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Because his Aura had extended too far and covered too many Pokémon just now, Ash hadn't noticed it at first.
Now, by focusing his Aura in one direction, Ash discovered that faint Aura Pokémon.
Judging by the faintness of that Aura, the Pokémon was not far from losing its ability to battle, which meant losing consciousness.
It was precisely because of this that Ash cried out in surprise.
The moment he shouted, Ash's body had already started moving.
Brock and Misty could only follow helplessly, and after running with Ash for about a minute, Ash stopped, and they also saw the Pokémon with the weak Aura that Ash had mentioned.
Sharp claws, an orange-red body, and a small flame burning on its tail—this was Charmander, one of the Kanto Royal Three Families!
"Char… Charmander?!"
A surprised voice came from Misty's mouth.
What kind of luck was this? First, he encountered a Bulbasaur not long ago, and now he encountered a Charmander?!
Did Ash encounter all the Royal Three Families in the wild?!
The Royal Three Families were not roadside Pokémon like Pikachu; although the Alliance had specialized breeding for them and they weren't particularly rare, in the wild, they were definitely extremely rare!
Yet, how many days had it been? To encounter another one was simply too outrageous!
For a moment, Brock and Misty looked at Ash with increasingly strange eyes. Was this guy the legendary King of Luck?
Ash didn't notice Brock and Misty's gazes. When he saw Charmander, his face was also full of pleasant surprise.
Just now, during the Aura scan, he had already guessed from the Pokémon's approximate appearance that it might be a Charmander, but it was only after actually seeing it that he truly confirmed it.
He never thought his luck would be so good, first encountering Bulbasaur, and then Charmander. Could it be that the previous S-rank ability was still exerting its residual heat?
[Species: Charmander]
[Gender: Male]
[Attribute: Fire]
[Level: Novice Peak]
[Ability: Blaze]
[Skills: Tackle, Growl, Ember, Smokescreen, Scary Face, Flamethrower, Belly Drum.]
[Six-dimensional abilities: Physical Attack D (S) Special Attack D (S) Defense E (A) Special Defense E (A) Stamina E (A) Speed D (S)]
Ash: !!!
This one was even more significant than Bulbasaur, with SSS-rank potential, and being able to possess so many skills at Novice Peak level—it was absolutely the best of the best!
This Charmander's potential was second only to his Ralts. Ralts was met because of that one-time S-rank ability, so what was going on with this Charmander?
Could it really be that the S-rank ability was still exerting its residual heat? Or was it just his pure good luck?
Speaking of which, since his debut, he had encountered many lucky things. Whether it was drawing prizes in the group or encountering Pokémon in the wild, he was the luckiest of the lucky.
Someone in the group would probably shed tears of hatred upon seeing this, wishing to tear him apart… "Why is there a Charmander in this place?" Brock looked around and could only describe it as desolate. A Charmander quietly lying on a rock in such a place seemed off no matter how one looked at it.
"Who cares? I'm going to catch him!" Ash looked at Charmander with fiery eyes, but soon the flames in his eyes were extinguished.
He had been briefly carried away by Charmander's potential just now, but he quickly sobered up. Charmander's body was very weak now; let alone battling, even walking would probably be difficult.
He longed to catch this Charmander, but he couldn't battle him without considering his physical condition. What difference would such a capture be from Team Rockets' blatant snatching?
"Let's talk about catching him later. Brock, give me some universal Pokémon food."
Brock was stunned for a moment, then showed a look of relief, taking out a bag of universal Pokémon food from his backpack and handing it to Ash.
Ash took the food, then took a small bowl from his backpack and gently placed it in front of Charmander. Charmander looked up at Ash, his face full of weakness.
When Ash poured the Pokémon food into the bowl and gently pushed the bowl towards Charmander, Charmander's previously forced fierce gaze instantly disappeared, replaced by a strange expression.
"Eat up. You won't be so weak once you're full. When you're better, I want to have a battle with you, a battle with the goal of catching you!" Ash wanted to touch Charmander's head, but he avoided it.
