Damian's face was burning after scolding Poliwag.
The Trainers' discussions around him pricked him like needles.
"That Ember just now... its power was too strong, wasn't it?"
"One hit knockout against a type disadvantage? This Charmander is really well-trained!"
Damian stared intently at the Charmander, standing proudly in the arena.
The flame on its tail burned exceptionally fiercely, deep red with golden edges. Just looking at it, one could feel a wave of heat.
Can this Charmander use its other skills so proficiently?
I should have tried it last time.
And this flame intensity, it's not right!
When used against the Poliwag in the pond, it had almost no effect, did it?
How is this flame so fierce now?
When he first got it, his Second Uncle mysteriously pulled him aside and whispered, "Damian, this Charmander is extraordinary. Your Second Uncle paid a hefty price to get it."
"It has high potential. Train it well, and it will definitely help you achieve great things in the future!"
"It might even help you become Champion."
Damian was excited at the time, touching the brand new poké ball, his mind full of images of showing off to his friends.
What potential, what Champion?
He didn't take it to heart at all.
He waved his hand dismissively, "Got it, got it, Second Uncle, you're so long-winded."
Now... now he watched Charmander skillfully dodge Poliwag's attacks.
He watched that incredibly powerful deep red Ember.
He watched it obey commands during battle, using skills like Smokescreen, Tackle, and Scratch, and connecting them so proficiently!
It knew all these skills?
Damian suddenly remembered, what was the first thing he did after catching Charmander?
He threw it directly into the forest and ordered it to battle wild Poliwag.
As a result, it was defeated.
Soaked all over, its tail flame weak.
Damian cursed it as "trash" then... then he never properly trained it again, just let it fight a few small bugs casually.
Every day, he made it do chores, and if he was in a bad mood, he would beat and scold it. Finally, he simply tricked it into waiting on a rock.
If I had also commanded it to use these skills, would it have been this strong?
This thought popped into Damian's mind.
Immediately after, an intense regret mixed with jealousy bit at his heart like a venomous snake.
Why?
Why did the trash I threw away become so powerful in this kid's hands?
That should have been my power!
My Champion potential!
Damian's eyes turned red.
He stared at Charmander, then looked at Roy.
Roy was squatting down, gently stroking Charmander's head, whispering something.
Charmander affectionately rubbed against his hand.
That look of trust and reliance... Damian suddenly found it incredibly jarring.
That should have belonged to him!
"Cough..."
Damian coughed dryly, forcing a smile.
He took a step forward, putting on an expression that said, "I'm a magnanimous person."
"Not bad, kid."
He said to Roy, feigning a relaxed tone:
"I didn't expect your training level to be quite good."
"To train my Charmander... to this extent."
He deliberately emphasized the words "my."
Roy looked up, his gaze cold as he watched him.
He didn't speak.
Damian felt a bit uneasy under his gaze, but he still bit the bullet and turned to Charmander.
He plastered a smile on his face, a smile so fake it was sickening.
"Little tra... Charmander, seeing as you've gotten stronger."
He pulled out the red and white poké ball that originally belonged to Charmander.
He tossed it in his hand.
"I, Damian, am not a petty person."
"I'll give you another chance."
He pressed the button on the poké ball, aiming it at Charmander.
With a condescending expression:
"Come on, come back to me."
"Only by following me can you become stronger!"
As his words fell, he threw the poké ball.
Charmander stood still, unmoving.
It looked up at the red light shooting towards it.
It looked at the familiar poké ball.
It looked at Damian's fake smiling face.
In an instant, countless memories flooded its mind.
The cold rain.
The endless waiting on the rock.
The insults of "trash," "useless thing," and "get lost."
And last night, the new master's warm embrace, the all-night vigil.
Charmander's tail suddenly whipped!
Whoosh!
Its tail, burning with deep red flames, accurately struck the thrown poké ball.
The poké ball was directly smacked back, hitting Damian in the face with a "thwack"!
"Ah!"
Damian cried out in pain, clutching his nose.
