"President, what is this?"
Ethan's eyes lit up as he looked at the Poké Ball in President Beckett's hand.
At the same time, he already had a suspicion: Had President Beckett noticed that his team had weakened and wanted to give him a Pokémon?
Although he didn't know what it would be, coming from him... it would surely be an extraordinarily strong Pokémon.
"This time, your two strongest Pokémon, Sandslash and Slowking, stayed at the guild. It's true that the overall strength of your team has dropped considerably."
"Also, the Dark League's activity has increased lately. It seems they're plotting something. That's why I reported the situation to the League and requested this Pokémon to protect you."
Hearing President Beckett mention the Dark League made Ethan's heart skip a beat.
Judging by the tone that Dark League member had shown before, Adrian Walsh seemed intent on targeting him. Under these circumstances, and with his current team, he really was in danger.
But the fact that President Beckett had specially requested a protective Pokémon for him reassured him somewhat.
"Don't worry, this is a Pokémon raised by the League specifically for protection duties. Your safety will be absolutely guaranteed."
As he spoke, he opened the Poké Ball. A white flash lit up the room and a black shadow appeared... only to disappear instantly.
Seeing that sudden disappearance, Ethan's five Pokémon immediately tensed up, scanning their surroundings for the enemy presence... unsuccessfully.
"This feeling... a Gengar?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes slightly, arriving at his own conclusion.
"Exactly. That Pokémon is a Gengar."
"This Gengar was trained by the League especially for covert protection missions. Its ability to hide has been enhanced with specialized training. Ordinary methods won't be enough to detect it," President Beckett explained with a smile.
"Charmeleon, sense the environment's temperature and find it."
Ethan thought for a moment and suddenly gave the order to his Charmeleon.
"Chaarmeell!"
Charmeleon was surprised, but quickly understood and activated his thermal control ability at maximum output.
Besides manipulating temperature, this ability made him extremely sensitive to thermal changes around him.
After activating it, Charmeleon detected that in one corner the temperature was slightly lower than the rest. Very little, yes... but enough for him to notice.
"Chaarmeell!"
Immediately, Charmeleon grew excited and called the others over. They all wore the expressions of curious children.
"Kekekekeke!"
Gengar suddenly materialized, looking confused at the Pokémon surrounding him.
He had only wanted to show off a little...
And ended up being discovered in such a ridiculous way?
"Uh..."
Even President Beckett opened his mouth awkwardly.
He had just praised Gengar's concealment ability, and it was exposed instantly!
Too embarrassing...
But he quickly understood why: Gengar's body functions like a "heat sink," absorbing thermal energy from its surroundings. Its mere presence lowers the surrounding temperature by about 5°C.
Although this Gengar had been trained to minimize that effect... Charmeleon still detected it.
"I expected nothing less from the descendant of that Charizard," President Beckett thought, looking at Charmeleon with interest. He would love to study it when he had the chance.
"A Gengar specialized in hiding... it's perfect as a personal guard."
Ethan observed the Gengar, not underestimating it just because Charmeleon had found it.
A normal Gengar lowers the temperature around it by 5°C, which is obvious. But this Gengar had hidden that difference so well that Charmeleon didn't notice until Ethan mentioned it. Its control over its own thermal trace was impressive.
As for concealment, there was no issue: Being a Ghost-type Pokémon, hiding was its specialty. Combined with its ability to disappear into any shadow... there simply wasn't a more suitable Pokémon to act as a bodyguard.
"Ahem... As for strength, you have nothing to worry about."
"As long as it's not an Elite-level Trainer attacking personally, it can protect you without difficulty."
President Beckett cleared his throat and began detailing this Gengar's information.
He had selected it himself: excellent potential, great strength, extensive experience... and a flawless record in protection missions.
"A Gengar with strength close to Elite level!"
"And it knows so many moves! It's way too strong!"
After reading the full data, Ethan was shocked.
Not only did it master numerous Ghost- and Poison-type moves, but also many Psychic-type ones, including Ally Switch.
This move was perfect for protecting a trainer: in critical moments, it could swap places with the trainer to pull them out of danger instantly.
To top it off, its power nearing Elite level left Ethan speechless. Although he didn't know exactly how strong a Quasi-Elite Pokémon was, remembering his fight against Professor Harris's female Rhydon, even using Desert Terrain, it would've been nearly impossible to defeat her.
"If only I could keep this Gengar..."
"Too bad it's only a temporary protector, like that Pidgeot they lent me before..."
Ethan's greedy heart began to fantasize. A Quasi-Elite Pokémon, carefully selected by President Beckett... If he could capture it, his strength would skyrocket instantly!
Not even most Pokémon hunters have a Pokémon of that level. If he had one, passing the hunter exams would be almost guaranteed.
Of course... it was only a fantasy.
These protection-specialized Gengar are extremely expensive to raise. The number of moves it knew already showed how difficult it was to train it. Giving something like that away was impossible... unless someone could offer something of equal or greater value.
(End of chapter)