Pokémon: Larvitar
Gender: Male
Level: 26
Ability: Guts
Nature: Naughty
Potential: Top-Tier
Egg Moves: Dragon Dance
Moves: Bite, Sandstorm, Thrash, Scary Face, Rock Slide...
...
I have to admit, Lance has a good eye. This Larvitar is Top-Tier Potential. With proper training, it could definitely become a powerhouse Pokémon.
By now, it was already noon on the second day.
After returning to Ace's house, Green found Silver, and the weight was lifted from her heart. Back to her usual self, she began sparring with Ace's Lapras to gain inspiration for her plan to capture Articuno later on.
Silver had also come along, and the first thing he said upon seeing Ace's house was, "You're a tycoon."
Naturally, Ace was delighted. It felt great to go from being a nobody to a "tycoon."
After that, Ace took some time to address the Larvitar situation. He didn't do anything too extreme. He just sent out Chansey to discipline Larvitar five times, and the initially aggressive Pokémon instantly became a well-behaved child. Whenever it saw Chansey, its first instinct was to hide behind Ace's legs, clinging to him so tightly that Ace couldn't pull it off, no matter how hard he tried.
A week later, Green said goodbye to Ace. After a week of practice, she was very familiar with Ice-type moves and was fully prepared. Green then set off on her journey to find Articuno.
Silver was taken away by Green. After spending a week together, Ace confirmed that Silver was no trouble, so he didn't make things difficult for him. However, Silver always gave Ace a cold shoulder. After all, from his perspective, Ace was a character who might steal his sister, so being wary of him was normal.
Three days after Green and Silver left, Ace was at home as usual, contemplating how to accelerate the training of his fossil Pokémon in his third-floor lab.
Knock knock knock.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Come in," Ace called out.
The door opened, and Chansey walked in, holding a letter.
Only two Pokémon dared to enter Ace's third-floor lab without hesitation: Chansey and Gengar. They were Ace's surgical assistants and weren't afraid of the lab at all.
"What's the letter?" Ace asked, taking the envelope. Chansey shook its head and gestured, indicating that a Pidgeot had delivered it.
Ace opened the sealed letter, read the contents, and paused for a moment before smiling. "Alright, let's go out," he said.
Chansey tilted its head, confused, but followed Ace out of the lab.
The letter, which Ace left on the lab table, didn't say much. It simply stated that the Viridian City Gym Leader exam was about to begin and invited Ace to come and watch.
It was clear that Ash had passed the League's preliminary exams. He only needed to pass the final assessments to become the officially certified Viridian City Gym Leader.
The day of the Viridian City Gym Leader exam arrived. The city's development had stagnated due to the long-absent Gym Leader, so a new leader was urgently needed.
Ace, who had been invited, took a seat in the stands. To his surprise, he found a few familiar faces sitting near him. There was Ash's friend Bill, Gary's older sister Daisy, and—most unexpectedly—Yellow.
The Elite Four storyline had been completely changed by Ace's actions. Yellow didn't need to save Ash or fight the Elite Four, so she shouldn't have been involved. Why was she here?
Daisy, who was sitting next to Ace, noticed his confusion. With a smile, she patted Yellow's head and introduced her. "This child is Yellow. She has a history with Ash and is his apprentice, so to speak."
Ace's mouth twitched. It seemed that Ash and Yellow would remain entangled in some way.
Ace nodded to Yellow, marking their second meeting. Today, Yellow wasn't dressed as a boy, but in a normal girl's outfit. Seeing Ace nod, Yellow's face turned slightly red, and she nodded back. Daisy leaned over and whispered Ace's identity to Yellow.
"Did Gary not come?" Ace asked, looking around the stands while the two women whispered.
Daisy shook her head. "Gary hasn't arrived yet. I don't know what that guy is up to."
"Stop chatting, Ash is here," Bill said, who had been observing the surroundings. He quickly alerted them when he saw Ash enter the battlefield.
Ace also turned his attention to the field. Ash walked to the center and released his six Pokémon: Venusaur, Pikachu, Poliwrath, Snorlax, Gyarados, and Espeon.
The League staff also released the Pokémon for the exam: two Pineco, two Forretress, a Azumarill, and a Porygon2.
"The Pokémon aren't too strong. It seems like it's just a formality," Ace commented, stroking his chin as he surveyed the Pokémon for the exam. "This looks like it will be over very quickly."
"I hope so," Bill and Daisy said in unison, their expressions filled with worry.
"What's wrong?" Ace asked, seeing the worried looks on their faces, and even Yellow's.
"Ash recently battled a powerful trainer who used Ice-type Pokémon," Bill explained. "During the battle, he was frozen once, and it affected his hands and feet. They go numb whenever it's cold."
Bill's explanation left Ace speechless. In the original storyline, Ash did have issues with his hands and feet after being frozen by Lorelei. But now that Lorelei had been dealt with by Ace, and Ash was suddenly having the same problem, Ace could only conclude that the plot's momentum was incredibly strong.
While Ace was musing, Ash had already taken down the first four Pokémon in a flash. The next Pokémon, Azumarill, used an Icy Wind attack, which caused Ash's hands and feet to go numb.
However, Ash was still composed. Snorlax used Belly Drum to boost its attack and quickly defeated Azumarill, followed by Espeon defeating Porygon2, winning the exam.
But Ace could see that Ash's hand and foot problem was quite severe. If he didn't get treatment, it could seriously affect his future battle abilities.
As the match ended, Ace leaped from the stands and walked toward Ash.