Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [572]

Not many people can handle your “good intentions,” you know…

Gary inwardly grumbled.

When Gary snapped back to reality, he noticed August staring at him.

Gary's heart instantly tightened. “What do you want now, August?”

Experience told him whenever August looked at him like that, trouble was sure to follow.

“I have a tough mission for you.”

“Can I refuse?” Gary asked immediately. “You already called it ‘tough,’ I’m worried I'll mess up your plans… Why not ask Zinnia instead?”

Zinnia, who’d been happily watching from the side, panicked when Gary suddenly threw her under the bus.

“I—I…”

Zinnia desperately tried to find an excuse to avoid this 'difficult mission,' but she couldn’t think of anything suitable, growing visibly distressed.

August shook his head helplessly. “Forget it, I knew I couldn't rely on you two. Never mind, you're both off the hook.”

Instead of feeling ashamed, Gary and Zinnia visibly sighed in relief.

August: “...”

Have some shame! You two really need some shame!

Mew placed its paws on its hips and began pointing indignantly at Gary and Zinnia, looking exactly like a fox flaunting borrowed authority.

Kubfu diligently took notes again from the sidelines.

Sending Gary and Zinnia away, August walked over to Cogita.

Cogita gazed at him suspiciously.

From her experience, August had recently been avoiding her whenever possible, yet now he suddenly approached…

August reached into Gengar’s belly and pulled out the rusted sword Zacian had previously chipped.

“Ahem, is there any way to fix this?”

Cogita stretched out her hand, took the rusted sword from August, and lightly brushed the damaged areas.

“I sense something familiar here,” Cogita said, glancing at August meaningfully.

It was the aura of her [Arceus Plate].

August swiftly grabbed Mew, placing it directly in front of Cogita. “It was all Mew’s fault!”

Mew blinked innocently at Cogita, eyes wide with exaggerated innocence.

Shaking her head softly, Cogita lowered her gaze, carefully stroking the rusted blade.

“Give me that black metal shard you found in Lugia’s ruins,” Cogita requested.

August froze for a moment.

It took a while before he recalled what she was referring to.

He glanced toward Gengar.

Gengar dug into its belly, rummaged around for some time, then finally retrieved a piece of black metal. It was precisely the strange metal they'd picked up in the ruins near Blue Pool, where they'd found the baby Lugia.

They'd never figured out what it was for—even Professor Oak's research had yielded nothing—and it had been stored away inside Gengar ever since.

August had assumed it would gather dust forever.

He never imagined it would ever become useful.

Cogita took the black metal piece from August. As her hand passed over the sword’s surface, Zacian watched in shock as the rust and cracks gradually disappeared, the sword's damaged blade regrowing entirely.

Only after the sword had been perfectly restored did Cogita hand the now significantly smaller metal shard back to August.

“Next time, don’t use it to strike [Arceus Plates].”

“Hear that? Listen to Cogita!” August scolded Mew.

Mew looked back pitifully.

Zacian immediately took up the restored sword, transforming swiftly into its [Crowned Sword] form.

Compared to before, Zacian now appeared majestic and radiant, its presence significantly more formidable.

Feeling revitalized, Zacian respectfully bowed its head to Cogita in thanks.

Cogita smiled warmly, gently stroking Zacian’s head.

With Zacian’s issue resolved, August finally relaxed.

What surprised August, however, was that originally Zacian planned to return to Slumbering Weald once the sword was repaired. Yet now, with its weapon restored, Zacian showed absolutely no intention of leaving.

To Zacian, life with August was simply too comfortable.

Daily delicacies (Pokéblocks), grooming (Sabrina and Blue), and now even powerful backing (Cogita)…

August: Your brother’s still waiting in Slumbering Weald!

Zacian: Brother? What brother?

Too happy here to think of home.

Of course, Zacian wasn’t just staying out of comfort. More importantly, Cogita’s presence confirmed August’s earlier warnings:

Eternatus might really be waking soon!

