Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 414: Card Battle with Charcadet? (BONUS)

January 20th.

Johan woke up to the sound of rhythmic clanging.

When he got out of bed, he was surprised to find that even Ninetales wasn't curled up under the covers—it had already gotten up.

Huh?

Did the sun rise from the west today?

The little one actually didn't stay in bed.

Then, as he scanned the room, he realized that none of his Pokémon were there.

He got out of bed, followed the sound of clanking, and slid open the door to the garden—sure enough, all his Pokémon were there, gathered around Tinkaton.

Tinkaton had a serious expression, hammering away in a steady rhythm, sparks flying with each strike.

After a while, it placed a glowing red piece of metal into Charcadet's hands, using its heat to keep the material from cooling down.

Dragonite occasionally flapped its wings to help Charcadet maintain the temperature.

Was this...

A minimalist version of Ornn's "Living Forge"?

"Cha!"

Tinkaton let out a short cry, and Kubfu quickly used its fluffy arms to wipe the sweat from Tinkaton's forehead.

This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēnovelkiss.com.

Kubfu had turned into an assistant now?

Before long, Tinkaton put down its hammer and called out to Ninetales.

"Oowoo~"

Without hesitation, Ninetales exhaled a chilling breath. With a sizzling sound and a rising white mist, the object Tinkaton had forged gradually took shape.

Johan suddenly understood.

A Ninetales-brand quenching agent!

Where was Gengar?

"Ka-kaah~ Ka-kaah~"

Gengar, wearing a pair of sunglasses, was floating nearby, overseeing the whole process.

Oh—

Not supervising Tinkaton and the others, but directing Rotom to record the entire forging process so that Tinkaton could review it later.

As for Larvitar...

"Yoji! (ˊ〇ˋ)"*

It had its mouth wide open, trying to catch the sparks flying off Tinkaton's hammer.

Of course, it couldn't catch them all with just its mouth, so its personal "bedpan" was placed nearby to collect the rest—double coverage.

No waste allowed! Larvitar was setting an example!

What a display of frugality.

So...

Had this whole group actually formed a complete forging assembly line?

Once Tinkaton finished forging two objects, it was time for the crucial fitting test.

"Cha!!"

Tinkaton solemnly handed the items to Charcadet.

"Goka!"

Charcadet was just as serious, receiving the objects and equipping them.

A golden cannon and a dark purple short sword!

One representing the path of Armarouge, the other representing Ceruledge.

And honestly?

Now that Charcadet was wearing them, it actually looked pretty cool.

"Goka!"

Charcadet gave a serious swing of its dark purple sword, then raised its arm as if aiming the cannon.

Johan's expression turned strange.

So they'd been working all morning on... this?

It seemed like nothing more than decoration—

But before that thought could fully form, Charcadet's eyes suddenly sharpened, and it lightly swung the sword.

Hiss!!

A crimson flame ignited along the blade, quickly shifting to a ghostly purple. As Charcadet swung, a faint purple energy trail was left in the air.

Johan's eyes widened.

The Bitter Blade?!

Bitter Blade: A Fire-type move, Power 90. Focuses lingering regrets at the tip of the sword and strikes the opponent. Heals for half the damage dealt.

This was Ceruledge's signature move—

And the only Fire-type move that could restore HP by attacking!

Granted, Charcadet's swing wasn't nearly at the level of a real Bitter Blade, and the [Pokédex] didn't even recognize it as the move yet.

But there was no denying that the form was starting to take shape.

"Goka!"

Then, flames flared up around Charcadet's body as it raised the golden cannon.

The fire gathered into the barrel, and within the flames, a strand of golden Life's Fire seemed to resonate with the cannon.

At the same time, the fire inside pulsed with Aura Energy.

The power behind this attack...

"So, is this an Armor Cannon? Or one enhanced with Aura?"

Armor Cannon: A Fire-type move, Power 120. Burns away part of its own armor to fire a powerful shot, lowering its Defense and Special Defense.

Johan was stunned.

He hadn't expected Tinkaton's study of the forging scrolls Armor of Celebration and Cursed Armor to actually produce something useful.

Was this an early test to see which armor would suit Charcadet best?

Or—

Was Tinkaton planning to forge both armors?

Like a card battle transformation, swapping between them?

Johan's expression turned even stranger. That would be pretty crazy.

"Cha."

