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The taste of defeat was undoubtedly quite unpleasant, and it was precisely this unpleasant feeling that stirred the frozen emotions deep within Sabrina's patience, causing a hint of unwillingness to appear on her now ice-cold face.
This was a phenomenon that had never occurred before.
The Workman Uncle looked at the expression on Sabrina's face, his internal surprise beyond words; this was the first time she had shown such an expression since her Psychic powers had fully matured.
"I… I'm not reconciled!" Sabrina said, her voice showing a slight tremor.
"Since birth, my Psychic powers have been constantly growing on their own. Whether it was peers or adults, they all called me a genius among Psychic users when they saw me. But slowly, my Psychic progress far exceeded their imagination, and eventually they all started to distance themselves from me, including my parents."
Workman Uncle: ... "At first, I felt a little sad, but slowly, as my Psychic powers grew, those sad feelings disappeared. I started using my Psychic powers to battle strong Trainers with my Pokémon, but none of them were a match for me. In the end… my father was driven away by me, I inherited this Gym, and I made the Saffron Gym famous."
"I yearn to fight stronger people. Only by constantly defeating powerful people can I prove my existence. But perhaps… I just want to see if there are other anomalies like me in the world."
Sabrina said, her gaze fixed on Ash, whose expression was complex.
She had indeed found one, an anomaly like her, or perhaps even stronger than her.
The power of the barrier that directly covered the entire field—even if she used all her Psychic power, she couldn't break through it.
This young man was not only an anomaly, but probably a freak among anomalies.
Yet, such an anomaly still had companions by his side, and they showed no fear towards him. Why… why did her parents distance themselves from her?
"Parents all dote on their children. Their distancing from you, isn't it due to your excessive self-awareness? It's also possible that the power you displayed at first scared them, and they'd be fine once they recovered. It's just that your way of dealing with it was too aggressive, which led to the situation deteriorating further, right?"
Ash said bluntly, completely ignoring the Workman Uncle frantically shaking his head nearby.
He had finally seen a glimmer of hope that Sabrina might recover. If she were stimulated again and reverted to her old self, he would probably go crazy!
However, Ash didn't see the Workman Uncle's actions at all; it was like winking at a blind man.
Sabrina didn't respond to his words, her face still expressionless, but how her heart was fluctuating was not for outsiders to know.
Ash didn't know how to persuade Sabrina to become a normal person. Whether the situation worsened or improved, he had done his best.
But he believed in one thing, which was… "Pokémon battles are very interesting, aren't they?"
Sabrina: ?
"Using all methods, tactics, and strategies to defeat an opponent—once you win, that sense of accomplishment is absolutely first-rate."
"I've won many times before, and I haven't felt that way."
Ash: …Sis, don't kill the conversation!
"Then… then maybe it's because you haven't met a evenly matched opponent. Defeating the opponent in one go is indeed boring, but if you can have a back-and-forth battle, you should be able to feel the passion of Pokémon battles! Just like your battle with me today, didn't you feel that kind of surging excitement?"
Ash gesticulated wildly, seemingly trying to convey his feelings to Sabrina.
Sabrina tilted her head, her cold and beautiful face showing a hint of confusion, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curve slightly.
She didn't quite understand the feeling Ash was talking about, but watching him gesticulate, trying hard to make her understand that feeling, she inexplicably smiled, and at the same time, the iceberg in her heart seemed to be quietly melting.
He was the first person who, after seeing her Psychic powers, knowing she could turn people into dolls, and battling her, could still stand before her, speak to her, and be patient with her.
This was something even her parents hadn't been able to do.
When the Workman Uncle saw the faint smile on Sabrina's lips, his pupils dilated in shock, and his mouth hung open in disbelief, an expression of extreme incredulity on his face.
Sabrina… she actually smiled? And was amused by this young man?
Was it really that simple to unfreeze the iceberg in Sabrina's heart?