As her duty was to prevent Eternatus's revival, staying close to August would help her fulfill that role better.

Zacian firmly believed even her brother would wholeheartedly support her decision!

...

Meanwhile, deep in Slumbering Weald, Zamazenta, sprawled lazily on a rock, suddenly sneezed. He gazed upward through the gaps in the forest canopy.

Being alone at home is so boring… when will sister finally come back?

...

Early the next morning, August distributed [Dynamax Bands] to all Kanto branch members.

Gold fiddled with his band, eyeing his Ambipom thoughtfully, considering [Dynamaxing] it.

Silver remained perfectly expressionless.

Diamond was already picturing Regigigas [Dynamaxed].

Giovanni also received his own [Dynamax Band].

“[Dynamax]?” Giovanni skeptically examined the band on his wrist.

He'd witnessed [Dynamax] before.

But he didn't find it particularly impressive. For someone like him, who pursued the art of tactical precision, [Dynamax] seemed crude—turning oneself into a massive target and relying purely on raw strength and size.

Compared to [Dynamax], Giovanni greatly preferred [Mega Evolution].

But, following local customs, Giovanni still put the [Dynamax Band] on.

Notably, August had customized the bands he gave Giovanni and other villainous leaders, each bearing a rainbow-colored “R” symbol.

Giovanni was disdainful of August’s blatant theft of Team Rocket’s logo.

August, however, insisted this was Origin Rocket's original emblem.

The two swiftly descended into a childish argument over whether Team Rocket or Origin Rocket came first.

“It’s understandable for August to act like a child, but since when did Giovanni turn into this too?” Sabrina sighed.

“Probably corrupted by August’s influence,” Blue commented.

Zinnia earnestly nodded in agreement: “I got dumber because of August.”

Blue: “…”

Sabrina: “…”

No, no, no. Anyone in the Kanto branch might plausibly claim August influenced them—but definitely not you.

Give August another hundred years, and he still wouldn’t reach your pure level of idiocy.

...

Returning again to Stow-on-Side.

Because Sabrina, Blue, and Cogita had left earlier to shop in Hammerlocke City, meeting up with Lillie and the others, and since everyone else split off across Galar, only August, Giovanni, and Gary arrived in Stow-on-Side this time.

Aimlessly wandering, August decided to visit Bea first.

On the streets—

With a swift gesture from Giovanni, Beedrill vanished, reappearing moments later as a blurred shadow. In an instant, the opposing Garbodor was sent flying helplessly into the air, skewered by Beedrill’s [Twin Needle].

Garbodor desperately twisted its body to break free, but it was futile before Beedrill.

With a final [Fury Attack], Garbodor collapsed, unconscious.

Giovanni watched impassively as the trainer rushed to Garbodor’s side.

—[Garbodor fainted, Beedrill wins!]

—[All three of Trainer Fenex’s Pokémon have fainted! Giovanni is victorious!]

—[Giovanni, your ranking has risen!]

Giovanni glanced down at his new ranking—398th in Great Ball tier—not a trace of joy on his face.

In Giovanni’s eyes, his advancement was still far too slow, meaning more wasted time here.

But he had no choice. He’d already done the most he possibly could—complete victory!

His main limitation now was the League’s matching algorithm.

In Gary’s eyes, however, Giovanni’s rise was astonishingly fast—second only to August himself.

“Teacher August!”

Gary’s thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice.

Looking up, he saw Bea running towards them, waving excitedly.

“Teacher, I read online you’re bringing criminal organization bosses to compete in the World Championships…” Bea began eagerly.

Then she spotted Giovanni standing right there, carefully studying her.

“Giovanni!?” Bea exclaimed involuntarily.

A moment passed before realization dawned—Giovanni was obviously brought here by August.

Bea’s expression shifted from shock to surprise, then understanding.

She held up a finger triumphantly. “Giovanni must be your helper to overthrow Rose!”

Giovanni stared at August incredulously. Though he knew August’s nature, wasn’t this too blatant?

Gary appeared similarly stunned.

“So, you intend to overthrow Rose after all, August! Don’t worry—I’ll never leak this to anyone!” Gary patted his chest confidently.

August: “…”

I said I’m not replacing Rose… and trusting Gary’s confidentiality? I'd sooner believe Mew could quit snacking!

“Let me reiterate—I have no intention of overthrowing Rose,” August stressed again.

“Yeah, yeah!” Bea enthusiastically nodded, clearly not listening at all.

August sighed. “Has Rose made any moves lately…?”

Bea thought carefully. “Rose’s secretary Oleana recently asked about the Stow-on-Side stadium…”

August raised an eyebrow. “Seems your closeness with me has put you on Rose’s radar.”

“Eh?” Bea was startled. “Surely Rose wouldn’t be that petty…”

August grinned slightly. “Rose might have a beer belly, but don’t overestimate his stomach capacity…”

Gary laughed loudly in response, causing August to give him a strange look.

Gary’s forced laughter seemed funnier than the pun itself.

After warning Bea to be cautious, August prepared to leave when he noticed a familiar figure nearby.

“Gloria?” he called out.

Hearing her name, Gloria turned around immediately—

“Liar!” she yelled.

At her shout, everyone's gaze instantly snapped toward August.

Bea looked utterly confused—why was this girl calling Teacher August a liar?

Gary’s expression turned instantly gossipy. Could it be that August had tricked another innocent girl’s heart?

August, though fully aware of the truth, still feigned confusion perfectly. "How exactly did I lie to you?"

"You said Marnie was looking for me! But when I chased after her, she didn’t even know who I was!"

As Gloria spoke, she clearly remembered that embarrassing scene—so vividly awkward, she wished the ground had opened up beneath her.

August smiled lightly. "But… aren’t you friends with Marnie now?"

"Well... yes…"

"Then that's settled," August said casually, shrugging his shoulders.

"But…"

"No buts," August cut in. "The important thing is, you made a new friend, didn’t you? If we're being completely honest, you should thank me. After all, it was thanks to me that you got to know Marnie!"

Gloria, thoroughly confused by August’s twisted logic, instinctively murmured, "Thank you…"

Hearing this, August’s smile widened.

"No need to thank me. Helping others is something I’ve always enjoyed."

Gloria still felt like something was off, yet she couldn’t quite figure out what.

Watching from the sidelines, Gary opened his mouth to speak but hesitated.

Looks like someone got tricked…

Before Gloria could fully grasp what had happened, August swiftly changed the subject. "By the way, Gloria, what brings you to Stow-on-Side?"

Reminded by August’s question, Gloria finally snapped out of her confusion, recalling why she’d come here in the first place.

She turned to Bea. "Miss Bea, I’m here to challenge the Gym!"

Hearing that Gloria planned to challenge the Gym, August was suddenly in no rush to leave. He was rather curious about Gloria’s current strength.

"Let's head to the stadium together!" August suggested.

"Yes, Teacher August!" Bea replied eagerly.

Gloria was immediately startled hearing Bea address August as "teacher," her eyes darting suspiciously back and forth between them. She hadn’t imagined such a relationship between Bea and August—but then again, considering August was a World Champion, it did make a strange sort of sense.

But what concerned Gloria more was the person standing quietly next to August.

Gloria secretly stole glances at Giovanni.

This guy… He definitely didn’t look like a good person…

Giovanni, feeling her stare, suddenly turned his head and gave Gloria a brief, chilling glance.

Gloria jumped in fright, quickly turning away, her heart pounding furiously.

Such scary eyes!

With Gloria anxiously trailing along, the group soon arrived at the Stow-on-Side Stadium.

At the entrance stood a figure wearing a Poké Ball-shaped helmet.

"Ball Guy!" Gloria called out cheerfully.

---

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!