Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [482]

Scizor braced one claw against its arm to steady itself as silver energy quickly gathered in its open pincer.

Boom!

A gleaming silver beam blasted out.

Politoed, still airborne, took a direct hit and crashed heavily into the ground, its eyes spiraling into swirls identical to the pattern on its belly and the curl atop its head.

“Politoed is unable to battle! Scizor wins!” announced Silver, guest-refereeing from the sidelines.

Gary had won without question, yet his face showed no sign of joy.

The gap is still too wide.

Thinking back to Diamond’s terrifying Regigigas he’d seen earlier at the tournament, Gary couldn’t fathom any way to overcome it.

Am I really going to have to accept slipping another spot in our group’s rankings?

Gary fell into gloomy contemplation.

At that very moment, he felt a hand land on his shoulder.

Puzzled, Gary looked up to see August had appeared beside him at some point, gazing calmly at him.

August pointed toward the battlefield. “Let’s battle.”

Without waiting for a response, August took Gold’s place on the field.

Gold stepped aside automatically.

Gary opened his mouth to speak, but August had already released his Pokémon.

The elegant figure of Gardevoir emerged gracefully onto the battlefield, immediately adopting a battle stance.

Seeing this, Gary swallowed the words he'd been about to say. It’s just another battle, isn’t it?

After all, he’d already battled August countless times.

Strengthening his resolve, Gary raised his voice, calling to the Scizor that had just defeated Politoed: “Scizor, use [X-Scissor]!”

Scizor lunged forward, pincers crossing as it slashed fiercely toward Gardevoir.
Its lightning-fast movements sliced through the air, the steel edges shrieking like a flash of crimson lightning.

But Gardevoir merely raised a single hand.

Scizor, rushing forward just moments ago, was suddenly sent flying backward at even greater speed, as if struck head-on by a train.

Crash!

Scizor smashed violently into the ground, instantly losing consciousness.

Gary’s expression hardened instantly.

August’s serious this time?!

Not daring to hesitate, Gary swiftly threw out a second Poké Ball.

Nidoking, a longtime opponent of August, emerged and pounded its chest furiously before roaring and charging at Gardevoir.

“[Megahorn]!”

Nidoking's horn glowed fiercely, thrusting forward with the force to pierce through anything.

Again, Gardevoir calmly waved her hand.

Nidoking recoiled violently as if struck by an invisible blow. However, Nidoking was sturdier than Scizor and managed to withstand Gardevoir’s first psychic attack—though just barely.

But only the first attack.

Seeing Nidoking had resisted, Gardevoir’s eyes lit up with a brilliant blue glow, and the [Mind Plate] in her grasp resonated fiercely.

Nidoking roared defiantly, struggling desperately against the Psychic force.

Unfortunately, its Poison typing held it back. Despite its struggle, Nidoking was hoisted helplessly into the air by psychic power and slammed mercilessly into the ground.

Combined with Psychic’s crushing force, Nidoking too fell unconscious.

“What are you waiting for? Send out your Suicune!” August called to Gary.

Gary clenched his teeth and threw his final Poké Ball.

Suicune gracefully appeared, its ribbon-like tails gently flowing around its elegant form. But despite its serene posture, its eyes were sharply vigilant.

“Suicune!” Gary shouted simply.

Their bond needed no words—Suicune understood instantly.

It unleashed a deep, resonant howl—

Instantly, the air temperature around it plummeted as a white sphere gathered swiftly before its crystalline horn, firing as a bright, icy beam toward Gardevoir.

[Ice Beam]

This time, Gardevoir responded at full strength.

The [Mind Plate] spun rapidly, orbiting her body as she crossed her arms before her chest.

A shimmering [Light Screen] appeared, intercepting the [Ice Beam] head-on.

The sound of freezing moisture filled the air, and the normally invisible barrier crystallized visibly from the icy impact.

Yet Gardevoir had already achieved her goal.

Floating serenely in the air, hands clasped together, dazzling pink radiance erupted from her figure.

[Dazzling Gleam]

Suicune was struck and pushed backward, paws scraping the ground in a long skid.

Before Suicune could recover—

Gardevoir’s next strike arrived instantly.

Psychic power surged forward, tangible and devastating.

[Psyshock]

Suicune’s body flew helplessly backward.

Yet at the same time, Suicune’s own attack had fully formed.

A fierce wind roared violently through the battlefield, whipping up snow into a howling blizzard aimed directly at Gardevoir.

Gardevoir remained tranquil.