And Charmander had already opened its mouth.
Deep red flames condensed in its mouth.
It aimed at the poké ball that had fallen to the ground, the one that once bound it.
Boom!
A scorching pillar of fire erupted!
With a crisp "crack".
The poké ball's shell instantly cracked under the high temperature!
And the residual flames singed the hair and eyebrows of Damian, who had squatted down to pick up the ball.
"Waaah!"
Damian shrieked, falling backward, frantically slapping his face.
A clump of his hair was charred, half his eyebrows were gone, and his face was black and red, looking utterly disheveled.
Charmander retracted its flames.
It stood in place, looking down at Damian on the ground, its eyes seemingly saying: it was already Roy's dragon.
It no longer needed his small ball; Roy's big ball was more comfortable.
Then, as Damian watched, Charmander voluntarily entered Roy's big poké ball.
"No, no!" Damian cried out helplessly.
But the poké ball instantly stabilized, imprinting Charmander with Roy's mark, indicating it was now Roy's Pokemon.
"That's mine... my Charmander..."
Suddenly, he leaped up, pointing at Roy, screaming hysterically:
"You! You stole my Pokemon!"
"Everyone saw it! He stole my Charmander!"
"Alliance law prohibits stealing other people's Pokemon! You're going to jail!"
He turned to the surrounding Trainers, trying to find support:
"Am I right?! This is robbery!"
However, he was met only with disdainful glances and whispers.
"Pah, how shameless."
"Who was it that said 'the trash I threw away' just now?"
"Now that someone else trained it to be strong, it's suddenly his again?"
Damian's face alternated between green and white.
He knew he was in the wrong.
But the jealousy and unwillingness to lose his "treasure" burned away his reason.
He glared fiercely at Roy:
"You just wait! Kid, I'll remember you!"
"How dare you steal something from Damian, you're dead!"
"My Second Uncle won't let you off! You..."
He hadn't finished speaking.
A strong hand suddenly reached out from behind and grabbed his wrist.
Immediately after, another hand also grabbed his other wrist.
Click!
A cold, hard sensation came.
Damian looked down.
A shiny pair of handcuffs was already locked on his wrists.
"Eh??"
Damian was stunned.
He spun his head around.
Behind him stood two police officers in uniform, with stern expressions.
"You... what are you doing?"
Damian panicked and struggled, "Why are you arresting me! Arrest him! He stole my Pokemon!"
One police officer said coldly, "Trainer Damian, you are being investigated."
"Investigated for what! What do I have to be investigated for!" Damian shouted, "Let me go! Do you know who my Second Uncle is! How dare you arrest me?!"
Just then.
The sound of a police motorcycle engine came from afar.
A blue and white motorcycle sped over and stopped with a beautiful drift.
Officer Jenny, in her sharp police uniform and heroic demeanor, dismounted the motorcycle.
Delia was also riding behind her.
Officer Jenny walked closer, first nodding to Roy, then looking at the handcuffed Damian.
She unfolded the electronic arrest warrant in her hand, her voice clear and strong:
"Trainer Damian, you are hereby officially notified."
"You are suspected of long-term, repeated deliberate abuse of Pokemon and malicious abandonment, with conclusive evidence."
"In accordance with the 'Pokemon Protection Act' and the 'Trainer Code of Conduct Regulations,' you are hereby arrested and further investigation will be conducted."
"You have the right to remain silent, but anything you say will be used as evidence in court."
Damian was struck by lightning, frozen in place.
"Abu... abuse? Abandonment?"
His face instantly turned pale, but he still tried to hold on:
"I didn't! You're lying! Where's the evidence!"
Officer Jenny looked at Delia.
Delia immediately stepped forward, took out Roy's pokédex, and pulled up the video.
The video footage was clear, and the sound was distinct.
It was the segment Pikachu secretly filmed—Damian forcing newly caught Pokemon to fight each other, then tricking them one by one into different locations to abandon them.
The surrounding Trainers leaned in for a few glances and immediately erupted.
