Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [189]

"Nidoking, [Earthquake]!"

Now was the perfect moment—Sneasel’s movements were restricted, making it the ideal time to unleash [Earthquake].

At Gary’s command, Nidoking let out a fierce roar and stomped the ground with force.

The impact was so strong that even August, standing on the sidelines, could feel the gym floor tremble beneath him.

August raised an eyebrow.

Gary’s Nidoking had improved significantly.

If [Earth Power] had demonstrated Gary’s growing tactical flexibility, then [Earthquake] was a clear sign of his raw strength increasing.

The moment Sneasel saw Nidoking move, it immediately realized the threat.

Before Nidoking could release the tremor, Sneasel had already leapt onto a nearby rock and propelled itself into the air.

Dodging the shockwave, Sneasel adjusted its posture midair and dove straight toward Nidoking, both claws glowing with a silver sheen.

"[Metal Claw]!"

Using the force of its descent, Sneasel slashed down at Nidoking with full power.

But this time—surprisingly—Gary didn’t order Nidoking to dodge.

Clang!

[Metal Claw] struck Nidoking’s arm with full force.

Yet, something felt… off.

Both Silver and Sneasel immediately sensed that something wasn’t right.

At that moment, a grin—faintly vicious—crept onto Nidoking’s face.

Not good!

Just as that thought flashed through Silver’s mind, Nidoking’s free fist clenched tightly—then swung forward with brutal force!

[Counter]

Boom!

A direct hit!

Nidoking’s massive, sandbag-sized fist slammed into Sneasel’s face, leaving it completely stunned.

To make matters worse, Sneasel’s complexion was starting to turn purple.

It had been poisoned.

The fragile balance it had barely maintained was instantly shattered.

As Sneasel landed, it dropped to one knee, panting heavily, looking so exhausted that even a light breeze might knock it over.

Its stamina was completely drained—only sheer willpower was keeping it upright.

Gary didn’t launch another attack.

After all, they were coworkers. Since the battle was already decided, there was no need to push further.

Silver clearly understood this as well.

Murmuring a quiet "thank you," he took an [Antidote] from his pocket, administered it to Sneasel, then recalled the weakened Pokémon back into its Poké Ball.

If he couldn’t even defeat Gary, the acting Gym Leader, then the gap between himself and that person was even greater than he’d imagined.

Watching the entire match unfold, August wasn’t surprised.

Honestly, if Gary hadn’t been able to defeat Silver after being subjected to brutal training from Sabrina, Erika, and Agatha—on top of his week of experience as the acting Gym Leader—August would have found it strange.

After all, Silver had only recently started his journey as a Trainer. He only had one Pokémon.

Walking over to Silver, August gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, offering a few words of comfort.

Then, shifting his gaze to the battlefield—now a shattered mess from the [Earthquake]—he smirked and turned to Gary with a teasing look.

"You know, when I got here, the battlefield was already wrecked from an [Earthquake]. And now it’s even worse… Are you using [Earthquake] to destroy the field on purpose? Buying yourself extra time by forcing the gym to undergo constant repairs?" August asked.

Hiss…

He saw right through me?! As expected of August!

Gary was shaken.

August clicked his tongue. "Come on, don’t look at me like that. This little trick? I figured it out years ago."

"If you’re really feeling overwhelmed, why not set up a pre-selection tournament outside the gym? Limit the number of challengers per day, make them battle each other first, and only let the winners challenge you."

Hearing August’s suggestion, Gary hesitated. "But… would the League allow that?"

August gave him a weird look. "The League is our people. What are you afraid of?"

"Your grandpa is Professor Oak. Your direct superior is me. I have good relations with all the Elite Four. As long as you’re not blatantly slacking off, what’s wrong with filtering out challengers through a preliminary tournament?"

Gary froze.

Wait… he’s right!

Ever since August had been mentally conditioning—no, gaslighting—him, he had completely forgotten that the League was practically family.

This was August’s fault.

Yes. That was a reasonable excuse for his moment of stupidity.

Had August known Gary was blaming him for this, he would’ve definitely given him a debuff instead of a free strategy.

"I’ll take Silver with me. The Viridian Gym is in your hands now," August said casually, waving a hand as he turned to leave.

Watching August’s retreating figure, Gary let out a long breath.

Then his eyes lit up with excitement.

Finally, I can slack off!

Immediately, he called over the gym staff and informed them of his decision to implement a pre-selection tournament for challengers.

As the staff left to make the arrangements, a sudden thought struck Gary, and he called one of them back.

"Oh, one more thing—if some idiot wearing a League-limited commemorative hat shows up with a Pikachu, let him skip the preliminaries."

Even though it had been a long time since they’d last seen each other, it was clear that Gary still had Ash on his mind.

---

"Are we heading back now?"

