Chapter 40: The Battle Is Over
"Beedrill, it's time to fight back!"
"Fell Stinger!"
Renjiro gritted his teeth, enduring the searing pain that shot through his battered body with every movement. His injuries were severe — each breath felt like a thousand blades slicing through his flesh, each step a reminder of how close he'd come to death. But he had no time to succumb to the agony. The battle was not over. Not yet.
Beedrill, his loyal partner, heard the command and responded immediately.
"Cha!" (Got it, Renjiro!)
Without hesitation, Beedrill's twin lances, sharpened with the power of Mega Evolution, glowed with a cold, deadly light. The Pokémon moved with such speed and precision that the air itself seemed to tremble. One stinger parried Weavile's deadly claws, and the next plunged deep into the dark Pokémon's chest, injecting a potent toxin into its bloodstream.
There was a sickening thwack as Weavile's body was hurled backward by the force of Beedrill's strike. The impact echoed through the deserted street as Weavile slammed into an old electric pole, crumpling to the ground in a heap.
Weavile's chest heaved once… twice… and then it lay still. Without intervention, the poison coursing through its veins would finish what Beedrill had started.
The tide of battle had shifted in the blink of an eye.
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"Ding! Your Beedrill defeated a level 46 Weavile. Gained 3460 experience points."
"Ding! You gained 70 combat value points. Current combat value: 2400."
---
The man in the windbreaker stood frozen, his eyes wide with terror and disbelief.
"What... what kind of monster is this?!"
He had barely seen Beedrill move — one moment, the Pokémon stood beside Renjiro, and the next, his Weavile was defeated. His most powerful partner lay motionless. And now, the predator's gaze turned to him.
The man in the windbreaker began to back away, heart pounding, panic rising in his throat. His mind raced for options — an escape route, a hidden weapon — but he had nothing. His plan, his overconfidence, all crumbled before the terrifying power Renjiro had unleashed.
But Renjiro wasn't about to let him escape. The secret of Mega Evolution had to be protected. This man had witnessed too much. If he survived, that knowledge would spread — and with it, danger beyond imagination.
His voice was cold and resolute.
"Beedrill... finish it."
---
Beedrill's wings blurred into invisibility as it launched forward, faster than the eye could follow. To the man in the windbreaker, it was as if the creature had vanished, only to reappear by his side.
The man gasped, his pupils contracting to pinpoints. Slowly, as if in a nightmare, he looked down and saw Beedrill's stinger buried deep in his abdomen. The venom worked fast, spreading through his body like fire. His legs buckled.
"Plop."
He collapsed onto the cold, bloodstained pavement, dead before he even hit the ground.
---
Renjiro leaned heavily against the wall, his breath ragged, his face pale. The adrenaline that had carried him through the fight was fading, leaving only exhaustion and pain in its wake. His vision blurred at the edges. With trembling fingers, he managed to pull out his phone, dialing the emergency number.
"Hello, this is the Shuangyang City Investigation Bureau. What is your emergency?"
A calm, professional female voice answered.
"Li… Liming Street…"
That was all Renjiro could manage before darkness claimed him. His phone slipped from his grasp, falling to the ground beside him. His body slid down the wall until he sat slumped on the ground, unconscious.
Beedrill, having spent the last of its strength, reverted from its Mega form and collapsed beside its trainer.
The street fell silent, save for the faint voice from the phone, still connected to the bureau.
---
At the Shuangyang City Investigation Bureau call center, a young operator named Liu Yi furrowed her brow.
"Team leader, I think something's wrong. The caller only said 'Liming Street' and then went silent. The call is still connected, but there's no response."
Her superior, the call center team leader, immediately snapped to attention.
"Liming Street?! Has the call ended?"
"No. It's still active, but no one is speaking. I suspect something serious happened — maybe the caller fainted."
The team leader nodded, the weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders.
"Alright. Who's in charge of Liming Street?"
"Uh… team leader, Liming Street doesn't have a dedicated investigator. No one wants to be assigned there."
"Damn, I forgot. It's practically abandoned…"
He rubbed his temples, thinking fast.
"Who's free in the bureau?"
"Only Captain Zhong just returned. Everyone else is still out on assignments."
"Then notify Captain Zhong immediately. I'll explain the situation myself."
---
Zhong Ling barely had time to put down her bag before the call came in. The urgency in her superior's voice was clear. Without pausing, she grabbed her helmet, mounted her motorcycle, and sped toward Liming Street, the wind whipping against her face.
"I swear, if this has anything to do with that troublemaker Renjiro…"
Despite her grumbling, a flicker of worry crossed her mind.
---
The streets of Liming felt like the setting of a ghost story. Shadows stretched long under the dim streetlights. Zhong Ling's loyal Arcanine, the mighty general, trotted beside her, nose to the ground.
Suddenly, the Pokémon's ears pricked up. It barked sharply and took off running, leading Zhong Ling down the deserted street.
What she found stopped her in her tracks.
The scene was one of utter devastation: blood pooled on the cracked pavement, an electric pole dented and frozen over, and three Pokémon sprawled lifelessly — Milotic, Weavile, and Beedrill. Against the wall, barely recognizable through the blood and grime, was Renjiro.
Zhong Ling rushed to his side, dread clenching at her heart. His body was a ruin of torn flesh and tattered clothing, every inch marked by battle. She checked his pulse — faint, but there. Relief washed over her.
"This kid… what the hell did you get yourself into?"
She looked around, taking in the evidence of the battle. Whoever or whatever Renjiro had fought here had pushed him to the brink of death. But somehow, he'd survived. Somehow, he'd won.
---
Zhong Ling immediately radioed for medical assistance, her mind racing.
She crouched beside Renjiro, trying to keep him stable until help arrived. The weight of the moment bore down on her. She had seen battles before — ugly ones, brutal ones. But this… this was something else.
The secret Renjiro had fought to protect was clear to her, though unspoken. That Beedrill — it hadn't just evolved. It had become something far beyond what any normal Pokémon should be.
And now, she was the only one who knew.
---
As the wail of sirens echoed in the distance, Zhong Ling made a silent promise to herself and to the unconscious boy at her feet.
No matter what secrets Renjiro carried, she would make sure he lived to see another day.
And when he woke up, she would demand answers.
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End of Chapter 40.
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