The world is home to many powerful and seasoned Trainers—individuals capable of discerning a Pokémon's general strength at a mere glance, with some even able to pinpoint an opponent's exact level.
However, a Trainer like Ash—who can instantly perceive a Pokémon's level, and indeed every single detail about it, with a single look—is truly one of a kind.
Yet, this was the first time Ash had ever heard of someone capable of determining a Pokémon's level solely through their sense of smell. It seemed this young woman, Liza, was no ordinary person herself!
"Let's head inside the valley first; I'll give you a tour. Once we're done looking around, you can send out your Charizard to have a friendly spar with the Charizard here in the valley... I imagine that was one of your main reasons for coming to Charizard Valley, wasn't it?"
As she spoke, Liza pushed open the massive gates to Charizard Valley.
As the half-obscured entrance swung wide, it revealed a multitude of Charizard gathered within. These Charizard varied in size—some large, some small—yet even the smallest among them possessed a physique larger than that of an ordinary Charizard.
Ash had always considered his own Charizard's physique to be exceptional among its kind; however, compared to these wild Charizard, it seemed there was still a noticeable disparity.
Here, his Charizard would be considered—at best—of average size. It just goes to show: it's a big world out there, full of endless wonders!
However, a large physique does not necessarily equate to superior strength or higher potential; it is merely one physical attribute among many. A massive Charizard isn't automatically formidable, nor is a smaller one inherently weak.
While his Charizard's physique hadn't reached the point of being grotesquely oversized, it was certainly robust and muscular. Any further physical development might actually compromise its agility, potentially leading to a decline in combat effectiveness.
Of course, this isn't to say that larger Charizard are inherently inferior; it simply means that—for his Charizard—its current physique is the optimal one. Nothing more, nothing less.
"Everyone, they aren't here to cause trouble, so there's no need to be so on guard. This young trainer here owns a Charizard of his own—and let me tell you, it is incredibly powerful! Later on, you guys can have a friendly spar with his Charizard," Liza announced. Her words caused the multitude of Charizard to lower their defensive stances, and the looks they cast toward Ash instantly became much more amiable.
The reason they had all been crowding behind the gates was that Liza had jokingly remarked earlier that someone was coming to "crash the party"—hence their previously fierce and menacing expressions.
Now, the misunderstanding had been completely cleared up.
"This is the first time I've ever seen so many Charizards—and look how massive they all are!" Misty exclaimed in amazement, her beautiful eyes wide as saucers.
Even though she had already witnessed her fair share of wonders alongside Ash, this was still the very first time she had ever seen so many Charizards appear all at once.
They were all gathered in a single location. And these weren't just any ordinary Charizards; each one was absolutely massive in size, exuding an aura of power that was anything but weak.
As for Serena, it went without saying—she had been traveling alongside Ash ever since their journey through the Orange Islands began.
Let alone seeing this many Charizards in one place, it was rare enough to encounter such a large number of Pokémon of any species all at once.
Moreover, every single one of these Charizards was a behemoth—each one stood nearly three times Serena's height—creating a truly overwhelming and imposing presence.
"Come on, let's head inside Charizard Valley and take a look... You come out and join us, too, Charizard!" Ash tossed the Poké Ball he held in his hand, and Charizard materialized in a flash of light.
"Just as I thought—you've raised him exceptionally well! That level of refinement... those muscles... those body proportions... simply perfect! Ash, how on earth did you manage to raise such a flawless Charizard?"
Before Ash could even react, Liza had already rushed over to stand right in front of his Charizard.
Her small, fair hands roamed all over Charizard's body, while her voice was filled with a mix of admiration, astonishment, and sheer disbelief—as if the physical condition of this Charizard was unlike anything she had ever witnessed in her entire life.
Charizard was left completely flustered and bewildered by Liza's rather obsessive, fangirl-like behavior. He cast a helpless glance at Ash, his expression seeming to ask: ...Is it okay if I use Flamethrower on her?
Ash hurriedly shook his head. If Charizard were to unleash a Flamethrower attack on Liza, it would likely trigger a retaliatory assault from every single Charizard in the entire valley. However, it wouldn't be right to just let Liza keep pestering Charizard like this.
Ash stepped forward, tapped Liza on the shoulder, and spoke up: "Um... Miss Liza, isn't that enough? Aren't you supposed to be showing us around Charizard Valley?"
"Oh, right! Sorry about that—I just got completely captivated by your Charizard. It's the first time I've ever seen a Charizard trained to such perfection! It's not just a matter of level or stats; his physical condition is practically flawless! He might not be the strongest Charizard in the world right now, but I'm certain that, sooner or later, he will become the absolute strongest Charizard in the world!"
Having met Charizard for the very first time, Liza had already reached this definitive conclusion.
This left Ash and his companions completely dumbfounded: Whose Charizard is this, anyway—ours or yours?
Anyone who didn't know better would think she was the one who had spent years training him, given the sheer confidence she placed in him.
Even Charizard himself felt a bit sheepish after receiving such lavish praise from Liza.
He certainly possessed the self-confidence to become the world's number one Charizard, and his own Trainer believed he could achieve that goal as well. But receiving praise from one's own inner circle is one thing; receiving it from an outsider is quite another.
To have a complete stranger—someone meeting him for the very first time—offer such an incredibly high assessment of his abilities was enough to make even the habitually overconfident Charizard feel a twinge of embarrassment.
Then again, the fact that an outsider would praise him to such an extent proved that all his hard work hadn't been in vain. The thought that he might soon get to engage in a fierce battle against other Charizards made his blood practically boil with excitement.
"Come on, let's head inside." Liza reluctantly peeled her hands away from Charizard, then led Ash and the others deeper into Charizard Valley.
