Chapter 574: Noivern (Dragon King) — Pokémon Classes

"Aegis—!"

Aegislash cried out in pain as Blaziken's kick sent it flying.

It shot more than a dozen meters through the air before crashing into the battlefield and blasting open a deep crater.

Aegislash was weak to Fire-type moves, and to make matters worse, it had taken a STAB-boosted Blaze Kick while still in Blade Forme.

No wonder that kick had hit like a truck.

At the bottom of the crater, a spiral filled Aegislash's eye.

It was unable to battle.

...

"Aegislash is unable to battle!"

The referee raised his flag.

"Braveon, send out your next Pokémon!"

"Hahaha!"

Blaze laughed triumphantly from across the field.

"Told you I'd get you back for those last two losses."

"That's one."

He grinned.

"Don't celebrate too early, Braveon. I'm just getting started."

"Come back, Aegislash."

Braveon remained unfazed as he recalled Aegislash.

Then he reached for another Poké Ball.

"Keep talking."

His grin returned.

"I'll make it three wins by the end of this."

Blaze scoffed.

"Big talk for a guy who just lost Aegislash."

Braveon shrugged.

"Enough talking."

"Let's settle it on the field."

He tossed out his second Poké Ball.

"Noivern, you're up!"

A flash of light burst above the battlefield.

A massive black-and-purple Noivern materialized in the air, its broad wings already spread.

Black-and-purple fur covered most of its body, while a thick ring of white fur surrounded its neck. Two enormous ears rose from its head, and the muscular Pokémon was noticeably larger than an ordinary member of its species.

Noivern.

The Flying/Dragon-type Pokémon.

Its glare alone looked fierce enough to make a child cry.

"NOI-VERRRN!"

Noivern threw back its head and unleashed a powerful roar.

Then it fixed its eyes on Blaziken below, clearly eager for a fight.

Back in the preparation area, Aaron immediately pulled up its status panel.

[Name: Noivern (Dragon King)]

[Gender: Male]

[Nature: Relaxed (Speed +10%, Defense -10%)]

[Type: Flying/Dragon]

[Ability: Sonic Resistance — When an opposing Pokémon attacks Noivern, its Speed falls by 2 stages.]

[Base Stats Total: 535]

[Level: Gym (Late Stage)]

[Potential: Champion]

[Known Moves: Supersonic (Perfect), Dragon Pulse (Perfect), Hurricane (Perfect), Draco Meteor (Perfect), Agility (Perfect), Air Cutter (Master), Tailwind (Master), Roost (Master), Boomburst (Master), Double Team (Master), Psychic (Master), Shadow Ball (Master), Dark Pulse (Master), Flamethrower (Proficient)...]

[Description: Noivern, the Sound Wave Pokémon. The strongest member of its Noivern colony. It can fly at tremendous speed even in total darkness, using ultrasonic waves to locate its targets.]

...

"Just as I thought... another King-class Pokémon."

By now, Aaron had started noticing a pattern.

As far as he could tell, Pokémon could roughly be divided into several different classes.

Normal Class.

Unique Class.

Bloodline Awakening Class.

And finally, King Class.

The first was the Normal Class.

These were ordinary Pokémon whose Abilities and Base Stats Total remained unchanged.

The second was the Unique Class.

These were Mutated Pokémon born through unusual circumstances.

Pokémon in this category could become extraordinarily powerful.

Their Base Stats Total could increase, their Abilities could change, and in some cases even their typing could be altered.

Aaron's Froslass was one example. Galen's Aggron was another.

Both had undergone changes to their base stats and Abilities.

The Crystal Onix from the anime would also fall into this category.

The third was the Bloodline Awakening Class.

Bloodline-awakened Pokémon could become just as terrifying.

Liora's five-headed Hydreigon and Drake's Dragonite were both examples.

The higher their bloodline awakening percentage, the stronger they became.

If that awakening ever reached one hundred percent, they could potentially rival Legendary Pokémon and possess truly enormous Potential.

Then came the fourth category.

The King Class.

These Pokémon were born as natural rulers of their own species or colony.

Unlike Unique Pokémon, their Base Stats Total usually remained unchanged.

Their Abilities, however, were another story.

Blaze's Arcanine was one example.

Braveon's Noivern was another.

Compared with Unique Pokémon and bloodline-awakened Pokémon, King-class Pokémon were relatively more common.

Unique Pokémon and bloodline-awakened Pokémon were far rarer.

But when they did appear, they tended to be even more powerful.

That was the Pokémon classification system Aaron had pieced together so far.

Of course, his own team probably deserved a category of its own.

Cheater Class.

...

Yeah.

That sounded about right.