Deep within Viridian Forest.
For any Trainer below the level of Elite Four, this place was an absolute forbidden zone. The Pokémon here possessed extremely strong abilities, but for Silas, it was the perfect place for Pikachu's special training!
By the quiet lakeside.
Once camp was set up, Suzie began to prepare dinner, while Silas released both Charizard and Pikachu.
"Charizard!" Upon emerging, Charizard immediately noticed Suzie. Charizard was no stranger to her—after all, she often used it for massage practice. It happily trotted over to say hello.
"Pika pika~ Pika~chu!"
Pikachu was different. As soon as it came out, it began to call out to Silas, its adorable little face brimming with dissatisfaction, and its dark eyes full of complaint. It was clearly upset that Silas had broken his promise—after all, he hadn't given Pikachu any reward for reaching Viridian City and had kept it locked in its most hated Poké Ball for so long.
Having long anticipated this reaction, Silas simply took out a golden crystal. The moment the golden crystal appeared, Pikachu's displeasure vanished, replaced by wide-eyed desire. Even though Pikachu didn't know what the golden crystal was, its instincts shouted that it could grant powerful abilities!
"Here," Silas said softly, holding the crystal out to Pikachu. "Try it."
Pikachu immediately snatched the crystal from Silas's hand and popped it straight into its little mouth.
The crystal melted instantly, flooding Pikachu's mouth with a rich fragrance and bringing a look of pure bliss to its face.
Once the crystal was completely digested, Pikachu sensed a surge of power within itself. It gazed at Silas with eager eyes, hoping for a hundred more just like it. Pikachu was convinced that if it could have that many, its abilities would skyrocket!
Silas could easily guess what Pikachu was thinking. After all, the first time he ever fed Charizard—then still a Charmander—with crystals, it was far more outrageous than Pikachu. Charmander had actually pounced on Silas, trying to dig for more. Unfortunately, Silas hadn't yet retrieved any crystals from the system at that time.
"Are you happy with this reward?" Silas asked, grinning.
"Pika pika~" Pikachu nodded enthusiastically—this reward was more than satisfactory.
"Do you want more?"
"Pika pi~"
"Then you'll have to earn them through training!" Silas narrowed his eyes and laid out his offer. "If you complete all the tasks I assign you every day, I'll let you have a crystal every single day. Deal?"
"Pika~" Pikachu nodded right away. At this moment, for Pikachu, as long as it could get crystals, it was willing to do anything!
Seeing Pikachu's response, Silas pulled a special belt from his bag and fastened it around Pikachu's waist. It was a weighted belt with its own gravity field and a freely adjustable multiplier—up to ten times heavier than normal. It was much more convenient than the makeshift backpack Silas had prepared earlier, so the moment he saw it, he had immediately purchased one.
He set the belt to the lowest, one times gravity, but instead of assigning tasks right away, Silas simply called out, "Charizard!"
"Charizard~" Charizard, lying beside Suzie, lazily fluttered its wings and floated over to Silas.
Watching Charizard, too lazy even to walk, Silas rolled his eyes and said, "Charizard, your task is simple: within one week, you must teach Pikachu how to use Iron Tail and Mega Punch. If you can do it, I'll give you a feast. If you can't, then for the next month, you're only getting regular Pokémon rations, understood?"
Silas was paying a heavy price this time.
Normally, Charizard would only be given special rations supplemented with Fire Crystals—five pieces per meal would be enough. But if he fed Charizard pure Fire Crystals, he'd need at least fifty per meal. For Silas, who only had 275 crystals, this was a massive expenditure!
"Charizard!"
Charizard immediately leapt up, eyes shining as it stared at Pikachu—its look downright greedy, as if it were gazing at an exquisite meal!
Charizard's gaze made Pikachu's fur stand on end, filling Pikachu with a deep sense of crisis. But before it could protest, Silas assigned its task: "Pikachu, for now, just follow Charizard closely. Try to turn every part of your body into a weapon, understand?"
"Pikachu~" Pikachu shook its head frantically. It did love to eat, but it cherished its own life even more.
But it was too late for protest—Charizard casually grabbed Pikachu with its claws. After all, Charizard had dreamed of a feast for so long, and Pikachu's resistance was just getting in the way of that dream. Charizard gave neither Silas nor Pikachu the chance to object, simply flying across the lake while holding Pikachu.
As it flew, Charizard shot out black flames close to Pikachu's body, its golden eyes glinting with a threatening light—as if to say: If you get in the way of my dreams, I'll burn you to ashes!
"Is this really scientific?"
Having just finished preparing dinner, Suzie came over to Silas, her face full of doubt. "Isn't Mega Punch supposed to be a move Pikachu only learns after evolving into Raichu?"
"Yeah." Silas didn't deny it.
"So…"
"It's different." Silas said calmly, then narrowed his eyes slightly. "This Pikachu has limitless potential. Its future achievements and abilities will definitely be no less than Charizard's. Rules like that don't apply to it."
"That impressive?" Suzie covered her mouth in astonishment. As a long-time Pokémon Breeder, she could certainly tell how strong Charizard already was. For Silas to say Pikachu would one day be equally strong—she was beginning to realize just how extraordinary this Pikachu truly was…