Chapter 334: Goal? Meaning?

Steelix still had stamina left, but not much.

The 【Sturdy】 ability only left it enough strength for one final strike.

At this point it was pretty much over—after all, with its current move pool, it didn't have a single technique that could turn the tide, nor any ability to rapidly recover its stamina that was nearing its limit.

However.

Baimu did not declare the match over.

He knew Steelix didn't want it to end either.

"Roooar…"

Its massive body let out creaking, cracking sounds, like metal fatigue, as Steelix laboriously turned its hill-like head, staring at the not-so-distant Mega Gardevoir and Mitsuru, and opened its abyss-like maw wide.

"Dragon Breath."

Baimu issued the final command.

Steelix, already unable to move its body, took a deep breath and, using the very last of its strength, spewed forth the accumulated indigo flames!

Whoosh!

The blazing inferno almost took the form of a fire dragon.

But the next instant, a deep violet blade of light came streaking in and sliced it clean in two!

Boom!

The blue flames shattered apart.

The Mega Gardevoir, having swung its arm-blade, stood perfectly still in place, its crimson edge gleaming dazzlingly under the light of its energy.

And when the rising full moon illuminated the field, its cape fluttering in the wind made this pure-white knight look incomparably holy.

"One more…"

Mitsuru swallowed the rest of his words himself.

Because he had already seen Steelix's swirly, fainted eyes.

Honestly, after the close-range hit landed, he had suspected the latter had already lost the ability to fight. Who would have thought Steelix could still move, and even fire off a Dragon Breath.

Sturdy? That had to be it.

But thankfully, he had won…

Won!

Mitsuru clenched his fist hard, his brow full of excitement and emotion. The long-lost surge of feeling filled his chest, making him seem far more alive.

Gardevoir, having reverted to its normal form, was infected by its Trainer's enthusiasm and equally thrilled.

They exchanged a glance, and identical brilliant smiles spread across both their faces.

It was clearly just an ordinary battle—even the opponent's strength was far below that of some of the tough foes at the tournament—but the feelings welling up in both their hearts now were no less than when they had first broken into the semifinals.

Was it because it had been too long since they'd battled?

Mitsuru wasn't sure, but without a doubt, at this moment he only wanted to savor this rare joy.

He was about to go over and say something to Baimu when his cousin Aman suddenly ran up and excitedly hugged him.

"Mitsuru! That was amazing! Mitsuru!"

Cousin Aman said, bouncing with joy, then let go and couldn't help but applaud him, her hands turning red without stopping.

After all, the child who had once loved Pokémon battles so much had suddenly said he didn't want to be a Trainer anymore, and had gone a long time without battling other Trainers—how could she possibly set her mind at ease?

Seeing that familiar expression on his face now, his cousin couldn't have been happier.

"You're being too loud, you'll disturb the guests."

Mitsuru shyly begged for mercy, pleading with his cousin to stop clapping, and was pulled by her into the inn's corridor.

The surrounding lodgers who had been watching, upon seeing him approach, curiously crowded around, firing off questions left and right.

"Was that Mega Evolution you just used? So cool!"

"I think I recognize you—did you compete in the Lily of the Valley Conference?"

"At your age I was out traveling the whole time—did you just finish your journey? How come you're working as a server?"

The machine-gun barrage of questions left Mitsuru unsure how to respond. Waving his hands, he forced a somewhat strained smile. "Um, uh, I…"

"I'm very sorry, everyone, he's exhausted from the battle and needs to rest—really sorry about that…"

Cousin Aman stepped between them just in time and pushed Mitsuru away from the scene.

The group of lodgers exchanged glances, glanced again at Baimu still on the field, and, their interest fading, returned to their rooms.

On the field.

Baimu gently comforted Steelix.

The poor thing had been called all the way here wanting to show off its skills, and before it knew it, after taking out one teammate and reducing another to near-death, it had been one-shot by some bizarre Pokémon.

Mm.

Even though it had managed a counterattack, there wasn't much difference in essence.

"Don't worry, this is just a small setback. What matters is that you fought until the very end."

Baimu gently patted its forehead, producing dull thumping sounds.

