After summoning all his Pokémon, Cain asked again with seriousness.
"Well, now you can tell me what you've hidden and why you did it." Cain looked at the middle-aged man, who now seemed desperate.
This man was definitely killing for the first time, and in his current state, it seemed the murder had left a deep shadow over him.
What kind of object would be valuable enough to make him take such a drastic action?
If it was all simply about competing for resources, Cain would have no problem accepting it. After all, this is a world where the strongest survive; avoiding a fight might not mean death, but it won't lead to success either.
For ordinary people, achieving a high status in the League is the ultimate goal.
"Tell you what, damn it! Graveler, use Stealth Rock! Beedrill, Focus Energy! Raticate, use Swords Dance!" The man, his face pale and eyes bloodshot, clearly planned to trap Cain there.
But he hadn't completely lost his mind; he still maintained basic battle strategies. The move Stealth Rock could hinder fast Pokémon, while Beedrill and Raticate would use power-up moves.
Especially Raticate, who, if successful in using Swords Dance, combined with its Hyper Fang move, could potentially defeat one of Cain's Pokémon in a single hit.
"Murkrow, use Snatch on Raticate. Slowpoke, control your Water Gun with your Confusion, aim at Graveler. Sneasel, use Icy Wind."
Since his opponent showed no intention of talking, Cain could only resolve the situation by eliminating the three Pokémon first and then continuing the conversation.
Cain was wary of the boost Raticate might get from Swords Dance. However, with Murkrow's Prankster ability and its Snatch move, any power-up the opponent attempted would be ineffective as long as there were no significant level differences.
Raticate was enveloped by Murkrow's dark energy, nullifying the effect of Swords Dance and empowering Murkrow instead.
Slowpoke's Water Gun, enhanced with Confusion, struck Graveler with great speed. The combination with Confusion made the Water-type move even more effective, and Graveler, being four times weak to Water, couldn't withstand it.
Meanwhile, Sneasel used Icy Wind, taking advantage of the closed tunnel, which forced the opponent to endure the move with no way to evade it.
"Graveler, use Rock Throw on Slowpoke! Beedrill, fly up and use Fury Attack on Slowpoke! Raticate, use Hyper Fang after Quick Attack on Slowpoke!" The man, realizing the threat posed by Slowpoke, tried to eliminate it quickly.
Graveler, his strongest Pokémon and the one he had trained the hardest, was completely neutralized by Slowpoke. If the battle continued , he would have no chance of winning.
But he forgot that Cain didn't just have three Pokémon—Gastly and Miltank were also ready to join the action.
Cain wasn't planning to fight fairly. This was a life-or-death battle in the wild; if you lost, you risked dying.
They were both killers, so what was one more?
"Gastly, use Fire Punch on Beedrill. Miltank, use Endure, then Block to stop Raticate."
Slowpoke's second Water Gun hit Graveler, leaving it on the verge of collapse. Beedrill was brutally taken down by Murkrow, who used Wing Attack, boosted by Swords Dance.
Gastly took advantage of Beedrill's vulnerability, hitting it with Fire Punch, knocking it to the ground before it could do anything.
Raticate tried to use Hyper Fang on Slowpoke, but Miltank, enduring the first attack, blocked its advance, nullifying the special effect of Hyper Fang. Then, Sneasel relentlessly attacked Raticate with Ice Shard while Miltank held it captive.
"Finish them," Cain said coldly.
The battle was clearly one-sided. Even if Cain hadn't given orders, his Pokémon would have handled the situation with ease.
Graveler and Raticate soon fell, lifeless.
The man had tried to use Graveler's Self-Destruct to take out Cain, but Cain stopped him before he could act.
"Now, can you talk?" Cain approached, looking at the man with disdain.
The man, with a vacant stare, collapsed to the ground, muttering repeatedly, "Forgive me... Forgive me..."
He finally understood that to advance as a trainer, to gain power and resources, one must fight, compete. This world is brutal; only the strongest survive. Cain knew this well.