For Ren personally, rookie battles were honestly quite boring.
After all, strictly speaking, Lily and Jason were both experiencing Pokémon battles for the very first time. Before this, they had barely any understanding of Pokémon at all.
Under such circumstances, it was really difficult to expect anything like an exciting battle.
Another reason was that Charmander and Vulpix were still very weak at this stage, and each could only use three basic moves.
However, even though Ren found the battle a bit hard to watch, Lily and Jason, who were actually fighting, were completely focused and fully immersed.
Emma, watching from the side, was also enjoying it greatly.
Pokémon battles were simply too novel for them.
Especially Lily—during the fight, beads of sweat had already appeared on her fair forehead.
Although the Fire-type Ember attack wasn't very effective against Charmander, it still couldn't endure being hit repeatedly by these small attacks.
Charmander was already panting heavily. Anyone could tell that it was close to exhaustion.
But what about the Vulpix on the opposite side?
It still looked to be in pretty good condition.
"Damn it! You're being shameless! If you've got guts, fight properly!"
"What kind of hero just hides far away and breathes fire?"
Lily gritted her teeth. She wasn't stupid. After realizing that her only long-range move, Ember, was ineffective against Vulpix—and even helped strengthen it—she wanted Charmander to get close and grapple.
Unfortunately, Jason gave her no chance at all.
"Miss, do you think I'm stupid?" Jason said with a calm expression. "My Vulpix doesn't even have any close-range moves yet. Why would I fight you up close?"
Seriously—his little fox's ability to manipulate flames was a huge advantage. If he didn't keep his distance and kite, that would be a waste.
Besides, Vulpix didn't have much attack power right now. Apart from Ember, its only other moves were Tail Whip and Disable.
Disable could temporarily restrict the opponent's actions, and Tail Whip reduced physical defense—but neither of them was very suitable for this situation.
What, was he supposed to let Vulpix headbutt Charmander?
"This is called tactics," Jason said smugly. "You're still a bit young, little sister."
He was in a great mood.
His little fox was invincible.
"Ahhhh! Charmander, catch that stupid fox for me!"
"Vulpix, use Ember!"
After another round of this so-called "fierce battle," one more Ember from Vulpix finally pushed Charmander past its limit. Its eyes rolled back, and it collapsed to the ground.
"Ah! Charmander, are you okay?!"
Seeing Charmander faint, Lily panicked and rushed onto the battlefield to pick it up.
Jason and Emma hurried over as well.
"Don't worry," Ren said calmly. "It's just lost its ability to fight. It'll wake up soon."
He walked over and took out an advanced wound spray he had prepared earlier, spraying it over the injuries on Charmander's body.
The effect was immediate.
Within two seconds, Charmander slowly opened its eyes.
"Phew~ I was scared to death."
Only then did Lily finally relax. That sudden collapse had nearly made her heart jump out of her throat.
Now it seemed exactly as the boss had said.
"Char…"
However, the little Charmander that woke up looked extremely dejected. It let out a soft whimper, its humanlike sad expression making it painful to watch.
It was upset about losing to Vulpix, and was apologizing to Lily in its own way.
"It's okay, Charmander. It's my fault," Lily said gently. "My commands weren't good enough."
Strangely enough, she seemed to understand exactly what Charmander was thinking.
"It's all that fox and its trainer being sneaky! But it's fine—we'll beat them next time, okay?"
Jason: "..."
Vulpix: "..."
Alright then.
Since I won, I guess I deserve to be slandered.
Jason curled his lips, too lazy to argue.
"Char!!"
Charmander's big eyes filled with determination as it nodded firmly.
"Hehe~ Charmander is amazing!"
Seeing its mood improve, a bright smile immediately bloomed on Lily's pretty face. She couldn't help rubbing her cheek against Charmander.
The girl smiled happily.
"Let's head back to the shop," Ren said with a smile. "Even though its injuries are treated, Charmander still needs some rest."
Back in the shop's rest area, Dianxi put away the camera and went back to watching Tom and Jerry. Ren poured juice for the three of them and sat down.
"How did that battle feel for you two?" Ren asked, looking at Lily and Jason, who were giving water to Vulpix and Charmander.
"It was awesome!" Lily replied immediately, her high ponytail swaying. "Boss, battling feels amazing!"
Even though she lost her very first battle—and lost badly—it didn't stop her from loving Pokémon battles.
"Yeah," Jason agreed, pushing up his glasses. "Being completely immersed like that is incredibly exciting. Way more thrilling than fighting a game boss."
He couldn't quite find the right words, but he knew one thing for sure—he loved the feeling of battle.
He could still vividly recall commanding Vulpix to suppress its opponent.
That sense of control was exhilarating.
Hearing their answers, Ren smiled sincerely.
Seeing others genuinely fall in love with Pokémon battles gave him an indescribable sense of satisfaction.
"It does look interesting," Emma said thoughtfully. "But I'm not sure if Squirtle can really do it…"
She blinked and looked at Squirtle, who was staring intently at Charmander's flame-lit tail.
The moment Squirtle realized its Trainer was doubting it, it instantly turned around, puffed out its cheeks, put its hands on its waist, and stuck out its chest.
"Squirtle! Squirtle squirtle!
(I can totally beat that red-skinned lizard!)"
"What did you say, little turtle?" Emma asked, confused.
"Squirtle squirtle!
(The red lizard and the little fox would both lose to me!)"
"Um… are you hungry?" Emma asked after thinking for a moment.
"Squirtle!
(Idiot Trainer!)"
Squirtle was practically itching to blast her with a Water Gun.
"..."
Ren glanced at Emma with a strange expression. After thinking about it, he decided not to translate Squirtle's words for her.
"Boss," Jason asked after drinking some water, "is it just me, or are all Pokémon as tough as Charmander?"
"Vulpix hit it so many times with Ember, but it barely reacted at first. That level of endurance is kind of crazy."
-----------Author---------------
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