My Rival Was a Cross-Dressing Pro

Rainbow University's academic symposium came to a successful close.

Although President Monet felt he had won, Professor Rowan described it as a celebration for the entire academic community.

The day after the symposium ended, all the papers were uploaded to the Academic Forum under their discoverers' names.

The paper Evolutionary Branches and Prospects, credited to [Rainbow University Honorary Professor Gary Oak], shot straight to the top of the rankings.

Countless scholars sighed in admiration. The Oak family's genes were just that damn good!

Before publishing the paper, President Monet approached Gary, fidgeting awkwardly as he asked whether he could add Rainbow University's name before Gary's author credit.

Being such a respectful young man, Gary readily agreed. "Rainbow University is my alma mater, after all. A request like that... will naturally cost extra~"

And so, old Monet waved his hand and awarded Gary thirteen months of a professor's salary. Gary could only accept it with tears in his eyes~

Besides that, Professor Rowan also expressed his respect for Gary and sincerely invited him to pursue further studies in Sinnoh.

In Professor Rowan's own words, as long as Gary agreed to come, he would immediately be given a research institute of his own, with complete freedom to choose his research projects.

As for the annual research budget, he would simply receive a blank check. Whatever he spent, he could fill in the amount himself~

Honestly, Gary was quite tempted. Although he wasn't short on money, his wealth still paled in comparison to professors of his grandfather's generation.

If he accepted Professor Rowan's offer, Gary would immediately reach the point where money meant nothing to him.

After all, if he could fill in any amount he wanted, who would care about the actual numbers anymore~

Still, for the sake of his dream of becoming the strongest in the world, Gary held back.

After all, some things could wait until later, but dreams wouldn't stay where they were and wait for him.

Although he hadn't joined Professor Rowan's team, Gary still came away with plenty. He managed to get his hands on an Electrodriver, a cutting-edge product.

This would definitely come in handy someday!

Besides that, Gary also wrangled a large batch of materials and Berries out of Rainbow University.

It was safe to say Gary hadn't left empty-handed on this trip...

Not only had he acquired a large supply of Pokémon-raising materials, but he also had a seven-figure check.

The only blemish on an otherwise perfect outcome was that Caitlin had left.

Although she had enjoyed herself over the past few days, she still had to fulfill her duties as a member of the Elite Four.

As it happened, Cynthia was planning to track down Lance and make him battle her, so Caitlin left with Cynthia on her private plane.

Before leaving, the girl had been so teary-eyed that she was practically ready to squat in a corner, drawing circles and cursing Gary.

Gary stuffed Caitlin's little shoulder bag with snacks and candy, then promised to pick out a bottle of perfume and mail it to Unova. Only then did Caitlin settle down.

After several days of training at Rainbow University, Gary's Pokémon had all made considerable progress.

Aside from Golduck, the odd one out, the rest of his team had now settled at an average level of around 35.

Moreover, thanks to scientific, systematic training, the progress Gary's Pokémon had made during this period wasn't reflected in their levels alone.

Perhaps only Gary's opponents would discover just how dramatic their actual improvement had been.

After leaving Rainbow University, Gary first found a Pokémon Center and sent his extra Poké Balls back to Professor Oak's laboratory.

Then he made a video call to Professor Oak to report how things had gone.

Click~ The call connected. On the screen, Professor Oak was holding a bowl and chopsticks, enthusiastically digging into a steaming, bubbling pot of Sukiyaki on his laboratory table.

"Grandpa?" Gary called out, speechless. The old man had stopped eating Instant Noodles, only to move on to little pots of Sukiyaki...

"Ah~ Weather like this calls for Sukiyaki~" Professor Oak dipped a piece of marbled Wagyu into raw beaten egg and swallowed it in one bite.

"Grandpa, I'm getting ready to leave Celadon City and continue my journey. Please take good care of my Pokémon back home," Gary asked.

Gulp~ "No problem. Hoo, hoo~ This Grilled Tofu's pretty hot. Let me see if the Shirataki's cooked yet~" Professor Oak poked through the ingredients in the pot, responding absentmindedly.

"What about the Dragonite egg you promised me~?" Gary reminded him, his mouth twitching.

"Ah, I knew you wouldn't call unless you wanted something..." Professor Oak took a couple of swigs of beer before answering. "Don't worry. The little Dratini should hatch in another few days.

"Dragon-type Pokémon have a fairly long infancy, so it probably won't be ready in time for the Indigo Plateau Conference. I'll have Dragonite look after the baby for you.

"Once you come home after the Indigo Plateau Conference, you can take it with you and train it."

"All right~" Gary shrugged. A baby dragon's abilities were indeed limited. It would be better off staying home with Dragonite and learning from its mother. Drinking its mother's milk would help it grow faster, too.

After giving Professor Oak a few more reminders, Gary finally hung up.

Gary adjusted his party, taking Eevee, Charmeleon, Arcanine, Golduck, Sneasel, and Scizor with him, then left the Pokémon Center.

