Pokémon: My Titles Know No Limits! [442]

When ‘Giovanni’ finished speaking, Lysandre fell deep into thought.

What Giovanni had said was correct.

He knew August’s true purpose in coming to Kalos couldn’t simply be an interview. To believe otherwise was deluding oneself. It was likely the International Police had picked up some clues pointing towards Team Flare and sent August to investigate.

Now Lysandre faced two choices.

He could bet on Team Flare’s ability to remain hidden—betting that August would find nothing, no evidence of their crimes, and would leave empty-handed.

But this was like betting the opponent had no Pokémon in their Poké Ball.

His other choice was precisely as Giovanni proposed: cooperate and eliminate August together!

Though this risked exposing Team Flare prematurely, it would buy them invaluable time to complete their plan.

Watching Lysandre ponder his choices, ‘Giovanni’ maintained a faint smile, a touch of mockery tugging at his lips.

Lysandre thought he had options, but from the moment August appeared at his doorstep, his fate was already sealed.

Looker watched from behind, deeply impressed at how effortlessly August manipulated Lysandre.

No wonder I've been with the International Police for years yet still can’t match even a fraction of August’s achievements.

When it came to manipulating minds, August was leagues ahead of him.

Lysandre, being decisive enough to lead Team Flare, didn’t keep August waiting long.

He soon gave his answer: “What precisely does this cooperation entail?”

‘Giovanni’ smiled, his lips curving up slightly. “August is powerful—easily the strongest trainer I've ever encountered. Even if we join forces, defeating him won’t be easy.”

“And he’s exceptionally cautious. To beat him, we'll have to use surprise.”

“For that, we’ll need something to distract him. I propose Team Flare deliberately expose some minor criminal activity, leading August into our ambush. Then we strike together to take him down.”

Before Lysandre responded, Malva frowned. “So Team Flare bears all the risk, and you Rockets just swoop in at the end to join the attack?”

Giovanni calmly countered, “Isn’t that fair? After all, it’s Team Flare who's currently in trouble.”

Malva was about to speak again when Lysandre raised a hand, stopping her.

“Your general idea is sound,” Lysandre said, “but August controls Rayquaza. How exactly will you defeat him?”

Without a word, ‘Giovanni’ snapped his fingers.

A Poké Ball at his waist popped open, releasing a flash of white light. Under Malva’s wary gaze, Deoxys materialized before them.

“Leave Rayquaza to me.”

Lysandre stared at Deoxys, their eyes meeting—one cold and unreadable, the other entirely emotionless.

After a long moment, Lysandre looked away, nodding in agreement.

“Very well.”

“Pleasure cooperating.” Giovanni extended a hand.

Lysandre refused bluntly: “No need to shake hands.”

Unfazed by the rejection, ‘Giovanni’ withdrew his hand. “Then have your people discuss further details with my subordinate.”

With hands casually in his pockets, Giovanni turned and left the warehouse with Looker, watched carefully by Lysandre and Malva.

…

Walking down the street, ‘Giovanni’ wiped his face, transforming back into August.

Beside him, ‘Persian’ transformed back into Mew under Looker’s shocked gaze.

August removed a tiny camera hidden by Mew’s psychic powers, handing it to Looker.

“Here’s Lysandre admitting he’s Team Flare’s leader. Give this to the Chief.”

Looker took the camera, puzzled. “Why didn’t you just arrest Lysandre? With your abilities, you could have taken him down directly!”

August smiled faintly at Looker’s confusion. “Back there? Seems you didn’t notice.”

“Notice what?”

August, already changing from Rocket clothes into his regular outfit, said calmly, “That Lysandre was fake.”

“Fake?”

“Well, not entirely fake. It’d be more accurate to say it was a hologram.” August spoke with admiration: “Lysandre truly deserves his reputation as the inventor of holographic technology—he’s perfected it to this degree.”

August had noticed immediately upon entering the warehouse. He had sensed only Malva’s aura, and through careful observation, realized Lysandre was merely a holographic projection.

Looker was shocked, having completely missed this. But thinking back, the clues became clear: Pyroar had been hiding beforehand, not summoned by Lysandre. The refusal to shake hands also made sense; after all, even the most advanced hologram couldn’t replicate physical touch.

Looker looked at August with newfound respect.

As expected of August!

He’d easily seen through what Looker had completely missed.

And, with just a few words, he’d tricked Team Flare into willingly exposing their criminal activities.

“From now on, you handle communication with Team Flare,” August instructed. “Once you confirm the time and location to ambush ‘August,’ inform me. I'll give Lysandre a nice surprise.”

Naturally, his intentions were purely for justice, without a hint of personal grudges mixed in.

Looker nodded, accepting the assignment.

---

Malva asked nervously, “Leader, can Giovanni really be trusted?”

Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she’d felt a chilling sense of danger watching Giovanni, which made her extremely wary of cooperating.

Lysandre said evenly, “Giovanni and August have been enemies for a long time. With their bitter rivalry, Giovanni’s words are likely sincere.”

Team Flare’s extensive intelligence network had documented Giovanni’s rivalry with August thoroughly.

