Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [101]

Would anyone else believe it? Brock certainly wouldn’t.

With the Pewter Gym situation settled, Brock let out a sigh of relief.

However, thinking about Misty’s situation, he hesitated for a moment before asking, "August, about the Cerulean Gym..."

It wasn’t that he wanted to plead on Cerulean Gym’s behalf—he knew very well that he wasn’t in a position to interfere with gym assessments.

He was just curious about what exactly was going on over there.

Since Cerulean Gym had been ordered to undergo reform, he figured he might be able to get some information from August to help Misty.

August wasn’t surprised by Brock’s question. "The situation at Cerulean Gym is quite complicated—it’s not something I can explain in just a few sentences."

"I heard from Gary that Misty from Cerulean Gym is traveling with you guys, right? Here, this is my number. Tell her to call me directly, and I’ll explain it to her myself."

As he spoke, he took out his business card.

Printed on it were the titles: Lecturer and Researcher at Celadon University.

With Brock’s matter handled, August turned his attention to Ash. "Ash, Professor Oak asked me to look after both you and Gary. I already had a sparring match with Gary earlier—how about you? Want to have a battle too?"

August was still thinking about the reward for defeating Ash.

Beating Gary had earned him [Herba Mystica], so what would he get for defeating Ash…?

Before Ash could respond, Gary perked up and urged him on.

"That’s right! Battling August helped me improve a lot. Haven’t you always wanted to surpass me? Then battle him and let August evaluate you!"

August clicked his tongue at Gary’s expression.

Gary sure did love Ash—always ready to dig a pit for him to jump into.

Ash, on the other hand, had a gut feeling that Gary was up to no good.

But after thinking it over, it was just a sparring match—losing didn’t seem like that big of a deal.

He turned to Pikachu beside him, seeking its opinion.

"Pikachu, do you want to battle?"

Electric sparks crackled from Pikachu’s cheek pouches, making its stance clear.

"Alright!"

Seeing Pikachu’s enthusiasm, Ash felt invigorated. He looked at August and said, "Then I’ll be in your care, August!"

"By the way, your Marshtomp used up its energy earlier, right? What Pokémon are you planning to use?"

"For this battle? Since you’re using Pikachu, I’ll go with Eevee!" August replied.

"I used Eevee against Gary too, isn’t that right, Gary?"

As he spoke, he flashed Gary a smile.

The moment August smiled, Gary was hit with a flood of traumatic memories—memories of being utterly dominated by Eevee.

Meanwhile, Ash, who was completely unaware of this, grew more confident upon hearing August’s choice.

If it were a really strong Pokémon, he might have been worried. But Eevee…

He had complete faith in Pikachu.

Ash even found the time to mock Gary, "So, you actually lost to an Eevee?"

Gary’s response to Ash’s ridicule?

"Yeah, yeah, sure."

He crossed his arms, smirking as he watched Ash step onto the battlefield, eager to see his performance.

...

Three minutes later.

Ash stood there, holding Pikachu in his arms, his face a portrait of existential crisis.

Who am I? Where am I? What just happened?

Didn’t I just send Pikachu out a moment ago? How did Pikachu end up back in my arms already?

At that moment, Gary casually pressed the stopwatch in his hand.

"Subtracting the one minute spent on the referee explaining the rules, the 15 seconds you spent cheering Pikachu on, and the 15 seconds you took to rush onto the field and pick it up… the actual battle lasted 1 minute and 30 seconds."

"Way shorter than mine, Ash."

Hearing Gary’s jab, Ash refused to back down. "Oh yeah? And how long did you last?"

"...."

Gary fell silent as he recalled his own tragic experience.

Had his Nidoking held out for three minutes? Five minutes?

Definitely not ten minutes.

Seeing Gary’s silence, Ash immediately understood—Gary must have lost just as miserably.

That thought made him feel… slightly better.

He turned to August, waiting for his evaluation.

August, who had been about to check his system notification, rubbed his chin in thought. Then, he pulled out his tablet and bought an e-book for Ash.

Handing it over, Ash read the title:

"How to Stop Saying 'Dodge It! Hang in There! Get Up!' – A Must-Read Battle Guide for Beginner Trainers"

Ash’s vision went black.

In the end, August managed to "rescue" Ash, and after a brief moment of sulking, Ash quickly regained his fighting spirit.

His recovery speed was so fast that even August was a little impressed.

With this kind of unwavering determination, Ash was bound to accomplish something great in the future.

Holding Eevee in one arm, August used his [Viridian Power] to heal Pikachu’s injuries.

Then, just for fun, he gave Pikachu’s cheek pouches a playful squeeze before letting go right before it could retaliate.

Living life on the edge.

Faced with an obviously annoyed Pikachu, August handed it a box of sweet-and-sour energy cubes—something with a flavor similar to ketchup.

Pikachu sniffed them before nibbling tentatively.

"Pika~chuu!"

Its delighted cry stretched into a long, satisfied note.

Having successfully befriended Pikachu, August bid farewell to the group and left Pewter Gym.

...

Blue took out the list from her pocket and checked off Pewter Gym. Then, she turned to August and asked, "Are we heading to Viridian Gym next? Gym Leader Giovanni even invited us before."

Hearing the words "Viridian Gym" and "Giovanni," August immediately shook his head. "Not going."

Before, he had merely played along with Giovanni. But actually stepping into Viridian Gym again? Not a chance.

Sure, this might make Giovanni suspicious.

But August was naturally cautious—unless he was absolutely certain he could escape unscathed from Giovanni’s grasp, he wasn’t going anywhere near Viridian City.

Blue was a bit puzzled. Wasn’t August a fan of Giovanni?

Why the sudden change…? She had a sharp intuition that something was off.

But since August didn’t elaborate, she didn’t press further. Instead, she simply made a mental note to be more wary of Giovanni.

"Then where to next?"

"No rush... Let’s rest up at Pewter Gym for now," August replied.

In the meantime, he had a reward to choose.

Glancing at his system prompt, he saw:

[Congratulations! You have defeated Pikachu and its trainer, Ash Ketchum, earning the title: 'Defeated Pikachu (Kanto)']

[Please select your reward:]

[1. Ash’s Limited-Edition Hat Collection]

[2. Aura]

[3. Pidgeot (Elite Four-level)]

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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!