The instant Lucian spoke, Qingyu understood his intent.
It was a choice: risk being pierced by Sacred Sword, or let Bronzong use Trick Room.
Without question, this was a trap laid out in plain sight.
Qingyu couldn't risk Slaking getting knocked out in one hit just to interrupt a Trick Room that would only take effect later.
In other words...
Lucian would rather sacrifice Gallade than let anything stop Bronzong from setting up Trick Room and securing the first move.
Something was definitely up.
But even knowing that, Qingyu could only accept the trade. He decisively ordered Slaking to attack Gallade with Shadow Claw.
In the game, Pokémon battles were fundamentally a contest of strategy between two Trainers, and any such contest inevitably involved trade-offs.
In his earlier battles, Qingyu had steamrolled his opponents not only because his commands were solid, but also because no one had anticipated his tactics. That had been another decisive factor in his victories.
That wasn't the case this time. Slaking stood out far too much, and Lucian had been on guard against it all along, constantly disrupting Qingyu's tactical setup.
Even after successfully using Skill Swap, he had no choice but to accept Lucian's trade of a life for speed.
After recalling Medicham, whose Ability had become Truant, Qingyu quickly sent out Alolan Raichu.
If the game had already introduced Mega Evolution, Qingyu wouldn't have needed to switch, since Mega Evolution would have changed Medicham's Ability back to Pure Power.
Medicham could learn Trick Room itself and directly cancel out Bronzong's Trick Room with its own. That was also the only way to remove the move's effects.
Unfortunately, that opportunity was gone now.
Slaking, fighting at full power, slashed with its claw. Ghost-type energy, super effective against Psychic Power, erupted and knocked Gallade out