Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [557]

Seeing Mew’s expression, August raised his hand and flicked its forehead with a sharp snap.

I haven’t even held you accountable for that heaven-and-earth-reversing stunt, and you’re the one acting all wronged first.

Having done that, August turned his head to Bea. “Your gift—I really like it.”

Bea beamed with joy. “As long as Shishou likes it!”

When she first heard August-shishou was coming to Galar, she’d agonized for a long time over what gift to prepare. In the end, she had to go online for help, and it was from netizens’ suggestions that she got her answer.

As expected of the internet—they’d been right. A [Dynamax Band] really was the best gift!

But mentioning the internet reminded Bea of something else. Something she’d been very curious about:

“August-shishou, people online are saying you came to Galar to replace Chairman Rose, to become the new head of the Galar League. Is that true?”

August: “?”

What? Where are you all even getting this from!

How does the rumor keep getting more and more ridiculous!

When did I ever say I wanted to replace Rose?

Seeing the confusion on August’s face, Bea hesitated too. “But online, everyone’s saying it…”

As she spoke, she opened a forum to show him.

Sure enough—it was full of posts about him.

Just a glance, and August saw plenty of nonsense.

Titles like:
“Unmasking August and Rose’s Feud”
“Leon: Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west!”
“August VS Rose ×, Kanto Conglomerates VS Galar Conglomerates √”

Conspiracy threads piled one on top of another.

His face darkening, August scrolled for a while, then memorized the URL before handing the phone back to Bea. He said with great solemnity:

“In the future, spend your free time bonding more with your Pokémon. Don’t waste it on these half-baked sites.”

Bea had been reading those posts with great interest before, but if August-shishou said so, then there must be a reason.

She nodded earnestly, promising to remember it all.

But her curiosity still gnawed at her. “August-shishou, then is the stuff online about your feud with Chairman Rose… true or not?”

If she didn’t get an answer, she doubted she’d sleep tonight.

“There wasn’t any feud before.”

“There wasn’t before?” Bea seized on the key words immediately.

“I can only say this much: Rose’s meddling with the rules—I really don’t like it.” August left it there.

Hearing him confirm it with his own mouth, Bea’s spirit leapt.

“Then when the time comes, I’ll definitely cast my vote for August-shishou!”

She pounded her chest as she spoke.

August: “……”

I already said I don’t want to replace Rose as Galar’s chairman.

And just then, Mew was still clinging to his wrist, tugging on the Dynamax Band, refusing to let go. August was about to grab the back of its neck and plop it on top of his own head when—

“Um, Bea?”

A voice sounded from behind, weak and unsure.

Turning, they saw Allister—the masked boy they had met on the road earlier—standing there nervously.

Even with a mask covering his face, August could feel the anxiety radiating off him.

“Hel—hello… we meet again. I’m Allister, pl-please treat me well.”

As all eyes turned to him, his nerves nearly spilled out of him completely.

“Why wear a mask indoors?” Zinnia tilted her head curiously.

“Because… because…” Allister stammered, too wound up to finish.

In the end Bea explained for him: “Allister gets super nervous if people stare at him, so he always wears a mask.”

As she spoke, Gengar floated out of August’s shadow, circling Allister, sniffing at him. Then, as if it had discovered something interesting, it waved August over.

“…The aura of the spirit world?” August asked.

“Gon-ga!”

Gengar nodded vigorously. Born of the Ghost World, it would never mistake that scent.

Allister, who had just begun to relax at the sight of Gengar, instantly tensed up again when he realized everyone’s eyes were back on him. Instinctively, he shrank behind Gengar’s body.

“I-I… when I was little, I had an accident. Since then, I’ve been able to see things… things other people can’t. Maybe that’s why.”

Things normal people couldn’t see?

At those words, Blue, Sabrina, and Bea all instinctively edged back a little.

Only Zinnia remained completely unfazed.

Not only unfazed—she leaned forward, asking eagerly: “Are there any? Around me?”

This was the first time Allister had met someone like her. He froze a moment, then shook his head.

“…No.”

At his answer, Zinnia’s face filled with disappointment.

If there were, I could’ve shown them the might of Lord Rayquaza.

“In fact, the most dangerous thing I feel is Mr. August’s Gengar…” Allister looked at it intently.

August’s Gengar—was the strongest he had ever seen.

Even if his own Gengar [Gigantamaxed], he couldn’t guarantee victory.

At that, Gengar puffed out its chest, pride written all over its face.

Then, thinking it over, it reached into its belly and pulled out a box of Pokéblocks, handing it to Allister.

Allister blinked, caught off guard. “This… for me?”

“Gon-ga!” Gengar nodded firmly.

Behind the mask, Allister’s eyes shone faintly with emotion. “Thank you…”

Gengar patted his shoulder, declaring them friends now.

What it didn’t mention was—the snack it had given away wasn’t its own. It was Mew’s.

“Mew!”

From atop August’s head, Mew thrashed, desperate to pounce at Gengar. But August held it in place.

It’s just a box of Pokéblocks, don’t be so petty.

Unable to break free, Mew flopped belly-down on August’s head, shedding tiny pearl-like tears in secret grievance.

August: “…”

Really, was that necessary?

He was about to say more when Allister suddenly asked:

“Um… Mr. August, is it true, what they say online—that you’re going against Chairman Rose?”

August: “……?”

How many people have I told this to? Why does it feel like every single person I meet already knows!

His gaze turned to Bea. She and Allister were both Stow-on-Side Gym Trainers—could she have leaked it?

Bea, seeing his look, shook her head furiously. Her lips were sealed.

No helping it. August just repeated the same line he’d given Zinnia earlier.

After a pause to think, Allister glanced at August, then at Gengar, then seemed to steel his resolve.

He raised his head. “If there really is a vote, then I’ll cast mine for Mr. August too!”

And quickly added—

“Anyone who can get along so well with Gengar… Mr. August can’t possibly be a bad person!”

August: “……”

Well. Thanks so much, I guess.

What he’d wanted was just to check on his disciple, maybe give her some pointers.

Instead, he’d somehow ended up with two Gym Trainers from Galar pledging him their votes.

Sabrina: “There are ten Gyms in Galar, August. You’ve already secured two. Keep it up~”

Her teasing tone made August sigh.

What could he do? He hadn’t said a word about wanting votes—they’d all offered on their own.

“Where do we head next?” Blue asked.

Zinnia pulled out the Galar travel map Bea had given her, scanning it carefully. Her eyes lit up as she jabbed her finger at a spot. “August, let’s go here! It’s a Dragon-type Gym. We’ll send Lord Rayquaza to crush the Trainer there, and then force him to vote for you!”

August followed her finger, and his face went blank.

“That’s Stow-on-Side. We literally just came from there.”

Zinnia froze, scratching her head awkwardly before turning away, whistling like nothing had happened.

Still… beneath Stow-on-Side lay Rose’s energy plant. Eternatus was sealed there. Even if they couldn’t topple Rose yet, going to check it out wasn’t a bad idea.

Just as August made up his mind—

His phone rang.

Caller ID: Lance.

August picked it up, puzzled. “Lance? What is it?”

“I saw your Moments. August, you’ve arrived in Galar, haven’t you?” Lance said.

By “Moments,” he meant the picture Blue had snapped earlier of Mew’s [Dynamax] form, which August had uploaded.

Opening his feed, August saw that in just a short time, dozens of people had already liked it.

Quietly noting the names of those who hadn’t, he replied: “Yeah, I’m in Stow-on-Side right now. Just finished giving my disciple some guidance…”

“…Disciple?” Lance was taken aback, though he didn’t press it. “August, you have to stay calm. Don’t go storming the League HQ, and whatever you do, don’t beat Rose into the ground.”

August: “... Somehow, hearing you say that, it sounds like you’re encouraging me to.”

Lance nearly jumped out of his skin. “Absolutely not! Don’t you dare!”

“Relax. Rose may be unjust, but I’m still the ally of justice…” August reassured him.

Only then did Lance ease up a little. But he added: “If you have the time, it’d be best if you could visit the Isle of Armor, meet the man I told you about…”

“Yeah yeah, I hear you,” August muttered. “Lance, ever since you became Champion you’ve gotten so naggy.”

“Cough—!” Lance, mid-sip of water, almost choked.

Me? Naggy? Really?

Did he?

Lance fell into self-doubt.

Unaware that his casual remark had sent Lance spiraling, August said: “By the way—you don’t have a [Dynamax Band] yet, do you?”

“Not yet… why?”

“Nothing.”

August made a note to play the good guy later—find a [Wishing Star] and make one for him.

Hanging up, he found all three—Blue, Zinnia, and Sabrina—watching him.

“So where are we going?” Sabrina asked.

“To meet someone.” August pocketed his phone. “Lance kept hammering on about it, said I had to. Even if I don’t think it’s necessary, I can’t ignore his goodwill.”

“Who?”

“Leon’s Teacher.”

“Leon’s Teacher?”

“That’s right. The former undefeated Champion of Galar, with eighteen years of victories—Mustard.”

With that, August gestured. Mew plucked Rayquaza’s Poké Ball straight from Zinnia’s arms.

The ball opened, and Rayquaza’s vast form rose into the air.

August leapt onto its back, motioning for the others to climb aboard.

“Isn’t riding Rayquaza a little… too flashy?” Blue asked, clutching his arm.

“It’s an elder, after all. And Lance was the one to recommend him. We should show proper respect.”

He looked around. “Everyone secure?”

Sabrina wrapped her arms around Blue’s waist, resting her cheek against her shoulder, and nodded.

Zinnia had tried to sit on Rayquaza’s back too, but instead, Rayquaza scooped her up in its claw.

Though being held in Lord Rayquaza’s palm felt wonderful, she couldn’t shake the sense of being treated differently.

Before she could puzzle it out, August gripped one of Rayquaza’s horns with one hand and patted its head with the other.

With a roar that shook all of Stow-on-Side, Rayquaza launched into the sky, streaking toward the Isle of Armor.

...

Not long after August left Stow-on-Side, his every move since arriving in Galar was already being delivered to the desk of Rose’s secretary, Oleana, at League HQ.

Oleana brushed her hair back lightly as she read the report.

“So it was Bea who went to receive him?”

Her subordinate nodded.

Oleana picked up a list from her desk, circling Bea’s name with a mark for “unreliable.”

Her eyes scanned further down the intelligence.

When she saw the line about August picking up a shiny [Cracked Pot], her expression flickered strangely.

Why does it feel like he’s here on vacation, not to cause trouble for Chairman Rose?

But that thought vanished quickly, because the next line read: after encountering the two royals, they had been sighted in Stow-on-Side the very next moment.

This meeting between August and the royals hadn’t been her doing.

By chance, he’d crossed paths with them as they paid respects to their ancestors’ mural.

Still—an idea for creating trouble was already forming in Oleana’s mind.

Tossing the file aside, she raised her head to her aide.

“Contact those two fools. Offer them a taste of sweetness, and have them make trouble for August. Don’t let him interfere with Chairman Rose.”

“Yes, Lady Oleana!”

---

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!