, they were decently dangerous.
But secret realms also held valuable treasures.
From rare berries to evolution stones, you could find many treasures in a secret realm. Of course, they were usually guarded by powerful Pokémon—hence the phrase "risk your life for riches."
Back home...
Nathan's parents had the day off and were already preparing dinner.
In the Nathan household, it was the father who cooked, since he was a great chef. The mother helped and handled the dishes.
"You're back." Hearing the door, Nathan's mom peeked out from the kitchen with a proud smile. "I watched your match today—didn't expect anything less from my son."
"Don't overpraise him. It's just a couple of wins," came his father's voice from the kitchen.
Hearing that, Nathan's mom, Juliet turned around and playfully scolded, "Just a couple of wins? Could you win if you were out there? My son wins a match and I'm not allowed to praise him, huh?"
"Okay, okay! Praise away!" Seeing his wife about to turn into a fierce tigress, Nathan's dad, Jerry quickly surrendered.
Watching his parents bicker like an old married couple, Nathan grinned, said a few words to his mom, then headed to his room.
"Panchaa."
A flash of red light.
Pancham appeared in the room.
"Little guy, I've got something good for you—this will help you learn a brand-new, powerful move," Nathan said, pulling out a TM (Technical Machine).
Pancham's current movepool was still quite limited, and there wasn't much synergy between the moves. But once it learned Thunder Punch, that would change significantly.
"Panchaa!"
Pancham's eyes lit up. After today's victories and hearing the crowd cheer for it, the little guy had developed a strong interest in battles—and a hunger for strength.
It seemed to enjoy the feeling of being cheered for.
So, upon hearing it could learn a new move, it became visibly excited.
…
Nathan put the TM on Pancham and activated it.
Soon, Pancham was fully immersed in the TM's interface.
Nathan smiled. "Focus and learn. I'll go make you dinner."
With that, Nathan took out a box of Pokéblocks and picked out three. He then summoned Volcarona.
"Voool."
Volcarona fluttered around him in mid-air, letting out chirps that sounded like it was complaining about not getting to battle.
"There just hasn't been anyone worthy of you lately," Nathan replied with a chuckle.
Even against an Elite-level opponent, Volcarona wouldn't lose.
Only top-tier Elites could give it trouble.
Unless it was the semifinals or finals, there wouldn't be a worthy opponent for Volcarona in this tournament.
"Vol Vool."
Satisfied with that explanation, Volcarona circled around him happily. At least its trainer wasn't neglecting it—just that the competition wasn't worth its effort.
"Here you go, time to eat." Nathan handed it a Pokéblock.
"Vool."
Volcarona began nibbling away contentedly.
Meanwhile...
Over by the side, Pancham was still fully immersed in the learning process. Flickers of electricity occasionally danced around its fists.
This made Nathan quite hopeful.
Maybe Pancham would directly master Thunder Punch.
Once Volcarona finished eating, Nathan returned it to its Pokéball and placed the remaining two Pokéblocks in front of Pancham—for when it finished learning.