Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [342]

The arrival of Mega Alakazam instantly drew the eyes of every spectator.

“Sabrina has activated [Mega Evolution]—Alakazam has evolved into Mega Alakazam!”

“They say Mega Alakazam’s IQ reaches a staggering 5,000, and its cognitive speed surpasses that of a supercomputer!” Iono, ever the dedicated commentator, wasted no time sharing trivia with the audience.

[IQ 5,000? Don’t lie to me just because I didn’t finish school.]
[I won’t believe it unless it can do my math homework.]
[Math homework? Your scheme’s so loud I could hear it all the way from Alola.]

On the battlefield, Mega Alakazam sat cross-legged midair. In exchange for its physical strength, its psychic power had grown exponentially after [Mega Evolution].

With just a glance, Mega Alakazam’s overwhelming mental pressure hit Gengar like a mountain bearing down on him.

Gengar flinched and turned to look at August.

August met its gaze with a reassuring nod.

Gengar instantly straightened up with renewed confidence—and then stuck its tongue out at Mega Alakazam.

Mega Alakazam hadn’t expected Gengar to still be provoking it. Its hands slowly rose.

Humm—!

The spoons before it began to vibrate as Mega Alakazam unleashed its terrifying psychic force.

Startled by the pressure, Gengar tried to retreat into the spirit realm again. But only half its body made it in—the tail and rear end still sticking out were struck by the psychic blast.

“Gonga!!”

A sharp yelp echoed from the spirit world. Gengar yanked the rest of its body in like it’d been burned.

The sight had spectators around the arena chuckling.

Alakazam scanned the battlefield but saw no trace of Gengar. It immediately raised a psychic barrier around itself in preparation.

Sabrina locked eyes with August. “This time, I won’t give you another chance!”

“Oh? Like I was the one who forgot to switch telepathy channels,” August muttered.

Sabrina: “.....”

Just as she was about to retort, a thought came through the new telepathy channel—Alakazam reported: Gengar still hasn’t reappeared.

Sabrina frowned.

[Shadow Sneak] only allowed brief movement through the spirit realm. Staying in too long could attract the realm’s gatekeeper—Dusknoir.

Could Gengar have gotten lost, injured by Alakazam’s earlier attack?

Worried, she glanced at August—who was frowning as well. A wave of unease crept into her heart.

“August…” she started.

But then August suddenly smiled.

In that moment, a pair of glowing red eyes opened from within Mega Alakazam’s shadow.

Two [Shadow Claws] shot out like chains and wrapped tightly around Mega Alakazam, locking its body in place.

“!?”

Sabrina froze.

She’d warned herself over and over not to let her guard down against August, thought she’d understood him well—but she still walked straight into his trap.

I’m such an idiot...

From the sidelines, Gary Oak felt a sense of solidarity watching Sabrina get outplayed.

Finally someone else gets to feel what I’ve been through against August!

On the field, Gengar’s [Shadow Claws] held Alakazam fast.

Alakazam responded quickly.

Its immense psychic power surged, trying to shred the ghostly bindings. But Gengar had meticulously prepared this sneak attack—and for now, Alakazam couldn’t break free.

“Gengar—show them your strength!”

August raised his hand.

Purple ghostly energy flowed from the [Z-Ring] on his wrist, wrapping Gengar in a glowing light.

Sabrina’s face changed. “Alakazam, break free—use [Psychic]!”

She wasn’t mistaken—August was preparing [Mega Evolution].

If Gengar successfully [Mega Evolved], the tide of battle could flip instantly.

Mega Alakazam didn’t hesitate. Vast mental energy coalesced into a solid wave and fired straight at Gengar.

But August only smiled slyly.

There was no [Mega Evolution] light around Gengar’s body.

“Gengar—[Z Destiny Bond]!”

Gengar’s eyes widened with resentment—So that “don’t worry” look meant I’m the bait?!

But it didn’t hesitate.

Its eyes glowed an eerie violet, ghostly energy surrounding its form. The space around it darkened unnaturally, drawing the attention of everyone in the stadium.

And just as Alakazam was about to redirect its attack toward the [Shadow Claws]—

—it locked onto Gengar instead, as if nothing else in the world mattered.

“Alakazam, aim for the claws—not Gengar!” Sabrina cried.

But it was no use.

In Alakazam’s eyes, there was only Gengar. Its psychic energy erupted, smashing into Gengar with crushing force.

BOOM.

A mega-evolved, Elite Four-tier Alakazam—with a base Special Attack of 175, backed by an 80-power Psychic attack—was no joke.

Gengar dropped like a stone.

The [Shadow Claws] dissipated into ghostly wisps.

But at that very moment, a violet light gleamed in Alakazam’s eyes.

Hovering midair, its form wavered. Then it toppled, reverting back into standard Alakazam.

[Alakazam and Gengar have both lost the ability to battle—it’s a tie!]

August recalled Gengar to its Pokéball.

Then he looked up at Sabrina’s confused expression. “You’ve got questions, don’t you?”

Sabrina frowned. “What just happened?”

She had given Alakazam the order to target the [Shadow Claws]. Had it listened, she believed Gengar would’ve gone down eventually.

“That’s the power of a [Z-Move],” August explained. “[Z Destiny Bond] puts Gengar into a ‘center of attention’ state. No matter who’s out on the field, all attacks will target Gengar at that moment.”

“[Z-Move]…?” Sabrina echoed.

She wasn’t particularly familiar with the Alola battle system.

[So that’s what it was? Learned something new!]
[Z-Moves are seriously wild.]
[Is it too late to book a flight to Alola to learn how to use them?]

