Team Rocket’s Second-in-Command! [486]

Luo Yuan had come to the Hammerlocke Stadium for one reason: to see for himself what [Dynamaxing] in the Galar region really looked like.

He wanted to witness the transformation Pokémon underwent after [Dynamaxing] and, more importantly, use his psychic abilities to observe the process up close and uncover the principle behind it.

Based on his calculations, [Dynamaxing] would probably be reserved for the final round of the match.

But to his surprise, Hop couldn’t hold himself back—he pulled out [Dynamaxing] right from the very first battle.

Not that Luo Yuan minded. In fact, this was just what he wanted.

“Cinderace!”

On the field, Hop called out, and in response, a red glow flared on the band wrapped around his wrist.

Drawn by the light, a barely visible red energy surged up from beneath the Hammerlocke Stadium floor, wrapping around Cinderace.

Engulfed by a torrent of red energy particles, Cinderace suddenly began to expand like a balloon being inflated.

Its body, originally about 1.4 meters tall, swelled dozens of times over, transforming into a towering giant that loomed over the field.

“So this is [Dynamaxing]?”

Beside Luo Yuan, Sabrina watched intently, curiosity flickering in her eyes. The desire to understand how it worked was already stirring within her.

As for Luo Yuan… he was already studying it.

The moment Hop prepared to [Dynamax], Luo Yuan had released his psychic energy to monitor every change on the field.

Through his psychic perception, he observed an enormous concentration of Galar particles rising from a device beneath the arena, flooding the battlefield and drastically increasing the density of Galar particles in the air.

When that energy enveloped Cinderace, Luo Yuan clearly sensed a spatial distortion.

From what he could tell, Cinderace hadn’t actually grown in size—cases like Giant Dragonite, where the change was physical, were rare exceptions.

The giant figure now visible on the field was more like an illusion caused by high concentrations of Galar particles warping the space around them.

Which lined up perfectly with the official explanation for [Dynamaxing] from before he crossed into this world.

With this confirmation, Luo Yuan let out a small sigh of relief.

What he feared most was that the mechanism behind [Dynamaxing] had changed in this world—if Pokémon actually grew that large, they’d be far more troublesome to deal with in battle.

While Luo Yuan was deep in thought, on the battlefield, Raihan caught sight of Hop’s [Dynamaxed] Cinderace and smiled.

“Still too young,” he muttered.

In Galar, [Dynamax] could only be used once per battle, usually reserved for a team’s ace. For Hop to waste it out of impulse right from the start—it showed he still had some growing up to do.

“Let me give you a little lesson on your brother’s behalf,” Raihan said with a grin. Despite having lost to Leon over ten times in a row, he definitely wasn’t trying to vent his frustration on Hop.

Raising his arm, he called out: “Coalossal!”

As he spoke, the same process that transformed Cinderace took place once more.

Coalossal began to swell like it was being filled with air, growing to match Cinderace in size, surrounded by three drifting, red clouds.

The two colossal Pokémon now stood on the battlefield like twin titans. Even from outside the stadium, their massive forms could be seen towering in the distance.

The background music subtly shifted.

The calm prelude gave way to a dramatic, driving rhythm, signaling the explosive clash to come—and instantly pulling the crowd into a frenzy.

“Raihan!!”

“Hop!!”

The audience shouted the names of their favorites with unrestrained enthusiasm. The electric atmosphere left Luo Yuan speechless.

These people really don’t care about noise pollution, huh.

He couldn’t help but wonder how much the Galar League had spent on soundproofing.

As the crowd roared, the two [Dynamaxed] Pokémon made their move.

They attacked almost simultaneously.

“[Max Flare]!”

Twin infernos burst from their mouths, colliding at the center of the arena in a searing explosion. The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the stadium, and the heat swept over the field like a rolling tide.

Amplified by the density of Galar particles, both attacks struck with extraordinary force.

The sheer spectacle of the clash ignited the atmosphere even further.

But from Luo Yuan’s perspective, [Dynamax] battles—despite their visual punch—actually sacrificed strategic depth.

Most of the flexible, nuanced movesets got funneled into a handful of standardized Max Moves based on type.

And the size increase made the Pokémon less agile, limiting the tactical options even more. In the end, it just turned into a clash of brute force.

As Luo Yuan continued to reflect on the nature of these battles, the two massive Pokémon exchanged a few more rounds of blows.

He shook his head, stood up, and said to Sabrina, “Let’s go. Nothing worth watching anymore.”

“Huh?” Sabrina was puzzled. The match wasn’t over yet.

“I only came to see what [Dynamaxing] in Galar looked like. Now I’ve seen it. Staying here any longer would just be a waste of time.”

After a moment of thought, Sabrina nodded.

He was right—watching a fight at this level would be a waste of time.

She stood up with him, then asked curiously, “So, just based on this battle—who do you think’s going to win?”

It was her first time seeing a [Dynamax] battle, and she couldn’t yet tell which side had the upper hand.

“Coalossal, probably. The stamina advantage it built up earlier isn’t something Cinderace can catch up to easily,” Luo Yuan said.

He had kept his psychic scan running the entire time, and based on the energy readings, Coalossal’s aura was significantly stronger.

Just as his words fell, before the others around him could react, Coalossal unleashed [Max Quake], striking the unsuspecting Cinderace in a direct hit.

Cinderace’s remaining stamina dropped to zero in an instant.

The Galar particles gathered around its body rapidly dispersed, the warped space returned to normal, and Cinderace shrank back to its original form.

Only the massive figure of [Dynamaxed] Coalossal remained on the field.

“Cinderace is unable to battle. Coalossal wins!” the referee announced.

Only a few seconds had passed since Luo Yuan’s prediction.

The spectators around him turned to stare in surprise, but Luo Yuan ignored them. Instead, he gave a nod to Leon.

“See you in Wyndon in three days.”

Then he turned and left the stadium with Sabrina in tow.

—

This is a fan translation of 我，火箭队二把手！ by 落唯 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!