Rather than assuming a defensive stance as before, she launched yet another fierce attack against Suicune.

A silvery image of a full moon rose gently behind her.

[Moonblast]

The moon’s brilliance condensed into a beam, striking Suicune head-on.

Suicune wailed sharply, sent tumbling to the ground, lying prone, paws skyward.

Gardevoir gave Suicune no further opportunities.

Despite the accumulating snow on her shoulders, she advanced against the biting wind, eyes glowing once more as she unleashed—[Hypnosis]!

The [Mind Plate] resonated powerfully. After a brief struggle, Suicune succumbed and fell deeply asleep.

The howling blizzard ceased.

Gardevoir calmly used [Psychic] to clear away the snow that had settled on her body.

Gary stared in disbelief at the sleeping Suicune.

The battlefield fell silent.

Finally, Silver’s voice broke the silence: “Suicune is unable to battle. Gardevoir wins.”

Hearing Silver’s declaration, Gary snapped out of his daze, glancing from Suicune to August and Gardevoir.

“So this was your point, August? To show me that ordinary Pokémon can also possess the strength to defeat legendary Pokémon, and I shouldn’t lose heart?”

Gary believed he had finally grasped August’s good intentions.

August must have noticed his doubts and deliberately battled seriously to motivate him, helping him regain his spirit.

Thinking this, Gary’s mood brightened considerably from his earlier gloom.

However, amidst Gary’s heartfelt gaze—

August looked at him like he was an idiot. “What nonsense are you talking about? I was just warning you—if you dare create another one of your anti-fan chat groups dedicated to me, I’ll ship you straight off to the Orre Region!”

The touched expression on Gary’s face froze instantly.

“And another thing—if you suck, practice harder instead of wasting your time on useless nonsense.”

Gary felt as if an arrow had pierced straight through his heart.

Gary Oak has officially sunk.

…

Although Gary had misunderstood August’s intentions, he still managed to pull himself out of his earlier frustration, returning to his usual motivated self.

It was just a Regigigas, after all!

He’d go capture an even stronger Pokémon soon enough.

Even if he couldn’t surpass August, second place in the Kanto Division would definitely remain his!

As for August’s threat about sending him to the Orre Region if he dared set up another anti-fan chat group… Gary paid it absolutely no mind.

Ha!

If August’s threats were effective, he wouldn’t have started the group in the first place.

Gary Oak’s personal specialty was courage, after all.

This was Gary’s perspective.

But from Gold and Silver’s viewpoint, Gary had clearly just been thoroughly humbled by August for creating an anti-fan chat group. Faced with August’s direct threat, he hadn’t dared utter a single word in protest.

As expected, August-senpai is still the best at handling Gary-senpai!

Gold and Silver exchanged knowing glances, sharing the same thought.

Just then, Malva walked into the training ground, curiously eyeing the strange atmosphere. “What happened here?”

“Oh, nothing,” August said breezily. “Just a friendly spar. Right?” He looked pointedly at the trio.

All three nodded emphatically.

Gary was forced, Gold was delighting in Gary’s misfortune, and Silver honestly thought it had indeed been a friendly match.

Malva’s instincts as a news anchor told her things definitely weren’t that simple.

However, without clues, she had no way of guessing what exactly had occurred.

Looks like I'll have to investigate afterward, Malva mused silently, eyes glittering with curiosity.

…

It seemed Gary had taken August’s blunt advice—“if you suck, practice harder”—to heart, dragging Silver back to the training ground for more intense practice.

Only Gold, finally liberated, left the training ground with August and Malva.

When the group stepped out of the arena, they were greeted by the sight of Togepi flying wildly through the sky like a cannonball, squealing excitedly.

“What’s going on over there?” Malva asked curiously.

But Gold’s eyes lit up immediately upon seeing this spectacle.

What kind of game is everyone playing? It looks incredibly fun!

After observing for a moment and noticing Hoopa launching Eevee next, Gold ran excitedly to Hoopa, putting an arm around its shoulders. “Hey, Hoopa, count me in too—I want to play!”

“Hoopa?” Hoopa scratched its head uncertainly.

Even after centuries of confinement, Hoopa had picked up some common sense. Humans had fragile bodies, not like Pokémon. Playing with them meant being extra careful.

Hoopa glanced at Eevee being flung around like a pinball, then eyed Gold skeptically.

Can a human body really handle that kind of force?

Noticing Hoopa’s skeptical gaze, Gold felt underestimated. Puffing up his chest, he confidently declared, “Don’t underestimate me!”