Tinkaton, having witnessed the entire process, rubbed its chin in thought.

This forging session had deepened its understanding of Charcadet's connection with the two armors.

Even Johan had to admit—Tinkaton's craftsmanship was impressive.

Truly professional.

At the same time, a wild idea popped into Johan's mind.

If... if Tinkaton could learn how to forge swords and shields,

Could it replicate them?

A Pokémon World version of Cloudsmith?

Meanwhile, across the region...

Gordie, dressed in a brown jacket and stylish sunglasses, had a determined look. Underneath, he wore Galar's standard Trainer uniform, with the number 188—symbolizing "Rock Wall."

He was one of Galar's rising stars, along with Bea and Nessa, viewed as a future Gym Leader.

His mother was Melony, Circhester's Ice-type Gym Leader.

But while he received elite training from her, their philosophies differed. Instead of Ice-types, Gordie followed his true passion—Rock-types.

He wanted to redefine the image of Rock Pokémon, proving they weren't just brute force.

To achieve this, he left home, challenging Trainers far and wide, earning both victories and a devoted fanbase—

A fanbase mostly composed of women.

To show appreciation for his supporters, Gordie had even released two photo books!

Cough.

This was his first time leaving Galar to challenge another region's League. He wanted to study how their tournaments differed from Galar's.

And so far, he had proven himself in battle—while also charming even more fans.

Now...

When he learned his next opponent was the legendary Professor Johan, Gordie realized—

This might be his strongest opponent yet!

So, after a moment of hesitation, he called Leon.

"Leon, sir."

Gordie sat in front of his computer, watching Johan's battle footage.

"Any advice for facing Professor Johan?"

Leon, currently lost while looking for a flight path, was surprised.

"Your next opponent is Johan?"

"Yeah, I just got the news."

Gordie knew that Leon had battled Johan before. He also knew that Johan had defeated Mustard, Galar's former Champion.

That fact alone carried massive weight.

Leon thought for a moment, then said:

"If you're fighting Professor Johan... be especially careful of his Eevee."

"...Eevee?"

Gordie was baffled.

He had watched tons of Johan's battles—

What Eevee?!

"Besides Eevee, also his Gengar, Ninetales, Tinkaton, Dragonite, Kubfu, Charcadet—"

Gordie: "..."

Gordie felt like he had asked the wrong person.

Who didn't know Johan's entire team?!

Leon coughed.

"Alright, but seriously—his Kubfu is the most talented one my mentor has ever seen."

Hearing that, Gordie's expression grew serious.

"Got it. I'll be ready."

After a pause, he added, "Thanks, Leon."

He was about to hang up when—

"Wait! Gordie, do you know how to fly to Ballonlea?"

Gordie: "..."

"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Lily of the Valley Conference's Top 8 Qualifiers!"

The announcer's voice echoed throughout the massive main stadium, igniting the crowd's excitement.

At this stage of the tournament, all matches moved from the secondary arenas to the main stadium.

However, the format remained 3v3 rotation battles.

Only when competitors reached the Top 8, advancing to the quarterfinals, would the format change to 6v6 full battles.

"Today's challenger is Gordie from the Galar region! Here's his profile."

In the private viewing box, Fitzwilliam handed Johan a file on Gordie.

Johan took it, briefly flipping through.

Honestly, when he learned yesterday that Gordie would be his opponent, he didn't really need the report.

He already knew plenty about Gordie.

After all, this was the future Rock-type Gym Leader of Circhester.

Seeing Johan put the file away, Cynthia asked,

"So... have you decided which tricky strategy you're going with?"

Wait—

Did she almost say dirty strategy just now?!

Hmph.

Johan smirked.

"More or less."

Meanwhile, in another part of the stadium, Officer Jenny and I had uncovered new information.

After speaking to Jenny, we had confirmed that the suspect was a Pokémon Hunter—

But he refused to admit it.

Not only did he deny his identity, but he also insisted that the Pokémon Egg he sold me was real,

Even going so far as to falsely accuse me of fraud.

I was furious.

The problem was...

I had no solid proof that the egg was fake—

All I had was a transaction record.

But soon, we found a breakthrough.

We managed to contact another victim!

And it turned out...

That victim had been scammed for twice the amount I had lost!

At last, the case seemed to be making progress.

----------

Powerstones?

For 20 advance Chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates