Chapter 38 38: The Unreasonable Ivy Cudgel
"Is that really the same move?"
Reggie's face changed dramatically, but Ogerpon was simply too fast.
Especially that technique called Ivy Cudgel.—the moment it struck Roserade, the Pokémon's eyes rolled back, and before it even hit the ground, it had completely lost consciousness.
"This…"
For a moment, Reggie didn't know what to say.
Another instant knockout.
The same move—again.
Ivy Cudgel.… what kind of skill is this? Why is its power so absurd?
Ogerpon's level was clearly very high.
That much, Reggie could tell.
He didn't have Victini, so he couldn't determine her exact level.
But based on his judgment, Ogerpon likely surpassed the ace Pokémon of most Elite Four members and was already approaching Champion-level strength.
Against a Pokémon that powerful, his Staraptor and Roserade losing wasn't surprising.
But collapsing in under ten seconds?
That was excessive.
Even a true Champion—someone like Cynthia—wouldn't casually crush Staraptor's Brave Bird, shatter Magical Leaf, and instantly defeat his Roserade like this.
"Well done."
Watching Ogerpon bounce around happily after securing two consecutive victories, Sora praised her.
"That's the spirit. Keep it up."
"Poné-ao!!"
Ogerpon felt full of energy.
In truth, she hadn't experienced much of the joy of battle before.
Excluding sparring with Lilligant and Ursaluna, her last real fight had been centuries ago.
But since joining Sora's team, she had fought three rounds already—against Lilligant, Ursaluna, and the Loyal Three.
This was the fourth.
Four battles had completely awakened the passion for combat buried deep in her instincts.
She loved fighting.
This thrilling, heart-pounding activity felt incredible.
"Return, Roserade."
Unlike Ogerpon, whose momentum was soaring, Reggie and Shinji were visibly discouraged.
Especially Reggie.
Having two Pokémon knocked out instantly placed enormous pressure on him.
To be honest—
He was nervous.
What should I do?
This Pokémon called Ogerpon seems able to switch masks depending on the opponent and gain corresponding power.
The transformation from a green cloak to a red one was impossible to miss.
Before Roserade fell, its wounds clearly carried Fire-type damage.
"Next, I'm counting on you—Swalot!"
The third Pokémon Reggie sent out was one he had captured in the Hoenn region.
Swalot was a tall, purple, blob-like Pokémon, with whiskers resembling those of a catfish and small orange eyes like glass marbles, constantly sizing up its opponent.
Inside a Poké Ball, Pokémon could still sense the outside world.
Some Psychic-types could even project their powers beyond the ball.
Swalot wasn't a Psychic-type—it was Poison-type.
But during the previous two battles, it had witnessed how its teammates were utterly crushed by that small green fighter wielding a club.
"Swaloo~"
Swalot was large—about the height of an adult.
Reggie's particular Swalot was close to 1.8 meters tall. Standing there, its bulky frame practically overshadowed Ogerpon.
"Size doesn't equal strength. Don't be intimidated, Ogerpon."
In truth, Sora didn't need to reassure her.
Ogerpon was experienced—she wouldn't be frightened by something like Swalot.
"Poné!"
She waited attentively for Sora's command.
But this time, he didn't order a mask change.
So that's the plan…
Ogerpon understood his intention immediately.
She summoned her Ivy Cudgel again and charged straight at the purple, jelly-like Pokémon.
"It's coming!"
Reggie wanted to prepare a more complex strategy.
But once again—
Ogerpon's attack tempo was simply too tight.
In such a short window, he had only a few options.
"Use Gastro Acid!"
"Hm?"
Hearing the command, Sora's eyes narrowed.
Yet he didn't stop Ogerpon.
Instead, he spoke firmly:
"Push through!"
"BOOM!!"
The Ivy Cudgel, wrapped in flames, swung once more.
The result was no different from the previous two opponents.
Against a move as unreasonable as Ivy Cudgel, very few Pokémon could withstand a direct hit.
Ursaluna had tremendous stamina, didn't it?
Yet even it would see stars after taking one solid blow.
In reality, concepts like HP and stamina were abstract.
In an actual battle, victory simply meant knocking the opponent unconscious.
And that was precisely where Ivy Cudgel's true strength lay.
The move itself already possessed high base power—100, with 100 accuracy in game terms, comparable to beam-type attacks.
Of course, in reality, absolute accuracy didn't exist.
Even moves like Flamethrower could be dodged if the trainer shouted "Dodge!"
In Sora's view, accuracy came down to three factors:
Speed.
Area of effect.
Mechanics.
And Ivy Cudgel excelled in all three.
Its speed was extremely high.
Its strike zone wasn't limited to a single point.
As Ogerpon infused more elemental energy into the weapon, the club itself grew larger and more powerful.
If she wished, she could raise a massive Ivy Cudgel over ten meters long and smash her opponent outright.
Fast.
Wide-reaching.
Mechanically advantageous.
Yes—mechanics.
Despite looking like a physical strike, Ivy Cudgel wasn't technically a contact move.
What counted as contact?
For example, if an opponent had an Ability like Static, direct physical contact could cause paralysis.
But Ivy Cudgel avoided that risk entirely.
That was why Roserade's Poison Point Ability hadn't inflicted any negative status on Ogerpon after being struck.
Among all moves, Ivy Cudgel ranked among the most broken.
And there was more.
It also carried a greatly increased chance to land a critical hit.
In game terminology, a critical hit boosted damage by 1.5 times.
In gameplay, when the message "A critical hit!" appeared, it often meant the opponent's HP bar vanished instantly.
Reality wasn't a video game—
But the effect of striking a vital point was essentially the same.
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Pat reon Advance Chapters: /YonkoSlayer