Chapter Thirteen: My Name is Chen Ou

Tokiwa City Pokémon Center

“Thank you, Nurse Joy.”

Chen Ou smiled as he handed the Poké Ball to Nurse Joy behind the counter.

“Of course, your Pokémon will be well taken care of.” Nurse Joy responded with a sweet smile.

Chen Ou nodded, feeling reassured by the healing methods of the Joy family. After all, it was a monopoly; without remarkable skills, they wouldn’t have thrived within the ever-more regulated League.

He moved aside, pulled out his phone from his backpack, and dialed Professor Oak’s number. There had been no signal whatsoever in Viridian Forest, so he hadn’t been able to contact anyone. Now, at the Pokémon Center, he could finally make a call.

Soon, Professor Oak’s voice came through the receiver.

“Chen Ou, you finally made it out of Viridian Forest! I was worried something might have happened to you.”

The professor’s tone was filled with joy and concern. Chen Ou’s lips curled into a smile as he replied, “Yes, Professor, I’ve made it out. The forest turned out to be so interesting.”

Truly interesting—though nothing like what he had imagined before.

Professor Oak’s hearty laughter echoed in the earpiece. As someone who had traveled himself, the professor knew well how much of the adventure stories parents told their children were true and how much was embellished. The world of Pokémon was nothing like the gentle tales in fairy stories or Hollywood movies.

That was why, even though the threshold for becoming a trainer had been lowered again and again, trainers remained a minority. Not everyone could wake from their dreams and face reality.

“You caught the Pokémon you wanted, didn’t you? Which one is it?”

“It’s a Charmander—a very gifted one. Its inherited move is Dragon Rush, and judging by its ability to manipulate dragon-type energy, one of its parents must have been a powerful dragon-type Pokémon. Originally, it should have been a starter Pokémon, but for some reason, it was released. I feel lucky, but also puzzled.”

He was genuinely perplexed. If you considered this Charmander’s talent, it was second to none. Whoever chose it as their starter must have either been extremely lucky or had connections to obtain such a remarkable Pokémon. So why was it abandoned?

And why was it always Charmander that got abandoned? Ash’s Charizard wasn’t weak either, yet it too was cast aside. Was this some hidden trait of Charmander? Chen Ou wondered.

Professor Oak was equally puzzled. A starter Pokémon of such caliber wasn’t common even within the League. Securing one would take considerable effort. As for Chen Ou’s theory about luck, the professor didn’t even entertain the idea—these Pokémon were scarce even internally, so how could outsiders get one?

“In any case, don’t dwell on it too much. Since you were able to catch it, and since it was released, those people have no right to say anything now.”

Professor Oak spoke earnestly.

Chen Ou nodded, then heard someone calling his name. He turned and saw Nurse Joy holding a tray with Charmander’s Poké Ball in one hand, beckoning him with the other.

He nodded to her and walked over, continuing his conversation with the professor, “I’m not worried about what someone might say—I’m more concerned about whether Charmander has any unresolved issues. If it does, it could hamper its development. Even if I look at it from a breeder’s perspective, I want to get to the bottom of this.”

Professor Oak nodded as well. He agreed—if a Pokémon remained despondent, problems would arise in every sense.

“All right, I’ll help you look into it. There aren’t many Charmanders of this quality, and you found it in Viridian Forest, so it shouldn’t be hard to trace which new trainers were in the area.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

“Don’t forget to bring home this year’s League Championship trophy!”

“Count on it. By the way, I actually have something else to discuss with you—about my abilities. I’ll talk to you after I get settled at a hotel.”

On the other end, Professor Oak’s expression changed instantly. He knew that if Chen Ou brought up this topic, it meant something significant had happened to his abilities—though whether it was good or bad, he couldn’t tell. If it was good, then fine; if bad…

“All right. Should I send Arcanine over to you?”

The professor sounded cheery, but Chen Ou knew he was quite tense.

“Don’t worry, it’s a positive development.”

Only then did Professor Oak breathe a sigh of relief. “Good, then get yourself settled and tell me everything as soon as possible.”

“Will do, Professor. I’ll hang up now—the treatment is finished, and I’ll go find a place to stay soon.”

Suddenly, Professor Oak seemed to remember something. “You can stay at the Viridian Gym if you want—the Gym Leader there is Green.”

“Right, that works. I’ll head over soon.”

“Good.”

Chen Ou hung up and looked at Nurse Joy, who was still smiling. Scratching the back of his head, he said, “Sorry, Nurse Joy. Old folks tend to be a bit long-winded.”

He had been standing at the counter for a while, and it would have been rude to just take the Poké Ball while on the phone, so he waited until the call was finished. Nurse Joy had patiently waited for him as well, and thinking about it, that wasn’t particularly polite either.

Sometimes, there’s simply no perfect solution—not even the lesser of two evils.

To be troubled is just that.

Nurse Joy giggled behind her hand. “You’re too polite. Your Charmander has recovered, but I hope you won’t subject such a young Pokémon to such intense training again.”

Chen Ou nodded, understanding now that Charmander had fainted from overexertion. Clearly, the little one had a fierce competitive spirit—even on the brink of exhaustion, it still wanted to take him on.

Well... it could also be because Chen Ou had been rather annoying.

After all, if you block attacks without letting yourself be hit, it’s easy to get on someone’s nerves.

But now, Charmander ought to be convinced.

He was tempted to shout, “Charmander, get daze ☆!” But considering his age—about to start his sophomore year—he couldn’t bring himself to do something so childish.

So he simply shrank the Poké Ball and clipped it to his belt pouch.

Just as he was about to leave, Nurse Joy spoke up.

“Sir, may I have your name? Would you like to register for the Indigo League Conference?”

Chen Ou was momentarily surprised, then smiled and replied,

“My name is Chen Ou. I’ve already registered.”

With that, he turned and walked out of the Pokémon Center.

Nurse Joy watched his departing figure and murmured to herself, “Previously, it was Red and Green. Now Professor Oak has his eye on Mr. Chen Ou?”

“Is a new legend about to be born?”