The battle reached a critical point. Politoed stopped the rain and entered the fight.
Although its level was too low to play a crucial role, Politoed still had one last card: the move Belly Drum.
By reducing its health by half, it could maximize its attack strength to the theoretical limit.
However, Politoed only used one move: Icy Wind.
Its goal was to help by minimizing the enemy Pokémon's movement speed, though the level difference was so great that the effect was minimal.
After a period of intense exchanges, Cynthia began to adapt to this form of full battle.
As a battle enthusiast, Cynthia's ability to read fights and her sharp adaptability were unmatched—these were her greatest strengths.
Garchomp and Milotic attacked simultaneously. Cynthia's two strongest Pokémon joined forces to confront Drapion, who had long been blocking their advance.
Drapion, already covered in wounds, couldn't fully recover even with Florges' help in such a short time.
Being a Dragon and Ground-type Pokémon, Garchomp's ability to unleash Ground-type moves—even under the effect of Misty Terrain—showed its supremacy as the "earth dragon."
Under Cain's command, Drapion fought bravely, but there wasn't much he could do.
Slowking tried to intervene to rescue him, but was intercepted by Spiritomb, who despite its injuries managed to hold him back. When Drapion fell, Cain's rear-guard Pokémon were exposed.
Meanwhile, Gengar was held back by Lucario.
It was evident that Cynthia had identified her advantage.
Her Pokémon had higher levels, greater strength, and she could also use more Pokémon than Cain.
Therefore, there was no need for complex strategies; she could simply rely on brute force to dismantle any tactic Cain employed.
Although Florges continued launching Energy Ball against Garchomp and Milotic under Cain's direction, both Pokémon ignored the attacks and focused on defeating Drapion.
Politoed's Icy Wind move was completely disregarded.
Finally, Drapion fell to the ground. Although Garchomp and Milotic were injured, they were still able to continue fighting.
Both Pokémon advanced toward the rear lines. Lucario, using his Aura power, managed to maintain an even match with Gengar. While Gengar fulfilled his role as a sniper, occasionally landing solid hits, he couldn't break free from the confrontation.
Defying Florges' moves, Garchomp and Milotic first defeated Politoed.
Politoed's level was too low. Also, after using Belly Drum, its health had been halved, so it couldn't withstand even a single blow from Milotic.
Even so, Politoed's repeated use of Icy Wind managed to lower Garchomp's speed.
At that moment, Roserade, who had been waiting for her opportunity, entered the battle, joining Spiritomb in confronting Slowking. With Grass-type moves, Roserade managed to limit Slowking's capabilities.
Later, Lucario, Garchomp, and Milotic joined forces to attack Gengar.
Gengar couldn't hold on.
Before falling, Gengar used the move Destiny Bond, taking down Roserade with him, who was in better condition.
Roserade barely had a chance to shine before being taken out of the match along with Gengar.
This left Florges facing Cynthia's three main Pokémon but freed Slowking from the pressure of Roserade and Spiritomb.
Without Roserade's interference, Slowking unleashed all of his psychic power, defeating Spiritomb, then teleported in front of Florges.
The battle came down to two versus three.
However, while Milotic had focused on quickly defeating Drapion and Gengar, it had taken multiple hits from Florges' Energy Ball, leaving it in a fragile state.
Cynthia's three main Pokémon focused their attacks on Florges.
From the beginning of the battle, Florges had been the Pokémon that worried Cynthia the most. The presence of a Fairy-type Pokémon was a significant threat, and Garchomp hadn't been able to fully unleash its potential due to the Misty Terrain effect.
In the stands, the audience held their breath, as if their breathing could influence the battle's outcome.
Meanwhile, Steven and others watched from the Hoenn VIP box with serious expressions. Cain's situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable.
It was clear that Cain had superior skill in directing his Pokémon and reading the battle compared to Cynthia, but the power gap between their Pokémon was simply too great.
Without a Pokémon that could move freely and execute key strategies, Cain's tactics couldn't take shape.
Although Slowking, as the central core, showed his strength, it wasn't enough to compensate for the lack of cohesion among the rest of the Pokémon.
This allowed Cynthia to gradually adapt, splitting the battle across multiple simultaneous fronts.
Ultimately, Florges, despite its resilience, fell under the combined attacks of Cynthia's three Pokémon.
Before falling, it used Petal Dance to take Milotic down with it, making one last valuable contribution.
With that, only a weakened Slowking remained to face Garchomp and Lucario, who were still in good condition.
The outcome seemed obvious.
However, Slowking didn't give up. He activated Trick Room and used Teleport under Cain's guidance, managing to defeat Lucario.
For a moment, it looked like Cain still had a chance. Slowking even held an even exchange against Garchomp.
But eventually, his energy ran out. Slowking couldn't maintain his usual speed, and after a failed teleportation, he was hit head-on by Garchomp's Draco Meteor, falling out of combat.
Though Garchomp was also exhausted and at his limit, it stood as the victor.
Cynthia advanced to the finals, while Cain showcased his strategic brilliance to the fullest, earning applause from more than half the audience despite his defeat.
As a representative of ordinary trainers, Cain inspired many.
Despite everything, this battle wasn't a full representation of a wild fight. Had it been, Cain would have found ways to put Cynthia in danger directly, using risky strategies and attacking her personally through his Pokémon.
However, this was a League battle, where Cynthia claimed victory.
Cain's journey in the Sinnoh tournament ended brilliantly.
(End of chapter)