Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 445: Peony’s Request

Hello, Champion.

Goodbye, Champion.

Johan had encountered a wild Champion on his morning run, but unfortunately, he couldn't catch it, so he chose to leave immediately.

However, just because he wanted to leave didn't mean Peony would let him. The man grabbed his arm and started asking all sorts of questions—his zodiac sign, his hobbies, how many people were in his family...

Wait, was this guy conducting a household survey?

"Ahem, Peony, what brings you to Hoenn?" Johan tried to change the subject.

"Oh, little Sonia told me she was coming to study under you, and... I have a kid at home. I was hoping you could help look after her." Peony grinned.

"A kid?"

"Her name's Briar—oh, I mean, just Briar."

Briar...

Johan paused for a moment before suddenly remembering.

Right, that name did ring a bell.

Maybe "Briar" wasn't a widely recognized name, but if you called her "Cassiopia" or the leader of Team Star, a lot more people would know who she was.

"Wait a second, I'll bring Briar over to visit right away!"

Peony said this, then ran off before Johan could even stop him.

"Briar..." Johan repeated the name.

As far as he knew, Peony had two daughters—one was Peonia, who had accompanied him to the Crown Tundra to investigate the legendary Pokémon Calyrex.

The other was Briar, who had been sent to Paldea's Naranja Academy to study.

And in that academy, she had become the leader of Team Star.

Team Star was essentially a gang formed by some students at Naranja Academy. They regularly disrupted school rules and forcibly recruited members, causing trouble for those around them.

But at its core, Team Star was actually founded to resist bullying. Most of its initial members had been victims or witnesses of bullying themselves.

Briar was one of them.

Yet, as the saying goes, "he who fights monsters must take care not to become one."

After bullying incidents at Naranja Academy were eradicated, Team Star ironically became the new "bullies."

As for Briar... due to her personality, she had indeed suffered from bullying in the past. But after joining Team Star, she quickly rose through the ranks with her skills and strength, becoming the true leader behind the scenes. She called herself "Cassiopia."

At the end of the day, this was Peony's fault as an absent father.

"...She's going to be a handful," Johan sighed.

When he got home—

"Ka-kaah?"

Gengar was sitting beside Charcadet, warming itself by the fire. Seeing Johan drenched in sweat, it tilted its head in confusion.

This was the first time it had seen Johan sweat from a morning run.

"Some guests are coming over soon. Have Indeedee and the others prepare some snacks to welcome them," Johan instructed.

"Ka-kaah! ∠(°ゝ°)"

Gengar immediately saluted and got to work.

Johan had said to give them a warm welcome!

After taking a quick shower, Johan came downstairs just as Peony arrived at the café with three girls.

"Johan!" Sonia greeted him cheerfully.

Johan smiled back. "It's been a while, Sonia. How's Leon?"

Sonia crossed her arms, pouted, and turned away in frustration. "Who knows? He's probably lost somewhere again."

Johan couldn't help but chuckle.

Classic Leon. If he wasn't lost, he was on his way to getting lost. Even his Pokémon had caught his sense of direction—or lack thereof.

"Johan, let me introduce you! This is Peony—Uncle Peony, the Galar Champion!"

Sonia gestured toward Peony, who was wearing his signature orange hiking gear.

"HAHAHAHA—Sonia, keep it low-key! You can't just go around announcing I'm a Champion! HAHAHAHA—" Peony laughed heartily.

His laughter drew quite a few stares from the café patrons—some curious, others slightly annoyed.

"Who's this loud guy? Doesn't he know that if he disturbs 'Big Sis,' he's getting punched?"

"Champion? Pfft, Johan's already won two championships. Who isn't a Champion these days?"

"Even if he's a real Champion, he'd better behave in Johan's café."

Johan sighed.

His customers had more pride in this café than he did.

BAM!

Peonia kicked Peony. "Too loud, old man!"

"Old man"

Peony instantly deflated like a wilting vegetable.

Sonia giggled before continuing, "This is Peony's eldest daughter, Peonia."

"Morning, Johan!" Peonia greeted him with a bright smile, waving enthusiastically and winking.

"And this here is Peony's younger daughter, Briar."

Sonia motioned toward the girl standing awkwardly at the back, her face mostly hidden under a hoodie.

Briar was wearing a gray hoodie with an Eevee-themed fluffy backpack. A lace skirt peeked out beneath the hoodie, and her slender legs were wrapped in black stockings decorated with red and blue plus-minus symbols. She wore black combat boots.

"Briar's a little shy," Sonia whispered.

Johan smiled. "That's a cute Eevee backpack."

"...?"

Briar lifted her head slightly in surprise at the compliment.

But she quickly ducked her head again.

