Pokemon: Psychic Master

"Blastoise! How about my Blastoise? I'll trade my powerful Blastoise for your Dratini!"

The "precious baby" mentioned by the middle-aged man was none other than the final evolution of the Kanto region starter Pokémon, Squirtle: Blastoise.

Johan stopped in his tracks and turned around with an expressionless face.

"Driii?"

The Dratini at his feet raised its head hesitantly, looking slightly uneasy.

Johan's voice was a bit cold as he said, "Not interested. And if you keep pestering me, Gengar won't hold back."

After saying this, he gently patted Dratini's head to reassure it and turned to leave.

"Ka-kaah!"

Gengar made a face at the fishing enthusiast, its gaze clearly hostile.

Trading Pokémon?

Forget offering a Blastoise—even if it were a Lugia, Johan wouldn't hesitate to refuse.

"I'm getting increasingly annoyed with the idea of trading Pokémon," Johan muttered, eliciting a collective nod of agreement from his Pokémon.

In the Pokémon world, trading Pokémon wasn't uncommon and was considered a fairly normal practice.

Some people treated Pokémon as toys and found it natural to swap them out when bored.

Others were passionate about battles and used trading to fill gaps in their team.

A smaller group sought to find a more suitable trainer for their Pokémon to help them grow, resulting in trades for the Pokémon's betterment.

For example, in the original story, Ash and Dawn traded their Aipom and Buizel because Aipom preferred contests and suited Dawn better, while Buizel loved battling and was better off with Ash.

However, even in these cases, the Pokémon's own opinions were sought first.

From Johan's perspective, if a Pokémon liked battling, nurture it for battles. If it enjoyed contests, train it for that. If it liked neither, let it do what it wants.

Isn't it a trainer's responsibility to cater to their Pokémon's preferences and talents?

If you're not capable, don't catch them recklessly. If you do, you must take responsibility.

"Anyway, let's not dwell on this. What do you guys feel like eating? How about grilled eel over rice?" Johan asked with a smile.

His Pokémon cheered enthusiastically.

After wandering around and buying a variety of snacks and treats, Johan felt a bit tired. He found a relatively quiet beach, spread out a picnic blanket, and laid out all the food he'd bought, along with MooMoo Milk, berries, and Pokéblocks he always carried with him.

"Now it's…"

"Ka-kaah!"

Picnic time!

After dinner, his Pokémon began playing on the beach.

The Vulpix and Tinkatuff built sandcastles together.

Gengar, on the other hand, had somehow procured a pair of goggles. After putting them on, it stood by the shore, taking deep breaths with exaggerated gusto before leaping into the water with a splash. The kids nearby burst into laughter.

Johan looked at Dratini, who was still by his side.

"You're not going to join them?"

"Driii~~"

Dratini whimpered softly, looking a little lost in thought.

Johan sighed softly, realizing that the fisherman's earlier words might have affected the little Pokémon.

As he gently stroked Dratini's head, he said quietly, "Why don't you talk to me about it?"

Dratini's round, shiny eyes gazed deeply at Johan before shaking its head and muttering softly.

"Driii~ Driii~~"

It wasn't sure how to express itself.

It just felt like it was the weakest and least useful among Johan's four Pokémon—and lately, it had even put on some weight.

Johan chuckled.

Pulling Dratini into his arms, he whispered into its ear, "Do you know why that annoying man only wanted to trade for you and not for Gengar or the others?"

"Driii?" Dratini blinked in confusion.

Johan smiled warmly and whispered, half-jokingly, "Because you're the one with the most potential. That annoying man has a good eye for spotting the best—my Dratini."

Dratini looked skeptical.

Johan laughed heartily.

"Okay, okay, all of you have great potential. But I wasn't lying—his judgment was accurate."

He then muttered, as if to himself, "I'm just worried that when my Dratini grows up, it won't want to stick around with a 'weak' trainer like me~~"

"Driii!"

Never!

Dratini suddenly coiled tightly around Johan.

"Hahaha!"

Johan laughed again, patting the little one on the head. "Alright, alright, I was just joking."

"Driii~~"

Dratini looked up, its eyes filled with determination.

It only wanted to stay with Johan forever—always and always!

In the distance, the lights of Vermilion City shone brightly, casting their glow onto the beach. The waves, crashing rhythmically, left white foam on the shore.

At that moment, even the sea breeze seemed to soften.