Still somewhat doubtful, Hoopa agreed to let Gold join.

Three minutes later…

“My arm—my arm’s dislocated!” Gold yelped, clutching his shoulder.

August and Malva, who’d witnessed everything firsthand: “...”

We told you it was dangerous.

Yet considering Gold had just been bounced around at near-supersonic speeds, a mere dislocated arm spoke volumes about his remarkable physical resilience.

In her mind, Malva silently updated her impression of Kanto Division from “everyone here is bizarre” to adding “and not one of them is ordinary.”

After calling Indeedee and Chansey to drag Gold off to the infirmary, August waved nonchalantly at Hoopa. “You all can keep playing!”

Then he casually scooped up Eevee, who was trying to sneak away unnoticed.

“Disobedient Eevees get eaten,” August warned playfully.

“Vee-vee!” Eevee squirmed desperately but couldn't escape.

In the end, Eevee could only helplessly watch its friends play, dangling from August’s grip on its scruff, growing further and further from happiness.

“Still, why do I feel like something’s missing…?” August mused aloud, holding Eevee in one hand and stroking his chin thoughtfully.

…

It wasn't until evening, upon seeing Zinnia’s resentful expression, that August finally remembered what had slipped his mind.

“Where have you been? I haven't seen you since we returned!”

“Lord Rayquaza…” Zinnia murmured softly.

“Huh?”

“I was giving Lord Rayquaza a massage… and then it suddenly disappeared!” Zinnia lamented mournfully. “Do you know how I've spent these last few days?”

August tilted his head curiously. “How?”

“Each day felt like a year—like a century!” she cried dramatically.

At that moment, Yellow chimed in helpfully from the side, explaining that due to Rayquaza’s disappearance, Zinnia had been too distraught to eat or sleep properly, prompting Yellow to take her home to distract her. It had worked well—at least until seeing August again reminded her of Rayquaza.

“Alright, alright, here you go,” August sighed, handing Zinnia Rayquaza’s Poké Ball.

She really is hopeless.

“Hehehe…” Clutching the Poké Ball, Zinnia immediately erupted into a creepily blissful grin.

Zinnia’s sickness runs deeper than I thought…

“What kind of people have I even recruited into the Kanto Division?” August sighed heavily.

Nearby, Sabrina nodded emphatically, acting as if she wasn’t included in his statement.

Just then, August’s communicator at his waist buzzed.

A video call request—from Cynthia.

She appeared on-screen wearing a white sun hat, a tasteful pale-blue swimsuit, and a blue garment tied casually around her waist as a skirt, creating a striking image.

“What's this about…?”

“I'm with Lillie and Platinum right now~!” Cynthia explained cheerfully, turning her phone to show the view behind her.

The camera captured a sunny beach, clearly a private seaside area.

Knowing Platinum’s background as a member of the prestigious Berlitz family, August wasn't at all surprised by their private beach.

But his attention was quickly drawn to something else:

Lillie and Platinum, both in swimsuits, playing beach volleyball with their Pokémon.

Unfortunately, Lillie’s Zorua had no clue how to play volleyball and was being thoroughly overwhelmed by Platinum and her Lopunny’s expert teamwork.

“Want to join us, August?” Cynthia invited sweetly.

August had originally planned on staying home to thoroughly punish Blue and Sabrina later for earlier laughing at him. But when Cynthia herself extended an invitation…

“Just wait—I'll be there in a minute!”

August ended the call. Before Cynthia could even wonder what exactly “a minute” meant, a tall, golden ring appeared right there on the beach.

Seconds later—

August stepped calmly through the golden portal, wearing swimming trunks, accompanied by Hoopa.

“This…” Cynthia stared in astonishment.

She hadn't expected August's “a minute” to mean literally a minute!

“August-sensei!” “August-san!” Lillie and Platinum happily rushed to greet him.

Smiling warmly at the girls, August turned toward Cynthia. “Didn’t Diantha tell you about this?”

Cynthia shook her head curiously.

“Allow me to introduce—the mischievous little Hoopa! Once it identifies a location, Hoopa’s rings can reach anywhere in the world instantly,” August explained proudly. “I met it in the Kalos region.”

“Hoopa is the strong—” Hoopa started boldly, but seeing August’s amused look, it hurriedly corrected itself, “Hoopa is second strongest!”

“Second strongest? Then who's first?” Lillie asked curiously.

Hoopa promptly declared, “It’s August!”