Johan glanced at the group and couldn't help but think—

Galar's Champion, the Galar League President's younger brother and two nieces, and the childhood friend (and likely future girlfriend) of Galar's next Champion and League President...

If he got along well with these people, didn't that mean he had Galar in his pocket?

"Ka-kaah, ka-kaah~~"

Suddenly, Gengar's voice echoed through the café.

Johan felt a bad premonition.

He turned around—and immediately covered his face.

On the stairs leading to the second floor, Gengar was balancing on the railing, holding a microphone and tapping it like a performer.

Behind it, Dragonite was trying to keep its big belly straight while Urshifu patted it rhythmically.

Tinkaton was lightly tapping its hammer like a drum, while Larvitar was biting the hammerhead, producing a crisp "ding-ding" sound.

Charcadet exhaled puffs of smoke to create a foggy atmosphere, while Ninetales waved its tails elegantly on the cat tower.

A full-on welcome performance.

Johan: "..."

He had told them to give a simple welcome, and this was what they came up with?!

The phrase "collapse of etiquette and music" popped into Johan's mind.

No, no—that wasn't strong enough.

This was outright musical anarchy.

"HAHAHAHA—Johan, you really went all out for this welcome!" Peony laughed, completely entertained.

Sonia and Peonia's faces turned red with embarrassment.

Briar took two steps back and buried her face even deeper into her hoodie.

Johan sighed and clenched his fist at Gengar.

"Ka-kaah!"

Gengar immediately got the message and waved its hand.

Abort mission!

"Hey, why'd they stop?" Peony asked in confusion.

Johan forced a smile.

"Peony, don't worry. Gengar will give you a solo performance later."

Everyone knew—when other people sang, you had to pay money.

But when Gengar sang, you paid with your life.

Peony, still clueless, happily agreed. "Sounds great!"

Johan led them to a corner table.

The Indeedee siblings promptly brought over coffee and pastries.

Big Sister Indeedee looked disappointed.

If she hadn't been busy preparing snacks, she would have joined the "band" with her melodica.

Her little brother, on the other hand, would have been hopelessly out of place.

Just as Sonia was about to introduce Johan, Briar suddenly muttered in a soft voice—

"Johan, native of Hoenn. Enrolled in Silver University with top theoretical scores. Graduated early. Became a Pokémon psychology instructor at Rustboro Pokémon Academy before pursuing a trainer career. Won—"

She rattled off his entire biography.

Johan: "..."

This kid hacked his information, didn't she?

Johan hurriedly interrupted Briar before she could reveal any more details.

Just a moment ago, he had thought Briar was shy and reserved, unlike her father. But now, he realized she was just like Peony—both had an obsession with digging into people's private information.

The difference was that Peony asked questions directly, while Briar skipped the formalities and just hacked the system.

She had nearly blurted out his bank account balance.

Johan couldn't help but suspect that if she wanted to, she could probably retrieve his bank password too.

Briar's rise to power as Team Star's leader wasn't just because of her strength—her hacking skills played a major role.

In the games, she could even transfer funds directly from the Pokémon League system into the protagonist's account.

Thankfully, no matter how good she was, she still had limits. She wouldn't be able to access the League's highest-level secrets just yet.

Team Rocket's security systems were nearly as tough as the League's—possibly even tougher after Johan helped Porygon evolve.

If she ever found out about his Team Rocket executive status, now that would be awkward.

...

Wait.

If Briar could hack into the League's financial system, then could she also—

Johan shook his head and immediately crushed the thought.

No. Absolutely not.

Breaking the law was off-limits.

But... if it was already illegal money in the first place—like funds belonging to Pokémon hunters...

Huh.

That was an interesting idea.

"Oh." Briar simply nodded, stopping her report.

Seeing her like this, Sonia looked concerned. She gently patted Briar's head and said,

"Johan, because of some... special circumstances, Peony wants to transfer Briar to Rustboro Pokémon Academy."

Special circumstances?

She must be talking about how the previous headmaster of Naranja Academy had suspended Briar, forcing her to take responsibility for the entire Team Star incident.

Briar and the other Team Star bosses had openly challenged the school's former bullies to battles. However, those bullies, afraid of losing, refused to fight and dropped out instead.

The school's head disciplinarian covered up the truth, portraying Team Star as the real troublemakers.

To ease tensions, the old headmaster spared the Team Star leaders from expulsion but forced Briar to take full responsibility and transfer for a year until things settled down.

So now, she was at this stage of her exile.

And judging by Sonia's words, it seemed like Briar and Peony had specifically chosen to transfer her because of Johan.

But...

"Isn't the transfer process handled by Director Martin?" Johan asked. "I'm not even a homeroom teacher. I just teach Pokémon psychology."

"The transfer is already approved," Sonia replied.

Well, in that case, he had no objections.

She could just go wherever she was supposed to.

