So You Were That Monster?

Ten minutes later, Greninja calmly held out a hand to Chen Qi.

"Croak!"

[Where's that Badge? Hand it over!]

Chen Qi was stunned, but he had no choice but to give Greninja the Badge.

Only after the blue frog left with Charmander did Chen Qi let out a cold snort, his face dark.

"Close up! We're taking tomorrow off!"

His disciples didn't dare say a word. They hurried to close the Gym.

"Croak!"

[Charizard Valley next, right?]

Having dealt with the Gym so easily, Greninja found it rather dull.

Charmander gave a bored Yawn too.

"Chirp!"

[Judging by the scent, it should be that way.]

Greninja heard this and swept out a hand with a flourish. Lead on!

The next day, Xu Mu opened his eyes. Seeing Greninja and Charmander sleeping obediently beside his bed, he smiled with the fondness of a doting father.

Pokémon are so cute. I'm glad I came to this world.

As he was reflecting on that, a system notification sounded.

[Congratulations, host! You have completed Charmander's check-in task (1): Bring or use Charmander to win a battle at the Magma Gym. Reward: a Mega Charizard X Evolution Stone. Keep up the good work and become the strongest Trainer!]

[Congratulations, host! You have completed Charmander's check-in task (3): Bring Charmander to the Charizard Valley secret realm and win a battle there. Reward: Charmander gains the otherworldly flame Red Lotus Karmic Fire. Keep up the good work and become the strongest Trainer!]

Xu Mu's mind went blank.

What? What's going on?

All I did was sleep. System, did you hit a bug or something?

If you want me to become a Trainer, you don't have to stoop this low!

Wow. I haven't even done anything, and you're completing my tasks for me now?

Why don't you come out and be the Trainer yourself? What do you need me for?

Xu Mu lost it and launched into a furious tirade against the Damn System.

[Please mind your words, host. The system would never take any action that compromises its objectivity.]

Bullshit!

You've learned to answer me now?

Wait, are you intelligent?

Is someone controlling you and watching me from the shadows?

Come out, you Damn System! I don't care if it kills me—we'll go down together!

Xu Mu cursed it furiously in his head, but the system gave no further reply. It simply ignored him.

After a while, Xu Mu ran out of steam. Once he calmed down, he began examining his two Pokémon.

The longer he looked, the more something seemed off.

Why are they both so filthy? And why is there a black patch on Charmander's backside?

Did it get burned?

Don't tell me these two went out to challenge a Gym while I was asleep!

A horrifying thought took shape in Xu Mu's mind.

"No, no. My Pokémon couldn't possibly be that proactive."

"I'm a slacker. I..."

As Xu Mu tried to reassure himself, footsteps sounded outside his door.

Then came a knock, knock, knock!

Someone's at the door?

Xu Mu got out of bed and looked through the peephole. When he saw it was Yu Hailong, he opened the door.

Yu Hailong came in and set the breakfast he had just bought on the table.

He said excitedly,

"Kid, have you heard? There's huge news going around!"

"I just heard that someone took down the Magma Gym last night!"

"They showed up in the middle of the night and swept through all six of Gym Leader Chen Qi's Pokémon. He took it so hard the Gym isn't even open today!"

As he spoke, Yu Hailong pulled out his phone in case Xu Mu didn't believe him.

"Look, look! It's right here. It made the local headlines!"

Xu Mu took the phone with a sinking heart and scrolled through the news, looking utterly defeated.

"Sir, do you know what Pokémon the challenger used?"

Seeing Xu Mu's interest, Yu Hailong grinned smugly.

"Of course. I made a point of asking!"

"Apparently, two Pokémon challenged the Gym. Their Trainer didn't even show up."

"One was blue and the other red. I think they were a Greninja and a Charmander..."

As Yu Hailong finished speaking, Greninja, who was sleeping beside the bed, seemed to hear its name.

"Croak!"

Still half-asleep, Greninja raised its head and greeted Yu Hailong before burying its face and going back to sleep.

It had been exhausted last night. Charizard Valley was full of peak Elite Four powerhouses.

The smug smile on Yu Hailong's face slowly froze as Greninja greeted him.

He glanced at Charmander, who hadn't even raised its head, and everything clicked.

Seeing that Yu Hailong understood, Xu Mu shook his head with a wry smile.

"Would you believe me if I said I only just found out?"

Yu Hailong shook his head too.

"Would you believe me?"

Are you even human?

Chen Qi is a renowned Gym Leader, famous throughout the region!

And what happened?

You didn't even go yourself. You just sent your Pokémon to sweep his whole team?

Doesn't the Gym Leader deserve to save a little face?

Seeing Yu Hailong's expression grow increasingly strange, Xu Mu sighed helplessly.

You think I wanted this?

I woke up to this news. You think I'm happy about it?

"Ahem. This won't affect anything, will it?"

Xu Mu cleared his throat and asked anxiously.

Yu Hailong thought for a moment, then hesitated.

"Probably not. Gym Leader Chen Qi seems to be a special guest at this Rookie League tournament, but the competition comes down to strength. It shouldn't affect anything."

When Xu Mu thought about it, that made sense.

Fine. As long as it doesn't affect the tournament, it's no big deal.

Gyms and Gym Leaders—

Aren't they there to be challenged?

It's already done. Am I supposed to blame Greninja now?

Even if my Pokémon stabbed me in the back, I, Xu Mu, would accept it with a smile!

"Okay. I'll keep a low profile for the next couple of days and try not to take those two out."

Xu Mu nodded, picked up a bun, and took a bite.

He still had to eat and get on with his life. Crushing one weak opponent was no reason to put everything on hold.

Whatever. It was only one Gym Leader. What's done is done.

Yu Hailong was secretly astonished to see Xu Mu eating so calmly.

Good grief, kid. Something this big happened, and you can still sit here eating breakfast like nothing's wrong!

That's First High School's genius for you. One of a kind!

"Right. Let me know if you need anything. The preliminaries start tomorrow, and I'll go with you."

Yu Hailong began explaining the tournament format.

"There are quite a few entrants this time. The preliminaries have four rounds of one-on-one matches. Clear those, and you'll reach the main event."

Xu Mu nodded. That sounded manageable.

"In the main event, most competitors will be talented students from the various high schools, and they'll all be registered rookie Trainers."

"So those matches will be one-on-one battles with two Pokémon per trainer."

Yu Hailong went on explaining, and Xu Mu listened closely.

Neither of them knew that Charmander, who appeared to be fast asleep nearby, had quietly cracked an eye open.

[That's a lot of matches. Looks like I need to get even stronger!]