Watching the scene before him, Charles Chen's eyes flickered with nostalgia as he saw a small Weedle appear. Without realizing it, he smiled. "That was the very first time I battled with Weedle. Funny thing is, back then we hadn't learned how to work together, so our first battle ended in a miserable defeat."
He paused, then asked softly, "Is this what it wanted to remember?"
Lin Feng didn't answer. He only gave a quiet nod, motioning for him to keep watching.
In the shifting vision, after defeating its first Caterpie, Weedle's body swelled rapidly, though it did not yet evolve. Another opponent soon appeared before it, this time a Bulbasaur.
The image pulled Charles back into memories long buried, his expression turning dazed. He remembered that time well. Because of how recklessly he had captured Weedle, it refused to obey him for a long while.
Hot-headed in his youth, he challenged Weedle to a one-on-one fight to prove himself.
In the end, after taking a Poison Sting straight on and rushing to the hospital for treatment, he finally won Weedle's trust. From then on, their teamwork grew sharper with every battle.
One by one, they defeated every opponent in their way. From wild Caterpie in the forest, to scrappy Rattata in the alleys, and even a classmate's Bulbasaur at school.
That Bulbasaur was Weedle's first real rival.
Charles remembered it vividly.
Its ability was Chlorophyll.
Which meant its trainer always challenged him on sunny days, ensuring Bulbasaur could move at incredible speed.
No matter how many times Charles and Weedle fought against it, they could never win.
But through those countless battles, Weedle's growth was astonishing. It eventually learned Bug Bite, and with it, they finally defeated Bulbasaur, the rival they had once thought unbeatable.
After that, they felt unstoppable.
When Weedle finally evolved into Beedrill, they entered their very first tournament together.
It was the Junior Cup, a competition hosted by the League for new trainers who had owned their Pokémon for less than a year.
The prize was rich beyond imagination: the egg of a rare pseudo-legendary Pokémon, along with a million in prize money.
Brimming with youthful pride, undefeated in schoolyard battles, Charles believed firmly that with Beedrill at his side, no trainer in the world could stand in their way.
Reality proved otherwise.
They cut through the competition and made it to the Top 32, where they finally encountered a terrifying opponent: a Charizard.
Charles could hardly believe it. How could someone who had only been a trainer for a year have already raised a Charmander into a Charizard?
Under Charizard's blazing flames, Beedrill had no chance. Every advance was forced back by scorching fire. Yet Beedrill refused to give up, charging again and again with its twin stingers, until its eyes were seared by fire and it collapsed in defeat.
That was their first crushing loss.
No matter what strategies they tried, they couldn't leave so much as a scratch on Charizard.
The loss shattered Charles' confidence. Both he and Beedrill spiraled into despair. Worse still, in the aftermath, he failed to notice how badly Beedrill's eyes had been damaged. It wasn't until much later, after the regional conference, when Beedrill told him its vision was growing blurry, that he panicked and scrambled for medical help.
Meanwhile, the misty vision in Lin Feng's hands shifted again.
This time, the Beedrill in the dream darted through Charizard's flames as if it could see the future, dodging every attack with ease. With precise thrusts of its stingers, it struck Charizard again and again, until victory was theirs.
"That time in my life was my biggest regret, truly..."
Seeing the scene, Charles' expression wavered between relief, guilt, and bittersweet nostalgia. "If only I had taken Beedrill to the doctor sooner, its eyes would never have been damaged."
Lin Feng didn't hesitate to speak the truth. "Yes. From that perspective, you really weren't a very responsible trainer."
"Yeah..."
Charles sighed, offering no defense.
The misty scene changed once more.
The battlefield expanded into something enormous, like several soccer fields stitched together. Crowds of countless spectators roared in excitement.
Beedrill's aura flared, its twin stingers scarred and weathered like the blades of a seasoned warrior. Behind it, its trainer wore a confident smile.
Across from them stood a Bisharp, its trainer a young man in his twenties, calm and composed.
Lin Feng recognized him.
So did nearly everyone in the Eastern League.
He was the reigning Champion, undefeated for ten years.
The clash began instantly.
Stingers and blades collided with a shower of sparks, each strike ringing like clashing steel, driving the audience into a frenzy.
But unlike before, Beedrill's battle experience was no longer enough to guarantee victory. Its opponent was equally skilled, equally seasoned.
The two Pokémon fell into a deadlock.
Even so, it was clear: Beedrill's fighting spirit only grew stronger. Its attacks became fiercer, its eyes blazing with excitement. It looked every bit the warrior born for battle, charging with a fearless will to fight to the very end.
"Of course... it always longed for battle."
Charles let out a long breath as he watched.
For ten years, Beedrill had endured recovery. Charles had spent all the prize money they once earned on treatments, keeping Beedrill away from the battlefield.
No matter how many times Beedrill begged to return, Charles had refused, fearful of worsening its injury.
Even in hardship, he had only let his other Pokémon compete.
For Beedrill, those years were joyless.
But in the dream, things were different. Here, it triumphed. Here, it defeated Bisharp in a final, glorious strike.
Charles murmured to himself, "So this is what it always wanted?"
At that moment, the scene shifted again.
Beedrill's form shrank back into Weedle.
And standing across from it... was Charles himself, from the day they first fought.
Charles froze. "This... this was when I fought with Weedle..."
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