"Charmander, Ember!"
There were still plenty of filler contestants in the early rounds—some weren't even real Trainers.
Sam's opponent in the first round was a wealthy lady, and the Pokémon she sent out was Eevee.
Cute, small, and delicate—Eevee and Pikachu were undoubtedly among the most popular Pokémon for the rich.
However, aside from a few rare exceptions, Eevee and Pikachu were not Pokémon suited for real combat. Most of them had extremely poor battle capability.
Unfortunately, Sam's opponent clearly fell into the majority.
Her Eevee had been raised purely as a pet and had no combat training whatsoever. Sam genuinely couldn't understand why she brought such an Eevee into a competitive tournament.
Was this some kind of abuse?
The fireball launched by Charmander instantly frightened Eevee stiff. No matter how desperately its Trainer shouted, Eevee stood frozen in place, completely unable to move.
Boom!
"Eevee has lost the ability to battle. Charmander wins!"
Seeing Eevee lying on the ground, its fur scorched and eyes tightly shut, the referee immediately announced the result.
"Eevee!"
The rich lady rushed over, picked Eevee up anxiously, and after checking it with a distressed expression, she suddenly glared at Sam.
"How could you be so cruel?! My Eevee is burned!"
Her words made Sam want to laugh.
He wasn't her babysitter, and he had no obligation to coddle her Pokémon.
"You should blame yourself, not me," Sam said coldly.
"If you hadn't brought a Pokémon with zero combat ability into a tournament, none of this would've happened. Eevee getting hurt is the result of your irresponsibility as a Trainer."
"You—!!!"
Sam didn't even bother looking at her again. He turned around and left the battlefield.
---
During lunch, Ash seemed unusually distracted, clearly deep in thought.
"What's wrong, Ash?"
Sam asked after swallowing a bite of steak.
Ash should have passed the first round smoothly.
"Sam…" Ash hesitated.
"Do you think I should trade Pokémon with someone?"
Trade Pokémon?
Sam instantly understood what had happened.
As expected, Ash had encountered a middle-aged gentleman using Raticate in the first round. Ash defeated Raticate with Butterfree, but afterward, the man spoke politely and emotionally.
Ash, being Ash, started considering whether he should trade Butterfree for the man's Raticate.
After hearing this, Sam was speechless.
He genuinely couldn't understand what was going on inside Ash's head.
Normally, people traded Pokémon for two reasons:
1. The other Pokémon was rarer or more valuable
2. They genuinely liked the other Pokémon
Ash met neither condition.
Butterfree might not be rare, but everyone knew one thing—Pokémon trained by Ash always had exceptional quality. Butterfree's talent was excellent.
Why would anyone exchange it for an ordinary Raticate that had lost to it?
Unless someone had lost their mind, no normal person would make such a trade.
"Do you like that Raticate?" Sam asked.
Ash shook his head. "No."
"Then do you dislike Butterfree?"
"Of course not. I love it."
"Then what are you even struggling over?"
Sam sighed.
"Trading the first Pokémon you caught—one you like—for a Pokémon you don't like, and one that lost to Butterfree at that? That's not something a normal Trainer would do."
Sam's words hit hard.
"Sam's right, Ash," Brock added.
"I don't think you should trade Butterfree either. It would be too pitiful. It might think you abandoned it."
With both Sam and Brock persuading him, Ash finally realized how foolish his thoughts had been.
He immediately released Butterfree.
"I'm sorry, Butterfree," Ash said sincerely.
"I shouldn't have even thought about trading you away."
Recognizing mistakes and correcting them was Ash's greatest strength.
Butterfree was initially sad after learning that Ash had considered trading it—but after hearing his apology, it immediately cheered up.
It flew happily around Ash, expressing its joy.
Pokémon were simple creatures.
As long as you treated them sincerely, they would repay you a hundredfold.
"Charmander, sit down! Don't climb onto the table!"
------------Author---------------
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