This level of force was well within Steelix's comfort zone—even taking a small wooden mallet to it wouldn't be much of an issue.

"Roooar…"

Steelix, its chin pressed against the ground, gave a low response.

Real combat is different from a practice match that stops at a touch—you have to fight until the very last second, until the very last drop of stamina is spent.

Giving everything you've got to win, never giving up until the final second.

This was the result of their ace Aggron leading by example, teaching through action. Its will had influenced Baimu, and had influenced every Pokémon on the team—even the usually slack Galarian Corsola would fight to its absolute limit.

"Rest easy."

All Baimu recalled it into its Poké Ball and opened the Pokédex app on his phone.

Though he didn't know Manchu's exact strength, this guy's Pokémon average level was definitely no lower than sixty-five, and his ace Gardevoir might well exceed level seventy.

Of course, for now it was just speculation.

"Whew~ It's grown, it's grown." Seeing his Galarian Sun Coral level up, he was overjoyed.

Why did he battle Manchu? Wasn't it precisely so his Pokémon could grow stronger?

If he truly wanted to win, he could have sent out Boldore and the others, fought Manchu to the very last second, instead of fielding a bunch of "rookies."

Letting these guys grind it out was how they grew.

All Baimu glanced up at the bright crescent moon in the sky, pondering whether Manchu would agree to another battle next time, while leading his three exhausted Pokémon toward the Pokémon Center.

He had just stepped out of the guesthouse door when he happened to bump into Manchu, who was coming around from the back door.

His Roserade was cursed and burned, so he also had to make a trip to the Pokémon Center.

The two locked eyes.

"Yo!" All Baimu raised a hand and greeted him.

Seeing that the former's expression was calm, showing no displeasure whatsoever, and that he even greeted him first, Manchu couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

Although most Trainers acted gracious whether they won or lost, there were also those who, after losing, would fly into a rage and curse him out. Manchu, with his rather soft personality, had run into quite a few such people.

Fortunately, this one wasn't like that.

"Um, would it be alright if I asked you some questions?" Manchu hurried to catch up beside him and asked in a slightly nervous, quiet voice.

"Ask questions? If it's something I know, I don't mind."

All Baimu walked forward slowly. "Besides, I have a few things I want to ask you too."

"Ha."

Hearing those words, Manchu lit up as if bathed in sunlight, breaking into a brilliant, delighted smile, and nodded happily. "I'll tell you everything I know, hold nothing back!"

"... It doesn't need to be that dramatic."

All Baimu tugged at the corner of his mouth.

What this kid wanted to ask was undoubtedly about Porygon and the other Pokémon. According to his own account, he had become a Trainer to overcome his frail constitution and set off on a journey together with Ralts.

Unfortunately, he had only visited two regions so far, so he basically didn't recognize any of the Pokémon All Baimu's Baimu Sect sent out, and found it all very novel.

Although he could learn about them through the Pokédex, the Pokédex entries were really too brief and seemed suspiciously exaggerated. Manchu would much rather hear about these Pokémon's traits directly from the Trainer who had raised them.

"Please teach me!"

Manchu excitedly clenched his fists, his bright, spirited eyes full of a thirst for knowledge.

However, unlike Captain Huoyan, whose curiosity was limited to people, Manchu's curiosity was directed at unknown Pokémon. He might also be curious about people, but given his personality, he probably wouldn't feel comfortable asking such personal questions.

Then what kind of predicament had he actually run into?

That even this almost fanatical thirst for knowledge couldn't serve as a breakthrough.

The two handed their Poké Balls to Nurse Joy and sat down by the window to wait.

After All Baimu finished answering Manchu's questions, he asked in return: "So why aren't you continuing your journey now? Wanting to help your cousin run the guesthouse?"

"..."

Manchu's expression stiffened, the head that had just been held high quickly drooping, and he said softly: "Partly, but mainly it's that I don't know how to keep going."

"Don't know how to keep going?"

"Yeah... I feel like I can't find the meaning of being a Trainer..."

"I see."

All Baimu nodded, understanding that Manchu had fulfilled his original wish—building up his health—yet couldn't find a goal to follow. With no responsibilities to bear and a loss at the tournament leaving him unable to see a future, he was lost. "How did you do in the Shi Ying Conference?"

