Chapter 28: The Goal is to Become the King of Pokemon!
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
Dark clouds brought rain.
The Charmander was still lying on the Rock Platform.
"Aoo..."
It panted heavily, looking exhausted, a lotus leaf held in its hand swaying with the wind.
But the leaf was purely symbolic; the torrential rain still poured down on its body.
The flame at the tip of Charmander's tail flickered, looking as if it could be extinguished at any moment.
"Aoo...argh..."
Seeing Ash and his two companions approach, the Charmander forced itself to its feet, letting out a threatening cry.
But its voice was already much weaker than it had been in the afternoon.
"There's no time, we have to take it to the Pokémon Center by force!"
Ash didn't hesitate. In a crisis, he couldn't afford to care about the Charmander's own wishes. He lunged forward, took off his Raincoat, and covered the Charmander with it.
Then, with a burst of strength, he forcibly pulled the Charmander up.
"Charmander, show your Guts! Don't close your eyes!"
Ash roared as he held it, cheering it on.
"Aoo...argh...?"
Although his tone was rough, the Charmander was a little bewildered as it looked at the fervent gaze of the Youth before it.
It had never felt such warmth from its own Trainer.
Seeing this, Brock and Misty quickly grabbed Charmander's other limbs, and the three of them hurried toward the Pokémon Center together.
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out in Ash's mind.
It was a somewhat cold and detached voice.
"The flame on its tail is its Flame of Life."
Ash subconsciously looked back and saw that Charmander's tail flame was indeed exposed, outside the Raincoat.
As the rain fell, the fire was actually growing weaker.
He quickly switched places with Brock, letting him clear the path ahead while he held the tail flame tightly against his chest, not letting a single drop of water touch it.
After doing all this, Ash's expression turned grim as he silently replied in his mind.
"Thank you, Mr. Red."
Hearing the words that suddenly appeared in his mind, Red was slightly stunned, then fell silent again.
So this kid was already aware of my existence?
Soon, the three of them brought the Charmander to the Pokémon Center.
"Leave the rest to me!"
Nurse Joy had already prepared an emergency room and immediately took over to begin treating the Charmander.
It seemed Dayou and his group had already left, which left Ash with a sense of empty frustration.
He could only stare anxiously from the outside at the bright red emergency sign hanging on the door.
Beep!
Thirty minutes later, the red sign turned green, signaling the end of the emergency treatment inside.
Seeing the Room Door slide open, Ash eagerly rushed forward.
"Nurse Joy, how's Charmander?"
"It's fine now. It's out of the danger period. A good night's rest should be enough for it to recover. Pokémon bodies are very resilient, you know."
Nurse Joy didn't say much more, just pushed the three of them toward their lodging room, signaling that they should rest too.
It wouldn't do for the Pokémon to be fine, only for the humans to collapse.
"I'm so relieved that Charmander is okay..."
Hearing her words, the heavy weight in the trio's hearts finally began to lift.
Yawning, they went back to their room to shower and sleep.
But at this moment, Ash, lying in bed, couldn't fall asleep so easily.
He remembered something and couldn't help but pat his chest, saying inwardly:
"Hey, hey, hey, Big Bro Red, I'm bored. Come out and chat for a bit."
Ash sent a voice request.
Red: "..."
After hesitating for a long time, Red finally accepted his voice request.
"When did you find out about me?"
"Duh, I'm not a blockhead," Ash replied with a hint of pride.
Red's brow furrowed. So you aren't one?
Now that Charmander was temporarily out of danger, Ash had reverted to his previous cheerful and optimistic personality.
Strange words had been popping into his head from time to time.
And he had inexplicably gained an extra Pokémon, a Round-faced Pikachu whose Trainer was Red.
On top of that, yesterday, when he was transferring the three Squirtles back to Professor Oak's Research Lab, he had accidentally discovered that under the "Ash's Computer" option, another option had appeared.
"Red's Computer".
An ordinary person might have become paranoid, thinking they were haunted by something unclean, and might even have hired a Jynx to perform an exorcism dance.
But the thick-skinned Ash quickly accepted this new reality.
It didn't matter. As long as his Willpower was strong enough and he was filled with righteousness, he feared no deities or demons!
Red: "..."
"Say, Big Bro Red, are you trying to perform Body Snatching on me?"
Ash asked with great interest.
"I think we could have a go."
Red: "..."
No thanks, your Willpower is comparable to Arceus...
"By the way, Big Bro Red, are you dead?"
"..."
Red chose not to reply, unilaterally ending the voice communication.
The name "Big Bro Red" made his eyebrows twitch uncontrollably.
"Big Bro Red, why aren't you talking? All I can feel now are three ellipses."
Red: "..."
The next morning, the trio woke up early.
Without even brushing his teeth, Ash rushed into Charmander's sickroom.
But the place was already empty.
"It already left..."
Seeing this, Ash felt an inexplicable sense of loss.
"It probably went back to that Rock Platform, Ash."
Just then, Nurse Joy walked over, gently patting his shoulder and saying softly:
"Don't miss this opportunity. Go and see it."
