Draco Meteor—just like its name suggests, this move soared high into the sky like a rising meteor.
Everyone present couldn't take their eyes off the blazing energy streaking upward. Then, at its peak, the meteor exploded like fireworks, scattering into a meteor shower that came crashing down toward the battlefield.
Beneath its dazzling beauty lay immense danger.
As the flaming meteors rained down, they smashed into the battlefield, kicking up clouds of dust and debris. When the dust settled, Raichu lay motionless on the ground, its eyes swirling in a dazed spiral.
The referee, after a moment of hesitation, raised his hand and announced, "Raichu is unable to battle! The winner is... Haunter!"
Haunter, the so-called winner, blinked in confusion.
Ever since the battle started, it had only given one command. The rest of the fight? Deino had handled it all by himself. Haunter had merely stood on the sidelines, playing the role of a supporting trainer.
But as realization dawned, Haunter's face broke into a wide, mischievous grin. It won! That meant its win rate as a trainer was now equal to Maen's! Maybe it really was cut out to be a trainer after all!
Overcome with excitement, Haunter immediately floated over to Deino, wrapping its arms around the little dragon's neck in celebration. Deino, just as thrilled, let out a happy growl.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, Lieutenant Surge silently recalled his fallen Raichu. His face twitched as he forced a stiff smile, then walked over to Haunter. After exchanging a few polite words, he reluctantly handed over the Thunder Badge. Without another word, he turned and strode back into the gym.
The only thing on his mind was getting Haunter out of his sight as soon as possible.
Haunter, however, paid no attention to Surge's awkward expression. Instead, it gleefully tucked the Badge into its storage box and returned Deino to his Poké Ball. With everything secure, Haunter stuffed the Poké Ball and Badge case into its mouth and happily floated out of the Vermilion Gym.
The moment Haunter left, several of Surge's subordinates, all members of Team Rocket, rushed to his side.
"Boss, that Haunter's alone now. Should we go after it? It's carrying a Deino— a Dragon-type pseudo-legendary!"
Hearing this, a few of the grunts licked their lips in anticipation. Snatching Pokémon was their bread and butter, and a Pokémon as rare as Deino was an opportunity they couldn't ignore.
However, instead of agreement, they were met with an explosive outburst.
"You idiots!" Surge roared, his face dark with rage. "Are you out of your damn minds?! Nobody, and I mean nobody, is going after that Haunter!"
The grunts exchanged puzzled glances.
"But boss," one of them protested, "are we really just gonna let that Haunter waltz away with a Deino? That thing is worth a fortune!"
Surge's expression turned even darker.
"Listen up," he hissed, his voice low and dangerous. "That Haunter belongs to Maen, the grandson of Agatha, the Elite Four member. If any of you are stupid enough to mess with that Haunter, you'd better pray to Arceus for a quick death—because if Agatha finds out, she'll make sure it's slow and painful."
At the mere mention of Agatha's name, the grunts visibly paled.
All thoughts of stealing Deino vanished instantly. The name Agatha sent chills down the spines of everyone in Kanto's underworld, especially after what she had done to the Black Organization in Cerulean City.
No one wanted to end up like them.
Meanwhile...
Haunter, still beaming with pride, happily floated toward the Pokémon Center. When it reached Maen's bedroom door, it cautiously peeked inside, phasing through the wall ever so slightly.
It had wanted to sneak back in unnoticed.
Unfortunately, as soon as it poked its head into the room, it found itself face-to-face with Maen, who was standing there with his arms crossed, wearing an amused smirk.
"Jie…?"
Σ(△|||)︴
Haunter froze.
"What's the matter, Haunter?" Maen asked, his voice dripping with mock concern. "You look nervous. If there's anything on your mind, feel free to share. As your Trainer, it's my duty to ensure the physical and mental well-being of my Pokémon."
Before Haunter could react, Maen reached out, grabbed half of its body, and yanked it completely into the room.
"Now," Maen continued, his expression turning slightly more serious, "would you like to explain where my Pokédex, Badge case, and Deino's Poké Ball are?"
Haunter gulped.
Earlier, while Maen had been in the bathroom, Haunter had taken the opportunity to rummage through his backpack. It had only wanted to borrow a few things—but apparently, Maen had noticed the missing items right away.
There was no way out of this.
Resigning itself to its fate, Haunter quickly began gesturing, using a mix of exaggerated movements and sound effects to explain what had happened.
As Maen listened, his expression grew more and more bizarre. After a few moments of silence, he rubbed his forehead and let out a deep sigh.
"So let me get this straight," Maen said slowly, "you and Deino were bored in the room. So, as the big brother, you decided to take him on a walk. Then, you figured you'd stop by the Vermilion Gym and—just for fun—challenge Lieutenant Surge. And somehow, you actually won?"
"Jie!" Haunter nodded enthusiastically.
Maen stared at it, deadpan.
For the first time, he found himself seriously questioning his role as a Pokémon Trainer.
Wasn't he supposed to be the one challenging gyms? Wasn't he the Trainer? Since when did Pokémon start taking over that job?!
When had the Trainer industry become this competitive? It was bad enough that he had to compete against other human Trainers—now he had to worry about Pokémon stealing his role too?!
When will human Trainers finally get a break?
Suppressing the urge to rant further, Maen sighed and shook his head. "Alright, fine. Since you already won, I guess I can't complain. But tell me, how did Surge react?"
At first, Haunter had no idea who Maen was referring to. But when Maen mentioned the gym leader, Haunter's face lit up in recognition. It quickly explained that Surge had been surprisingly nice and had even encouraged him to challenge the gym—though his smile had looked a little weird.
Hearing this, Maen immediately understood what had happened.
Surge must have recognized Haunter from the Zapdos incident. But given the consequences of that event, he had no choice but to play along and let Haunter challenge the gym.
Still, everything had turned out fine in the end.
That said, Haunter couldn't just get away with zero consequences. No matter how hilarious the situation was, Maen knew he had to set some boundaries.
A small smirk crept onto Maen's lips.
Haunter had earned a punishment—but Maen already had the perfect idea in mind.
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