Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [383]

"First of all—I am not your husband!" August reiterated firmly.

“Are you… are you abandoning me, husband?” Lusamine replied with wounded eyes.

“You’re only saying that because of your amnesia! You woke up and saw me first, and now you’ve decided I’m your husband.”

“I’m not amnesiac…”

Looking at Lusamine’s utterly unconvincing insistence, August could only sigh and try a different approach.

“Okay then—if you really don’t have amnesia, tell me: what’s my name? You can’t possibly think I’m your husband and not even know my name, right?”

Sure enough, Lusamine froze, a blank look of confusion flitting across her face.

Just as August thought he might finally shake her off, the lab doors slammed open.

“Boss! We’ve got the Skull grunts all secured!” Gold called out.

August instantly felt a sinking premonition.

Right before his eyes, Lusamine’s expression shifted from blank, to realization… to resolve.

“August. My husband’s name is August!”

“...”

You literally just heard him say that!

August tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling in despair.

“Uh… did I walk in at a bad time?” Gold asked cautiously.

Nearby, Sabrina was doubled over, laughing so hard it looked painful.

Blue and Cynthia had both turned away, hands over their mouths, barely suppressing their giggles.

August, soul-weary, waved Gold off without a word.

After a moment to collect himself, he decided to refocus on what actually mattered. “Let’s talk rescue plans for Lillie.”

As expected, Lusamine perked up at the mention of her daughter.

“If all goes according to plan, Skull and Rocket should be fighting each other soon,” August said. “We’ll use that distraction to infiltrate Aether Paradise and rescue Lillie, who’s currently in Rocket custody.”

“But the problem is,” he continued, “we don’t have a clear map of the inside. And we don’t know when Giovanni will leave to engage Skull.”

At that moment, Lusamine suddenly spoke up.

“Husband—I know how to get into Aether Paradise.”

August: ...??

Are you amnesiac or not?!

---

Aether Paradise

At the back of the Aether Paradise complex stood Lusamine’s private mansion—originally meant as a family home.

But now, it had been remodeled into a fortress. Its once-white façade had been repainted in Rocket black and crimson.

Inside, Lillie sat on her bed, hugging her knees. Her face was pale, her eyes filled with worry.

She had spent so much of her life suffering under the shadow of her mother’s cold obsession. But after seeing Rocket invade Aether Paradise a week ago—watching her mother and brother vanish before her eyes—Lillie realized her feelings toward Lusamine weren’t as simple as fear.

“Brother… Mom… where did you go?”

The door creaked open.

Lillie flinched like a startled Skitty, shrinking back as she glanced warily toward the entrance.

Ariana stepped inside, scanning the room. Her voice was gentle, almost soothing.

“Miss Aether heiress. I’ll ask again—do you know where your mother is?”

“I… I don’t know!” Lillie stammered.

Ariana smiled slightly, as if she'd expected the denial.

“No need to rush into an answer. From what I’ve heard, your relationship with her wasn’t exactly… warm. She ran off alone without taking you, didn’t she? Took your brother instead.”

“You’ve been abandoned.”

Lillie’s eyes turned red with tears. She forced herself to stay composed. “That’s not true! My mother… she wouldn’t do that!”

“She’ll come back for me!”

At that, Ariana’s smile vanished. She tilted her head, thoughtful.

“Oh? So sure she’ll come back to rescue you? In that case… this might be a perfect place to set a trap.”

Lillie’s face blanched. She realized she’d said too much.

“N-No, wait... she—she hates me. She’d never come back for me!”

Ariana’s smile returned.

“Sweet little thing. Has no one told you that terrible lies only work when you don’t deliver them so terribly?”

She pulled out her phone and made a call.

“Boss Giovanni. I may have found a lead—Lusamine might return to rescue her daughter. I recommend we turn this location into a trap.”

Giovanni’s voice came through, low and decisive: “Understood. I’m heading out to handle Skull. You’re in charge of the ambush. All Rocket personnel at Aether Paradise are now under your command. I’ll send Faba to assist you.”

“Yes, Boss Giovanni.”

