Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [335]

August couldn’t help but feel exasperated at Iono’s reaction.

Why did she keep thinking he was going to arrest her?

Did he really seem like that kind of petty person?

Well, if Gary were here, he’d probably swear up and down that he absolutely was.

But Iono wasn’t Gary—she didn’t have that kind of long-standing bias. After a few words of reassurance, she finally began to relax, her eyes darting curiously around the room.

The beachfront villa Scott had arranged for August was spacious, even roomy enough for large Pokémon like Salamence, Gyarados, and Snorlax. Most of August’s other Pokémon were lounging comfortably in the living room.

Iono scanned the room, marveling at both familiar and unfamiliar faces.

So these are the Pokémon August is planning to bring to the World Championships? she wondered.

Suddenly, her gaze landed on a pink blur clutching a cookie tin.

“Eh!?”

She stared, wide-eyed. “Mew?!”

She’d already been floored by August’s arrival at the opening ceremony on Rayquaza’s back. But now… Mew?

Hearing its name, Mew looked up in mild confusion. But when it realized the voice wasn’t August’s and was instead coming from someone who looked like a walking Magneton, it promptly lost interest and went back to digging cookies out of the tin.

“Mew’s a friend of mine,” August said, reaching over to lift the Pokémon by the scruff. “Hey—cut it out. You’ve gained like two pounds already.”

“Don’t tell me you caught the glutton bug from Salamence and Snorlax…”

“Mew~”

Even as August held it aloft, Mew clung tightly to its cookie tin, turning big pleading eyes on him.

The look made Iono’s heart waver. Let her eat, a little voice whispered in her head.

But August was unmoved. “That act doesn’t work on me.”

“Mew~!”

“Not even half the tin.”

“Mew…”

“Fine! Three. Only three!”

Triumphantly, Mew snatched three cookies. Then, taking advantage of August’s momentary distraction, it stuffed all three into its mouth, grabbed three more, and bolted.

Its cheeks puffed with cookies only made it look even more adorable.

August sighed, speechless.

Iono hadn’t expected this side of him—the man who’d arrested multiple Gym Leaders and built a reputation as a fearsome enforcer. Yet here he was, negotiating snack rations with a pouting Mew.

And as for Mew… it was nothing like the aloof, mysterious Legendary of her imagination. It was just… ridiculously cute.

Watching the two of them interact, Iono suddenly remembered her other reason for coming.

“Mr. August,” she said, “would you be willing to let me film a documentary about you?”

She’d gotten the idea back at the dessert shop, after learning this was August’s first time participating in the World Championships.

And after seeing his performance in the exhibition match firsthand, the inspiration had struck—she wanted to record his entire journey, from day one of the tournament to the final match.

She believed he had what it took to make it into the Masters Eight.

A documentary like that? Instant hit.

August was still pondering when Zinnia’s excited voice rang out: “Documentary? What documentary?! Will I be in it?”

August: “…”

If I ever do a Rayquaza documentary, sure—I’ll give you a cameo.

As for himself...

“I’ve got no problem with it,” he said. “But Iono, aren’t you also doing official commentary? Will that be a problem?”

Iono winked playfully. “Keeping tabs on standout competitors is part of the job, y’know!”

“In that case,” August said, “don’t bother filming anything at Poké Ball rank. Let’s start from Great Ball tier and up.”

...

Battle Frontier

With the opening ceremony concluded, the World Championship’s ranking matches officially began.

At a basic practice field, August looked down at his phone. His opponent had just fled the battlefield. The screen read: Opponent forfeited. You win.

He let out a sigh. “That’s the fifth one now…”

All he’d done was make a single appearance at the ceremony. Did he really scare people that much?

“Today’s Trainers,” he muttered, “have no fighting spirit.”

“Are you sure you’re not just misunderstanding what a ‘normal Trainer’ is?” Sabrina deadpanned beside him. “You beat Cynthia in the exhibition match. Anyone who doesn’t have a masochistic streak would obviously avoid fighting you.”

Young Trainers might be passionate—but they weren’t stupid.

This was the critical phase of the Championship’s point race. Going up against someone they had zero chance of beating would only risk injury to their Pokémon and waste recovery time. A forfeit counted as a single loss, but a real match gone wrong could set you back days.

“No, you’re right,” August admitted. “Still… just one more win and I’ll rank into Great Ball tier.”

He checked his ranking—1037—and hit the Matchmaking button.

But instead of entering a queue, a popup appeared:

[System Alert: Abnormal activity detected on your account. Matchmaking temporarily suspended. Please visit the League Office for further assistance.]

“Huh?” August stared at the message.

What is this supposed to mean—do they think I’m cheating?

Sure, he’d just won five matches in under an hour, all by forfeit. Not even the aerial drone Rotom had shown up before they surrendered…

But banning his account over that?

I, August, do not cheat!

“What’s going on?” Sabrina peered over, and when she saw the alert, she doubled over, trying to stifle her laughter. She crouched to the ground, clutching her stomach, shoulders trembling.

August: “…”

You’re definitely laughing! Don’t even try to deny it!

Thank Arceus I didn’t let Iono start filming at Poké Ball rank...

If this made it into the documentary, it’d be blackmail fodder forever.

...

“I’m terribly sorry, Mr. August! We’ve restored your account!”

The League staff member bowed apologetically as she returned his phone.

“This was our mistake—due to a recent incident involving Trainers bribing opponents to forfeit and climb the ranks quickly, our system triggered an automatic flag. You were caught in the sweep. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.”

She didn’t know August’s role with the International Police, but anyone who saw the exhibition match knew how strong he was.

Someone like him bribing opponents to win Poké Ball tier matches? Completely absurd.

August didn’t hold it against them. Truthfully, even he found five consecutive forfeits hard to believe.

“So… no more bans, right?” he asked, giving his phone a little shake.

The staffer broke out in a nervous sweat. “O-of course not! Never again!”

---

T/N: id bribe

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!