"Red, about Charmander?" Gary asked tentatively.
"Professor Oak, could we borrow the backyard battlefield?" Red said.
Professor Oak nodded and turned to lead the three of them over.
Red and the others followed Professor Oak to the backyard arena. Red tossed out Charmander's Poké Ball. This time, Charmander did not recklessly use Flamethrower. Instead, it observed Red's movements, clearly beginning to acknowledge him.
"Red, this Charmander's level is quite high. Don't underestimate it!" Professor Oak reminded him.
"Don't worry, Professor Oak. I will absolutely not lose." Red stroked the Poké Ball at his waist. "It's your turn, Beedrill."
Without Red even needing to throw the Poké Ball, Beedrill emerged on its own. Its sharp twin stingers occasionally scraped against each other, radiating an intimidating aura.
"As expected, it's Beedrill!" Leaf said. Beedrill was Red's starter Pokémon, and its strength had long earned Red's complete trust.
"That Beedrill's strength is no joke. I've never seen it lose!" Gary rarely showed such a serious expression. He knew roughly what Beedrill had gone through—three years of training had allowed its strength to soar by leaps and bounds.
Charmander did not use Flamethrower. Instead, it used Smokescreen to disrupt the field of vision. With its excellent battle instincts, Charmander clearly sensed how powerful Beedrill was.
"Not bad battle talent!" Red praised, giving Beedrill a look. Beedrill nodded—this meant Red was allowing it to fight freely.
The vision-obscuring smokescreen was completely blown away by Beedrill, and Charmander was exposed within its sight. Seeing this, Charmander anxiously used Outrage, falling into a berserk state, eager to defeat Beedrill as soon as possible.
"Impressive aptitude—you've even mastered Outrage. It's just a pity you're still too impulsive." Red praised Charmander again, further acknowledging its talent, though he was slightly dissatisfied with its rash use of Outrage.
Beedrill gave a disdainful smile when it saw Charmander use Outrage. Even though Outrage could temporarily boost Charmander's strength, a Charmander that had lost its reason was, to Beedrill, nothing more than a living target.
"Raaah!"
The enraged Charmander continuously unleashed Flamethrower, but Beedrill easily avoided them with Agility. Charmander's stamina gradually approached collapse.
Suddenly, the flame on Charmander's tail burned fiercely. Having triggered Blaze, Charmander stared at Beedrill with a solemn expression, as if prepared to go down together with it.
Beedrill did not react. The restless Charmander had no choice but to take the initiative. With both Blaze and Outrage enhancing it, the Flamethrower it released was no weaker than that of a fully evolved Fire-type Pokémon.
Seeing this, Beedrill swiftly used Agility to evade. If struck, it would likely suffer a burn. But clearly, Beedrill intended to defeat Charmander without taking even the slightest damage, to teach the arrogant Charmander what it meant that there is always someone stronger.
"This Charmander's talent is way too outrageous!" Gary said in disbelief. That Flamethrower just now might not even be matched by an evolved Charmeleon. Yet it came from a mere mixed-blood Charmander.
"It's simply that both Red and Charmander are fortunate—they were destined to meet each other!" Leaf sighed. If it had been her or Gary, Charmander's final destination might have been returning to the League's breeding center, or simply being released to roam freely in the Charizard Valley.
"You could say fate allowed Red to meet Charmander!" Professor Oak agreed. There was also a bit of selfishness on his part—he understood Red's personality well. Red would never turn away a powerful Pokémon with a strong character.
"Finish it with one last move," Red said when he saw Charmander could no longer release flames, giving Beedrill its final command.
Charmander stubbornly tried to release more fire, but only black smoke came out. Seeing this, Beedrill circled behind it and used X-Scissor, knocking Charmander straight to the ground.
After defeating Charmander, Beedrill quietly returned to Red's side. Seeing the injuries on Charmander's body, Red took out a healing spray from his backpack.
Red carefully treated Charmander's wounds. At first, Charmander whimpered due to the pain, but soon it let out happy sounds from the cooling sensation brought by the spray. Seeing this, Red reached out and stroked Charmander's head. Charmander happily rubbed its head against Red's cheek, clearly fully acknowledging him as its Trainer.
"As expected, my choice wasn't wrong!" Professor Oak said happily. At first, he had worried that Red might be dissatisfied with this hard-to-control Charmander, but seeing the satisfied smile on Red's face, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, secretly grateful for his decision.
"Come back, Charmander." Red picked up the Poké Ball and recalled the now-recovered Charmander. As they prepared to leave, Gary suddenly stopped them.
"Red, let's have a Pokémon battle!" Gary declared his challenge.
"Alright!"
Red sent out Charmander. As soon as it appeared, it locked its gaze firmly onto Beedrill, mistakenly thinking Red wanted it to challenge Beedrill again.
"Hey, hey, little guy—your opponent is over here!" Gary said helplessly as he threw his Poké Ball. Squirtle appeared and cautiously stared at Charmander. As fellow starters raised by the League in the same batch, Squirtle knew very well of Charmander's 'tyrant' reputation.
But since this was its Trainer's requested first battle, Squirtle briefly set aside its past of being bullied by Charmander and seriously awaited Gary's command.
"Leaf, send out Bulbasaur as well," Red said, glancing at Leaf. Noticing the fighting spirit in her eyes, he proactively suggested a one-versus-two battle.
"Hey! Red, aren't you underestimating me and Squirtle?!" Gary complained. Squirtle, already ready for battle, pouted unhappily as well, feeling underestimated.
"Gary, Squirtle alone can't defeat Charmander. Charmander's strength has already surpassed the level of a standard starter," Red said as he crouched down and placed his hand on Charmander's head.
"You're about to witness a brand-new Charmander."
[Ding! Identifying Pokémon: Charmander. Stack the Solar Power Ability?]
The system's mechanical voice echoed once more in Red's mind. This time, Red agreed without hesitation, stacking the Solar Power Ability onto Charmander.
[Stacking Solar Power Ability!]
(Solar Power: Under Harsh Sunlight or Sunny weather, Special Attack increases to 1.5×, but loses 1/8 of maximum HP each turn.)
Under the watchful eyes of the three, faint sparks occasionally flickered across Charmander's skin. The flame on its tail blazed intensely, as if Blaze had been triggered. However, Charmander's stamina was currently sufficient, so the conditions to activate Blaze were not met.
Professor Oak glanced over, then looked at Red suspiciously, but ultimately shook his head. Putting aside the changes in Charmander, those familiar with Red knew about his psychic powers. Professor Oak subconsciously assumed that Red had used his psychic abilities to improve Charmander's physique.
"I'm counting on you, Bulbasaur!" After adjusting her battle stance, Leaf sent out Bulbasaur.
Facing the hostility from Squirtle and Bulbasaur, Charmander confidently raised its head, completely unafraid of their combined assault. After all, these two used to tremble in fear whenever they saw it. Even with their Trainers' commands, that wouldn't change.
Moreover, Charmander glanced back at Red, who looked at it with complete confidence. Its own Trainer was far more outstanding than those two humans before it.