"... Runner-up."

Manchu gripped the edges of his chair with both hands, his shoulders hunching slightly as his gaze dropped to the tabletop.

This posture made him, already thin to begin with, look especially frail.

Two consecutive runner-up finishes.

Hearing this answer, All Baimu nodded, thinking it was just as he expected, and said: "Then why not set yourself a new goal? With a goal, meaning naturally follows."

"A goal means meaning?"

Manchu looked up, his eyes full of bewilderment.

"Of course. Think back to why you became a Trainer in the first place, and just keep extending that original goal forward." All Baimu said calmly: "Any goal will do, as long as it's something you desire."

"Something I desire..."

He muttered to himself, clearly still not having figured it out.

It couldn't be helped—All Baimu simply wasn't eloquent enough to be anyone's life mentor.

Manchu thought it over for a moment, then glanced over cautiously. "Then... All Baimu, what is All Baimu-san's goal?"

"Just call me All Baimu is fine."

All Baimu replied: "My goal is to get stronger—strong enough that one day when I return to my hometown, I can defeat everyone and become the strongest Champion there, then push on toward the world's strongest, until I stand at the very pinnacle of Trainers."

Beyond that, smaller goals included winning the Ecruteak Conference, searching for the missing Lugia, and making the Ole region prosperous and thriving.

Of course, there was no need to mention these.

After hearing this, a flash of envy first crossed Manchu's face, but after thinking for a moment he said: "Then once you stand at the pinnacle of Trainers, does that count as having meaning?"

"No, of course not."

All Baimu shook his head decisively. "The goal of reaching the pinnacle of Trainers itself has no meaning. What truly has meaning is that while I'm moving toward—or even reaching—that peak, I feel happy. That happiness is the meaning and drive that propels me to do this. People live to make themselves happy.

"Besides, aren't you the same—so happy when you win, so joyful when you absorb Pokémon knowledge. Finding a simple goal should be easy for you."

"Yeah..."

Manchu flushed slightly at All Baimu's assessment, but when it came to mentioning a simple goal, he was lost again.

He truly didn't know what he should do, what he could do.

"Take your time thinking about it. You're still young — spending another couple of years mulling it over is fine."

The latter patted his shoulder and took his Pokémon back from the Joy Nurse.

That evening.

Baimu couldn't sleep.

He spent the whole night trying to find himself a goal, but no matter which goal it was, he couldn't muster any enthusiasm for it — that sense of anticipation he once had was gone.

When All Baimu came downstairs and saw him sitting at the front desk dozing off with dark circles under his eyes, he shook his head.

This kid's a lost cause.

Did the absence of a worthy rival really affect him this much?

Speaking of which, the late-game Baimu, in order to defeat the player and become a strong one like him, had also become a bit "obsessed," often running around the egg-hatching spot in the dead of night muttering about IVs and such; after being spotted, people gave him a nickname—

"The Green-Haired Running Prince Who Hugs His Eggs."

His personality really is easy to shake.

Knock knock.

"Wake up." He rapped on the counter.

The dozing Baimu was instantly delighted; upon seeing All Baimu he bowed sharply, only to smash his head straight into the counter. "Good morning— ah!"

"In your current state you probably can't do anything properly. I'd suggest not pushing yourself — come back after you've rested properly," he said, looking at Baimu clutching his forehead.

"I-I'll think about it."

Baimu replied with reddened eyes; the bump must have been a pretty hard one.

What a huge gap from his state during battle — can Pokémon battles really make a person change faces like that?

All Baimu looked away and headed outside.

The Battle Tent's open trials start today. He had no idea how many people would be participating, or how fierce the competition would be.

He really hoped to take the overall championship.

——

Outside the Battle Tent.

All Baimu looked at the surging crowd before him and was somewhat surprised.

He'd been in Greenfield Town for nearly a day, and this was the first time he'd seen so many people gathered in one place. Was this thing even more popular than expected? Were all these people participants?

Fortunately, after asking a passerby, he learned that it was actually just that there were a lot of spectators.