Buzz—

Suddenly.

To Johan's surprise, Dratini's body began to emit a dazzling white light, attracting the attention of others on the beach.

A little girl holding a pinwheel tugged on her mother's sleeve, her voice innocent and sweet.

"Mommy, look! That big brother is evolving!"

Because Dratini was wrapped around Johan, the evolving glow enveloped him as well.

The Vulpix, Tinkatuff, and Gengar all noticed the commotion and rushed over.

"Chu Chu?"

Did Johan… evolve?

Tinkatuff's eyes widened in disbelief.

Gengar snickered mischievously.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Yeah, he evolved. Up next, we've got Johan-mon!

"Johan-mon, my foot!"

Johan's annoyed voice came from within the glowing light, earning hearty laughter from his Pokémon.

"So bright!"

The other trainers on the beach were equally astonished.

They'd seen Pokémon evolve before.

But this… this glow was far too intense!

Half the beach was lit up, and those closer felt as though it were daytime.

When a trainer gives their all, a Pokémon responds in kind.

Perhaps this is the benefit of bonds forged through encounters, trust, and inseparable companionship between humans and Pokémon.

Of course, part of it was due to the deep energy Dratini had accumulated.

In the radiant glow, Johan closed his eyes.

Through his Aura, he could feel the surging power within Dratini's body.

Some of it was accumulated before Johan caught it, but much of it was gained after joining him.

From the top-tier Pokéblocks to the Dragonite scale, to Johan's daily care and training…

Suddenly.

Johan had a thought that made his expression change.

Oh no.

With Dratini's unusual blend of luck and misfortune… could something go wrong now?

But it seemed he was overthinking.

Dratini never faltered in critical moments.

No.

Now, it should be called… Dragonair!

"Draaa~~"

As the glow faded, an ethereal, melodious cry echoed through the air.

And there it was.

A sleek, elegant Pokémon covered in sapphire-like scales, with a small horn on its forehead and feathery wings on either side of its head. Around its neck and tail were three crystal-like orbs.

The moonlight fell gently on its body.

Its wings fluttered slightly, growing larger with each movement. With graceful, rhythmic motions, it began to fly!

Dragon Pokémon, Dragonair!

The evolved form of Dratini!

"Chu Chu?"

Tinkatuff gawked.

Flying… it's flying.

It seemed like Dragonair was one step closer to being a Dragon Knight.

"I think its body length is almost six meters," Johan muttered.

Ordinary Dragonair were about four meters long, but his Dratini seemed to have reached nearly six meters.

But what truly surprised him was its ability to fly right after evolving.

Whether Dragonair could fly had always been a topic of debate.

Some said Dragonair couldn't fly because it had no wings (the tiny ones didn't count).

Others claimed to have seen Dragonair soaring through the skies, even manipulating the weather.

But Johan knew that Dragonair's ability to fly depended on one move—Dragon Dance.

In the anime, there was a place called Dragonite Paradise on a vast ocean where many Dragonite, Dragonair, and Dratini lived.

Some of the Dragonair there could fly because they had mastered Dragon Dance.

The fact that his Dragonair could fly immediately after evolving proved it had learned the move.

The Dragonair entry in Johan's Pokédex confirmed this as well.

"I wish I could send a photo to Cynthia's Garchomp," Johan muttered to himself.

Click—

Before he finished, Gengar had already snapped a photo with its phone.

Then, under Johan's stunned gaze, it swiftly sent the picture to Cynthia.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Afterward, it gave Johan a smug look.

Johan couldn't help but give it a thumbs-up.

You're bold.

Next time Garchomp comes for you, don't drag me into it.

After joyfully flying a lap in the night sky, the newly evolved Dragonair returned to Johan.

"Draaa~~"

Thud—

And pounced right onto him, pinning him to the ground.

The weight of Dragonair was significantly more than Dratini.

And it immediately coiled itself tightly around Johan.

"Congratulations on your evolution, Dragonair."

Feeling the "binding" effect, Johan laughed.

"Draaa~~"

Dragonair affectionately rubbed its head against Johan's face.

"Since you've evolved, we should celebrate. What do you all think?"

"Ka-kaah!"

"Oowu!"

"How do you want to celebrate?"

The Pokémon exchanged glances.

How to celebrate…

"Chu!!"

Tinkatuff jumped up.

Let's take a cruise ship!

----------

Powerstones?

For 20 advance chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates