Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [505]

Hoopa—still in its towering [Unbound form]—looked pitiful after being lightly smacked by August, shrinking quietly like a reprimanded child.

Once Hoopa opened the portal, the rodent Pokémon lined up, each affectionately rubbing against August’s leg before stepping through. By the time the last Pokémon had left, August’s pants were thoroughly smeared with dirt.

August could only chuckle helplessly.

Cinccino was the last to leave. After ensuring all its friends had safely passed through, it hopped over and meticulously used its fluffy tail to brush every speck of dust off August’s trousers—its unique way of showing affection.

Satisfied, Cinccino proudly placed its paws on its hips, gave a nod of approval at its cleaning job, and leaped happily into the portal.

The portal closed, and Hoopa reverted to its small, innocent-looking form.

“I never imagined Unova could end up like this…” Gary muttered, troubled. “Even a big city like Castelia has been deeply affected by Team Plasma.”

“It’s about people, not whether the city is big or small,” August remarked. On this point, he somewhat agreed with N—many trainers simply didn't listen to their Pokémon’s feelings, causing Pokémon that never wished to leave to be abandoned.

Suddenly, August’s phone rang. He glanced down: Sabrina? Why would she call me now?

Curious, August answered—and was immediately greeted by Sabrina’s frustrated voice:

“August, where exactly did all these Pokémon come from?!”

Through the video call, Sabrina’s elegant tea-time had clearly been disrupted by a swarm of rodent Pokémon now occupying the entire villa’s living room, causing delightful chaos.

Many rodents were racing around frantically, while the Cinccino, driven by their neat-freak instincts, eagerly took over housekeeping duties. Sabrina had already been forced from the sofa, watching speechlessly as a Cinccino obsessively brushed off invisible dust.

“Oh, they’re Pokémon I rescued here in Unova. They’ll only be staying temporarily,” August replied cheerfully. “In a couple days, Lusamine’s people will come pick them up!”

Sabrina: “...?”

A couple more days?! Just kill me already!

Next to Sabrina, Cogita chuckled softly, clearly amused by the lively scene. “A bit more noise is actually nice.”

August raised an eyebrow teasingly at Cogita’s motherly expression. “Feeling lonely with an empty nest?”

Cogita fell silent instantly, eyes narrowing dangerously at August’s image on the screen.

August quickly coughed, sensing trouble. “Anyway, remember to feed them!” he hurriedly instructed, ending the call amid Sabrina’s bright laughter.

...

After settling the rodents’ temporary arrangements, August and Gary returned to the hotel.

Since it was a Silph-owned hotel, a suite had already been reserved for August. He stepped into the room, intending to take a quick shower and wash away his travel fatigue—

—only to freeze upon seeing Zinnia fast asleep on his couch.

Frowning, August double-checked the room number outside to confirm it was indeed his suite before returning to wake Zinnia.

“Why are you sleeping in my room?”

“Hmm...? Ah!” Zinnia sat up groggily, rubbing her eyes. “August, you’re finally back! I was waiting for you and fell asleep.”

She stuck out her tongue playfully.

August sighed. “What’s so urgent that you had to wait in my room?”

“Oh right!” Zinnia suddenly recalled her errand. After fumbling around her pockets for a while, she pulled out a wrinkled envelope and handed it over.

“The front desk insisted I give this directly to you.”

August stared at the badly crumpled envelope, torn between praising Zinnia’s dedication or lamenting her carelessness.

With a small sigh, he accepted the letter, instructing Mew to smooth out the creases with Psychic.

Unfolding the letter, August was met with seemingly random text—just a generic introduction about Castelia City’s customs.

Yet, as an elite member of the International Police, he immediately recognized it as one of their internal ciphers.

“Seriously, who still uses this old-fashioned cipher these days?” August muttered incredulously.

“Cipher? What cipher?” Zinnia leaned closer curiously.

August promptly pushed her head back.

Though August recognized the cipher, deciphering it had always been Blue’s job. Still, this wasn’t exactly a problem.

He snapped a quick photo of the letter with his phone, using a decoding app. Instantly, the hidden message appeared clearly on his screen.

The encrypted message was short and simple:

“Meet me at 1106 Castelia Street. I'll be waiting.”

Zinnia leaned in again. “What does it say?”

“What else?” August calmly replied, slipping the letter into Gengar’s shadowy body. “Someone’s asking to meet with me.”

Zinnia’s eyes widened dramatically. Someone asking August to meet secretly—could it be a date?!

August promptly snapped her back to reality with a gentle knock to the forehead.

“Ow! If you keep knocking me like that, you'll really make me dumb!” Zinnia protested.

August: “…”

Isn’t that an obvious lie? You became dumb long before I started knocking.

“It’s likely someone from within the International Police. Given this method of contact, I already have a pretty good guess who it is,” August continued.

“Who is it?” Zinnia asked eagerly, rubbing her forehead. She planned to secretly inform Blue and Sabrina later, as revenge for August knocking her head.

August cast a knowing glance at Zinnia, until she looked away guiltily. Then he answered, “The new head of the Unova division appointed by HQ—Looker.”

...

August didn’t immediately seek out Looker.

