Click.
Hearing the dull beep of the call ending, Ash slowly placed the phone back onto the landline. His expression had turned noticeably grim.
A mobile number, not a company landline listed in any directory.
An unprofessional sales pitch.
And that unconscious, habitual "meow" at the end of the sentence.
"So… that call just now was Team Rocket's Meowth, wasn't it?"
Even though the caller hadn't said much, Ash had already pieced together their identity.
He had thought that after escaping Team Rocket yesterday, the trio would finally give up—
yet instead, they were still haunting him like restless ghosts.
Anger flared in Ash's chest, but mixed within it was a chilling sense of fear and lingering dread.
If he possessed overwhelming strength, he could naturally ignore Team Rocket's harassment.
But the problem was—
He didn't. Not yet.
"…No. That's not right."
Ash suddenly froze, then his eyes lit up.
"It's not that I have no power."
"I still have one power I've never actually used."
…
Ash hurried out with Pichu and Frogadier, returning to the riverside clearing where they had trained earlier that morning. Seeing Gary training on the far side without paying attention to this area, Ash finally relaxed a little.
"Frogadier, Pichu," Ash said seriously,
"the Viridian Blessing I possess—besides the abilities you've already seen, like Healing Grace, Natural Affinity, Source Cleansing, and even helping Pokémon learn skills…"
"…actually still has one more power."
"Pichu—? Pichu?!"
"Gua—gua~?!"
Seeing their shocked expressions, Ash couldn't help but grin.
"This remaining ability is called Will Empowerment," Ash explained.
"It means using my psychic power to project my own will and fighting spirit onto you, temporarily enhancing one of your combat abilities."
"Pichu~?! Pichu!!"
"Gua—gua~!!"
"Heh."
Ash laughed softly.
"Next, we'll test it and see—at my current level—just how much combat power Will Empowerment can actually grant you."
"Frogadier, you'll go first."
Ash looked at Frogadier, currently his highest-level Pokémon.
While Pichu could still play an important role in emergencies, there was no doubt that Frogadier was Ash's strongest and most reliable frontline combatant right now.
"Gua—!"
Hearing Ash's command, Frogadier immediately stepped forward, standing firmly in the open space directly in front of him.
"Okay. Let's begin."
Ash didn't hesitate for even a moment.
He decisively mobilized the Viridian Blessing within his body, activating Will Empowerment.
Because this power belonged to him alone, Ash understood its application instinctively. With a single thought—
The once vibrant, life-filled emerald-green Viridian energy inside his body suddenly transformed into a blazing crimson red.
Driven by Ash's surging battle intent, unwavering will, and Viridian Blessing,
nearly 90 percent of that power erupted outward.
Like burning clouds at sunset, the crimson energy vaporized into a roaring red mist, surging out from Ash's body as he raised his hand and pointed forward—
Engulfing Frogadier completely.
"Gua—!!"
As the red mist wrapped around Frogadier and was absorbed into its body, the aura surrounding it surged violently upward.
This special energy—
Ash's battle intent + resolute will + Viridian Blessing—
was rapidly assimilated.
Very quickly, the crimson cloud dissipated entirely.
Ash and Pichu stared—
At a completely transformed Frogadier.
Its once slender arms had thickened, becoming solid and powerful. Raised muscle lines made its limbs look dense and explosive with strength, while its previously lean frame had become visibly sturdier.
Combined with a frog Pokémon's naturally sleek, reflective skin, those muscle contours stood out even more vividly.
If Frogadier had once been merely lean—
now it was lean and powerfully built.
On top of that, a faint red glow shimmered across its skin, making Frogadier look dangerous at a glance—
the kind of opponent no one would want to provoke lightly.
"Your body's clearly tougher… and your presence is far stronger than before."
Ash nodded in satisfaction and immediately summoned Frogadier's system panel.
[Frogadier]
Level: LV.20 (+8)
Type: Water
Nature: Serious
Abilities: Torrent, Protean
(Heaven-Gifted Ability: Bond Phenomenon)
HP: 54 (↑)
Attack: 63 (↑)
Defense: 52 (↑)
Sp. Atk: 83 (↑)
Sp. Def: 56 (↑)
Speed: 97 (↑)
Overall Combat Rating: 2405 (↑)
Potential: Purple (Peerless) +1.5%
"Favored by the destiny of the Kalos region, burdened with the mission of saving Kalos during a future world-ending crisis."
Moves (Copyable):
—
After reviewing the panel, Ash received an additional system notification.
Viridian Blessing · Will Empowerment — Enhancement Principle:
Half of the psychic power consumed is directly converted into increases in Pokémon level and physical attributes
The remaining half is used to maintain the duration of the enhancement effect
Ash's current Viridian Blessing level was LV.17.
This activation consumed 90% of his available power.
Calculation:
LV.17 × 90% × 50% ≈ LV.8
In other words—
At his current level, Ash could normally boost a Pokémon's combat strength by approximately 8 levels, with a duration of around eight minutes.
But—
Why did the system specify "normal mode"?
Was there… an abnormal mode?
The answer was—
Yes.
The energy used for Will Empowerment was entirely under Ash's control as the caster.
First, he could freely adjust the output intensity, applying different levels of enhancement to a Pokémon.
But more importantly—
He could alter the energy allocation ratio itself.
Will Empowerment — Energy Allocation Modes
Normal Mode:
5 : 5
50% of energy boosts combat strength
50% sustains enhancement duration
Special Mode:
X : Y
Total energy remains 100%
Example:
X = 1, Y = 9
X = 4, Y = 6
The more energy allocated to combat amplification, the greater the immediate power boost—
but the shorter the duration.
So what practical use did this special mode have?
The answer was—
Enormous.
Taking 5 : 5 as the dividing line, variations in
Power Amplification ↔ Duration
perfectly corresponded to two legendary high-level combat techniques within the Trainer domain.
Two pinnacle powers—
Mega Evolution
and
Z-Moves.
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