Malva thought about this, relaxing slightly.

Even if Giovanni was scheming something, he certainly wouldn’t ally with August against Team Flare.

“Then, Leader, where should we ambush August?”

Lysandre waved his hand, bringing up a holographic map of Kalos.

Studying the map briefly, he pointed decisively at a location.

“Here.”

Following his gaze, Malva nodded approvingly. “An excellent choice.”

---

When August returned to the hotel, he immediately sensed something odd in the air upon entering the room.

Blue and Sabrina stared directly at him.

They said nothing, but their eyes clearly asked the same question: Care to explain what happened on that TV show?

August felt an instant headache.

Explaining was impossible, so distraction was the only strategy.

“I disguised myself as Giovanni and met Lysandre.”

“And?” Sabrina pressed.

“Lysandre will soon willingly hand us evidence of Team Flare’s crimes.”

Sabrina: “Oh, wonderful.”

August: “…”

He suspected Sabrina was being sarcastic.

But his distraction worked perfectly. Even though Blue and Sabrina wanted to continue grilling him with their eyes, their attention involuntarily shifted to Team Flare, dissolving the tense atmosphere.

August inwardly sighed with relief.

If he could do it over again, he'd choose any excuse other than accepting an interview to come to Kalos.

“Mew~!”

Mew glanced around the room, confused, but unaffected as it resumed munching snacks.

Psyduck held its head, equally bewildered.

…

Setting up Team Flare’s trap wouldn’t be quick.

Meanwhile, August needed to ensure Lysandre believed he was actively investigating Team Flare.

Thus, August’s group appeared frequently throughout Lumiose City.

On the surface, they seemed to be shopping casually…

But from Team Flare’s surveillance perspective, August was clearly using shopping as a cover to gather intelligence and hunt for incriminating evidence.

In truth, though, August really was just shopping with Blue and Sabrina.

After wandering countless streets and accepting another scarf Blue bought for him, August glanced at Gengar helplessly.

Gengar looked miserable.

It’s full! Completely stuffed!

Although its mouth connected to an interdimensional space, even it had limits.

It was already serving as August’s backpack, storing Mew’s snacks, and now overloaded with shopping bags. It truly couldn’t hold anymore!

Seeing Gengar’s struggle, August sighed and turned to Mew: “Look what you’ve done—forcing Gengar to store all your snacks, now look how bloated it is.”

Mew, biting a rice cake and tugging fiercely at sticky strings, widened her eyes indignantly.

“Mew?!”

How is that my fault?

All her snacks combined didn’t even compare to the thousands of Team Rocket uniforms August had previously stuffed into Gengar’s mouth.

Feeling wrongly accused, Mew tackled August’s head, pulling at his hair in protest.

“Let go! Your rice cake is sticking to my hair!”

Sticky rice cake strands tangled hopelessly in August’s hair, causing his expression to darken as Sabrina and Blue laughed uncontrollably.

Realizing Blue and Sabrina were no help, August turned to Gardevoir, who eventually pried Mew from his head. But the sticky rice cake mess remained his own problem.

Unnoticed by the laughing trio, a Team Flare grunt watching nearby jotted notes seriously:

[Target excels at disguises. Frequently engages in incomprehensible behavior to mask true intentions.]

He closed the notebook, preparing to send this valuable intel to headquarters.

…

August met Diantha at a café.

This time he appeared openly as himself. Given their well-known battle during the World Championships, it was natural for them to reconnect in Kalos.

However, from Diantha’s perspective, this meeting was anything but casual—

“Long time no see, Diantha!” August greeted warmly.

Diantha, clearly preoccupied, quickly asked what truly concerned her: “Is it true? About Lysandre and Team Flare?”

She’d received notification from International Police Headquarters, but still found it difficult to believe.

Lysandre!

The man everyone in Kalos believed would lead their region into a brighter future—actually a criminal?

August nodded firmly. “Yes, it’s true.”

“Why?”

Diantha couldn’t understand.

Fame, status, wealth… Lysandre already had everything. What could possibly drive him to crime?

August shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t understand either. Perhaps the exceptional simply think differently from the rest of us.”

Just as he couldn’t comprehend Cyrus’s obsession to restart Sinnoh, he couldn’t fathom Lysandre’s Thanos-like ambitions for Kalos.

Clearly, not everyone was as sensible as Giovanni or Pryce.

Diantha fell silent.

She’d hoped August would offer insight, but even he lacked answers.

Still, she was Kalos’s Champion, and quickly adjusted.

“How can I help?”

August shook his head: “The plan’s ready. Soon, Lysandre himself will deliver evidence of his crimes straight into our hands.”

Diantha blinked in confusion.

Why would Lysandre willingly hand over criminal evidence?

Just as she was about to ask—

August’s communicator buzzed. He read the message, smiling calmly at Diantha: “Looks like Lysandre’s already taking the bait.”

“Now, shall we enjoy the show?”

At that moment, his phone rang loudly.

He answered on speaker, Malva’s panicked voice echoing clearly: “August! Please help—I’m in trouble!”

---

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!