Chapter 41: The Flying-Type Elite! The Iono Gym Match!

[Player: Dragon-Type Supreme]
[Current Game Progress: One badge earned, about to challenge the Dewford Gym.]
[Current NPCs defeated: 27]
[Current Team: Fletchinder, Pidgey, Applin]

If Iono had been somewhat skeptical when she first saw this name...
The moment she checked the information on the game's leaderboard, she instantly became certain of one thing.
——This was definitely him!
Lance, the Dragon-type Master of the Kanto region!!
As for why she could be so sure...
Aside from him, who else would go by the name "Dragon-type Supreme" while stuffing their entire team full of Flying-type Pokémon?
And the only Dragon-type Pokémon on his team... looked practically nothing like a dragon no matter how you sliced it...
Iono's expression turned somewhat complicated for a moment.
She hadn't expected that the Dragon-type Master of Kanto would also be playing Emerald; perhaps Cynthia had recommended it to him?
Lost in thought, Iono inadvertently opened Lance's account profile.
[Account Registration Time: 9 hours ago]
[Play Time: 9 hours]
Iono: ?????
Wait, so you've been playing this game non-stop every single minute since registering this afternoon?
She had originally thought that spending most of the day playing this game meant she was already pretty obsessed, but it turned out there were even greater monsters out there...
Regardless, his game progress seemed to be identical to hers—both were on the verge of challenging the Dewford Gym.
And the Dewford Gym... as the name implied, was mostly populated by Fighting-type Pokémon, meaning Lance, with his two Flying-type Pokémon, clearly held the advantage.
Moreover, judging by the leaderboard, she was currently sitting in third place, with dozens of players trailing right below her. Their progress wasn't slow either, and some had even entered Granite Cave.
Therefore, she had to pick up the pace!
No matter what, as an early-access player, she at least had to secure a spot in the top three of the leaderboard!
The rewards for the top three didn't matter... what mattered was making the board!
With that thought in mind, Iono took a deep breath and pushed open the doors of the Dewford Gym...
Taking about five minutes, Iono quickly swept through all the NPCs inside the Dewford Gym and stood before Brawly.

"Against the previous Rock-type Gym, I still had to be wary of type matchups, but since it's a Fighting-type Gym, I'm not afraid anymore."
As the game transitioned into the battle interface, Iono made a confident declaration, and Brawly sent out his first Pokémon—Combusken.
Oh? An alternate starter from this region?
Iono raised an eyebrow.
"Go, Pikachu, use Nasty Plot!"
"Pika-pika!"
Accompanied by the tossing of her Poké Ball, Pikachu's orange-yellow figure appeared opposite Combusken.
He swayed his body slightly, and three huge question marks suddenly appeared above his head.
[Pikachu's Special Attack rose sharply!]
The move "Nasty Plot" could dramatically increase a Pokémon's Special Attack stage.
For Pikachu, who already possessed exceptional speed and Special Attack, after receiving a boost from Nasty Plot, the power of his Electric-type moves would reach an astonishing level!
Unless they were resistant to electricity or possessed extraordinary Special Defense durability, most Pokémon of the same level would find it virtually impossible to survive a single hit from him!
And right now, Combusken moved second, making it noticeably slower than Pikachu!
In other words, as long as Combusken couldn't instantly KO Pikachu this turn... then Pikachu would unleash devastating, continuous blows upon Brawly's team!
Seeing the red glow shimmering around Pikachu's body, the corners of Iono's lips curved upward slightly.
Back in Granite Cave, everything had been Ground-type Pokémon, leaving her no opportunity to use this move... and now she could test it out on Brawly!
She stared intently at the screen, waiting for Combusken to make its move.
However, at that moment, Combusken didn't use any attacking moves; instead, it began spinning rapidly in place!
Fierce currents of air turned its body into a sharp blade, and a dark red glow surged across its feathers.
With her rich combat experience, Iono could naturally tell at a glance that this was the "Swords Dance" move.
But... what good would that do?
Next turn, Pikachu would strike first with a Thunderbolt—how was Combusken going to handle that?
Yet, the very next moment, just as Iono was about to input her move, she noticed that the chat in her livestream was bursting with laughter.
[The streamer still has no idea what's about to hit her, she's still setting up hhh]
[Hahahaha, just thinking about what's about to happen makes me want to laugh...]
[Observing a moment of silence for the streamer in advance, press F.]
...

Seeing these chat messages, Iono's expression instantly changed.
Wait, guys, don't be like this, the streamer is getting a little scared...
She then had a second thought.
——It's just a Combusken, surely it couldn't be like Roxanne's Lileep, pulling dirty tricks all over the place?
Well, it probab... probably wouldn't be, right?
Iono forced herself to calm down, but for some reason, she had a lingering sense of impending doom in her heart.
And the next moment... the scene before her eyes made her completely understand the gravity of the situation.
As the turn ended, a shocking wave of air suddenly erupted from Combusken's body!
[Combusken's "Speed Boost" ability was triggered!]
[Its speed stage rose!]
Iono: ???
....

Meanwhile, in a rented apartment in Pallet Town.
Having finished the day's game update content, Ling Feng leaned back comfortably into his computer chair and let out a long sigh of relief.
With the newly acquired networking module, he had effortlessly implemented the leaderboard, friends list, and world chat features.
During the remaining time, he had also completed the game content for May's two rival battles against Paul in Slateport City.
In the original work, every single challenge from Paul was no less difficult than a Gym battle, and sometimes he was even far stronger than the Gym Leaders themselves!
This actually suited his persona quite well—pursuing ultimate strength, even to the point of frequently swapping out his Pokémon partners...
In comparison, the rivals' challenge difficulties seemed slightly lower...
However, Ling Feng hadn't changed this dynamic; instead, he had further elevated the strength of Paul's and the rivals' teams.
After all, the resources he left for players in the game were far more bountiful than those in the original work, with the Water Stone Cynthia obtained being a prime example.
Now, he was just waiting for the first player to arrive in Slateport City... to face the tempest brought by the two rivals...
Judging by the state of the leaderboard, this person... should be Cynthia, right?
I wondered how many attempts she would need to clear this level of difficulty?
Ling Feng stroked his chin.