“So you planned this the moment you saw Alakazam?” Brandon asked from the sidelines, astonished.

He’d already held August’s battle sense in high regard—but now realized he’d still underestimated him.

“August is really incredible. Truly—” Iono began, then suddenly remembered this wasn’t a good time to praise someone who’d once arrested Gym Leaders mid-match. She quickly changed the topic. “I wonder who August will send out next—Milotic again? Or the third, still-hidden Pokémon?”

Sabrina had no idea who August might send.

But she didn’t have any choices left.

She tossed out a Pokéball.

A sleek Espeon, with its elegant forked tail and soft pink fur, landed gracefully on the field. The moment it appeared, it looked directly at the Eevee on August’s shoulder.

“Eifie~!”

Espeon called out cheerfully.

“Bu~i!”

Hearing the greeting, Eevee kicked its little legs, about to leap into the arena.

August quickly grabbed it by the scruff.

“Where do you think you’re going? You’re not even registered for this match.”

“Bu...”

Eevee gave him a pitiful, teary-eyed look.

“Don’t give me that. Rules are rules. I can’t exactly go override the tournament system...”

Though I probably could if I really wanted to.

But August was someone who played fair.

For instance, even though the World Championships didn’t ban Legendary Pokémon, he’d exercised restraint...

Stuffing Eevee into his arms, August pulled out another Pokéball.

“Dragonite—you're up!”

Whoosh!

With a flash of white light, Dragonite soared onto the field, flapping its wings.

“Wuu~!”

And immediately turned to hug August.

“....”

You’re just like Milotic, huh.

“August has sent out Dragonite. Just like with Milotic, Dragonite seems incredibly fond of its Trainer...”

“After a bit of coaxing, Dragonite seems ready to battle—it’s taking the field!”

“Facing Dragonite, Espeon looks a little tense. It seems to know it’s up against a serious opponent!”

“Dragonite makes the first move—using [Hurricane]! Espeon’s having a hard time staying steady under the raging wind...”

“Espeon fights back! It’s using [Draining Kiss]—trying to recover stamina with it!”

“Incredible! Dragonite dodged the kiss with agility you’d never expect from something its size!”

“Wait—what now? Dragonite used [Aerial Ace]!”

Dragonite flipped gracefully in midair—despite its bulky frame—and dived with astonishing speed toward Espeon.

Espeon tried to use [Psybeam] to confuse Dragonite and break the assault.

But the instant the beam fired, Dragonite swerved with breathtaking fluidity.

Espeon had no defense left. It closed its eyes—

Whoosh!

Dragonite zipped past and scooped up Espeon midair, tumbling it gently between its claws.

By the time Espeon was dazed and dizzy, August turned to Sabrina.

She sighed, lifting her hand in surrender. “I forfeit.”

[Trainer Sabrina has forfeited—Dragonite wins!]
[All three of Sabrina’s Pokémon are unable to battle. The winner of this match is August!]

It was the most one-sided match of the three.

To casual viewers, it seemed August saved his trump card for last—but those who knew him understood:

The earlier battles were just the warm-up. Dragonite was the real deal.

[Congratulations—your ranking has increased: 99 → 83.]

“Sabrina, seriously? That win only bumped me to 83rd,” August sighed dramatically.

Sabrina: “...?”

That’s it—I’m gonna punch him.

....

The first match of the Ultra Ball tier wrapped up perfectly.

August gained points and moved up in rank. Sabrina, now officially a gatekeeper of the tier, was demoted.

Well—temporarily, as Sabrina insisted.

She’d climb back up soon enough.

To which August replied: Yeah, sure, sure...

That dismissive tone made Sabrina grind her teeth in frustration.

...

Back at the villa, August didn’t find Blue and the others. Instead—

He found Cynthia, chatting with Gardevoir on the couch.

“I watched your match live,” Cynthia said when she saw him. “You were amazing!”

August waved it off modestly. “Oh, it was nothing.”

“But actually, you’re just in time—I’ve got something to tell you...”

“Oh?”

“Are you interested in Hisui?”

“Hisui?”

As someone passionate about ruins and archaeology, Cynthia knew exactly what that name meant.

But she didn’t understand the context.

“You mean...?”

“I’ve got another opportunity to travel through space-time and visit Hisui,” August said. “Since you’re into archaeology, I thought you might be—”

Before he could finish, Cynthia stood up, grabbed his hand, and asked, “When do we leave?”

August blinked. “Uh... aren’t you going to ask if I’m telling the truth?”

“I trust you.”

Sabrina, watching from behind, facepalmed.

Don’t fall for it—see this man for who he really is!

Seeing Cynthia trust him so easily, August couldn’t keep teasing her.

“We won’t leave right away. After the World Championships wrap up, I’ll send you an invite to your phone. Just confirm it when the time comes.”

Cynthia nodded seriously. “Have you already been to Hisui? Can you tell me what it was like?”

Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.

“Well... I was dragging two burdens with me, so I mostly just took photos and brought back a few souvenirs.” August showed her the pictures he’d taken in Jubilife Village and a few Poké Balls from Hisui.

Cynthia’s excitement was palpable. After a while, she managed to calm herself and said earnestly:

“This is a major breakthrough for understanding ancient Sinnoh history!”

August had suspected the photos might be useful—but he hadn’t expected this useful. “Should I send them to you?”

He paused, wondering if he should show her the most important item he brought back...

Cynthia thought for a moment, then shook her head. “You’re a researcher too, right? These photos and Poké Balls alone could support an authoritative paper on ancient Sinnoh!”

---

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!