As they walked through the streets of Viridian City, Silver—his once-red hair now dyed black to conceal his identity—turned to August and asked.

Over the past two days at the estate, Silver had keenly noticed that August’s relationship with his sister was far from a simple superior-subordinate dynamic.

Coupled with August’s words of guidance to him that day, Silver now felt a little less restrained in his presence.

"No, since we’re already out, let’s make a trip to Indigo Plateau," August replied.

Lance had previously entrusted him with evaluating the gyms, and aside from Cerulean Gym, which required a reassessment, the task was more or less complete.

The last time he met Lance at the Viridian Gym had been too rushed—he had completely forgotten to report his findings. Now, this was a good chance to take care of it along the way.

Rather than risk taking a taxi that could potentially be under Team Rocket’s control, August and Silver opted to fly to Indigo Plateau on Salamence.

...

Nothing had changed since August's last visit. Despite the turmoil in Kanto and Johto, Indigo Plateau remained as steady as ever.

Familiar with the layout, August led Silver straight to the administrative building where Lance’s office was located. After presenting his credentials, he made his way in without issue.

Knocking on the door, he stepped inside to find Lance engrossed in reviewing documents.

Seeing August, Lance’s surprise was tinged with a hint of concern. "August? Why are you here? Did something happen with Team Rocket or the Masked Man again?"

"...You make it sound like I’m some kind of trouble magnet," August quipped.

The room fell into a brief silence.

August: ...

"Ahem. Well, this visit actually has nothing to do with Team Rocket or the Masked Man…"

He had already stirred the pot last time. By now, Giovanni and Pryce should be busy preparing for war—they wouldn’t have the luxury to cause any trouble.

Lance frowned slightly. "Then…?"

August waved the USB drive in his hand. "The gym evaluations you asked me to conduct—everything’s in here. Some are recorded footage, and for those I couldn’t record, I wrote reports."

Well… technically, Blue wrote them.

But if you round up, that still counts as me writing them.

However, after hearing August’s report, Lance looked a bit awkward. "Ah… that… I, uh, actually forgot to tell you. After you uncovered Giovanni’s true identity, the League Council already considered the evaluation complete."

August: …?

It was already over? And you didn’t tell me sooner?! Blue spent days writing reports and making PowerPoint presentations for nothing!

Lance also realized his mistake—it had completely slipped his mind due to how swamped he’d been lately.

Thinking quickly about how to make sure August’s efforts weren’t wasted, an idea suddenly struck him.

"How about handling Johto’s gym evaluations too? That way, you can report everything at once!" Lance suggested with forced enthusiasm.

…

August gave him a deadpan look, the kind that said, Do I look like an idiot to you?

"Ahem…"

Lance cleared his throat, trying to cover up his awkwardness.

August thought for a moment before replying, "I’m not interested in handling gym evaluations, but… the title could be useful."

Lance blinked. "Title?"

"You know I’m planning to go after Team Rocket and the Masked Man, right?" August said. "With just my own forces, dealing with them will be difficult. And since you Elite Four—except for Bruno—are all tied up in Kanto, you won’t be able to help much either. That means I’ll have to seek assistance from the gym leaders in Johto."

"So, what you’re saying is…"

"Using the gym evaluation as an excuse would be a perfect way to connect with them."

Lance had no reason to refuse.

Aside from investigating possible spies, Johto’s gym evaluation wasn’t all that crucial. Unlike Kanto, where some gyms were in complete disarray, Johto’s gym leaders at least maintained a certain level of integrity.

And as for uncovering spies… that was best left to August.

Even though August only mentioned networking with Johto’s gym leaders to fight Team Rocket and the Masked Man, Lance had no doubt that, with his sharp instincts, any hidden traitors would have nowhere to hide.

"If you’re unsure who to trust, head to Blackthorn City and find my cousin, Clair," Lance suggested.

After the whole fiasco in Kanto—where two of its eight gym leaders were high-ranking Rocket members, and another was literally their boss—Lance had started looking at Johto’s gym leaders with suspicion as well.

The only person he could trust without a doubt was his cousin.

August, understanding Lance’s concerns, simply chuckled. "No pressure on my end."

With that settled, Lance finally turned his attention to Silver.

Curious, he asked, "A new recruit? I don’t think I’ve seen him before."

"This is Silver—the one I asked you to help me find earlier," August replied.

"Hm? But wasn’t he supposed to have red hair…?"

Lance frowned. He had been working overtime lately, but his memory wasn’t that bad.

August noticed a document had fallen to the floor. Bending down to pick it up for Lance, he replied casually, "I had him disguise himself. Wouldn’t want Giovanni recognizing him."

"Giovanni? What does hair dye have to do with Giovanni?" Lance was puzzled.

August glanced at him and said matter-of-factly—

"He’s Giovanni’s son."

---

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!