"Holy crap! He's not even human!"
"Treating Pokemon like that? He's a beast!"
"No wonder that Charmander was so resolute just now..."
Damian watched the video, his legs turning to jelly.
"This... this is fake! It's false!"
He blurted out, "I want to find my Second Uncle! My Second Uncle is..."
Officer Jenny directly interrupted him, waving her hand, "Take him away!"
The two police officers lifted the limp Damian and dragged him towards the police car.
Damian was still struggling and shouting in vain.
His voice grew fainter and fainter.
Finally disappearing with the sound of the police car door closing.
Officer Jenny turned to Roy and the other two, her expression softening into an appreciative smile.
"Roy, Misty, and Ms. Delia."
"Thank you for providing crucial evidence and bravely stepping forward to expose illegal behavior."
"The Alliance will remember your righteous actions."
She operated the device in her hand:
"According to regulations, those who report such serious illegal acts and provide conclusive evidence can receive a reward."
"I have registered your three Trainer IDs and information. The reward will be deposited into your associated Alliance accounts within three business days."
Misty smiled happily, "That's great! It's what we should do!"
Delia also nodded with a smile.
Officer Jenny's gaze finally rested on Roy's face.
Her eyes lingered for a moment on Roy's young yet steady face.
That handsome face now held a calm confidence, his eyes bright and firm.
Officer Jenny had actually met many Trainers.
But she didn't know why, she always felt a special fondness when she saw Roy.
She suddenly took a small step forward, closer to Roy.
Her stern professional expression faded, replaced by a more personal, admiring smile.
Her voice also lowered, with a hint of undetectable softness:
"Roy, this time, we really owe you a lot."
"Not only did you save that Charmander, but you also exposed such a disgrace among Trainers."
She tilted her head slightly, appraising Roy, her smile deepening:
"So righteous, so handsome, and so strong..."
"If it weren't for the fact that my precinct's affairs are truly busy lately, I'd really like to get to know you more deeply."
After speaking, she turned around and gracefully mounted her police motorcycle.
"Well then, if there's any progress in the follow-up investigation, I'll contact you again."
"Goodbye, righteous Trainers."
The engine roared, and the blue and white motorcycle sped off, leaving a trail of dust.
Leaving Misty somewhat stunned.
"Eh...?"
Misty looked in the direction Officer Jenny left, then at Roy.
Her mind replayed Officer Jenny's smile and the clearly extra-friendly tone and gaze.
"Why..."
She mumbled softly, her brows slightly furrowed:
"Officer Jenny... specifically praised Roy?"
"And said something about getting to know him more deeply..."
Just then, Delia leaned over, seeing Misty's current look of confusion mixed with an unconscious pout... a hint of understanding and amusement flashed in Delia's eyes.
She deliberately moved closer to Misty, gently nudging her with her elbow, and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"It seems our Roy is quite popular, isn't he~"
"Even Officer Jenny looks at him differently."
She observed Misty's face instantly turning red and continued to "assist" with a smile:
"Misty, the early bird catches the worm, you know."
"You have to..."
"Ah?! Me??"
Before Delia could finish, Misty jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Her entire face flushed crimson, even the tips of her ears were bright red.
"I... I...!"
She fumbled, her eyes darting everywhere, not daring to look at Roy.
"I'm not ready for that... Roy... oh, gosh~"
"Ah!! I'm not saying anything else! Let's go! It's time to go!"
She practically yelled it.
Then, without looking back, she stiffly walked quickly forward, her arms and legs moving in unison, her back showing her panic.
Roy couldn't help but laugh as he watched Misty's almost uncoordinated retreating figure.
He turned his head and exchanged glances with Delia.
Delia mouthed "go for it" to him, her eyes full of mischief and encouragement.
Roy nodded slightly.
He understood perfectly.
Misty's reaction already explained a lot.
It seemed that with a little more pushing, this shy yet straightforward mermaid could be 'eaten'.
But that was for late at night.
For now, in broad daylight, he still had to get serious business done.