He followed the main street to Erika's perfume shop. Before he could even enter, he saw the staff throw two idiots out.

Thud! One of them rolled as he landed and ended up kneeling perfectly upright in front of Gary, as though he had planned it~

"Well, well~ If it isn't Ash, the class dunce~ It's not even a holiday. What's with the grand bow~?" Gary asked, amused.

Sure enough, the two people thrown out were Ash and Brock.

"Damn it! Misty, you'd better remember this! And you shop assistants, too! I'm not giving up!" Ash climbed to his feet, gritting his teeth.

"You're still going on about it? If you hadn't run your mouth about perfume being a boring scam, I could've spent a little longer admiring those pretty ladies," Brock sighed.

"Young Master Mao, what are you doing here?" Ash asked Gary curiously.

"I was working part-time at Rainbow University. I just finished up, so I'm getting ready to head to the next city," Gary said with a shrug.

"Then, Gary, have you already challenged Erika?" Brock leaned in to ask.

"Of course." Gary opened his Badge collection case. The newest addition inside was Erika's Rainbow Badge.

"So lucky~ I want one, too." Ash was practically drooling with envy.

"Gary, given the situation Ash is in, do you think Erika will accept his challenge?" Brock asked with a sigh.

"Well~ Of course she will, but you'll probably have to wait until Erika cools down." Gary shook his head with a smile. "Ash, you bigmouth. Do you have any idea that, aside from her Gym, her perfume brand is what Erika cares about most?

"And you actually criticized her perfume. Looks like you don't want the Celadon Gym's Badge anymore."

"Hmph, but it's true! You can't eat perfume or drink it~ If she won't let me challenge her, I'll find a way!" Ash curled his lip and started putting his few remaining brain cells to work.

"Sigh~ I'll go restock at the Poké Mart first." Brock nodded helplessly to Gary and headed off to shop on his own.

Leaving the hopelessly clueless Ash to his own devices, Gary turned and walked into the perfume shop behind him.

"Sorry, this shop doesn't serve men who don't appreciate perfume!" a young female shop assistant called out as soon as he entered.

Gary pointed at himself, speechless. "I'm here to buy perfume. Are you sure you want to throw me out?"

"Sorry, our manager is still upset. We aren't serving male customers for the next couple of days," another, slightly more mature shop assistant explained.

"Oh, these perfumes are all so lovely~ What should I do? I want them all!" Beside a counter on the other side, Misty sat on a sofa, excitedly clutching several expensive bottles of perfume.

"Then buy them all. A girl can never have too much perfume!" the shop assistant beside her urged.

"But... these prices..." Misty did have some idea of just how little money was in her wallet.

"We accept credit cards and installment payments," the shop assistant continued.

Misty gritted her teeth and slapped the table. "I'll take them! I'll deduct it from Ash's food budget later."

Gary silently rolled his eyes. Good grief. Thank goodness this woman wasn't the one Ash would end up with.

"All right, sir. Please leave!" At that moment, another shop assistant bluntly ordered Gary out.

"Hold on. Let me make a call." Gary took out his phone and dialed Erika's number.

"Hello~ Erika speaking. How can I help you?" Erika's composed voice came through the phone.

"Well, I'm at your shop to buy perfume, but your staff wants to throw me out. Could you come help me out?" Gary asked helplessly.

"Professor Oak!" Erika sounded delighted. "I thought you'd already left."

"Not yet. I wanted to buy a few bottles of perfume for my friends, so I came to ask for your help," Gary answered with a smile.

Erika immediately perked up. As far as this young woman was concerned, anyone who liked perfume was a good friend.

On top of that, Gary had once again made a splash in academic circles over the past couple of days, rekindling the little spark of Erika's admiration for him~

"So, can I buy something at your shop now? I feel like your staff is about to chase me out with a broom," Gary said, unsure whether to laugh or cry.

"Um, please don't worry. I'm in the Gym behind the shop, and I've just made a batch of my newest fragrance. Why don't you come straight to the Gym?" Erika suggested.

"Sure. Got it." Gary nodded and hung up.

Meanwhile, Erika immediately called her shop.

After receiving her instructions, the shop assistants made a complete about-face. They respectfully unlocked the shop's keypad-secured door and let Gary through to the rear entrance of the Celadon Gym.

"Are you Professor Oak? Instructor Erika is getting ready to teach a class on raising Grass-type Pokémon. Please head straight to the botanical garden." A Gym apprentice with a high ponytail was waiting by the rear entrance.

"All right. Sorry for the trouble." Following the apprentice, Gary made his way to the lush indoor botanical garden.

"Gary..." Suddenly, a barely audible gasp reached his ears.

Gary looked up and saw "Tomoko," wearing a pink dress and a blond wig.

Good grief... Gary's mouth twitched as he sized up the cross-dressing pro before him. Ash, you really were... going all out for this Gym battle~