"You're just theorists, buried in books," Red said, his voice cutting through the stunned silence of the room. He gave no one any quarter. "You can't even defeat a second-rate trainer in the wild. You're nothing but pampered hothouse flowers."
Giselle, who had witnessed the entire battle, did not refute his claim. She couldn't. Red's strength gave his harsh words an undeniable weight.
"Don't you want to continue?" Red asked, gesturing to Giselle. "My Charmeleon is still excited." The fire lizard, having just defeated five Pokémon, showed no signs of fatigue. It was spoiling for a real fight.
"Go, Graveler!" Giselle threw another Poké Ball, sending out the sturdy Rock-type in a desperate attempt to counter Charmeleon's fiery power.
Charmeleon didn't wait for a command. It surged forward, its claws glowing with the white-hot energy of Brick Break.
"Graveler, Rollout!" Giselle commanded quickly.
Graveler tucked itself into a sphere and withstood the initial blow but was immediately struck by a follow-up Iron Tail.
"Graveler, use Stomp!"
Graveler stomped the ground hard, and the violent tremors made everyone stumble. In that moment of chaos, Charmeleon, blinded by its recent string of easy victories, let its guard down. It was a fatal mistake. Seizing the opportunity, Giselle commanded her Graveler to use its own Brick Break, and the powerful blow struck Charmeleon square in the head.
"You defeated nothing but trash, and you became so arrogant you forgot to defend yourself," Red criticized sharply. Charmeleon, staggering from the pain, looked down in shame. It could have easily leaped into the air to dodge. Blind overconfidence had cost it dearly.
(What a strict trainer…) Giselle thought, surprised. Charmeleon's raw talent was astonishing, yet Red hadn't praised it once, instead scolding it for a single error. Even more puzzling, the powerful Pokémon readily accepted the criticism.
"Charmeleon, use Fire Spin to trap it!" Red commanded.
His partner quickly recovered, spitting a vortex of fire that encircled the Graveler. Though the flames couldn't do much damage, they effectively pinned the Rock-type in place.
"Oh no! Graveler, use Stone Edge!" Giselle panicked.
"Too late. Charmeleon, Brick Break."
Trapped and disoriented, Graveler didn't even hear the command before Charmeleon's glowing claws smashed into its head from outside the fiery prison, knocking it to the ground.
"Miss Giselle... lost..." Joe whispered in disbelief.
"How could this be?! He must have given his Charmeleon stimulants!" the five bullies shouted.
"Shut up!" Giselle snapped, her face flushed with humiliation. "I know the strength of my opponent!"
"What a powerful Charmeleon," a new voice boomed, filled with admiration. "Truly worthy of being the trainer recommended by Professor Oak."
Red turned. Standing in the doorway was a man with vibrant red hair and a flowing black cape. It was Lance, the Dragon Master of the Kanto Elite Four.
"Are you... the Champion, Lance?!" Giselle gasped, her earlier frustration forgotten, replaced by pure, star-struck awe.
"I came at the request of your principal," Lance explained. "After all, I used to be a student here."
The defeated students swelled with pride. A Champion, one of the strongest trainers in the world, had graduated from their school! The sting of their humiliating defeat was instantly soothed.
Red said nothing. He just glanced at Lance, his eyes showing no hint of admiration or fear. In his eyes, the Champion was just another person.
(Such a sharp gaze…) Not only was Red observing Lance, but the Champion was observing him. Red's application for a Master Ball had sent ripples through the League's upper echelons, and they had entrusted Lance to personally evaluate the boy's strength.
"Hello, Red," Lance said, a warm smile on his face. "Professor Oak speaks very highly of you."
"You're here to review my right to use the Master Balls, aren't you?" Red stated, cutting straight to the point.
Lance's smile widened. "That's right," he said, pulling two shrunken Master Balls from his pocket. "The League's regulations are strict. However, based on the significant contributions your research has made, they have approved your request." He handed the two priceless items to Red.
"How could this broken school produce a Champion-level trainer?" Red asked bluntly, pocketing the Master Balls.
"You bastard!" Giselle's face turned red with anger, but she couldn't refute him.
"Actually..." Lance scratched his head awkwardly. "I didn't graduate. I was always at the bottom of the class, so I dropped out to travel the world. That's how I became strong."
The revelation struck Giselle like a physical blow. The powerful Champion was a dropout. Everything she believed in, the entire foundation of her school, crumbled in an instant.
"Long time no see, Lance!" an elderly man said, walking into the room. He gently persuaded the other students to leave.
"Grandpa!" Giselle said, her voice trembling.
"Long time no see, Principal Yuto," Lance said respectfully.
"Grandpa, this guy just slandered our school!" Giselle complained, pointing at Red.
"My dear," the principal said with a weary sigh, "the young man is correct. I don't know when it happened, but our school has lost its way."
Giselle was speechless. Her grandfather's words were the final crack in her resolve. "Grandpa," she said, her voice now firm. "I want to travel. Like Champion Lance. And... I want to defeat this guy at the Indigo Plateau Conference!"
"An excellent idea," the principal said, a proud smile on his face. He instructed a nearby butler to prepare everything she would need for her journey.
"Wait," Giselle said, stopping Red as he was about to leave. She pulled out a heavily reinforced Ultra Ball. "Before you go, I want one last challenge. My real partner."
"I'm counting on you, Gabite!" she said proudly, sending out the fierce Land Shark Pokémon.
"How exciting," Red said, his voice still flat. He sent out Charmeleon, now fully recovered and ready for another fight.
Lance watched, a knowing look in his eyes. He knew this Charmeleon was the volatile, mixed-breed specimen from the League labs. (An excellent Pokémon should be paired with an excellent trainer,) he thought, giving the principal a final nod before quietly departing. (Red Ketchum... I'll be waiting for you at the Indigo Plateau.)
Outside, under the bright sun, the final battle began.
"Gabite, use Sandstorm!"
The world was consumed by swirling dust. Charmeleon, caught in the storm, was pelted by the sharp grains of sand. But under the clear sky, the flame on its tail burned fiercely as its Solar Power ability activated.
"Fire Spin." Charmeleon unleashed a vortex of flame that battled against the raging sandstorm.
"Dual Chop!" Gabite lunged, its glowing claws slashing through the chaotic winds, but Charmeleon deftly evaded the attack.
"Flamethrower!" At point-blank range, the flames were inescapable. Gabite tried to cleave them with Slash, but the sun-fueled fire was too powerful. It broke through, scorching Gabite's claws.
"Oh no!" Giselle cried, regretting her reckless command. Her confidence was already shattered, and now her Pokémon was burned.
Both Pokémon, ignoring their wounds, charged, meeting in a furious clash of Dragon Claws. After several exchanges, the sandstorm finally dissipated. Seeing its chance, Charmeleon moved.
"Grab it with Dragon Claw," Red commanded. "Then, Burn Up."
Charmeleon seized the struggling Gabite. Giselle screamed for it to dodge, but it was too late. Charmeleon unleashed a final, ultimate torrent of fire, so intense it burned a brilliant, bluish-white. When the flames cleared, the burned and battered Gabite lay unconscious on the ground.
***********
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