“Dig!”

  As the Dragon Pulse roared past, Gible’s silhouette vanished into the ground, leaving only a hole as evidence of its preses current location remained a mystery.

  Paul allowed himself a faint smile.

  If this were the anime, Roark's Rampardos would have no choice but to atiently fible to resurface.

  Unfortunately, the Rampardos in this world was far more capable than its freshly evolved terpart from the show. Uhe anime’s version, whiew little beyond Fmethrower and brute-force attacks, this Rampardos had a much more versatile move pool.

  “Rampardos, Earthquake!” Roark anded decisively, oblivious to Paul’s smirk.

  “Raaaargh!”

  Rampardos raised its foot to stomp the ground, preparing to unleash Earthquake.

  However, before its foot could touch the ground, the terraih Rampardos softened and colpsed into a spinning pit, transf into a vortex of shifting sand.

  It was Gible’s Sand Tomb!

  Caught off guard, Rampardos lost its band slid into the Sand Tomb, its sturdy body grinding against the swirling sand, leaving it with visible scratches.

  “Gible, Dragoh!”

  From outside the vortex, Gible poked its head out and unleashed a trated bst oh at the unsteady Rampardos, driving it deeper into the Sand Tomb.

  “Rampardos, steady yourself! Use Double-Edge to break through!” Roark shouted.

  Struggling tain its footing, Rampardos attempted to adjust its stance. Given enough time, it could stabilize and use Double-Edge to propel itself out of the trap.

  But Paul wasn’t about to give it that ce.

  “Fire Fang!”

  Gible leapt into the swirling pit, its fiery fangs glowing as it bit down on Rampardos.

  “Boom!”

  A cry of pain escaped Rampardos as Gible tched onto its head, its fiery jaws inflig signifit damage.

  “Hang in there, Rampardos! Use Double-Edge!” Roark called out, his voice filled with determination.

  Despite the searing pain, Rampardos began charging up energy, its blue head crest glowing white in preparation for the move.

  But Paul wasn’t finished.

  “Bite its leg!”

  At Paul’s and, Gible released its grip on Rampardos' head and cmped down on its leg instead. With a powerful tug, Gible dragged Rampardos toward the vortex’s ter, disrupting its bance more.

  The glowing light on Rampardos' crest faded as its Double-Edge failed to activate.

  Under normal circumstances, Gible wouldn’t have been able to overpower Rampardos like this. But with Rampardos stu the Sand Tomb and paralyzed, its movements were too restricted.

  Double-Edge—failed.

  Gible capitalized on the opportunity, pulling Rampardos down and toppling it over in the vortex. Uo resist, Rampardos was subjected to the full force of the swirling sand.

  “Dragoh! Then Dig out.”

  Obeying the and, Gible used Rampardos as a springboard to unch itself upward, bsting another Dragoh at its oppo before disappearing into another freshly dug tunnel.

  Rampardos was left battered and bruised, uo retaliate.

  Fortunately for Roark, the Sand Tomb subsided as Gible’s attaded, the swirling saurning to solid ground. Rampardos mao stand, although shakily.

  But before it could fully recover, the grouh its feet erupted once mible emerged, smming into Rampardos' chest and sending it flying five meters into the air.

  It was super effective!

  “Thud!”

  The impaocked Rampardos unscious, leaving it sprawled on the ground.

  “Rampardos is uo battle! The winner is Gible, making Paul the victor of this gym challenge!” annouhe referee.

  “Return, Rampardos. You did well.” Roark said, recalling his fallen Pokémon with a solemn expression.

  “Not bad. Your moves and strategy are sharp.” Paul remarked. “But your strength needs work. Focus on that in future training.”

  “Gible!” Gible excimed proudly, flexing its tiny arms with a triumphant grin. Paul’s critique didn’t seem to dampen its spirits in the slightest.

  Without waiting fible’s rea, Paul retur to its Poké Ball. Whether Gible had listened or not, it didn’t matter to him. As long as it performed well in battle, that was enough.

  “Well done, Paul! You’ve shown impressive strength and teamwork with your Pokémon.” Roark said as he approached, holding out a small box. “Here, the Coal Badge—proof of your victory at the Oreburgh Gym.”

  “Thank you." Paul said, accepting the badge with a polite nod. Just as he was about to leave, he paused and turned back. “By the way Roark, have you heard of something called a Peat Block?”

  The Peat Blobsp;was a rare item from the Hisui region (a Sinnoh) that allowed Ursaring to evolve into Ursaluna under a full moon. However, as time passed, the knowledge of this evolutiohod and the legends surrounding Ursaluna had been lost.

  The Peat Blobsp;itself had likely vanished due to overextra by humans, making it a relic of history. Oreburgh City, being the rgest mining and fossil excavation hub in Sinnoh, was one of the few pces where traces of the item might still exist.

  “A Peat Block? That sounds a bit familiar. you describe it?” Roark asked, scratg his head.

  “It’s said to look like a block of coal but with a soil-like texture. When dried, it be used as a fuel.”

  “Hmm... I think I’ve read about something like that in an old book. Supposedly, it was mined turies ago but has beeed. I’ve never seen one myself.” Roark replied thoughtfully. “You might want to check out the Oreburgh Museum. They’ve got fossils and all sorts of minerals and ores from our mining operations. If anyone knows about it, they’d be there.”

  “Uood. Thank you!” Paul said before turning to leave.

  Afterwards, Paul visited the Oreburgh Museum. But his search yielded s. The Peat Blobsp;remained elusive, with no ohere reizing its name or purpose.

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