Easy! Don't Burn Him

The preliminaries began.

Xu Mu entered the waiting area with his two Pokémon, looking perfectly calm.

He glanced around and froze. Damn, there are so many pretty girls here!

Once the Rookie League was over, he could travel the world. The thought made Xu Mu impatient to get started.

He had promised himself he would take a girl he loved along. But apart from his mother, he didn't think he'd even spoken to a woman yet!

This won't do, Xu Mu!

Pretty girls aren't going to come looking for you. You have to make a move!

After giving himself a silent pep talk, Xu Mu prepared to strike up a conversation with a girl who caught his eye.

"Contestant 741, please proceed to Field Six!"

The announcement rang out over the speakers.

Xu Mu checked his number. It was 741. He pursed his lips helplessly.

Well, there goes another chance to meet a pretty girl.

He got up, entered the competitors' passage, and strode toward Field Six.

His opponent was a chubby kid.

"Both contestants, please choose your Pokémon!"

The referee had already overseen several matches, and his feet had gone numb from standing.

As soon as both contestants entered, he skipped the chatter and told them to send out their Pokémon.

Xu Mu thought it over. In the interest of keeping a low profile, he chose Charmander.

"Charmander, this is our first battle together. Let's do our best!"

"Chirp!"

[Don't worry, Xu Mu. I can roast this guy with one breath!]

Charmander gave the Kingler across from him a disdainful glance and snorted.

Having just fused with the Red Lotus Strange Fire, he felt as though he could melt a rock without breaking a sweat.

A Water-type?

No problem!

When the chubby kid saw Xu Mu send out a Charmander, he blinked, then burst out laughing.

"Kingler, see that little guy? Go easy on him. Don't crush him with your claws!"

Once both contestants had chosen their Pokémon, the referee promptly spoke up.

"You both know the rules. The match begins now!"

The words had barely left his mouth when Xu Mu's Charmander struck Kingler with a blast of Inferno.

Kingler promptly fainted, its whole body charred black as though it had been roasted.

"Uh, the match is over. Contestant 741 wins!"

Well, well.

Xu Mu clicked his tongue inwardly. That had been no challenge at all.

He hadn't even had time to throw a little trash talk at the chubby kid before it was over.

"Charmander, Flamethrower would've been enough. Why use Inferno? What if you'd burned the poor thing?"

Xu Mu picked Charmander up and scolded him for show.

The chubby kid, so cocky a moment ago, now stared blankly at his Pokémon.

What just happened?

The match had barely started, and it was already over?

What... what did I just go through?

The referee sucked in a sharp breath at Xu Mu's parting blow.

Kids these days are ruthless!

All the kid did was taunt you a little. You one-shot his Pokémon, and then you had to rub it in!

That's the same kind of move as the trainer who didn't even show up in person and still swept Gym Leader Chen Qi six to zero!

Good grief!

"Contestant 741 qualifies as a top seed. He'll be placed in Group D for the main tournament."

After reporting into his communicator, the referee watched Xu Mu leave with his head held high and felt a headache coming on.

Back in the waiting area, Xu Mu couldn't be bothered to get Charmander treated.

There was no need. Charmander had knocked his opponent out in one hit without taking any damage. What was there to treat?

Charmander, however, saw things differently.

Spotting the medical equipment in the waiting area, he promptly dragged Xu Mu over to the doctor.

Then he hopped onto the examination table, looking every bit as though he wanted a checkup at once.

Xu Mu stared at Charmander, his face darkening.

You're as fit as a fiddle. What the hell do you need a checkup for?

"Chirp!"

[Come on! I'm already lying down. Check me for hidden injuries! Especially my right foot—I sprained it once three years ago!]

The doctor didn't know what was going on. Thinking Charmander had been hurt in his match, the doctor shot Xu Mu a reproachful look.

What kind of irresponsible trainer doesn't even get his Pokémon treated?

Xu Mu was exhausted.

It's not that I won't get him treated!

He doesn't need treatment!

But Charmander was already lying down, so Xu Mu could only say helplessly, "Sorry for the trouble, Doctor. Could you check my Charmander?"

Ten minutes later, Charmander was declared perfectly healthy apart from a small patch of missing hair on his backside. He smiled in satisfaction.

With a spring in his step and a fistful of Potions in his hands, Charmander followed behind Xu Mu.

Potions?

Don't even bring them up. Xu Mu's heart ached at the thought.

After his checkup, Charmander had somehow spotted the Potions for sale.

He had stopped dead and refused to budge until Xu Mu bought some!

Ten of them!

Poor Xu Mu's wallet. Potions weren't cheap!

Xu Mu sighed and glanced back at the delighted Charmander. All he could do was smile ruefully.

Oh well. As long as he's happy.

Being careful is good, too. He'll live longer...

The preliminary stage had four rounds. With so many contestants, ten fields were open at once, and each contestant fought once in the morning and once in the afternoon.

That meant the preliminaries could be finished in just two days.

Xu Mu had time to kill. His next match wasn't until the afternoon.

So he headed to the spectator area to see how good this year's female contestants looked.

Ahem. How strong they were...

He wasn't about to admit he was a dirty old lech!

"Croak!"

[What's got the young master so engrossed?]

"Chirp!"

[No idea. Is he watching weaklings peck at each other?]

"Croak!"

[Beats me!]

The two Pokémon spent the whole morning watching with Xu Mu and grew rather bored.

"Croak!"

[After tomorrow's matches, want to head to Charizard Valley for extra training that night?]

At the mention of extra training, Charmander instantly perked up.

"Chirp!"

[Yeah! That Charizard burned my butt last time. This time I'm burning every hair off his body!]

As Xu Mu watched the girls compete, he had no idea his two Pokémon were making another extra-training plan.

If he'd known, he would have fought tooth and nail to stop them!

They're strong enough already. Why do they have to get even stronger?

There's no point! I'm not going to be a trainer. Can't you two take it easy?

Please!

Xu Mu watched until the morning matches ended, then took his two Pokémon toward the cafeteria.

On the way, a young girl with red hair suddenly blocked his path.

Xu Mu paused. He thought she'd been drawn in by his handsome face and had come to ask for his number.

Instead, she pointed straight at him and shouted, "I finally found you!"