No… it wasn't simple, but it was simple because it was this young man who did it.
Sabrina's Psychic powers had the ability to sense people's hearts. Even if they showed no fear on the surface, the fear and distance in their hearts would still be sensed by Sabrina.
That's why he and the child's mother were considered by Sabrina to be among those who distanced themselves.
Because deep down, they feared the rapid growth of Sabrina's Psychic powers. They didn't want their child to become the world's strongest Psychic user; they just wanted to see her grow up happily, marry, and have children, nothing more.
However, the growth rate of Sabrina's Psychic powers far exceeded their imagination, even having a considerable impact on Sabrina's personality, which is why they subconsciously felt fear.
But fear was subconscious, while accepting Sabrina was their conscious will. Yet, Sabrina, upon sensing their subconscious thoughts, had a complete mental breakdown… This led to Sabrina acting against them later, and Sabrina's mother actually had the chance to be taken away with him, but she chose to stay behind.
Because of her guilt towards Sabrina and her concern for her, even if she turned into a doll, she wanted to stay by Sabrina's side.
Sabrina, however, because her mind was completely abnormal, didn't even notice that her mother, who loved her despite her fear, was right beside her.
After learning of Sabrina's mother's decision, Sabrina's father silently agreed and then left using Psychic powers.
That was a mother's resolve, which no factor could interfere with. Sabrina's father knew that if he had forcibly taken her away, it might have caused Sabrina's mother a lifetime of regret and hatred.
And as a father, he couldn't do the same thing as the mother; he had to find a way to restore Sabrina from the outside.
Sabrina was not always so cold; before awakening her Psychic powers, she was actually a cheerful girl. The root of all this might lie in her Psychic powers.
Because of her Psychic powers, she sensed too much of the darkness in people's hearts, which then stained her pure mind, ultimately leading to her inner closure and distortion, even giving rise to a second personality.
Unfortunately, he had been out for so long and still couldn't find a way to stop Sabrina. The only thing he could do was to exaggerate and publicize the consequences of failing to challenge the Saffron Gym, so that those incapable challengers would stop coming.
At the same time, he also wanted to see if he could attract some Expert to defeat Sabrina. If someone could defeat Sabrina, perhaps her condition could be changed.
However, an incident a while ago completely drove Sabrina's father to despair.
That was because the issue of the Saffron Gym turning people into dolls and causing trauma was escalating, eventually reaching the League. The League dispatched personnel to mediate, and among them was one of the Kanto Elite Four—the Ice Elite, Lorelei!
The Kanto Elite Four were not like the Elite Four of other regions; they all possessed Champion-level strength.
When Sabrina's father saw Lorelei arrive, his heart was filled with joy.
Before Lorelei arrived, Sabrina had never lost a single battle. He thought that if she tasted defeat, Sabrina would be able to return to normal.
As for whether Lorelei could defeat Sabrina… although Sabrina's Psychic powers were indeed very strong, and her Alakazam was also very powerful, compared to a Champion-level, there was still some gap.
However, the result plunged Sabrina's father's heart into the abyss.
That day, the entire interior of the Saffron Gym was frozen. That day, Lorelei found Sabrina's father and told him she was also at a loss.
If she were to truly use her full power to defeat Sabrina, without protective measures, the entire Saffron Gym would likely be destroyed, and even some surrounding facilities would be affected.
Furthermore, because Sabrina was mentally linked with Alakazam throughout, if she defeated Alakazam, Sabrina's own mental power would also be affected.
"...Her strength is somewhat beyond my imagination. If it were an ordinary Elite, I could take her down without damaging the surroundings, but the combined power of her and Alakazam is not even weaker than an average Champion. Even if I defeat her, it will affect both herself and the surroundings."
"And even if I defeat her, I can't make her return to normal. Perhaps when someone appears who can make her smile, she will return to her normal self. Until then, we can only wait silently."
