Chapter 201: I Don’t Have a Mega Evolution Stone Under the grip of Psychic, the only thing Mega Altaria could move was its eyes, which darted around helplessly as its body was slowly dragged toward Metagross. Although Metagross's face remained stoic, the violent emotions swirling in its eyes struck fear into the Mega Altaria's heart. From the initial Disarming Voice to the recent Perish Song, all of Altaria's moves had been mental attacks. But Metagross, known for its naturally ruthless nature, wasn't one to let such provocations slide. Metagross was originally a ferocious Pokémon but it kept a calm and detached expression. But once enraged, it could transform from a dependable ally into a rampaging maniac. With Altaria pinned to the ground, Metagross raised its thick arm and unleashed its signature Meteor Mash. With a loud 'boom', the ground trembled as a crater nearly 100 meters wide formed, centered around the pinned Mega Altaria. Julian felt a twinge of concern, wondering if his Metagross would go too far and accidentally kill the opponent. He noticed the opposing trainer glaring at him with a mix of anger and disbelief. As the dust settled, the scene before everyone was... unexpected. Metagross slowly withdrew its arm from the ground, the massive limb hovering just inches away from Mega Altaria's head—so close it might have blasted the head off. Mega Altaria's body, however, bore no visible injuries. It was clear that the Meteor Mash hadn't hit its target. At such close range, with Altaria completely restrained by Psychic, missing would have been impossible. Unless Metagross had intentionally missed it on purpose. Despite not being struck, Mega Altaria had already reverted to its normal form—and was unconscious. "Wait... did it pass out from fright?" "I think so" "Metagross is 'so' mean, but I love it. What should I do?" Sharp-eyed onlookers quickly pieced together why Altaria had fainted. Julian knew of Metagross's vengeful streak, so its actions didn't surprise him. Between physically knocking the opponent out and scaring it into fainting, the latter was far more humiliating for the opponent. Altaria, a pseudo-Elite Pokémon, had fainted purely from fear. If word spread, how could it maintain its dignity among its kind? The opposing trainer was relieved to find Altaria unharmed, quickly recalling it. But realizing it had fainted from fright left them flushed with embarrassment. A Pokémon's disgrace directly reflected on its trainer. The trainer hastily withdrew from the battlefield, too mortified to linger. "Are you okay?" Julian asked as Metagross hovered back to his side. Although the Perish Song had been interrupted, its effects had already started taking hold the moment the song began. The damage from Perish Song would only reach its peak at the end of its duration. "Meta~" Metagross shook its head, signaling it was fine. Though Perish Song had inflicted some damage, it wasn't enough to hinder its ability to continue fighting. Julian used Probing Eyes to check on Metagross and found that, aside from some stamina loss and minor injuries, there were no lingering effects from Perish Song. Only then did he feel relieved. It wasn't that Julian was being overly cautious, but Perish Song was an incredibly devastating move. Much like Self-Destruct and Explosion, it was a move designed for mutual destruction. In some ways, Perish Song was even more extreme than the other two. While Self-Destruct and Explosion were limited in range, Perish Song was different. As long as you could hear it, you were affected. The only factor was that the further away you were, the weaker the effect. Julian had already defeated five trainers from Modu Academy. The sixth challenger now stood ready on the field. "Garchomp" A late stage pseudo-Elite Garchomp. Julian looked at the opponent, waiting for their next move. The trainer seemed to understand what Julian meant. "I don't have a Mega Stone!!" The other party snapped. 'If I had one, my Garchomp would've already Mega Evolved.' Julian found this hard to believe. Wasn't it said that everyone from the Modu Academy not only had a pseudo-legendary but also a Mega Stone? Seeing Julian's incredulous expression, the trainer's anger deepened, accompanied by an odd pang of guilt as if he had let Julian down. 'What the hell am i thinking' "Garchomp, Slash!" the trainer shouted in frustration. If Dragonite was the fat poster child of the dragon world, Garchomp was its lean, powerful counterpart. Despite its seemingly slim build, Garchomp's explosive power was undeniable. With a stomp, it left a small crater in the ground and closed the distance to Metagross in the blink of an eye. The sharp, axe-like fin on its arm glowed white as it slashed down with tremendous force. Metagross swung its left arm to meet the attack, Hammer Arm clashing with Slash. The instant the two white flashes collided, Garchomp was sent flying backward by the resounding crash. This Garchomp sure had guts, daring to engage Metagross in close combat. What did it think it was, a Kommo-o? In the next moment, Metagross used Teleport, appearing instantly behind the airborne Garchomp. "Garchomp, stabilize yourself and use Dragon Rush!" the trainer shouted. Leveraging the momentum of its flight, Garchomp charged itself with draconic energy and launched into Dragon Rush. The move showed a glimmer of creativity—reminiscent of a certain Ash Ketchum's strategies. But this guy wasn't a protagonist, and Garchomp wasn't Pikachu. Such tactics wouldn't work against Julian. Dragon Rush required time to charge. Metagross had no intention of giving Garchomp that time. Enveloped in psychic energy, it shot forward with Zen Headbutt at an astonishing speed of 200 meters per second. Garchomp, mid-air had just started to steady itself to launch Dragon Rush, suddenly felt the world spin. Before the pain even registered, it had already lost consciousness. It tumbled across the battlefield for hundreds of meters, finally crashing into the protective barrier and coming to a halt. Its arms and legs were visibly bent at unnatural angles, clearly indicating fractured bones. Not even a pseudo-Elite peak and without the ability to Mega Evolve, Metagross taking on such a challenger was akin to an adult sparring with a child. "Why do I feel defeating pseudo-legendaries is super easy?" "This reminds me of the time I used my Pidgeotto to beat a Caterpie" "So Garchomp's this weak? Glad I chose Dugtrio back then. Same Ground type, but Garchomp, you're an embarrassment." "Hey, can your Dugtrio help plow the 3,000 acres of farmland at my place?" "500 per acre, if the price is doable. DM me your address." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞 "My Tauros charges 400." "My Bouffalant only 300." Over on the Modu Academy' bench, yet another defeated trainer took a seat. Only three people remained standing: two participants and the coach. "No pressure, it's okay if you can't win." The coach said, patting the seventh trainer on the back. The seventh trainer climbed into the ring, looking like he was on his way to a funeral. "Dylan, Julian must be defeated. It doesn't matter if your trump cards are exposed. Modu Academy can afford to lose, but 'you' cannot." The coach then turned to the last remaining participant, his expression grim.