Pokémon: Raising Abandoned Pokémon into Legends

Chapter 331: Receiving the Hero’s Scepter (Two-in-One)

After finishing the first match, Rio moved to the guest seats. His seat was close to Queen Irene — practically to her right. Seeing Rio return with Pichu, Queen Irene expressed her amazement. She found it hard to believe that one of her castle’s Pokémon could be so powerful as to defeat an opponent in a single blow.

Keep in mind that participating in the Hero Festival required at least three Gym Badges. And a trainer with three badges had been one-shot by a castle-bred Pokémon — how could they not be shocked?

"Special training? No, I didn’t do any special training. It was probably just luck — the opponent’s Breloom wasn’t in good form. The next match might be a struggle." Rio laughed it off.

He wasn’t about to reveal that the Pichu was actually Mew in disguise. With Mew’s strength, even if it transformed into a Caterpie, it could one-shot an opponent with a single Poison Sting.

"Was it really luck?" Queen Irene frowned slightly.

"I think it was luck." Rio kept playing dumb.

But the question reminded him of something — he needed to warn Mew. If it kept showing that much power, people might get suspicious. They’d think the Pichu was actually Rio’s own Pokémon, just disguised as one from the castle.

"Little Pichu, being too strong isn’t a good thing either. We need to give the other trainers a sense of participation." Rio held Pichu and whispered in its ear.

"Pichu~" — Give the other trainers a sense of participation?

Pichu pondered for a few seconds, then nodded repeatedly. It knew what to do.

An hour later, the second round began — with Rio and his Pichu taking the stage first again. This time, their opponent was Tyranitar. With its Sand Stream ability, the calm arena was quickly turned into a sandstorm.

"Tyranitar, Dark Pulse!" The opposing trainer gave the first command.

"Tar~"

Tyranitar opened its mouth and spat a spiral dark beam through the swirling sand.

Rio simply commanded: "Pichu, dodge!"

"Pichu~"

Mew-disguised Pichu rolled and leaped, quickly hiding behind a boulder, letting it absorb the Dark Pulse.

"Pichu, use Iron Tail on the water!" After dodging, Rio gave his next command.

The battlefield for this match was a mix of rock and water.

"Pichu~"

Mew spun 360 degrees in the air. Its small black tail turned silver and struck the water surface, causing an explosion. The blast sent water flying, disrupting the sandstorm and soaking Tyranitar completely.

As it recovered, Rio gave the next command: "Pichu, Thunderbolt!"

"Pichu~!"

Mew followed up with a dazzling Thunderbolt from behind Tyranitar. Because water conducted electricity, Tyranitar — normally resistant to Electric moves — took massive damage. It staggered back and fell.

However, because Mew held back as Rio had suggested, Tyranitar wasn’t knocked out.

"Pichu, Electro Ball!" Rio seized the moment before Tyranitar could get up.

"Pichu~"

Mew leaped off a rock into midair, flicked its tail, and a basketball-sized Electro Ball formed instantly.

"Tyranitar, Stone Edge!" The opponent trainer yelled.

"Tar~"

Tyranitar rose and slammed its thick fist into the ground. Stone pillars shaped like blue blades burst from the earth, blocking the Electro Ball.

"Tyranitar, use your tail to knock it away!" The trainer shouted again.

"Tar~"

Tyranitar swung its tail, shattering its own stone blades into sharp fragments that shot toward the landing Pichu.

"Pichu, use Iron Tail to hit them all back!" Rio countered.

"Pichu~"

Mew moved with incredible agility midair, its Iron Tail flashing like rapid fire, sending every fragment back at Tyranitar, forcing it to retreat.

"Aim at its landing spot — Crunch!" The Tyranitar trainer shouted angrily.

"Tar~"

Tyranitar charged toward Pichu’s landing point, jaws wide open, fangs bared.

"Iron Tail!" Rio called out again.

As Pichu landed, Iron Tail flared once more, meeting Tyranitar’s massive jaws midair. The screech of metal against metal echoed across the arena. In the end, Tyranitar’s fangs cracked, and Pichu was sent flying.

"Pichu, now’s your chance! Use Electro Ball!" Rio called out, seeing it as an opening.

Midair, Mew spun and hurled a bright Electro Ball. It struck Tyranitar and knocked it down — this time, for good.

The arena fell silent, then erupted in cheers and applause. This was the kind of battle they wanted to see. In the first round, Rio and Pichu had one-shot the opponent, which was hard to comprehend. Now, with this evenly matched fight, it made sense — it wasn’t that Pichu was too strong, but that the first Breloom had been too weak. Otherwise, why would Pichu struggle so much against a Tyranitar, which had no resistance to Electric moves? If it were their own Pokémon, they probably could have one-shot that Breloom too.

"Queen Irene, do you still think the first round wasn’t luck?" Rio asked with a smile upon returning to the guest seats.

"No, I don’t. That Breloom really wasn’t up to par." Queen Irene admitted.

This round was worlds apart from the first. The thrilling battle had showcased Rio’s commanding prowess — truly worthy of the Kanto Champion. She never would have thought to use Iron Tail on the water surface to create a splash that would clear the sandstorm.

