After Ralts evolved into Gardevoir, even her Telepathy voice changed drastically. What used to be a cutesy loli tone had become a commanding "queenly" voice.
On the battlefield, Bisharp and Gardevoir were still locked in combat. Their fight had expanded so much that it even started affecting Phoebe's battle nearby.
But neither Phoebe nor her opponent -the Liepard- had any complaints. They just silently moved to another area and continued battling.
Sato had already let go. At this point, whether they won or lost depended entirely on whether Gardevoir could take down her opponent, it had nothing to do with him.
Taking advantage of the brief lull, Sato glanced over at Mark and the others' matches. What he saw wasn't encouraging.
Mark and Skyla had already finished their battles. It was clear they'd both been completely wiped out.
Even though Beartic might have gone easy on Mark for the sake of Sweet Milk, the difference in strength was just too big. At most, it changed whether the hits landed lightly or heavily.
Joseph was still holding on… barely. Gogoat and Weavile held the front line, while Florges and Gallade supported from the sides. Chansey and Wigglytuff kept casting Heal Pulse nonstop, buying them time.
Joseph's opponent was a particularly troublesome Fire-type Pokémon: Heatmor, the natural enemy of Durant.
It was almost laughable. One moment they were wiping out Durant's nest, and the next, Joseph found himself fighting its predator. His feelings were… complicated.
Heatmor doesn't evolve, but it's born with considerable power. Its signature move, Fire Lash, was especially nasty.
Weavile was agile enough, but against a High Pseudo-Elite Four Heatmor, it could do little more than dodge. Counterattacking was nearly impossible.
Gogoat had it even worse. Its large size gave it stamina and decent defense, but Fire Lash shredded through it like wet paper.
Smack!
One lash, nearly down.
If not for Chansey and Wigglytuff's combined healing, along with Florges's Grassy Terrain providing sustained recovery, Gogoat would never have lasted this long.
Even so, it was only a matter of time before Gogoat was defeated.
To Sato, Heatmor's personality seemed outright malicious. It felt like it was intentionally dragging things out, toying with Joseph's Pokémon as they struggled on the brink.
The battles farther away were harder for Sato to keep track of, but from what little he saw, they were all fierce. Clearly, no one wanted to surrender.
Even Joseph, he had to know what Heatmor was doing. Yet he still held on, waiting patiently for a single opening.
"You're still worried about others? I'm about to finish this!" The sudden burst of Telepathy jolted Sato back to the present: Gardevoir's battle.
Even though she was at a type disadvantage, there was no reason for Gardevoir to lose a fight against someone of equal level.
Let's not forget: Gardevoir was also a "queen". The queen of the Seafloor Cavern!
A Bisharp of the same rank wasn't enough to stop her.
Even among Elite Four level Pokémon, there were differences in power.
So as Sato watched Bisharp collapse under the force of Focus Blast, his emotions were mixed.
He didn't feel joy. Just a sense of how far he'd come in this life… and how far he still had to go.
Before long, everyone except Joseph had finished their battles. Among them, Phoebe, Marlon, and Jona emerged victorious, while Ryoko and Marshal had lost.
Sato was a little surprised. Based on their future paths, Marshal would become a new Elite Four, and Marlon a Gym Leader.
But right now, it was obvious that Marlon was the stronger of the two.
Unconsciously, everyone's attention shifted to Joseph.
Marshal was surprised too. Joseph had always made it clear that he was a Pokémon Breeder, someone who supported others even in battle.
Yet now, despite Marshal already being defeated, Joseph was still holding on. And though it was thanks to his dual support team keeping him "alive", it also proved he was far from weak.
Heatmor had finally sensed the pressure. Seeing that all its companions had finished their matches, it stopped holding back. Raising its left claw, it brandished both Fire Lashes at once.
There was no dodging this. Weavile arched its back midair, narrowly evading the first whip, but the second was coming fast and hard.
"Florges, Psychic! Gallade, Teleport in and Close Combat!"
An opening!
Using both Fire Lashes meant Heatmor had given up all other forms of attack.
Joseph had kept Gogoat and Weavile up front the entire time, intentionally hiding the full strength of Florges and Gallade.
Now, Florges's powerful Special Attack, paired with Psychic, could not only deal considerable damage to Heatmor, but also restrict its movement.
Then came Gallade, who had secretly used Swords Dance beforehand. With a quick Teleport, he closed the distance and unleashed an explosive Close Combat.
Victory!
Heatmor had underestimated Joseph. It never used its full strength, instead toying with Gogoat for amusement.
But without realizing it, Joseph had been building momentum: boosting Gallade with three rounds of Swords Dance, and setting him up for a devastating same-type finisher.
Gallade unleashed his maximum output, and Heatmor was taken down instantly.
But as Heatmor collapsed, Gallade too was forced to one knee, trembling all over from the strain of handling so much boosted power.
Nearby, Gogoat staggered and finally collapsed as well. Those repeated Fire Lashes hadn't just hurt its body, but its spirit too.
Still…
They had won!
Sato suddenly realized: Joseph, even if he rarely fought, almost every time he did, he won.
'…So why did he always call himself a support?'
That question began to stir in Sato's heart.
With all nine battles complete, they had a record of five wins and four losses, a result that would shock anyone. After all, the weakest opponent was still High Pseudo-Elite Four.
Granted, putting aside the fact that Sato's Gardevoir was basically a walking bug in the system, the other victors were all either on the verge of breaking through or already beginning their ascension into Pseudo-Elite Four level.
At this level, the possibility of punching above one's rank wasn't low. And in a team battle format, the advantages of cooperation could compensate for some of the level gap.
So thinking it through… victory wasn't impossible.
"Voo voo voo~"
With the matches concluded, Volcarona descended from high above, fluttering elegantly around them as if inspecting and confirming something.
Sato and Joseph exchanged a glance, both beginning to feel hopeful. If they had passed the trial, there should be a reward.
And judging by the look on Jona's face, Volcarona was likely the hidden ally of the Unova League.
Or rather, this entire underground world was.
So… what would the reward be?