Chapter 114: Lofty Ambitions! The Battle-Hardened Steel-Armored Raven!

“The spotlight has been completely stolen from us. Still, Su Yi, this is a rare stage on which to show what you can do. Make the most of it.”

In the players’ tunnel, Leon leaned against the wall, watching the two young trainers in the arena, both brimming with fighting spirit.

“How is it, Su Yi?” Nimona said excitedly. “On this stage, nothing can interrupt our battle anymore!”

Su Yi: “…”

Why did that sound vaguely yandere?

“As long as you’re happy.” Su Yi smiled.

“I’ll be happy if I win, and I’ll be happy if I lose. No matter what happens, as long as I can enjoy the fun of Pokémon battles, I won’t be disappointed. That’s who I am.” Nimona wore a smile of genuine delight as she gripped a Poké Ball.

“Su Yi, let me be selfish just this once.”

The referee announced at precisely the right moment, “The battle begins!”

“I choose you! Tinkaton!”

Nimona threw her Poké Ball, and a pink, humanoid Pokémon appeared on the field, hefting an enormous hammer over its shoulder.

“Techa!” Tinkaton looked rather adorable, but by contrast, the hammer it carried—several times its own size and weight—seemed exceptionally vicious.

“What is this, a hammer main?” Su Yi exclaimed.

“Ka?!”

The moment Tinkaton appeared, its sharp gaze locked onto Corviknight. The hand clutching its hammer began to twitch with barely restrained eagerness.

“What’s with this Pokémon? Why is it so ferocious?”

Su Yi felt a powerful sense of incongruity. Such a cute Pokémon had taken one look at Corviknight and immediately revealed a savage expression.

Nimona laughed. “That’s because Tinkaton attacks Corviknight, which is flying through the air, by hammering rocks at it. The two of them are practically natural enemies.”

“Paldea has Corviknight too?” Su Yi asked in surprise.

“Caw?!”

Corviknight cried out indignantly.

“What does some foreign Corviknight’s grudge have to do with me, a local one?”

“Techa!”

Tinkaton gripped its great hammer and urged Nimona on, looking utterly impatient.

“Then let’s start with a greeting! Gigaton Hammer!” Nimona commanded.

“Ka!”

Tinkaton raised the massive hammer with ease, leaped high into the air, and brought it crashing down toward Corviknight.

“Take flight!” Su Yi called at once.

Whoosh!

Corviknight remained calm, rapidly spreading its wings and soaring into the sky. Its movements were clean and decisive, causing Gigaton Hammer to strike nothing but empty ground.

“Stealth Rock!”

Seeing Corviknight rise high into the air and deny Tinkaton its chance to attack, Nimona immediately laid down a trap.

Tinkaton condensed a huge rock of energy, then smashed it apart with its hammer. The fragments scattered across the field before vanishing at once.

“Corviknight, Body Press!”

Su Yi had no idea what moves Corviknight actually knew. For now, he would simply call out whichever ones seemed useful.

“Caw!”

Corviknight’s eyes sharpened. It spread its wings and dove from the sky, hurtling toward Tinkaton.

“It really knows it!” Su Yi exclaimed, even surprising himself.

“Counter with Gigaton Hammer!” Nimona shouted.

“Techa!”

Tinkaton roared and summoned its strength. With a bold swing, it spun the hammer to build momentum, then swept it upward to meet Corviknight’s diving attack.

Clang!

The crash of metal against metal reverberated through the arena, rattling the eardrums.

Boom!

Tinkaton took a step back to absorb the impact and exhaled heavily. Its hands trembled slightly around the hammer, suggesting that the recoil had been far from negligible.

Corviknight landed on the ground and shook its head, looking as though it had been badly rattled.

“That little one has some serious strength,” Su Yi said in astonishment. Could its Ability be Huge Power?

After all, Body Press used the user’s Defense rather than its Attack when calculating damage.

Combined with Corviknight’s outstanding physical Defense, it was a formidable move. Yet Tinkaton’s Gigaton Hammer had met it head-on, which meant that move was no less powerful.

“Tinkaton, use Rock Smash!”

“Ka!”

Tinkaton swung its hammer down once more.

“Meet it with Body Press!” Su Yi shouted.

Corviknight lowered its body and charged again.

Bang!

Rock Smash was clearly the weaker attack. Tinkaton could not withstand Body Press and was knocked backward.

At the same time, a blue glow symbolizing decline flashed across Corviknight’s body. Rock Smash’s secondary effect had activated, lowering Corviknight’s Defense by one stage.

But Corviknight’s armor, gleaming like a mirror, began reflecting the glow of the stat reduction back toward Tinkaton.

“Is that its Hidden Ability, Mirror Armor?” Su Yi asked in surprise.

“Ka!”

Tinkaton flashed a vicious grin. Before Mirror Armor could take effect, its hammer shone, and the glow faded away. The effect that would have reflected the stat reduction back at its opponent had failed completely.

“Caw?”

Corviknight cried out in shock. Its Defense had still been lowered.

“That’s Mold Breaker,” Nimona explained.

“I see. Mold Breaker nullified Corviknight’s Ability.”

Su Yi suddenly understood.

“Truly natural enemies.” He smiled bitterly. Paired with Rock Smash’s ability to weaken Defense, Mold Breaker was almost tailor-made to counter a Corviknight that relied primarily on Body Press for damage.

“Use Rock Smash again! Keep lowering its Defense and crush it step by step!” Nimona said with a grin, clenching her fist as though pressing her advantage with every move.

“What is this, tenderizing the meat? This really is a hammer main!”

The déjà vu struck Su Yi all at once.

In Monster Hunter: World, hunters had ways to soften a monster’s hide, producing an effect much like lowering its Defense. And among the hunters’ weapons was, of course, the great hammer.

“Ka!”

Tinkaton grew excited, swinging its hammer with even greater ferocity.

“Corviknight, dodge!”

Corviknight quickly regained its composure. Rather than dodge in haste, it waited until the instant Tinkaton brought down its hammer, then nimbly slipped to the side.

The hammer crashed down in front of it with a thunderous boom, sending dust billowing into the air. Corviknight’s crimson eyes calmly fixed upon Tinkaton. Even while at a slight disadvantage, it remained utterly unruffled.

“This Corviknight is no ordinary Pokémon.” Watching it closely, Su Yi could not help growing curious. It seemed to have a story of its own.

Thoughts flashed through his mind, and Su Yi immediately issued his command.

“Grab the hammer and carry it into the air!”

Whoosh!

At the order, Corviknight acted without hesitation. It spread its wings and soared upward, seizing Tinkaton’s great hammer as it rose.

Corviknight was strong enough to carry an entire section of metal cargo container over long distances. Lifting Tinkaton and its enormous hammer was effortless.

With nothing to brace against, Tinkaton quickly found itself powerless. As the two climbed higher, panic began to set in.

“Not bad!” Nimona said with a laugh.

“Tinkaton, don’t panic! Use Gigaton Hammer to disrupt Corviknight’s flight!”

“Ka!”

Tinkaton steadied itself. Light enveloped the hammer in its hands, and it began violently thrashing its body, trying to break free of Corviknight’s grasp.

“Throw it away!” Su Yi shouted the instant he saw Tinkaton struggling.

“Caw!”

Corviknight used the momentum of Tinkaton’s resistance to hurl it into the air.

Under the pull of gravity, Tinkaton began to plummet.

“Now use Brave Bird!” Su Yi clenched his fist fiercely.

Corviknight wheeled around and plunged after the falling Tinkaton.

At that moment, a crimson glow wrapped around Corviknight’s body, like flames engulfing a burning raptor. Then, as the power of Brave Bird was fully unleashed, the glow shifted to a blazing orange-yellow.

Corviknight became a savage bird of prey, executing a lethal dive with merciless force.

Bang!

The blazing hunter slammed into Tinkaton and drove it downward, accelerating as it carried the Pokémon straight toward the ground.

Boom!

The earth trembled. The battlefield cracked apart, and clouds of dust surged into the air.

(End of Chapter)