Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [152]

“They blocked our exit!”

“Arbok, use [Acid Spray]!”

“[Shadow Ball]—damn it, even Ghost-type moves don’t work! Just what kind of Pokémon is using [Light Screen]?!”

The Team Rocket grunts were completely helpless against the invisible barrier blocking their escape.

Meanwhile, the Rocket lieutenant glanced at August’s gentle smile and couldn’t help but shudder.

The internal reports on August described him as someone who was merciless to his enemies, and those descriptions suddenly felt very real.

As for Blaine, he was utterly dumbfounded.

Having spent so much time on Cinnabar Island, he had been cut off from most outside information. He had no idea why an official League examiner like August could make an entire Team Rocket squad this terrified just by being here.

"Well? How about you tell me about your boss?" August asked the Rocket lieutenant.

He already knew Giovanni was the leader of Team Rocket, but if he could get confirmation directly from a Rocket member, it would give him solid grounds to push for Giovanni’s conviction.

However, anyone who could reach a leadership position within Team Rocket was a die-hard loyalist.

Even though the lieutenant was clearly terrified of August, he still gritted his teeth and refused to speak.

Instead, he answered with his actions.

"Tyranitar, [Earthquake]!"

Tyranitar stomped forward, slamming one foot into the ground.

Cracks spread rapidly from the impact, heading straight toward August.

But August didn’t even blink.

Before he had to do anything, Mew had already taken action, effortlessly lifting Tyranitar into the air with [Psychic], completely nullifying the attack.

The Rocket lieutenant stared in disbelief.

His Tyranitar was his strongest Pokémon—the reason he had risen to his rank. Yet now, it was completely immobilized, hovering helplessly mid-air.

August maintained his calm smile.

"That was… the wrong decision."

Though he said the words lightly, his expression showed not the slightest trace of pity.

He casually reached for his belt, producing two Poké Balls.

Pop!

A flash of white light—

"ROAR!"

A massive Salamence materialized on the battlefield, letting out a ferocious roar.

Perched atop its head, looking absolutely thrilled, was Gengar.

Salamence needed the exercise—after all, considering how much it ate, it was about time it burned some calories.

And as for Gengar, it could use some experience in chaotic battles.

"No need to go overboard," August said lightly.

Salamence and Gengar both nodded.

Then—

ROAR!

Salamence flapped its wings and soared toward the Rockets, using its armored underbelly and sheer durability to tank their attacks head-on.

Within seconds, it had reached their position—

And with its mouth wide open—

"Evade!" the Rocket lieutenant shouted in a panic.

But it was already too late.

A [Dragon Pulse] erupted from Salamence’s jaws, blasting down into the midst of the Rocket grunts and their Pokémon.

BOOM!

The force of the attack tore through their ranks, sending people and Pokémon flying.

Of course, the Rockets weren’t just going to sit there and take it.

They were an elite squad—one [Dragon Pulse] wasn’t enough to finish them off.

Just as they were about to counterattack—

Mew subtly used [Psychic], momentarily "disrupting" their movements.

That brief interference was all it took.

While a handful of lucky ones managed to withstand the blast, dodging or using their Pokémon to shield themselves—

They soon realized they were the unlucky ones.

Because standing atop Salamence’s head, Gengar had been grinning the whole time—

And it had already prepared [Shadow Ball].

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

[Shadow Balls] rained down, hammering the battlefield.

After the twin assaults of [Dragon Pulse] and [Shadow Ball], only one Rocket member remained standing—

The lieutenant himself.

As for the cost of that survival—

His Tyranitar lay unconscious on the ground, completely unable to battle.

The Nidoking he had used as a shield was down as well.

And he himself was heavily injured.

A quick glance around confirmed that, just as August had instructed, Salamence hadn’t killed anyone—

But the number of Rocket grunts lying there with broken arms and legs was… significant.

At that moment, the lieutenant had only one thought:

The reports were right—The Demon Ranger really is a merciless monster.

Barely holding himself together, he turned to Blaine.

"You got lucky this time," he spat. "But Team Rocket doesn’t forgive traitors!"

Then he turned to August.

"You’ll never make me talk. I’ll never betray our boss!"

With those words, he turned and slammed his head against a nearby wall, knocking himself unconscious.

August had just been walking over when he saw this.

He blinked.

"Was that really necessary? I’m literally Kanto’s #1 award-winning officer for Humane Law Enforcement—I’ve never had a single complaint filed against me."

Blue, who was standing nearby, looked at him in confusion.

Wait… do we even have that kind of award?

And more importantly—

Did August just make that up on the spot…?

With the Rocket members dealt with, August left the task of securing the prisoners and tending to their injuries to Blue and her Chansey.

Then he turned back to Blaine, still wearing his ever-present smile.

"Blaine, I believe I just overheard something rather interesting. Do you… have anything you’d like to tell me?"

Blaine glanced at the fallen Rocket grunts.

Then he let out a cough.

"Well… You see, the thing is…"

...

"So let me get this straight," August said, arms crossed. "You made a bad decision and joined Team Rocket’s research division. But later, you felt guilty, so you left. And that’s why they’ve been hunting you down ever since?"

Blaine nodded firmly. "That’s exactly what happened."

The Rocket attack had exposed the fact that he had once worked for them.

But at the same time, it also proved he was currently at odds with Team Rocket.

To further prove his loyalty to the League, Blaine added, "I also have information on one of Team Rocket’s top-secret projects."

He fully expected August to ask about it—

But to his surprise, August’s reaction was… underwhelming.

