Chapter Sixty-Five: The Trump Card! The Terrifying Fiend!

What surprised Leon was that he had expected Su Yi to let the Dire Dragapult and the Thousand-Faced Eel engage in a fierce, blood-pumping rematch, but instead, Su Yi used Dragon Tail to forcibly switch out his Pokémon? That felt like a bit of an emotional letdown.

After biting at empty air, the Dire Dragapult quickly spun around and lashed out with its tail—a swift and seamless strike that caught the Thousand-Faced Eel just as it was dodging the previous attack. Encased in gleaming green scales, the long dragon tail struck, turning the eel into a beam of light as it was withdrawn into its Poké Ball, which then forcibly called out Leon’s next Pokémon.

At the same time, Su Yi recalled the Dire Dragapult at lightning speed, then drew out a Poké Ball.

“It’s big brother’s ace—Charizard!” Hop shouted excitedly upon seeing which Pokémon had been sent out by the forced switch.

An ace? That’s exactly what I was waiting for!

“Rooar?” Charizard seemed a little puzzled, but its excellent combat instincts made it immediately vigilant. It spread its wings and soared into the sky, scanning the battlefield warily from above.

Meanwhile, Su Yi grinned broadly. “Everything’s going according to plan! Go, Zizi!”

“Waaah…” Zizi, the Dazzling Bird, appeared on the field and gave a lazy, half-hearted squawk, showing not a trace of fighting spirit.

Su Yi: ...

Apparently, being single again had hit Zizi hard. And since it hadn’t undergone much training or teamwork, its rapport with Su Yi was still lacking.

But that was fine; as long as it could use those two or three moves, it would be enough.

“It’s a new Pokémon!” Sonia reflexively raised her Pokédex to scan it. As she suspected, yet another unregistered Pokémon. Including the ones she’d seen previously, there were now six unregistered Pokémon in Su Yi’s team.

If it were just one or two, it could be chalked up to luck, maybe. But a whole team of unregistered Pokémon—especially considering the unregistered egg Su Yi had given Hop earlier—it was clear these Pokémon had their own populations and habitats.

And, based on what Su Yi had said, he’d just caught a new partner—this one right before their eyes. If he was telling the truth, that meant he’d caught an unregistered Pokémon in just two or three days.

That implied these Pokémon’s habitats couldn’t be far from Galar.

This only fueled Sonia’s curiosity. What unexplored secret realm could be hiding so many unknown Pokémon?

“Oh? Is this your new partner? Doesn’t seem to have much fighting spirit,” Leon laughed, but inwardly he was on guard.

Every one of Su Yi’s Pokémon had brought him some surprise, and for Su Yi to switch out his ace Charizard as soon as it appeared—there had to be a reason.

“Zizi! If you’re feeling down, let off some steam! Flash ’em!” Su Yi pointed at the airborne Charizard.

Flying, are you? Well, I’ll flash you!

“Waaah!” Zizi managed to pull itself together, looked at the target in the sky, and as if its DNA was activated, the luminous membrane atop its head unfurled.

“What attack is this?” Leon instantly grew wary.

That membrane suddenly unleashed a blinding flash. Leon was taken aback, thinking, Is this some kind of beam attack? Or is it like Solar Beam, something that needs charging?

But when the flash pulsed for a second time, he suddenly realized: Could it be… “Look out—!”

He hadn’t even finished shouting “look out” when Zizi lifted its head, aiming the glowing membrane straight at Charizard in the sky. A dazzling, scorching white light exploded forth, incredibly brilliant in the twilight over the wilds.

“Roaaarr!” The blinding flash stabbed into Charizard’s eyes. The shock made its mind reel, and, unable to resist, it plummeted from the sky.

“Charizard!” Leon cried anxiously, shielding his eyes just in time.

“Zizi! U-turn!” Su Yi gave a decisive command.

“Waaah!” Revitalized by the attack, Zizi felt a surge of energy. Thanks to its Plateau Walker ability, its already formidable speed doubled, and it shot toward the falling Charizard like an arrow loosed from a bow.

Clang!

U-turn landed cleanly, and Zizi vanished in a flash of light, returning to its Poké Ball. Charizard, struck by the attack, crashed to the ground; fortunately, its quadruple resistance to Bug-type moves spared it from heavy damage, but combined with the fall, it was left dazed and unable to recover right away.

And now, Su Yi’s trump card stepped onto the stage!

A chilling, crimson beast lunged forth before anyone could even react to its terrifying appearance, charging straight at the defenseless Charizard.

“Rend with Wound Claws!” Su Yi commanded fiercely.

The Grimclaw Dragon spread its ten vicious talons, swinging them in a savage arc of pale light.

Shing!

A series of grotesque, terrifying wounds appeared on Charizard’s body, erupting with a hiss as its energy dissipated in quick little bursts of light. Charizard was sent flying by the brutal blow and crashed to the ground.

“What kind of Pokémon is this?!” Leon’s face was stricken with shock.

Hop and Gloria, who had never seen the Grimclaw Dragon before, wore the same expression.

They’d thought Dire Dragapult was already a fearsome Pokémon, but the appearance of Grimclaw Dragon took their image of savagery and violence to a whole new level.

Its body was covered in bloody red scales and clearly defined muscle fibers, as if its skin had been torn away to reveal the raw flesh beneath. Its jagged, protruding fangs were horrific, and its ten-bladed claws evoked, at a mere glance, visions of brutal flesh being ripped apart.

“What… what kind of terrifying Pokémon is this?” Hop muttered in disbelief. For a moment, he couldn’t reconcile this Grimclaw Dragon, now under Su Yi’s command, with the adorable Pokémon Su Yi had introduced to him when they first met.

“Wound Claws!” Su Yi called out again.

With a snort of white vapor, the Grimclaw Dragon bolted toward Charizard with agile speed.

“Charizard! Take to the sky!” Leon shouted, frowning.

“Roar!” Gritting its teeth, Charizard, though still blinded and unable to see, obeyed and beat its wings, climbing upward. As it ascended, the wounds on its body were aggravated. The pain wasn’t severe at first, but with every beat of its wings, the agony from the wounds grew worse, contorting its face in pain.

“Blinded and suffering from a status condition that causes continuous damage!” Leon quickly realized Charizard’s predicament.

“Go Berserk! Grab it!” Su Yi clenched his fist in suspense. If Charizard managed to get fully airborne, Grimclaw Dragon would face a devastating firestorm. This had to end quickly.

As it sprinted, the Grimclaw Dragon let out a low growl. White vapor curled from its jaws, and crimson light shone between the scales and muscles of its neck. Its physical power and speed surged by two full levels in an instant. With a mighty leap, it closed the distance to Charizard, who was still struggling to gain altitude.

Such terrifying strength and speed! Leon was stunned. That such a savage Pokémon could unleash such explosive power and velocity in an instant—unbelievable!

“Charizard! Down and to your right—Fire Blast!” Leon shouted urgently.

“Rooaaar!” Charizard roared in fury, unleashing a massive Fire Blast that lit up the already fiery dusk sky.