It was clear that Charmander was still wary of Ash.
However, being weak, he ultimately couldn't resist the temptation of food and quickly began to feast on the food in front of him.
In no time, he finished a whole bowl of Pokémon food.
"It seems he's really hungry. But one thing is strange: if he's a wild Pokémon, he should find food himself when hungry. Why has this Charmander been lying on this rock?" Brock stroked his smooth chin, saying thoughtfully.
"Maybe he's too tired to find food… Charmander, how about we take you to the Pokémon Center to recover first? Don't worry, I absolutely won't take advantage of your weakness to catch you. If I'm going to catch you, I'll do it honorably in battle!"
"Lee Leelee" Charmander shook his head and made a Growl.
Upon hearing this, Ash's face instantly froze, then he wilted like a frosted eggplant.
"What's wrong, Ash? What did Charmander say?" Misty asked curiously.
"He said he already has a Trainer, and he's just waiting here for his Trainer to come back."
Brock's face showed an expression of realization. No wonder Charmander was unwilling to leave this rock; it seemed his Trainer had told him to wait in this spot.
And this Charmander was very obedient, staying here, even when he was so hungry his stomach was touching his back, and the flame on his tail was almost extinguished, he still chose to wait here.
"Since he has a Trainer, there's nothing we can do. There really aren't such good things in the world after all~" Misty shrugged, looking regretful.
It seemed Ash's luck had run out. Although he encountered a Charmander in the wild, it unfortunately already had an owner.
"Yes, if he has a Trainer, there's nothing we can do. Brock, let's leave another bag of food here for Charmander. If his Trainer hasn't come back, it can help him fill his stomach."
"Mm." A portion of Pokémon food doesn't cost much, so leaving it here for Charmander in case of need is a good idea.
It's just, what's wrong with his Trainer? Judging by Charmander's state, he must have been waiting for a while, not just a short time. Did that guy fall into a latrine or off a cliff? He hasn't returned for so long.
Finally, Ash left a portion of Pokémon food in front of Charmander and bid him a somewhat nonchalant farewell.
But no one knew that his heart was bleeding; this was an SSS-rank Charmander!
The big shot in the group had said that an S-rank potential Pokémon was one in a million; SSS-rank had already reached the basic threshold for advancing to the Divine Realm.
A Pokémon with such potential could no longer be described as 'rare and hard to come by' among ordinary Pokémon.
So, even Ash was briefly carried away at first. The reason he was able to recover in less than a second was due to his heartfelt love for Pokémon.
If others knew Charmander had such potential, let alone his current weak state, even if he were on the verge of death, they would resort to any means, using all their strength to catch him.
Even if he belonged to someone else, he would attract countless covetous eyes and attempts to seize him.
This was the kind of treatment a Pokémon with SSS-rank potential could provoke.
Even Ash felt extremely sad after learning Charmander had a Trainer. This might be the only SSS-rank Charmander in the world, so it would definitely be a lie to say his heart wasn't bleeding.
But what could be done? This Charmander already had a Trainer. Unless his Trainer was crazy and abandoned this Charmander, Ash had no chance at all.
However, how could such a person exist in the world? Leaving aside Charmander's potential, considering Charmander's rarity and growth potential alone, he couldn't possibly be abandoned.
As the three left Charmander and walked on the normal road, the sky suddenly darkened, and pouring rain fell, enveloping the entire world in a hazy curtain of water.
Facing the waterfall-like rain, the three quickly followed the normal road and arrived at the Pokémon Center not far ahead.
Fortunately, they were already not far from the Pokémon Center at that time, so they didn't get too wet.
However, the three of them were still somewhat drenched, including Ralts and Pikachu.
Ash borrowed three towels from Nurse Joy, gave one each to Brock and Misty, and then used his own to first wipe Pikachu and Ralts' bodies before using it to wipe his own hair.