Feeling a little thrown off, Blaine continued on his own.

"Team Rocket is creating a legendary Pokémon!"

"…"

"The Pokémon’s name is Mewtwo!"

"…"

"They’re about to succeed!"

"…"

"They used Mew’s eyelashes for the experiment!"

"Mew?"

Blaine was relieved—finally, August had reacted.

Just as he was about to continue, however, he sensed something was off.

That last voice…

It didn’t sound like August.

Did he imagine it?

He turned toward August, confused.

But before he could say anything—

August finally broke his silence, an intrigued expression on his face.

"Tell me more about these 'Mew eyelashes.'"

"Mew!"

An annoyed-sounding voice responded.

This time, Blaine was sure—he wasn’t imagining it.

Because the voice had come from August’s shoulder.

And as he watched in shock, a small, pink, feline Pokémon slowly became visible.

It was a Pokémon Blaine had only ever seen in books and ancient records—

The Mythical Pokémon, Mew.

Blaine stared in disbelief at the small, pink creature floating before him.

He had spent years studying ancient texts and scattered records, but he had never expected to see a real Mew with his own eyes.

Mew, however, completely ignored him.

Instead, it turned to August, glaring at him in frustration.

"Alright, alright! I won’t ask anymore, okay?" August quickly surrendered, waving his hands in mock defeat.

Then, he turned back to Blaine and said, "Anyway, this is Mew. We’ve teamed up to track down Mewtwo."

Blaine had been about to respond when—

Throb.

A sudden pain surged through his right arm.

His expression instantly turned pale as he clutched his arm, his body swaying.

If August hadn’t reacted quickly and caught him, he would have collapsed on the spot.

It took a while before Blaine finally regained his composure.

"Thanks… It’s an old problem," he muttered weakly.

"This… wouldn’t happen to be related to your arm, would it?" August asked. "Mew says it can sense Mewtwo’s energy coming from under those bandages."

Blaine let out a heavy sigh.

"So you already figured it out… Yeah. My arm has been invaded by Mewtwo’s cells."

As he spoke, he reached for his bandages and tore them off.

Blue, who had just returned from handling the captured Rocket members, gasped in shock.

On Blaine’s arm, a grotesque mass of shifting, pulsing cells writhed as if it had a will of its own.

"As you can see," Blaine said grimly, "my body is deteriorating due to Mewtwo’s cellular invasion. At this rate, I won’t have much time left."

Despite his composed tone, a shadow of fear flickered in his eyes.

No one could truly be indifferent to their own impending death.

"Well… it’s not entirely hopeless," August mused before turning to Mew.

"Mew, think you can do something about it?"

After all, finding competent Gym Leaders was already difficult enough.

If Blaine died, Lance would have even more headaches to deal with.

"Mew~"

Mew bit its tiny fingers in thought before floating forward and extending a small paw.

A soft pink light radiated from its body.

Shhhhhh…

The moment the energy touched Blaine’s infected arm, the cells recoiled violently.

But rather than being subdued, they seemed to grow even more aggressive—like a rebellious teenager resisting authority.

For some reason, that was the exact image that popped into August’s mind.

Mew frowned in irritation.

"Mew!"

It intensified the energy output.

The stubborn cells finally lost the struggle, gradually calming down.

Under Mew’s power, the grotesque growths shrank until Blaine’s arm, though still slightly misshapen, no longer showed signs of rapid deterioration.

His complexion regained color, and he no longer looked on the verge of collapse.

"Mew~"

Mew floated back onto August’s shoulder, looking rather proud of itself.

August relayed its words to Blaine.

"Mew says it can suppress the Mewtwo cells for now, but to fully resolve the issue, we’ll need to find Mewtwo."

"Of course, there is a faster solution," August added, making a snip gesture with his fingers. "You could cut the arm off before the cells spread any further."

Blaine had looked hopeful at first—until he heard the second option.

The thought of amputation made him shudder.

Though artificial limb technology had advanced significantly in the League, if he had a choice, he’d obviously prefer to keep his original arm.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "You mentioned earlier that you were looking for Mewtwo, right? …I know where it is."

August raised an eyebrow.

"You do?"

Blaine nodded.

"I was one of the researchers involved in Mewtwo’s creation. I know exactly what kind of power it possesses."

He clenched his fists.

"Under no circumstances can Mewtwo fall into Team Rocket’s hands."

His determination was half personal—he wanted to cure himself—but the other half was genuine conviction.

He had fled the Mewtwo Project because he foresaw just how devastatingly powerful Mewtwo would be.

If Team Rocket gained control over it, the entire Pokémon League would be in danger.

Even if it meant being hunted for the rest of his life, he had no regrets about defecting.

August nodded slowly.

"Your words are very convincing… but with the evidence I have so far, I can’t fully trust you yet."

Blaine stiffened slightly.

"So…" August continued, "I’m placing you under surveillance—to make sure you won’t pose a threat to the League."

From where he was playing with his own fingers, Gengar suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.

"Surveillance?" Blaine frowned.

August explained, "Relax. I’m not throwing you in a cell. I just want to invite you to join my department. There are others like you—former Rocket members who’ve defected."

Hearing this, Blaine assumed August must be part of some kind of League auditing or intelligence division.

It made sense—inviting him in was probably just a way to confirm whether he had truly switched sides.

With that in mind, he nodded.

"Alright. I’ll join. What’s the name of your department?"

August smiled.

"Oh, it’s called—"

---

This is a fan translation of 人在实教，一之濑你会后悔的 by 作者：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!