Kricketune? No, Kricketune Knight! (Please keep reading!!!)

[Holographic projection?! That stuff isn't cheap...]

A comment from "Call Me Purple Scholar" drifted across the screen.

"Really? No wonder it looks so high-end." Chen Yan nodded.

"By the way, what are the rules for PokéBattle?" Chen Yan asked his livestream viewers.

After a series of explanations, Chen Yan finally understood.

It was pretty much like what he'd had in his previous life, except this world's "Pokémon Battle Platform," commonly known as "PokéBattle," had been developed by the Devon Corporation.

Battles were divided into several modes: standard battles, Mega battles, Dynamax battles, and Terastallization battles.

As the names suggested, standard battles only supported conventional battles, with no special battle mechanics, while Mega battles allowed certain Pokémon to undergo Mega Evolution. The same applied to Dynamax and Terastallization battles.

"The Devon Corporation really took trainers from different regions into account," Chen Yan remarked after reading the rules.

He remembered that the Devon Corporation's heir was apparently Steven Stone, the former Champion of the Hoenn Region and a rock enthusiast.

"So, what should we play today? I'm still not too familiar with this, so let's start with standard battles."

Chen Yan clicked on standard battles and began putting together a team.

[Didn't you say Bug-type Pokémon were strong, streamer? Hurry up and show us your Bug-type army.]

As the livestream's audience grew, the chat became increasingly heated.

[There's nothing wrong with raising Bug-type Pokémon early on, is there?]

[To the person above: ordinary trainers barely have any resources early on. Spending them on Bug-type Pokémon is just asking for trouble, isn't it?]

[You said it yourself: resources are scarce early on. Doesn't that make Bug-type Pokémon, which give the quickest returns, worth raising?]

[Then tell me, what good are Bug-type Pokémon?]

Gholdengo Is Number One: Can you stop arguing? Let's see which Pokémon he picks first.

Rich Guy's comment drifted across the screen.

Chen Yan's viewers were still fairly civil. They might argue over how strong Pokémon were, but they wouldn't turn it into personal attacks on the streamer.

At Rich Guy's urging, the chat temporarily quieted down.

The viewers weren't the only ones watching the livestream. At the Sinnoh League headquarters...

Lucian, Flint, and Aaron sat on a sofa, watching the livestream projected onto the wall.

"Which Bug-type Pokémon do you think... he'll use in battle?"

Everyone knew Chen Yan would most likely use Bug-type Pokémon in this battle.

"Volcarona? It's pretty strong, after all, and it has Fire-type coverage." Flint scratched his afro. As a Fire-type Elite Four member, he was also very fond of Volcarona.

"Maybe Vikavolt. A Trick Room team?"

"Couldn't it be Beautifly or something?"

As soon as Aaron spoke, Lucian and Flint both stared at him.

Everyone knew the Pokémon Aaron had mentioned really struggled to contribute in high-level battles.

In her office, Cynthia sat in her chair, watching the livestream on her phone.

"Garchomp, which Bug-type Pokémon do you think he'll use in battle?"

"Graa..."

At his laboratory, Professor Rowan watched the livestream with several assistants.

Chen Yan had no idea that an ordinary livestream of his would attract so much attention.

As Professor Rowan's assistant, he had once been praised by the professor in front of tens of thousands of people. That alone was enough to draw people's attention.

After all, Professor Rowan rarely praised anyone in public. The last person he'd praised had been a little girl, and that little girl had since grown into the Champion of the Sinnoh Region.

After selecting his Pokémon, Chen Yan entered matchmaking.

While waiting for a match, Chen Yan saw the comments in chat and laughed.

"Everyone, let me say this up front: I'm not a trainer who's good at battling. If I mess anything up, please go easy on me."

By now, the viewers had noticed Chen Yan's team composition.

Gengar, Sceptile, Garchomp, Infernape, Drowzee, and... Kricketune?!

They could understand the first few choices, since those Pokémon were strong, but what were those last two, Drowzee and Kricketune, doing there?

[Streamer, are you sure you didn't bring the wrong Pokémon? What the heck is Kricketune?]

[Kricketune?]

[Couldn't you wait until it evolves again into Kricketune Knight before using it? You're using it now?]

[It's over. This is even Great Ball matchmaking. He's throwing this one.]

Chen Yan was using Rich Guy's account.

Not a single person in chat had any faith in him.

Chen Yan merely smiled at the comments and reached out to pet the Glameow in his lap.

"Kricketune is actually pretty decent. It sings nicely, and its relevant base stat, Attack, is a whole 85," Chen Yan explained.

Just then, a match was found, and the game officially entered the battle screen.

The opponent's first Pokémon was Charizard, while Chen Yan sent out a... Shiny Drowzee.

The opponent stared at the little pink pig on the field, frozen for a long time.

"See? Our Peppa Pig crashed the opponent's brain the moment she came out. They had to go check the Pokédex. Doesn't that mean we've got the advantage?"

Upon entering the field, Drowzee's Ability, Forewarn, revealed that the opposing Charizard knew Flamethrower.

After a while, the opponent apparently finished checking the Pokédex and returned, sending a question-mark emote.

Chen Yan politely sent a question mark back.

[??? You're even taunting them?]

Both sides entered their commands, and the battle officially began.

The opponent ordered Charizard to use Flamethrower.

On-screen, Charizard spewed scorching flames that engulfed Drowzee.

"No! My Peppa Pig..." Chen Yan cried out in anguish. "Don't turn into roast suckling pig..."

On-screen, the little pink Drowzee tanked Flamethrower, her HP dropping to 12.

"Huh? She's actually this bulky? It didn't even trigger her Focus Sash." Chen Yan was a little surprised by Drowzee's bulk.

"Trick Room," Chen Yan called softly.

One nice feature of this game was its voice controls.

Drowzee raised both hands, and the surrounding space began to distort.

"Now the move order's reversed, right? Peppa Pig, Endeavor!"

Swinging her trunk, Drowzee rammed into Charizard, instantly bringing Charizard down to twelve HP.

The opponent then ordered Charizard to finish off the weakened Drowzee.

Chen Yan recalled Drowzee and sent out today's star: Kricketune!

The viewers watched Kricketune on-screen. Although they had little faith in Chen Yan, they were still curious about how he would command Kricketune.

The opponent was clearly stunned by Kricketune.

"Didn't see that coming, did you? First a Drowzee, and now a Kricketune." Chen Yan grinned.

"Fell Stinger!"

Perhaps figuring Kricketune wasn't much of a threat, the opponent chose to sacrifice Charizard.

Kricketune unleashed its stinger attack, cleanly finishing off Charizard, then let out a piercing insect cry.

At League headquarters.

Watching this unfold, Aaron said, "The game's over."

Flint looked at Aaron, utterly bewildered.

"After defeating an opponent, Fell Stinger drastically raises the user's Attack."

On-screen, Kricketune lost a little HP.

The opponent's second Pokémon was Hydreigon.

Looking at the three-headed Hydreigon on-screen, Chen Yan grinned.

"Oh? Hydreigon? Still trying to act fierce? Take a Fell Stinger from my Kricketune Knight!"

Boom!

Hydreigon's HP was instantly wiped out.

"A crit, too! How was your Hydreigon supposed to take my Kricketune Knight's Fell Stinger?!"

Chen Yan grew more excited as the battle went on.

Kricketune lost another little bit of HP, and then its imposing presence kept surging.

The opponent's final Pokémon was Blaziken.

"Blaziken? You think I'm afraid of your Blaziken? Take my Aerial Ace!"

Kricketune flew high into the air, then slammed down hard.

Blaziken's HP was wiped out instantly.

A flawless victory.

"That was close. Barely pulled off the win."

Chen Yan let out a sigh of relief.

[???]

[Wait... huh? What just happened? Can an expert break that down?]

[How did I miss that? Why did Hydreigon's HP just vanish?!]

[Kricketune? No, Kricketune Knight!]