Influenced by the environment, the pace of life in Greenfield Town was extremely slow; everyone was usually idle, so for something as rare as a Battle Tent, they all liked to come over and join in the fun.

But it was limited to that.

"Out-of-town trainers like you participating is more common. We locals, or people who live in Greenfield Town permanently, actually take part very rarely," said a middle-aged man who looked somewhat kindly, with a chuckle.

"I see…"

All Baimu nodded, thinking it was a little different from what he'd read online.

He entered the tent.

He showed his entry pass to the staff, and then, under their guidance, was led to a room.

The room was fully equipped with sofas, a large LCD screen, an operating console, and other basic facilities — there were even free drinks and fruit, plus a private restroom.

"When the screen prompts that the match is about to begin, place your selected Poké Balls inside to complete preparation. What you can operate is choosing your lead Pokémon and switching Pokémon."

The staff briefly introduced a machine in the room that was fused with the desk.

All Baimu scanned it once and committed the procedure to memory.

"Then please wait a moment. The open trials will begin in ten minutes. Your Pokémon only need to defeat three rounds of opponents to earn the right to advance. After each round is won, you'll need to wait; during that time you may move about freely, but please be sure to return before the next round begins."

The staff bowed and took their leave.

Three rounds… that means nine Pokémon?

Looks like there are still quite a lot of participants. Hopefully he wouldn't be matched against any ridiculously over-the-top trainers.

All Baimu knew full well that Greenfield Town was a place where hidden talents lurked; carelessly underestimating anyone would earn him a harsh slap in the face.

Not long after.

The screen directly opposite lit up with text announcing that the match was about to begin.

He sat down on the sofa, placed three Poké Balls on the transmission device, and said to them: "I'm counting on you today. Give it your best, everyone."

The three Poké Balls wobbled gently.

Beep!

The indicator light came on.

The three Poké Balls vanished before All Baimu's eyes, and the icons of three Poké Balls appeared in the lower-right corner of the screen.

Then.

A massive rectangular battle field surrounded by water on all four sides appeared on the screen — unmistakably a Pokémon battle field. The pleasant surprise was that the camera could actually be moved; it wasn't limited to a rear view only.

From the side, from overhead — all were possible.

All Baimu deliberated for a moment, chose Mawile as his lead, and pressed the confirm button.

After a brief wait, there was a sudden "bang" as a Poké Ball seemed to be fired out by some machine, then opened in midair, transforming into Mawile's figure as she landed on the field.

Opposite.

A Machop likewise appeared on the field.

The match had actually started just like that.

The two Pokémon exchanged a glance, then began observing their surroundings; only after confirming something did they look back at each other, a hint of hostility rising in their eyes.

"Lee!"

The opposing Machoke looked fierce, howling as it lunged at Gabite, its arm blazing with incandescent white light as it formed a hand-chop aimed at the latter's head.

Gabite stood in place, waited for the hand-chop to come slashing down, then suddenly sidestepped and delivered a fierce Power-Up Punch right to its chest!

Thud!

A muffled sound came from the speakers.

Machoke flew up in a high arc, then crashed heavily into the water of the arena.

By the time the Sealeo lifeguard in the water hauled it up, the thing's eyes had already turned into spirals.

"Looks like this one's strength isn't all that high."

Watching the screen, Baimu leaned back, the slight tension on his face instantly relaxing.

And in the arena, having dealt with its first opponent, Gabite welcomed its second—

A gleaming silver Roggenrola.

"Gabite?"

It raised an eyebrow, not expecting to see a fellow member of the same species as Aggron here—in that case… should it hold back?

Nah, never mind.

Lightning crackled beneath Gabite's feet, and the moment it stomped down hard, it shot forward like a shooting star!

"Golo!"

Roggenrola, which had just finished surveying the field, was startled by the incoming attacker. Just as it was about to counterattack, it found Gabite already right in front of it, with a fist stuffed into its mouth.

Boom!

A puff of smoke burst open.

Roggenrola tumbled backward like a gourd, finally landing in the water alongside its companion, where it was rescued by the Sealeo.

"Gabite~"

Second one down.

