089: Touched, James!!
After the student meeting ended, the clock struck 18:00, and the students proceeded in an orderly fashion to the camp's dining hall for dinner.
"Wooooooow!"
"The flavor is kind of unique, but it's delicious!"
Many students were amazed after taking their first bites.
Ash, who was sitting at the same table as Xiaolan, Gary, Trevor, and Tieruno, nodded with a bright smile when he heard Xiaolan's comment. He then turned to look at Froakie (Bubble Frog), who was cheerfully eating from a bowl of Pokémon food.
"Chuu~ (¯~¯)"
While chewing the food, Froakie nodded contentedly. Its squinting eyes and wagging limbs clearly reflected its joy.
"The taste is completely different from anything I've had before," Ash commented thoughtfully.
"Probably because the ingredients are native to the Kanto region. But beyond that, I can feel the sincerity of the chef in every bite."
Trevor, tasting the food carefully with sparkling eyes, chimed in with his own analysis, snapping a few pictures with the small camera he always carried.
Ash, whose palate had been nurtured by his mother Delia Ketchum's exceptional cooking, also found the meal to have a flavor unlike anything he had previously tasted — rich, gentle, and sincere.
Just as Trevor had said, it wasn't only the ingredients but the heartfelt craftsmanship behind the meal that touched them.
"Mmm… so gentle. You can feel that it's made with love and sincerity."
Even without consciously trying to read it with his developing aura sensitivity, Ash could instinctively feel the pure intentions behind the meal.
Yet, what Ash and the others didn't realize was that in the kitchen workshop behind the cafeteria, the chef responsible for the meal was listening, trembling with emotion.
A young man with short blue hair, wearing a chef's uniform slightly too large for him, covered his heart with his hand, overwhelmed by joy.
"I'm so happy...! Please praise me more..." he whispered, tears shining in his eyes.
He wasn't a trained culinary master or someone of prestigious background. Just through a simple dinner, he had received genuine approval from those he served a kind of recognition he had never experienced at home, within his wealthy family.
This simple moment this heartfelt acknowledgment was exactly what he had yearned for, the very thing he had left his former life behind to find.
Nearby, another figure beamed with pride: a small, catlike Pokémon standing on two legs Meowth.
"Heh! Even if we get kicked outta Team Rocket, with James' cooking skills, we can survive anywhere, meow!!" Meowth grinned, clutching his belly.
Standing beside James, however, was the third member of their group: the purple-red-haired Jessie, currently disguised as a stern-looking female chef.
She crossed her arms, tapping her foot impatiently, clearly unimpressed by their emotional moment.
"Tch. Don't get carried away! Have you two forgotten why we infiltrated this Pokémon Summer Camp in the first place?"
"Have you forgotten our loyalty to Master Giovanni?!"
Despite Jessie's scolding, James responded in a rare moment of calmness:
"Relax, Jessie. We haven't forgotten. It's just... the timing isn't right yet. According to Meowth's revised plan, we have to wait a little longer before making our move."
"Besides," Meowth added, licking his paw smugly, "if we mess up now and get ourselves fired by the camp admin, we'll lose our chance for good!"
In the back kitchen workshop, the "chefs" whose true identities were the infamous Team Rocket trio continued quietly plotting their next move, all while maintaining their cover.
Just then, the workshop door swung open with a creak.
A tall, stern woman with short dark hair and sharp eyes entered the summer camp administrator, Katarina.
Her expression was as cold as ice.
"Attention!" she barked.
Startled, Jessie, James, and Meowth immediately snapped to attention, standing stiff as boards, hiding their nerves behind professional smiles.
However, the female camp administrator clearly did not notice the little secret hidden by the three chefs. The serious expression that had tensed her face earlier suddenly melted away like ice under sunlight.
Her cold and stern demeanor instantly transformed into a warm, bright smile. Looking at the three chefs who had proactively applied to work at the summer camp cafeteria, Katarina appeared very pleased.
"The students gave an excellent evaluation of tonight's dinner," Katarina said, her voice playful as she winked at them mischievously.
"Tell me, don't you think I should reward you with a little salary raise?"
The three undercover chefs Jessie, James, and Meowth were momentarily stunned by her unexpected generosity, but the next second, their eyes sparkled brightly, almost literally gleaming with golden coin signs.
"Thank you very much!!" the three chorused, bowing ninety degrees in perfect unison to express their gratitude.
Meanwhile, the students who were finishing up their meal in the cafeteria remained completely unaware of the situation unfolding in the back kitchen.
After dinner, since night had already fallen and the forest surroundings of the camp grew darker, the camp management issued a notice: students were prohibited from leaving the campgrounds for safety reasons, and everyone was instructed to return to their assigned cabins immediately.
Following the crowd back to the cabins, just as Ash was about to part ways with Xiaolan, Shauna, Serena (Ser Lena), and the other girls, he suddenly turned towards Ser Lena and made a small request.
"Lena, can you lend me your Clefairy for tonight? I'll return it to you tomorrow morning."
Serena blinked in surprise, but quickly smiled and nodded without hesitation.
"You want to borrow Clefairy? Sure, no problem!" she answered cheerfully, handing over Clefairy's Poké Ball without pressing for an explanation.
"Thank you, Serena!" Ash said sincerely, carefully accepting the Poké Ball.
Although the reason he wanted to borrow Clefairy was not exactly a big secret, the fact that Serena agreed so readily, without even questioning his motives, made Ash inwardly even more satisfied with her and more fond of her as well.
Of course, referring to her as "this Stephanie" (a slight mistranslation based on "Serena") felt a little off now. If he were honest, thinking of her as his future wife seemed far more fitting.
However, such a title was something Ash could only dare to call her inwardly for now; speaking it aloud would be far too inappropriate.
Even though Serena was considerate enough not to question him, when Ash returned to his cabin, Gary Oak, his lifelong rival and roommate, could not restrain his curiosity.
As soon as Ash entered the room, Gary immediately asked:
"Hey Ash, what do you want with Serena's Clefairy anyway?"
Ash, facing the curious looks of Gary, Trevor, and Tieruno, hesitated for a moment, then decided not to hide the general idea.
"You know how I awakened my Psychic ability, right? Just this afternoon, when I was training with Froakie, I discovered something new."
"My Psychic power doesn't just help with healing injuries," Ash explained seriously.
"When I injected a little of my Psychic energy into Froakie, it seemed to temporarily boost his comprehension ability, helping him better grasp new moves."
When Ash had previously planned to open an online shop to help other Trainers' Pokémon learn moves, he already anticipated that this secret would eventually come out.
However, the even greater secret the fact that he was a transmigrator and possessed a system absolutely had to remain hidden. Therefore, Ash carefully framed the phenomenon as simply a unique side-effect of his Psychic ability.
Even so, Ash was cautious not to reveal everything.
He intentionally did not mention that he could directly copy skills from other Pokémon into his own memory bank; instead, he phrased it carefully, explaining that his Psychic could merely boost a Pokémon's natural ability to comprehend moves on their own.
By keeping it vague and emphasizing a supportive rather than miraculous role, Ash avoided stirring up excessive fear, jealousy, or unwanted attention from ambitious individuals.
After all, simply having Psychic powers already made him stand out significantly among Trainers.
---
60+ advanced chapter on patreon....Visit patreon now to read my exclusive content... posting 5 chapters per day, Our collection is now available on PATREON
visit patreon.com/Mgoldtranslation to view 60+ advanced chapters
Please subscribe guys