With his current physical fitness, even if he stayed in the rain all day and night, he wouldn't catch a cold; it was just that wet hair was a bit uncomfortable.
Nurse Joy also brought three cups of warm ginger tea to Ash and the others. Brock exclaimed that Nurse Joy's service was excellent and enthusiastically asked for Nurse Joy's email, which was then politely declined.
After the small interlude, they looked at the rain outside the window, drank ginger tea, and quietly enjoyed the tranquil environment.
Actually, this situation was quite pleasant, but all three of them had a hint of unease on their faces.
"I wonder if Charmander waited for his Trainer," Misty suddenly said.
"He should have, right? After all, so much time has passed," Ash said, but the unease on his face showed that he didn't really think so.
Since that guy left Charmander in that spot, letting him get so hungry his stomach was touching his back, it meant he had been gone for more than just a short while. It had only been about an hour since they left Charmander; could that guy really have returned just in time to pick up Charmander?
At this moment, Ash really hoped his guess and premonition were wrong. If Charmander truly hadn't waited for his Trainer and was still stubbornly waiting on that rock without seeking shelter from the rain, then this rainy weather would definitely be a fatal blow to Charmander!
His body was still in a weak state, and his level was only Novice, making him very afraid of water.
If he stubbornly endured the rain while waiting there, it might even lead to his death.
Just then, an annoying and arrogant voice rang out.
"See? These are all the Pokémon I've caught! How about it, aren't I great?"
"Damian Ge is amazing!"
"That must be over a dozen Pokémon! Damian Ge has caught so many Pokémon!"
Ash and his two companions' gazes were drawn by the voice, and then they saw a fashionably dressed person with over a dozen Poké Balls on the table.
Generally, a person can carry a maximum of six Pokémon. Any extra Pokémon are directly teleported back to the location of the person who issued the Pokédex, or to a self-set location, such as one's home.
Few people carry so many Pokémon because they simply can't take care of them all.
Six Pokémon is the maximum recommended by the Alliance, and the maximum number of Pokémon in a battle is also six-on-six.
Therefore, generally speaking, the number of Pokémon carried will not exceed six. Carrying more than six is not considered a violation, only not recommended.
The arrogant words of those people and the pile of Poké Balls gave Ash and his two companions a very bad initial impression of them.
But the other party was, after all, just a passerby, and they had no right or need to care about what those people did.
However, what the other party said next directly infuriated Ash!
"By the way, Damian Ge, you don't seem to have a Charmander, do you?"
"Charmander? I do, but that Charmander was too useless. He couldn't even beat a Poliwag, so I just threw him into the mountains."
"But who knew, I threw him four or five times, and he still followed me, so I said, 'You wait here obediently, I'll be back soon.' And he just stood there, wagging his tail, watching me leave. Hahaha, don't you think that's funny?"
"You bastard!!"
The words of the person named Damian had barely finished when he felt himself being lifted up. The younger followers beside him also watched this scene with some horror.
They saw a young man, just over 1.7 meters tall, who looked skinny, actually grabbing Damian Ge's clothes with one hand and lifting him off the ground.
What kind of monstrous arm strength was this!
Damian Ge was also startled by this sudden pull. When he looked closely, he saw a young man wearing a hat, with a Pokémon he had never seen before on his shoulder.
Who was this person? Had he offended this person? No, he didn't even know this guy!
Ash suppressed the urge to punch Damian and asked him, "I met a Charmander waiting for his Trainer on a rock in the nearby mountains. That Charmander is yours, isn't he?!"
"Yes… so what if he's mine?! What's it to you?!"
"How long have you abandoned him?"
"Two… two days, I guess…"
Damian originally wanted to retort defiantly to Ash, but under Ash's eyes, which shimmered with a sapphire glow, he instantly backed down.
This guy didn't seem like a normal person. Whether it was his strange strength or his glowing eyes, he didn't seem easy to provoke. It was better to tolerate him for now… And when Ash heard the word 'two days,' he finally couldn't help but let go of Damian, then punched him in the face.