Gabite blew on its fist, looking bored.

Opponents like this really aren't much of a challenge—probably the third one will be about the same—

Sure enough.

The third Pokémon to appear was a Throh.

The thing even wanted to trade punches with Gabite, relying on its layers of shock-absorbing fat to charge in head-on. But who would have thought Gabite would pull off a spinning reversal right as their fists clashed?

It directly let its massive jaws bite down on the guy, mixed in an Ice Fang, and hurled it outward!

Then the chubby thing was seen shooting high into the air with a whoosh, before splashing down into the water with a plop.

Becoming the third one to bite the dust.

"Beep—"

The horn sounded.

Gabite slightly raised its head and saw a strange thing bearing a trainer's avatar flying toward it. "Gabite?"

"It's the recall machine, don't panic. Good work, Gabite."

Baimu's voice came from the machine, followed by a red recall beam.

"Gabite."

Gabite pouted, letting itself be drawn back into the Poké Ball.

This barely even counts as a warm-up—how could there be any "good work" or not.

In the room.

Baimu took back three Poké Balls. The bottom-right corner of the screen showed a countdown to the next match—thirty whole minutes.

"If they're all about the same strength as just now, maybe I can win pretty smoothly?"

He couldn't help thinking, and pulled out his phone to play with.

Last night, since he hadn't really let the Pokémon train, he'd spent the time discussing Porygon with Professor Akihabara's assistant and had gotten quite a bit of interesting intel.

"Professor Akihabara doesn't want you casually evolving Porygon into Porygon2. On one hand, it's because Porygon2's evolved personality is fickle and hard for ordinary trainers to handle. On the other hand, there's a chance you'll receive an email that can affect Porygon2."

"The sender of the email is unknown, but everyone knows it must be from that vanished Porygon-Z of Unit Zero. It wants to add new companions for itself, but it looks down on ordinary Porygon, so it goes after Porygon2."

"If you use the Up-Grade to evolve Porygon, you've got to watch out for that guy!"

A Porygon-Z of Unit Zero that wants to add new companions for itself…

Although he'd never heard of this thing in the anime, Baimu instinctively felt this one definitely wouldn't be easy to deal with—maybe he could use Hu Pa to track it down?

Can Hu Pa reach into cyberspace?

Maybe worth a try.

Baimu nodded to himself, when a beep suddenly came from the speakers.

The second round had arrived.

The battlefield on screen changed, from a flat arena surrounded by water on all sides to a sandy arena ringed by jagged rocks.

Oh!

Isn't this basically Aggron's home turf?

He didn't hesitate too long, decisively choosing Aggron as his lead, and sent it out the moment the match began.

Inside the arena.

As two flashes of Bai Guang flickered.

Aggron landed on the sand, and thanks to its heavyweight build, its two feet sank right in the moment it touched down.

It first quickly scanned its surroundings, then looked toward the enemy not far away—

Hm?

A flying bug with purple skin and green wings?

The illiterate Bouffalant had no idea its opponent was called Dustox; it only felt rather lucky to be fighting on home turf like this.

"Roar!"

It slammed a fist into the ground, and wild sand surged up into a vertical sand tornado that blasted toward Dustox!

The latter gave a start, its antennae and compound eyes lighting up with blue radiance that transformed into invisible psychic force spreading forward, trying to withstand the sand tornado.

But its psychic force was scattered by Sand Tomb in a single clash, and it was then swept up inside, slamming hard against a boulder!

Peng!

"Dugu!" It let out a wail, wings flapping furiously as it tried to break free of the sand tornado's grip — but who would have thought several sharp rocks would come hurtling through the air, smashing into its body one after another.

Peng peng peng!

After a string of explosions and smoke, Dustox could hold on no longer and crashed to the ground.

"Roar…"

Bouffalant moved closer to Dustox, looking at it with some curiosity.

But before it could get too close, a red beam sucked Dustox in, and a little farther away released a golden bug whose wings beat at an extremely high frequency, constantly emitting a low hum, making its movement speed extremely fast as well.

A high-speed opponent, huh…

Hopefully it'll bring some fun.

A trace of a smile crept across Bouffalant's savage face.