As a Nurse Joy, her duty was to care for Pokemon, and she couldn't treat any Trainer differently.
But Nurse Joy wasn't a robot; she had her own subjective feelings.
She felt that no one was more suitable to be that Charmander's Trainer than Ash.
At least he was more qualified than that other kid.
"I understand!"
Hearing this, Ash's spirits lifted. He quickly called for Brock and Misty, and they once again returned to the Rocky Area High Platform.
From a distance, they could see the Charmander standing there.
But this time, it was full of vigor and spirit.
The flame on its tail burned vigorously.
"Aoo-roar!!"
It suddenly threw its head back and roared, even spitting out a huge, dark-red ball of Flame from its mouth.
BOOM—hiss...!!
The Flame violently exploded in mid-air, the heatwave scorching.
The Near Death State had doubled its Combat Capability!
"That's Dragon Rage, a god-tier move for novices. An ordinary Charmander couldn't possibly master it,"
Brock said, slightly astonished, providing commentary.
"Dragon Rage?"
Seeing this, Ash's eyes lit up, and he quickened his pace.
"Little Fire..."
But before Ash could finish his sentence, another shout came from the other side.
"Charmander, it looks like you've gotten stronger. I've come to take you back as promised."
Dayou had appeared on the other side of the High Platform at some point.
He held up a Poké Ball toward Charmander, his expression smug.
Damn, I can't believe I misjudged it. It's actually a Charmander with outstanding Aptitude?
Haha, I'm about to get a Charmander that knows Dragon Rage for free!
Dayou was feeling very pleased with himself.
Ash, however, quickly ran up and shouted loudly:
"Don't listen to him, Charmander! This guy is not a good person, he abandoned you before!"
"Aoo...argh...?"
This interruption threw Charmander into a state of conflict, looking back and forth.
"What do you think you're doing? I'm its master!"
This infuriated Dayou. First, he gets punched yesterday, and now this guy is bossing his Pokemon around.
"Get back here, now!!"
Dayou directly threw the original Poké Ball at Charmander by force.
"ROAR!!"
But this action made Charmander truly make up its mind.
Its gaze hardened, the flame on its tail flared up, and it stretched out a claw, bringing it down in a vertical slash at the incoming Poké Ball.
CRACK!!
The Poké Ball shattered on the spot in the next instant!
This also meant that the final connection between Charmander and Dayou was completely broken.
"You... you... you..."
Dayou was so angry at this scene that he was at a loss for words.
Seeing Charmander posturing as if to unleash another impressive Dragon Rage, his face darkened, and he fled, cursing under his breath.
"You idiot, what are you standing there for!"
"Go on, Ash."
Once Dayou was completely gone, Brock and Misty pushed Ash from behind.
Ash took a deep breath, walked forward, and slowly took out his Poké Ball.
"Although your last Trainer was a scumbag, not all humans are like that. Charmander, would you be willing to travel with me?"
He had also always longed for a cool Charmander.
"Awoo!!"
Charmander's determined eyes suddenly curved, revealing an innocent smile.
Thwack!
In the end, it actively stretched out its claw and tapped his Poké Ball.
A red light flashed, and Charmander entered the Poké Ball. It didn't even shake, stopping its movement immediately.
"I caught a Charmander!!"
Ash couldn't hide his excitement, holding the Poké Ball aloft, spinning and jumping, dancing with joy.
The Kanto Starter Pokémon Trio, he's finally completed the set!!
"Beep-beep. Data updated. Congratulations, Trainer, for unlocking the Achievement: Collect the Kanto Longevity Trio Bonds."
Just then, a notification sound came from the Pokedex at his waist.
The BGM was even a celebratory "didi-di."
"Longevity Trio Bonds?"
Ash pulled out his Pokedex in confusion and asked:
"Details?"
"Beep-beep. The Pokedex is equipped with the Trainer's Achievement Recording System. Complete designated tasks to unlock Achievements."
The Pokedex answered in a serious tone.
Intrigued, the three of them couldn't resist prodding and poking at the Pokedex with all six of their hands.
"Ooh, ooh, Ash, you've already completed three Achievements! Let me see, let me see what they are..."
"Wow, Pikachu has a Path of the Actor Achievement, and has just unlocked 'Junior Trainee'."
"Pidgeotto and Caterpie have a Food Chain Achievement, 'Birdie and Buggy'."
"Hundred-Year Fire Dragon + Thousand-Year Turtle + Ten-Thousand-Year Tortoise, this is the Kanto Starter Pokémon Trio's longevity Achievement."
Hearing this, Ash's brow furrowed. What was all this nonsense?
He abruptly held up the Pokedex and shouted:
"Enough with this flashy nonsense! Pokedex, help me delete this whole Achievement System!"
"Beep-beep. Deleting... Deletion failed. Cannot be deleted. Everything is to help the Trainer achieve their life's goal!"
After its CPU spun at high frequency for a moment, the Pokedex issued an inspiring notification.
"The goal is to make Trainer Ash... the King of Pokemon!"
Ash: "?"
Do I normally speak with an accent, or did your Pokedex get waterlogged?