Lorelei's words undoubtedly made Sabrina's father completely lose all hope.
Even Lorelei said she was difficult to defeat, and even if defeated, she couldn't return to her original state, and it would even paralyze half of Saffron City. What hope could he still have?
As for Lorelei's statement, waiting for someone to appear in the future who could make Sabrina smile… Haha, would such a person truly exist in this world?
And now—yes, such a person truly existed!
And this person was a young man.
The reason Ash could make Sabrina smile was perhaps because he had no fear of Sabrina in his heart, and he had goodwill towards Sabrina in his heart, feelings that Sabrina perceived.
Furthermore, Ash possessed formidable power just like her, and she regarded him as a kindred spirit.
Under various factors, Sabrina finally showed a smile in front of Ash.
Sabrina's father also noticed that the doll symbolizing Sabrina's second personality was also gone, which at least indicated that Sabrina's mind was no longer twisted.
"It's truly a miracle… A young man who looks to be not even eighteen years old not only possesses such strength, but also has trained his Psychic powers to the same masterful level as Sabrina. It seems even Heaven is Helping Hand Sabrina!"
The Workman Uncle, who was Sabrina's father, expressed his emotion, his gaze towards Ash filled with gratitude.
"Ash is only fifteen this year, and he's only been traveling for a month and a half! Don't make Ash sound old."
"Yes, and Ash's ability is called Aura, not Psychic."
Misty and Brock stepped forward and said, the former looking at Sabrina, whose face held a faint smile, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.
Why did she always have a bad feeling… "Fifteen? Are you kidding me?! How can a fifteen-year-old have Elite Four level Pokémon? How did he train them? Did he, like Sabrina, already have Pokémon before he was fifteen?" Sabrina's father's face showed an incredulous expression, and he questioned aloud.
Training Elite Four level Pokémon at fifteen, no matter how you think about it, it doesn't make sense. Unless he started training Pokémon before he began traveling, just like Sabrina. Since Sabrina awakened her Psychic powers, Abra has been by Sabrina's side.
As Sabrina's Psychic powers grew, Abra's strength also continuously increased, which is why Sabrina now possesses an Elite Four level Alakazam, and only this one.
How did Ash, at fifteen, achieve this?
"Ash caught that one. The way he caught it was… by going hand-to-hand with a Gastly." Misty thought of that scene, and the corner of her mouth twitched. To have an Elite Four level Pokémon in such a way was quite bizarre.
This must be an unprecedented existence, right?
Sabrina's father: ???
Hand-to-hand capture of an Elite Four level Pokémon? Is that even humanly possible?! Never mind whether he could win in hand-to-hand combat, are wild Elite Four level Pokémon that easy to find?
While Sabrina's father and Misty were conversing, Sabrina here also suppressed the slightly curved corners of her mouth and responded to Ash.
"You're right, battling you really gives me a feeling of inner burning, something no one else can give me. However, you were wrong about one thing: I haven't not battled an evenly matched opponent. A while ago, I battled someone named Lorelei. Although she isn't a special ability user, her Pokémon are very strong. Even with Alakazam and I working together, it was difficult to deal with her."
Ash: !!!
Upon hearing this, Ash excitedly grabbed Sabrina's shoulder and said, "The Lorelei you're talking about, is she Lorelei, one of the Kanto Elite Four?"
Sabrina looked at the broad hand on her shoulder, a flicker of an unusual expression in her beautiful eyes, but she made no movement. Instead, she calmly replied, "Hmm, I suppose so. I remember her saying she was some kind of Elite Four. Although I didn't win against her, I didn't lose either. She seemed to have some reservations, so she couldn't use her full power."
"Perhaps that's why I didn't feel the passion of the battle. Just as you said, the most enjoyable part of a battle is when both sides are giving their all to win. If there are reservations and you can't use your full power, then you can't truly feel the opponent's heart… Is that right, Ash?"