Cynthia and Platinum nodded thoughtfully. Hoopa's words were quite convincing and logical.

Still…

“Is it only you and Hoopa?” Cynthia glanced curiously at the golden portal.

Only August and Hoopa had stepped through so far, with no one else emerging behind them.

“Wait for it…” August barely finished his sentence—

Cogita, Sabrina, and Blue all emerged through the portal, followed immediately by a swarm of Pokémon crowding onto the beach.

…

There was no denying that meeting Hoopa had made everything infinitely more convenient.

One second he’d been in Kanto headquarters; the next, he was leisurely standing on a beach in Sinnoh.

Standing beneath a sunshade, August sipped his drink and watched as Psyduck, once again launched as a “Psyduck Cannonball,” managed to skip an astonishing thirty-six times across the water, breaking Slowpoke’s record of twenty-seven.

When Salamence brought Psyduck back, August ceremonially placed a flower garland around Psyduck’s neck.

“Congratulations—you’re the new champion!”

Then he cheerfully handed Psyduck an Everstone as a prize.

Psyduck, wearing its garland, posed confusedly for a commemorative photo with August and Hoopa, clutching its head and still not entirely sure what was happening.

After fulfilling his duties as award presenter, August returned to his beach chair, reclining casually beside Cynthia. “So, how's Sinnoh been lately?”

“With Team Galactic gone, Pokémon Hunters have become more active. But overall, things have gotten easier.”

Otherwise, Cynthia wouldn't have had the free time for a seaside vacation. Compared to Team Galactic, Pokémon Hunters were trivial opponents.

“But…” she hesitated.

“But what?” August prompted.

“Have you heard about what's happening in Unova?” Cynthia said. “I've heard it's gotten incredibly messy lately—Team Plasma, Pokémon Hunters, smugglers… everything’s in chaos.”

“I heard,” August replied casually.

Not only had he heard—he was partly responsible, due to his earlier tip-offs. August silently paid tribute to Looker, who must still be suffering on the front lines.

Taking a deep drink from his glass, August was interrupted by Platinum’s excited call from afar:

“August-san, come quickly! Look what we've found!”

He looked up.

Lillie was holding up a transparent egg with a distinctive red sphere at its center, surrounded by glowing yellow spots.

Surely it couldn't be…

August glanced suspiciously at Cogita, who was sunbathing nearby.

“What are you up to now?” he accused lightly.

He strongly suspected Cogita had a hand in this egg’s sudden appearance—just like Diamond’s earlier Regigigas.

Cogita merely tilted her head innocently, clearly pretending not to understand.

August: “...”

Fine, keep pretending!

Cynthia was already approaching Platinum and Lillie, studying the egg carefully.

“This must be…?”

“Probably a Pokémon egg,” Blue observed thoughtfully.

Sabrina agreed, “It must be some kind of rare Pokémon. I've never seen an egg like this before.”

“Should we try hatching it?” Lillie suggested cautiously.

Immediately, everyone’s gaze fell upon her—including August’s—making her shift nervously.

“Did I say something wrong…?” she asked timidly.

“No, not at all—in fact, it's a good idea,” August reassured her gently. “Though if you're just curious what it is, we don't need to hatch it.”

“You recognize it, August?” Cynthia asked, intrigued.

All eyes turned expectantly toward him.

August nodded calmly, “If I'm not mistaken, that's the egg of the mythical Pokémon Manaphy.”

“Manaphy? I’ve heard that name somewhere before…” Cynthia mused aloud.

Everyone else was now captivated by August's revelation.

In the Kanto Division, mentioning mythical Pokémon immediately conjured up images of Mew—always invisibly perched on August’s head—and Lillie’s Cosmog.

No one expected Platinum to randomly find a mythical Pokémon’s egg!

“We should hatch it and see!” Sabrina urged excitedly.

Platinum nodded, but then paused, staring helplessly at the egg. “But… how exactly do we hatch it?”

August had already prepared for this.

“Baby Lugia!” he called gently, waving over the young Lugia who was playing with Mew and Eevee.

Manaphy was known as the Prince of the Vast Seas…

Though Lugia was the Guardian of the Sea and master of currents, surely there was a connection.

Surrounded by a faint yet distinctive Herba Mystica fragrance, Baby Lugia approached. At August’s gentle prompting, Lugia lightly flapped its wings, conjuring a gentle stream of water to envelop the egg.

As Lugia’s feathers emitted a soft glow, the egg within trembled faintly under Lugia’s influence…

---

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!