Chapter Sixty-Six: Both Referee and Competitor

Xiaoxia was staring at Chen Ou—no, glaring at him with all the intensity she could muster. Meanwhile, Chen Ou stood to the side, smiling pleasantly. Asu, following along beside Chen Ou, wore an expression of acute embarrassment, unsure of what to say.

Xiaoxia fixed her gaze on Chen Ou’s handsome face for a long moment, barely restraining the urge to tear it apart. What a good-looking man—why couldn’t he be the one in a coma?

“I’ll ask you again, Inspector Chen Ou. Are you intending to challenge the gym as an inspector?” Xiaoxia’s tone was harsh, but it was understandable.

As an upright gym leader, Xiaoxia prided herself on never giving preferential treatment to any trainer. If you were weak, she wouldn’t use her ace team to bully a newcomer. If you were strong, there would be no holding back—mutual respect between trainers demanded as much.

But Chen Ou’s actions were simply outrageous… When your superior comes to challenge you, do you let him win or not? If you let him win, he’ll say you’re not strong enough and make things hard for you. If you don’t let him win, he’ll be unhappy and make things hard for you anyway.

When you’re not familiar with this boss, you can only resign yourself to bad luck. But… when that boss is not only someone you know, but even a friend…

At that moment, all you want to do is punch him and sever all ties.

“How could I, Gym Leader Xiaoxia? Do you really think I would? Of course I’m challenging you as a regular trainer!” Chen Ou spoke in a teasing, almost provoking manner, as if daring her to hit him.

“Then why did you bring your inspector’s assistant?” Xiaoxia demanded angrily.

Asu, standing nearby, instantly felt even more awkward. She herself didn’t quite understand Dr. Chen Ou’s reasoning. But the higher-ups give the orders, and all she could do was follow.

Chen Ou frowned at the question, then said, “Xiaoxia, you need to maintain the right attitude as a gym leader. I’m here as a trainer; who I bring with me is irrelevant to the challenge.”

Though she knew that, as a friend, Chen Ou was unlikely to give her real trouble, Xiaoxia still felt deeply dissatisfied. Why couldn’t he just follow the usual procedure? Why was he hell-bent on riling her up?

She couldn’t make sense of it, but already infuriated, she decided to grant Chen Ou his wish. She knew Chen Ou was no longer a weakling, but she was determined to teach him a harsh lesson!

“Let’s get started then! I don’t know why you’re so intent on making me angry, but I’m already furious!” Xiaoxia flung those words behind her, then stormed to the battle arena without a backward glance.

Chen Ou watched Xiaoxia’s retreating figure and continued smiling in silence. After a moment, he turned to Asu and bowed politely. “I’m sorry, Miss Asu. Because of me, you’ve been dragged into this.”

Asu, who had harbored some resentment, hurriedly waved her hands. “No, it’s fine, really.”

But Chen Ou shook his head. “I truly am sorry, but I have a reason I must anger Xiaoxia.”

Asu, torn, hesitated before asking, “I have to admit I’m curious—would you mind telling me? Of course, if you’d rather not, just pretend I never asked.”

Chen Ou smiled gently. “There’s nothing secret about it. Red told me that Xiaoxia is at her strongest when she’s angry. So I decided to try provoking her, to see what she’s truly capable of.”

“That’s… that’s it?” Asu asked cautiously.

Chen Ou’s expression didn’t change as he nodded. “That’s it. I’m not someone who overthinks things.”

Instinctively, Asu sensed something amiss, but Chen Ou spoke so earnestly that she had no choice but to believe him.

Was Chen Ou’s reasoning really that simple? Of course not…

Although Chen Ou was never one for detailed planning, and pursuing strength was indeed his goal, if that was all, he could simply challenge Red, the strongest. There was no need to pick a fight with Xiaoxia.

The real reason… He wanted to determine whether Xiaoxia truly had what it took to become a key force against the “Servants of the Divine” organization.

This organization, while not widely known, boasted members like Lei, Dian, and Kai, all formidable in their own right, not to mention Xue, who had just been captured. According to Xue, there were at least two ranks above her within the organization.

So who could possibly stand against them? Chen Ou had no intention of waiting for the enemy to make the first move and then reacting passively. That wasn’t his style.

He had decided to investigate the “Servants of the Divine” stronghold in Kanto and strike first. To do this, he needed to be fully prepared, and assembling the right personnel was paramount.

But whom should he choose? The Elite Four, the champions—Red, Green, himself… Was that enough? Perhaps, but what if it wasn’t?

A gamble he couldn’t afford to take…

Moreover, these top trainers could never act all at once. Realistically, Kanto needed to retain enough high-level trainers to defend against any crisis.

As for inviting champions like Cynthia to help… That was risky. Family ties or not, would Sinnoh’s League really let its champion take such a meaningless risk? This wasn’t an assault on Sinnoh’s turf, after all.

So Chen Ou intended to pick helpers from among the gym leaders. After witnessing Xue’s prowess, he doubted an ordinary gym leader could cope with such foes…

Where on earth had the organization scraped up so many powerful trainers?

Even the League was envious.

Furthermore, the enemy’s technology—capable of giving Hoopa’s evil aspect its own form—remained a mystery. What if they had managed to control a legendary Pokémon?

He dared not take the risk…

That was why he had to anger Xiaoxia.

He needed to see her true strength. Ever since her encounter with Red, this woman hadn’t pushed herself in ages. In her fury, at her peak, Chen Ou intended to defeat her even with a type disadvantage, and in doing so, spur her to improve herself!

Yes, Chen Ou was that noble a soul!

But in truth, he was simply the sort who delighted in stirring up trouble, hoping to get Xiaoxia to go train on Mt. Silver, and join Red and Yellow in special training.

That’s right, Chen Ou, that old “good (Y) guy (B),” just wanted to deliver Red a romantic battlefield, a place for drama to unfold.

He was a man of his word! That was Chen Ou’s creed.

Imagining Red torn between Xiaoxia and Yellow, not knowing who to console, the thought alone filled Chen Ou with glee.

Asu, watching her boss daydreaming with a silly grin, scratched her head in distress.

“It’s so hard to predict what someone like him is thinking…”

Meanwhile, Xiaoxia stood with arms crossed, glaring icily at Chen Ou.

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