With Lusamine as the target—and backup from Faba—Ariana felt confident.

After ending the call, she turned back to Lillie, whose expression was a storm of fear and despair.

“To make sure you don’t mess this up,” Ariana said with a smile, “it’s nap time.”

She tossed a Poké Ball.

A Hypno emerged, its pendulum already swinging.

Lillie swayed, then collapsed unconscious onto the bed.

Ariana gently picked her up. Then, she released a Ditto, ordered it to take Lillie’s shape, and laid the transformed Ditto on the bed. She summoned a few grunts to rearrange the room, creating a convincing scene.

Finally, she looked around, satisfied.

“Now… everything’s in place.”

---

Onboard an airship high above the ocean, August—now wearing a freshly pressed Team Rocket uniform—turned to the rest of his team, who were likewise suited up.

Blue glanced down at her matching uniform, then at Cynthia, also decked out in Rocket gear.

“…August, just how many Rocket uniforms do you have? You even brought diving suits!”

She’d been meaning to ask for a while now.

According to Zinnia, August had left entire caches of Rocket gear behind in Hisui.

August thought for a second. “Hmm. I never counted. Back then I just emptied an entire warehouse. Rough guess? A few thousand, maybe… Diving suits? Maybe a hundred.”

Everyone: “...??”

Thousands?

Are you planning to wear Rocket uniforms for the rest of your life?!

August waved it off. “Don’t sweat the small stuff. Focus. Mission is to infiltrate Aether Paradise and rescue Lillie!”

He laid out the plan.

“We’ll use the passage Lusamine provided to slip inside, pose as Rocket operatives, and extract Lillie.”

Everyone present had seen some variation of this plan before.

Even Cynthia, who wasn’t part of the Kanto division, had once disguised herself with August as a Pokémon hunter to take the Galactic team by surprise.

Recycled or not—the plan worked. That’s why August kept using it.

“Boss,” Gold’s voice crackled over the comms, “we’re three kilometers out from Aether Paradise. Any closer and we’ll trigger their defense systems!”

Gold was piloting the airship this time.

Not that August was worried. The flight systems were mostly automated. Gold just had to point the ship in the right direction.

“Leave the controls to you!” August called back—and then opened the hatch.

Beneath them lay the ocean, crystal clear. A school of Magikarp swam lazily below.

Magikarp really are everywhere. Resilient little guys.

August turned to the others and held out a hand. “Who’s with me?”

Blue, Sabrina, and Cynthia exchanged looks.

But before any of them could answer, Lusamine threw herself into August’s arms, clinging tightly.

“I’ll go with you, husband!”

Blue, Sabrina, Cynthia: “...”

Lusamine truly had no shame.

August looked helpless, but they needed Lusamine for the infiltration—and she had no Pokémon with her.

So, grabbing her firmly, August leapt from the airship straight into the sea below.

The others followed close behind.

Once submerged, August released Baby Lugia. “Take us to the island, please!”

As soon as it hit the water, Baby Lugia stretched its wings with a joyous ripple—it felt like coming home. It glanced curiously at Lusamine nestled against August, then rubbed its head against him affectionately.

With a flap of its wings, it guided the group through the sea, diving toward Aether Paradise.

All along the way, Water-type Pokémon scattered to avoid its path.

---

Ula'ula Island – Po Town

Giovanni stood at the base of the fortified walls surrounding Po Town, a squad of elite Rocket agents at his back.

He surveyed the structure.

“So this is Skull’s base?” he asked a former Aether employee who had defected.

“Yes, Boss Giovanni!”

A Rocket squad leader stepped forward. “Sir, should we begin the assault?”

“No need,” Giovanni replied, lips curling into a faint smile as he looked at the walls. “Let’s use this to test Deoxys’ power.”

At his signal, a Pokémon stepped forward from behind him—its body sleek and menacing.

In its Attack Forme, Deoxys raised its four tendrils—and began charging a Shadow Ball, dark energy pulsing between its limbs.

---

This is a fan translation of 我，宝可梦称号大师！ by 落唯 白良. 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!