Then, Sonia continued, "But Peony really wanted to meet you in person."

Johan looked at Peony.

The former Champion suddenly became very serious.

"Johan, I'm leaving my daughter in your hands!" Peony declared.

"I have to take on a very dangerous mission, and I can't bring Briar with me. So..."

Johan: "..."

Dude, I'm just a psychology teacher.

Why did this sound like some dramatic "final request" from a dying general?

Why were all these powerful figures like this?!

Peony was doing it now.

Even Giovanni occasionally acted like this...

"Peony, listen. I'm a single guy living alone. Having a girl stay with me... that's not appropriate."

"Actually, Johan, Briar will be staying with me," Sonia interjected.

"Oh."

"Johan, can we talk privately for a moment?" Peony suddenly asked, looking unusually serious.

Johan followed him to a quiet corner.

Peony sighed and said, "You've seen it yourself—Briar is..."

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"This is my fault. Peonia turned out fine because I actually spent time with her. But when Briar was born, I was already Champion. I was too busy to be around, and because of that, she... went through some things."

"I heard from Sonia that you're a brilliant psychologist."

"Pokémon psychology instructor," Johan corrected.

"Same thing."

Peony continued, "I just hope you can help her. She needs guidance."

Johan sighed.

How many times did he have to say this? He was a Pokémon psychology instructor, not a therapist.

"But honestly," Johan said, "what Briar really needs is for you to spend time with her."

Peony sighed too.

"I know. But the moment I became Champion, my life stopped being my own. I have a duty to protect all of Galar."

After a pause, he quickly added,

"This is the last time. Once this mission is over, I'm stepping down as Champion. After that... I'll always be there for her."

His expression was firm, his attitude resolute.

Johan could feel the weight of responsibility in Peony's words.

Just like how, in the future, Steven would fight Groudon and Kyogre for 22 straight days to protect Hoenn.

That wasn't something a normal human could do.

It was the burden of being Champion.

The same burden carried by Cynthia, Lance, Diantha, Leon...

Champions weren't just titles.

They were the ones who stood between the world and disaster.

Now, Johan finally understood why Peony insisted on meeting him.

He wanted help.

Briar was a troubled student, and Peony wanted Johan to "fix" her.

"Also," Peony added, "Briar is actually quite talented in battle. If you get the chance, I hope you can teach her."

As the daughter of a Champion, Briar's talent was undeniable.

Otherwise, she never could have earned Team Star's respect and leadership.

"As a thank-you," Peony said, "don't worry about money—"

But Johan raised a hand to stop him.

"She's my student. And as her teacher, some things can't be measured in money."

Yes, Johan needed money.

But as a teacher, he had his own principles.

He wasn't going to accept "red envelopes" from his students or their parents.

Otherwise, with Steven around, he'd never be short on cash.

This was his bottom line.

However... if someone wasn't his student, then that was a different story.

Peony blinked in surprise.

Then his expression softened into one of genuine respect.

"...I see. I was being rude," Peony said seriously. "Johan, you're a teacher worth admiring."

Johan forced a smile.

Yeah, but what if you had come a month earlier?

Before Briar's transfer was finalized, would you still respect me so much?

"If you ever need my help in the future, just say the word!" Peony pounded his chest in promise.

As a Champion—even a soon-to-be-retired one—his word carried weight.

Johan pursed his lips in thought.

After a brief moment, he said,

"Actually... I do have something I'd like your help with."

"Oh?" Peony's eyes lit up. "What is it?"

"I heard you used to be a gear specialist?" Johan asked.

That was something Johan had only recently learned after coming to the Pokémon world.

Before becoming Champion, Peony had been Galar's Steel-type Gym Leader.

He was also known as a "Gear Artisan"—a master at forging and repairing Pokémon battle equipment.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga (Sword & Shield arc), the protagonist Henry Sword was also a Gear Artisan and was good friends with Peonia.

"HAHAHA—so you know about that?!" Peony laughed proudly. "Let me tell you, my crafting skills—they're the best in all of Galar!"

Perfect.

Johan turned toward the stairs and shouted, "Tinkaton!"

"Cha!!"

Hearing Johan's call, Tinkaton slid down the stair railing, hammer in hand, and ran over.

"A Paldean Tinkaton?" Peony's interest was piqued.

No true Gear Artisan could resist a Tinkaton.

Especially not a Steel-type Champion.

"Nice hammer!"

Seeing Tinkaton's weapon, Peony's eyes gleamed. "You've trained it exceptionally well."

"Cha?"

Tinkaton clutched its hammer tightly and eyed Peony suspiciously.

Someone was eyeing its hammer!

Johan patted the hammer's heavy surface and smiled.

"This little one has encountered some challenges recently. Would you mind helping?"

"No problem!"

Peony agreed without hesitation.

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Powerstones?

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