"Ash's father?"
Delia paused.
Then a nostalgic smile appeared on her face.
"He's a very talented trainer."
But after saying that, her expression immediately darkened.
"That idiot has been off adventuring ever since Ash was five."
"If he didn't call home every year, I'd honestly think he was dead."
Hearing this, Red stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"I see..."
"For a while I actually thought Ash was Professor Oak's—"
"Hmm?"
Delia blinked.
Realizing he was about to say something dangerous, Red coughed.
"Ahem."
"Anyway, what's his name?"
"Ash's father is called Tajiri Yoshio."
"So Ash's full name would technically be Tajiri Satoshi?"
(Translator's note: This surname and name are an Easter egg.)
While chatting with Delia, Red's phone suddenly received a new message.
After reading it, a smile spread across his face.
"Finally."
Everyone nearby looked at him curiously.
"What happened?"
Red raised his phone.
"The preliminary challenge rounds are finally over."
"Sixteen Gym Leaders have qualified."
"The official Eight Gym Leader Tournament is about to begin."
Upon hearing this, both Clair and Xiaowen became excited—
And immediately nervous.
The two exchanged glances.
Can Gym Leader Red really defeat Ma Zhiji?
Even though Red had confidently rejected their earlier offers of help, the memory of that Level 55 Ampharos still made them uneasy.
It wasn't a lack of faith.
The opponent was simply absurdly strong.
Meanwhile, Red appeared completely unconcerned.
After reviewing the tournament bracket, he shook his head.
"The League really understands entertainment."
"As expected, they've arranged for Ma Zhiji and me to meet in the finals."
"Trying to preserve suspense, huh?"
Just as Red began reviewing the list of qualified competitors, two messages arrived almost simultaneously.
One from Joy Xue.
One from Sabrina.
Both contained detailed information about the qualified Gym Leaders.
Joy Xue:
"Gym Leader Red, I'll be cheering for you during your matches!"
(Attached: adorable Chansey sticker.)
Sabrina simply sent the data.
Nothing else.
As if the carefully prepared information had merely been sent by accident.
Even more surprisingly, Cynthia—currently in Sinnoh—also sent a message wishing him success.
Smiling, Red replied to all three:
"I'll do my best."
Then he began reviewing the information.
"Quite a few hidden dragons and crouching tigers here."
Among the qualified Gym Leaders, besides Ma Zhiji and his borrowed Pokémon, there were three other competitors with Level 51 Pokémon.
While weaker than Ampharos, they were still genuine Gym Leader-level Pokémon.
Against opponents like these, Red's team would struggle significantly without special measures.
Even more interesting—
His very first opponent was one of those trainers.
"So the League's plan is simple."
"Whoever wins gets the privilege of challenging Ma Zhiji."
"Typical."
After considering his options, Red muttered:
"So who should fight tomorrow?"
Mega Swampert would easily secure victory.
But he didn't want to reveal Mega Evolution so soon.
The moment Mega Swampert appeared, people would start asking questions.
One impossible evolution after another appearing around Red was hardly subtle.
Once Mega Evolution was revealed, there would be no putting the genie back into the bottle.
He still wanted to give Professor Oak time to buy up Mega Stones and make a fortune first.
Besides, he wasn't worried about Oak betraying him.
After all—
Gary was effectively his hostage.
Anyone willing to throw away their dignity for their grandson's future clearly valued that grandson immensely.
Professor Oak wasn't going anywhere.
More importantly, Oak only knew that Mega Stones were connected to some special evolution.
The exact method.
The Key Stones.
The conditions.
All of that remained firmly in Red's hands.
"Forget it."
"I'll focus on observing the other Gym Leaders."
"Professor Oak can handle the Mega Stone collection."
After reviewing his opponent's roster, Red made his decision.
"Tomorrow's opener will be Castform."
"Swampert stays as insurance."
"Honestly?"
"Castform might even pull off a one-versus-three sweep."
For a long time, Castform had mainly served as a support Pokémon.
But after obtaining the Dragon Orb, its combat strength had increased dramatically.
In terms of compatibility, even Pupitar's Groudon fragment wasn't as perfectly matched as Castform and its Dragon Orb.
Meanwhile, elsewhere on the Indigo Plateau, Ma Zhiji and Lt. Surge sat together in an Electabuzz-themed bar.
"Haha!"
"Brother, you should've seen their faces after I cleared all ten rounds!"
"There's no way the Eight Gym Leader position isn't mine!"
Drunk and overflowing with confidence, Ma Zhiji laughed loudly.
Lt. Surge calmly sipped his drink.
"Don't get careless."
"You aren't the only one exploiting the rules."
"Would be embarrassing to trip at the finish line."
"Relax."
"I'll definitely win."
Ma Zhiji drained another glass.
Lately, he felt like he'd reached the peak of life.
Everywhere he went, powerful League figures extended invitations and olive branches.
In most people's eyes, this tournament was already his.
Red's talent was impressive.
No one denied that.
But talent required time to become strength.
This tournament belonged to Ma Zhiji.
As for Red?
Maybe next year.
That was what most people believed.
What none of them realized was that Red had a completely different philosophy.
Next year?
He only fought for today.
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