"Boss, about the Harry Potter situation—"
Zoroark had barely pushed the door open when it suddenly froze, its whole body stiffening on the spot. The moment it stepped inside, it immediately saw… something strange.
Its own boss was staring at a notebook—
and that notebook looked extremely familiar.
Zoroark's face instantly turned pale, while Edward was sitting there, looking at the notebook in his hand with great interest, as though he had just discovered something truly amusing.
…
The Champion's Resignation
"...Are you certain you want to resign from your Champion position, Champion Edward?"
Inside the solemn, towering headquarters of the Indigo League, several staff members were wiping cold sweat from their foreheads as they nervously faced the young man before them. The man was barely past twenty, but he was indeed the newly appointed Champion of the Indigo League. Although he had only held the position for a year, he was still the Champion!
But what none of them ever expected was that this Champion… actually intended to resign?
This sort of thing was exceedingly rare in the history of the League. After all, the dream of most Trainers was to become Champion. And once you became Champion, you could enjoy all kinds of privileges—status, fame, prestige, resources, and even enormous wealth. Everything practically fell into your hands.
Yet this person wanted to quit?
"Yes. I want to resign. I'm stepping down as Indigo's Champion. According to League regulations, I've already submitted everything required. There shouldn't be any issues, correct?" Edward asked calmly. He smiled gently at the staff standing before him.
One of the staff members swallowed nervously. Although the League had indeed written procedures for a Champion's resignation, they could swear upon Arceus' name that none of them ever believed they'd live to see the day when an actual Champion would show up and file the paperwork to quit.
But there was no helping it—rules were rules. And forcing a Champion to stay was the last thing the League wanted to do. So, after trembling through the process and stamping the documents, the staff finally completed the resignation procedure.
Just like that, Edward officially stepped down from his role as Champion.
Of course, this would undoubtedly stir up a commotion. After all, the Indigo League, as one of the earliest League territories, originally didn't even have a Champion. The title was established only later, and Edward was the very first Champion of the Indigo League.
Yet the very first Champion had now resigned.
Naturally, people would talk. Rumors would spread. Some opportunistic individuals might even twist the narrative into something else entirely.
But Edward himself felt nothing but joy. He wasn't at all worried about the League failing to handle the public relations fallout. League was overflowing with talent—Edward didn't for a second believe they couldn't manage this.
Even ignoring Professor Oak on the surface, the sheer number of investigators, officers, and staff within the League was already an enormous talent pool.
…
Especially since the first day Edward became Champion, something strange appeared before his eyes.
[Pokémon Training Master]
A bizarre interface—but other than those words, there was nothing else. Edward even asked his good friend Zoroark to check whether he had been infected with some kind of virus. Once Zoroark confirmed there was nothing wrong, Edward finally became certain of one thing:
He had gotten a golden finger.
Only… this golden finger had arrived several years too late. He had already become Champion—then the golden finger decided to show up.
What followed was a very long wait. Edward handled League duties, trained his Pokémon as usual, and checked the golden finger every day… until yesterday.
An entire year passed before the golden finger finally seemed close to activating.
But why only "close"?
Because Edward found out there was one last requirement:
He must not be serving as Champion.
So, he came to resign immediately.
After resigning, the words "Pokémon Training Master" lit up for a moment before the whole interface suddenly vanished. Edward was stunned.
So… was that considered an activation?
Or a failure?
He sat in his room, deep in thought.
…
"Edward?! Why did you resign?!"
Before Edward even had time to test out the golden finger's functions, his door was kicked open. A caped man rushed inside in a panic, worry and concern written all over his face.
"Ah, Lance, the Flying-type Elite. What brings you here?" Edward stood up. The man before him was the final hurdle Edward had once faced—the Elite Four member known as the Dragon-type King… but in reality, mostly a Flying-type trainer.
Lance's face darkened instantly. He took a deep breath.
This bastard was doing it again.
To this day, Lance still couldn't forget that moment in the League finals. When this guy defeated him and was asked by reporters how he felt about fighting Lance…
Lance could still hear that blasted line:
"Hm? How do I feel about facing Elite Lance? Well… when facing a Flying-type master, all you really need are well-trained Ice-type Pokémon— Huh? Dragon-type? Oh, right, he's Dragon-type specialist."
It was only after a reporter reminded him that Edward corrected himself.
That cursed interview clip was still circulating online.
"Just answer me—why did you resign?" Lance inhaled deeply, forcing himself to calm down as he asked again.
Before Edward could respond, a large orange head peeked out from behind Lance. Dragonite gave Edward a goofy grin and waved its little claws.
It was Lance's Dragonite—
Edward called it Glutie, because the thing was unbelievably gluttonous yet remaing cute.
But what caught Edward's attention wasn't Glutie's silly Shiba-inu-like expression…
Instead, it was the text that suddenly appeared before Edward's eyes.
[Detected trainable Pokémon: Dragonite]
[Please select:
– Increase Fairy resistance
– Increase Dragon-type move power
– Increase base stats (requires full training; breakthrough grants a random negative effect)]
Edward blinked.
The golden finger that had just vanished… suddenly popped back out.
And then another message appeared:
[You have received your first task: The First Step of a Training Master]
[The First Step of a Training Master:
Create a training regimen for Dragonite and increase its resistance to Fairy-type moves. Reward: Dragon-type Pokémon Candy ×1]
Dragon-type Pokémon candy?
Edward was intrigued. He didn't know what it was, but that was fine. Worst case, he could just ask the all-knowing, all-powerful, incredibly handsome Zoroark. Zoroark definitely knew.
…
"Lance, do you remember the attribute the League recently added?" Edward asked, casually touching a Poké Ball. He could feel the joy coming from his partner inside.
"Hmm? The Fairy-type?" Lance was stunned for a moment, then frowned suspiciously. This guy was definitely trying to change the subject again.
Edward chuckled and tossed out his Poké Ball. With a cheerful "Togekiss~!" a white, adorable Pokémon flew circles around him excitedly.
Glutie instinctively backed away. It still remembered the time this "cute little Togekiss" slapped half its scales off during a battle.
"Fairy-type moves are extremely effective against Dragon-types," Edward said as he patted Togekiss's small head. He had met her back when she was still a Togepi—cute, powerful, and a deeply cherished companion.
"So, you're saying… you've found another attribute that counters mine," Lance muttered.
"Of course not! You're my dear friend. How could I do that?" Edward smiled like a fox. "I just wanted to ask—would you like Glutie to increase its resistance to Fairy-type moves?"
"That won't be necessary. I've already been training Glu--Dragonite in taking Fairy attacks." Lance almost slipped and called it Glutie again. Edward's nickname had rubbed off on him far too much.
Edward wasn't surprised. At their level, any Trainer whose Pokémon lacked specialized training against counter attributes would be seen as negligent.
Still, tolerance was not the same as resistance.
Tolerance was like a boxer's ability to endure punches.
Resistance was direct damage reduction.
They were not the same thing.
"Actually, I'm a very capable trainer," Edward said seriously, placing a hand on Lance's shoulder.
Lance raised a brow—well, obviously. How else did this guy become Champion?
"If you let me borrow Glutie for a few days, I can train its tolerance to Fairy-type moves."
Lance didn't refuse. Their relationship was already at the level where even if Edward borrowed tens of thousands of Poké Dollars and never repaid him, Lance wouldn't care.
"So why did you step down as Champion?" Lance asked again, while Glutie eagerly waddled toward Edward. The gluttonous dragon swallowed saliva at the thought of Edward's cooking.
Togekiss shot Glutie a disgusted glance, then drifted to Edward's other side, determined not to let Dragonite's drool touch her feathers.
"Because I was a Champion purely out of interest," Edward replied solemnly.
…
[Dragonite 'Glutie']
[Complete the following tasks for seven consecutive days to raise Fairy resistance by one point
(This Pokémon can increase up to five points)]
[1. Experience the brilliance of Moonblast at close range (0/7)]
[2. Do 30 push-ups (0/7)
[3. Eat one ultra-spicy hotpot per day (0/7)]]
"…?"
Edward stared at the obediently sitting Glutie, then looked at the training regimen again, rubbing his forehead.
This was not at all what he expected.
The first task seemed reasonable.
The second… could be explained as muscle training.
But… push-ups? On a Dragonite? With those stubby arms?
And the third—
One extremely spicy hotpot per day?
So, Fairy-type damage was… chili pepper damage now?
"Ahem. Glutie, from today onward, your training begins. I'll guide and supervise your first day." Edward coughed lightly. He didn't understand the reasoning behind the tasks, but he would test it first and see how useful resistance points actually were.
According to the golden finger, one point of resistance reduced move damage by one percent.
Edward needed to test whether that was significant.
"Huh? But aren't we here to eat something?" Glutie tilted its head. It assumed it had come to enjoy a feast.
"…I didn't say anything about eating," Edward said, exasperated. But given that he did call Glutie over for food nine out of ten times, it was understandable.
Beside them, Alakazam was calmly translating everything for Lance and Glutie, spoon still in hand. Edward couldn't understand Pokémon speech—he wasn't some kid raised by wild Pokémon, after all.
Still…
Eating was part of the task anyway.
So, Edward stood up and headed to the kitchen to prepare an ultra-spicy hotpot for Glutie.
He paused.
Should he… buy hemorrhoid cream from Nurse Joy later?
After all, eating deadly spicy hotpot every day was something even humans would struggle with.
And probably most Pokémon too.
…
"Oh well, whatever. I have the all-powerful, all-knowing Zoroark. I don't need to worry about anything. I can just relax and eat soft rice every day!" Edward said happily, embracing a future of joyful slacking.
"Aha~ And speaking of the all-powerful, all-knowing Zoroark, what brings you here, esteemed lord?" Edward asked with a cheerful grin.
Zoroark's face had turned completely white. Its whole body trembled violently. It wanted nothing more than to grab its Poké Ball and flee to another world—preferably one where it would never have to come out again.
Edward clicked his tongue.
This Zoroark really was fun.
(End of Chapter)