Rio turned and exchanged a knowing smile with Pichu on his shoulder, then looked down at the ongoing battles. Round after round passed. By 5 PM, the final round had arrived — the championship match.

One finalist was, of course, Rio and the Mew-disguised Pichu. The other was a Raichu. Before the battle even started, the crowd was already fired up. If Rio could win this, they reasoned, it would prove his commanding skill, not Pichu’s strength. After all, one was a basic form and the other was fully evolved — normally, there was no contest. It was like Charizard versus Charmander — anyone would expect Charizard to win, barring an accident, like when a certain trainer’s Charizard refused to listen and lost to a Charmander.

"Raichu, Thunderbolt!" At the start, Raichu’s trainer gave the first command.

"Rai~"

Raichu leaped into the air, curled up, and unleashed a dazzling Thunderbolt.

"Pichu, Thunderbolt too!" Rio waved his hand and smiled.

"Pichu~"

Like Raichu, Mew leaped and curled to fire its own Thunderbolt. The two attacks collided midair, sending sparks flying so bright that many in the audience shut their eyes. When they opened them, Raichu and Pichu were standing on opposite sides, glaring at each other.

Surprisingly, Raichu was visibly injured — while Pichu seemed completely unharmed.

"Raichu, Wild Charge!" Shocked, Raichu’s trainer commanded a strong move.

"Pichu, use Iron Tail to stab into the ground and defend!" Rio ordered a tactical defense.

"Pichu~"

Mew complied, stabbing its tail into the ground with Iron Tail. Just as it did, Raichu collided with it. The Wild Charge’s electrical energy was channeled into the earth, minimizing damage. This strategy drew gasps from the audience — many had never seen Iron Tail used this way to counter Wild Charge.

"Truly worthy of the Kanto Champion — brilliant!" Queen Irene’s eyes sparkled with admiration from her throne.

Raichu’s trainer was furious — Raichu’s strongest move had been neutralized by Iron Tail.

"Raichu, show them our strength — lift it!" The trainer shouted.

Raichu pushed hard against Pichu. Just as Wild Charge was about to end, Pichu was sent flying — then caught midair by Raichu’s tail and wrapped up.

Pichu was annoyed. It wanted to unleash its full power and one-shot the opponent. But seeing Rio’s subtle head shake, it held back. Two seconds later, it was thrown.

As it flew, Rio finally commanded: "Pichu, Iron Tail!" He traced a circle with his finger, pointing toward the wall. Mew understood instantly. It used Iron Tail midair, spinning 360 degrees to form a yo-yo-like attack. The yo-yo bounced off the wall and headed straight for Raichu’s landing spot.

"Raichu, Reflect!" The trainer called out quickly.

Raichu spread its hands, creating a shimmering wall of light. Pichu’s Iron Tail collided with the Reflect, which held strong.

"Rai~" — Little one, you still need practice.

Raichu taunted Pichu. Mew rolled its eyes — if Rio hadn’t stopped it, it would have ended this in one hit.

"Raichu, Mega Punch!" The trainer pressed on.

"Rai~"

Raichu swung its fist at Pichu. "Pichu, Agility — dodge!" Rio commanded defense.

Mew dodged Raichu’s Mega Punch easily. Raichu followed with Iron Tail, Mega Kick, and more — but Pichu dodged them all and landed a few small hits in return.

After about four or five minutes, Rio decided it was time.

"Dream—" He almost slipped — catching himself just in time. "Dreaming of you a thousand times — Pichu, Iron Tail, full power! Finish it!"

The word "dream" caught Mew’s attention. It paused, confused by the "dreaming of you" line — but when Rio finally gave the order to go all out, it didn’t hesitate. A sly look crossed its face as it charged at Raichu.

It could finally end this in one hit.

"Pichu~" Mew swung its Iron Tail.

"Raichu, you too, Iron Tail!" Raichu’s trainer thought it would be another stalemate.

But this time, after the clash, Raichu was sent flying like a sack, crashing hard into the barrier — knocked out instantly.

Raichu’s trainer was stunned. How did Pichu suddenly explode with that much power? The audience, though, didn’t overthink — they assumed Raichu was exhausted and had left an opening.

"Rio is amazing!" someone shouted from the stands.

It was Rio’s commanding skill that had won the day.

Rio had successfully won the Hero Festival. At the evening banquet, he would receive the Hero’s Scepter from the queen as the Hero of Aura.

"Great job, Pichu!" Rio raised his arm in celebration, making Mew feel appreciated.

"Pichu~" Mew hopped onto Rio’s shoulder, basking in the applause. Its friendship rose by five points, hitting ten.

Two hours later, the Hero Banquet began. Before many distinguished guests, Rio received his award.

"Rio, this is the Hero’s Scepter, once wielded by Sir Aaron. Please accept it — today, you are the hero of Rota." Queen Irene handed Rio a jeweled scepter.

"Thank you." Rio said gratefully, exchanging a glance with Pichu on his shoulder. Then he looked at the scepter.

Lucario is inside this, right? Rio thought.

The moment he finished the thought, three words echoed in his mind: "Why?"