It was getting late, and after such a long journey, he was feeling genuinely tired.

After a hot shower, August reclined comfortably on his bed, accepting sliced apples from Gardevoir, petting Mew with one hand, and texting casually with the other.

[GardevoirSupremacy]: Just arrived in Unova. Team Plasma here is surprisingly timid. After I arrested one of their Seven Sages, none of the others dared show their faces. I can't even fish them out now.

[Cynthia]: Caitlin mentioned before that Plasma is tricky. They like twisting arguments to claim moral superiority, so you must feel pressured, right?

[GardevoirSupremacy]: Not really. So far, nobody’s managed to morally blackmail me.

After all, having flexible morals meant never being tied down.

As August prepared to continue chatting with Cynthia, an alert popped up—someone was frantically tagging him in a group chat.

Opening it, he quickly understood the situation: Gary was loudly bragging about his supposed heroic feats against Plasma in Unova.

Below were countless mentions of @GardevoirSupremacy.

Gary was clearly panicking:

[Just_Call_Me_Young_Master_Gary]: Stop tagging August, dammit!

He frantically tried to delete his previous boastful messages, desperately attempting damage control:

Team Plasma trembles at the mere sight of me!
I barely even moved, and they instantly surrendered.
August mostly just talked. The real decisive factor was, of course, me, Young Master Gary!

If August saw those exaggerated claims…

[GardevoirSupremacy]: No use deleting now—I already took screenshots. Come to my room first thing tomorrow morning.

Gary, back in his own room, stiffened and broke into a cold sweat.

It's over! August saw everything!

Yet while Gary trembled, the chat erupted gleefully:

[Psychic_Pretty_Girl]: RIP
[Gold]: RIP +1
[Jigglypuff_Is_The_Cutest]: RIP +1

...

When August opened his door the next morning, Gary stood before him, visibly exhausted with enormous dark circles under his eyes, looking ready to face execution.

Gary bravely tilted his head back. “Do your worst! Kill or torture me as you please!”

Gary Oak would rather die standing than kneel begging!

August stared blankly. “...?”

Why are you acting like I’m some evil tyrant?

Shaking his head slightly at Gary’s theatrics, August sighed. “Enough of this. Get yourself together—we're heading out to meet someone.”

Gary, who'd mentally prepared himself for August’s punishment, blinked in shock.

Is August…letting me off the hook?

It felt surreal, almost like a dream. Gary hesitated, asking cautiously, “Um…so, I’m okay now?”

August raised an eyebrow. “Would you prefer otherwise?”

“N-no! Absolutely not!” Gary vigorously shook his head, relieved beyond words.

His anxiety instantly lifted, and he felt his overnight exhaustion fading. “Where are we going? Who are we meeting?”

“Castelia Street,” August answered simply, biting into the sandwich Gardevoir handed him.

...

The Silph hotel was conveniently located in Castelia’s bustling central plaza.

Gary glanced around suspiciously. “This isn’t the way to Castelia Street, right?”

Though unfamiliar with the city, he'd briefly studied the map and knew they were heading the wrong way.

Had August gotten lost? That didn't seem right.

But before Gary could question further, August stopped at their true first destination:

“Casteliacone?”

Gary stared blankly at the giant signboard advertising the famous ice cream.

“Yep. Castelia’s famous specialty—limited sale every Tuesday. Rare chance like this, gotta try it,” August said calmly, joining the line.

Due to their early arrival, the queue was still short. Gary joined behind him, slightly annoyed.

“So this is why you dragged me up so early?”

He’d assumed August had an important meeting, but it turned out he’d just wanted ice cream.

August turned casually. “You have a problem?”

Gary’s expression instantly froze. “...No.”

He knew complaining would instantly revive the issue from yesterday. It was clearly a trap—August had intentionally let him off earlier just to leverage it now!

Feeling deeply wronged, Gary sulked in silence.

Soon it was their turn. Gary watched speechlessly as August calmly transformed into Giovanni’s appearance.

The moment August switched to Giovanni, Gary knew he was up to something.

“Five Casteliacones,” August ordered smoothly.

The clerk smiled apologetically. “Sorry, sir, one cone per person.”

August raised an eyebrow, glancing back casually. “But we have five here.”

“One,” he pointed to himself.
“Two,” he pointed to Gary.
“Three,” he pointed to Gardevoir.
“Four,” he pointed to Mew, perched on his head.
“And five,” he pointed at Hoopa, floating nearby.

“Clearly five.”

The clerk hesitated. “But sir, Pokémon—”

August interrupted sharply, “Are you discriminating against Pokémon? We in Team Rocket despise people like you!”

Startled, the clerk couldn’t argue. Due to Team Plasma’s widespread influence, equality between humans and Pokémon was taken seriously in Unova.

Ultimately, August successfully purchased five Casteliacones.

As they left, Gary gave August an impressed thumbs-up. “Nicely done, August.”

August waved dismissively. “No, thank Giovanni.”

Gary: “…”

You truly have no shame!

After handing out ice creams to Mew, Gardevoir, and Hoopa, August kept one for himself.

Gary waited expectantly for his, until finally asking hesitantly:

“Hey…where’s mine?”

---

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!