Upon entering Charizard Valley, Ash and his companions were met with an even more intense, scorching heat.
Ash, Brock, and Misty—being accustomed to trekking through all sorts of terrain—handled it reasonably well; however, Serena, who had rarely experienced such harsh environmental conditions, found it nearly unbearable.
Beads of sweat trickled down her fair, delicate cheeks; even though she was wearing a short-sleeved shirt, moisture continued to seep through her clothes.
Ash glanced at Serena, then took her hand in his. In an instant, Serena's already rosy cheeks turned three shades redder—even redder than an apple—and her body, already burning up, felt as scorching hot as an erupting volcano.
Before Serena could even utter a word, she felt a sensation of coolness radiating from the palm of her hand.
That coolness coursed through her entire body, rapidly bringing down her internal temperature; an involuntary moan of pure comfort escaped her lips, startling Serena into immediately covering her mouth with her free hand.
"How is it, Serena? Feeling any better?"
"Y-yes... much better. What exactly was that...?"
"Just one of the applications of the Power of Aura. It might look like magic, but really, all I'm doing is using Aura to dissipate the internal heat within your body, and then using Aura to create a barrier over your skin to block out the external heat. That way, your body won't heat up anymore," Ash explained nonchalantly, before releasing his tight grip on Serena's hand.
Don't let his casual tone fool you; in reality, this feat requires an incredibly precise and refined mastery of the Power of Aura.
Of course, for Ash, it truly was effortless.
After all, his command of Aura rivaled that of a deity. Insulating against a little heat was a trivial matter; if he couldn't even manage that, he might as well just go find a block of tofu to bash his brains out against.
"What?! You can use the Power of Aura like that? I want some too, Ash! I'm absolutely roasting over here!" Misty stepped forward, clinging to Ash's arm as she whined playfully.
"Huh? Surely a little heat like this shouldn't be any trouble for you, Misty?"
"You big dummy, Ash! Given the choice between an uncomfortable environment you can merely endure and a comfortable one you can actually enjoy—which one would you pick? Just because I can withstand this heat doesn't mean I want to!"
Misty rolled her eyes, retorting with exasperation.
They were officially dating now, yet his emotional intelligence still hadn't improved one bit!
"Oh, right—got it. Brock, let me give you a boost, too. And—Miss Liza, would you like one? I'll give you a boost as well."
As Ash individually channeled his Aura power into each of them, everyone present felt as though they had stepped into an entirely new world.
Many people have surely experienced that blissful sensation of stepping into an air-conditioned shopping mall after enduring the sweltering heat outside. That is exactly how Brock and the others felt right now.
Even Liza—who had already fully adapted to life in Charicific Valley—felt, after experiencing that profound sense of comfort, that she could never go back to how things were before.
She had merely grown accustomed to and adapted to the environment of Charicific Valley; it wasn't that she actually liked living in such conditions. If she weren't so sensitive to the heat, she wouldn't have needed to dress in ultra-short shorts and midriff-baring tops in the first place.
Throughout their tour of Charicific Valley, Liza couldn't help but marvel at the miraculous nature of Ash's Aura power.
It was no wonder Ash had managed to raise such a perfect Charizard; it turned out he himself was no ordinary individual—though, of course, that went without saying.
Charicific Valley was home to a multitude of facilities—facilities designed not for human use, but specifically for the training of Charizard.
These included massive, sturdy boulders for strength training; special metal plates used to measure flame intensity; and unique pools of magma designed to help Charizard replenish their fiery energy...
Gazing at these comprehensive facilities, Ash realized for the first time that there was still significant room for improvement in his own methods of raising Charizard. If his Charizard were to utilize these specialized facilities for training, their rate of progress might very well accelerate beyond what they were achieving now.
Aside from the training grounds, there stood a solitary building within Charicific Valley—Liza's residence. The house wasn't particularly large, consisting of only a single story, but for Liza living alone, it was certainly more than spacious enough.
Midway through the tour, Brock suffered another one of his "episodes."
He declared that Liza's house was far too empty and that she needed someone to live with her—someone to keep her company and alleviate her loneliness. Needless to say, the person he had in mind was none other than himself.
Upon witnessing Brock lapse into his usual lovesick stupor, Misty immediately deployed her ultimate weapon: "Professor Ivy!"
At the mere mention of those two words, Brock instantly wilted like a frostbitten eggplant, his spirits deflating completely. For Brock, Dr. Ivy was an absolute taboo—a mere mention of her name was far more effective than yanking his ear ten times over.
Brock's little interlude did nothing to interrupt Liza's tour.
Aside from Liza herself, the house she inhabited actually had another "resident"—though calling it a "person" wouldn't be quite right; it would be more accurate to call it a Pokémon.
That resident was Liza's very own Charizard: Charla.
It was a Charizard sporting a bow on its head, giving off an air of—surprisingly—delicacy. To associate the word "delicate" with a Charizard might sound utterly implausible, yet Liza's Charizard truly gave off that exact impression.
However, one shouldn't be fooled by Charla's delicate appearance; she was, after all, a Charizard residing in Charicific Valley, and her strength was by no means insignificant. Through Ash's "Insight" ability, it was evident that Charla had already reached the formidable level of a Gym Leader-class Pokémon.
While such a level might be considered merely "average" within the confines of Charicific Valley, in the outside world, a Gym Leader-class Pokémon is undeniably a high-tier powerhouse.
It simply goes to show just how profound an impact the environment can have on Pokémon. As Liza explained, Charla had no particular fondness for battling or training; yet, simply by existing within the environment of Charicific Valley, her power had skyrocketed nonetheless.
Incidentally, it is worth noting that upon spotting Charla, Ash's Charizard seemed to experience a peculiar flutter of emotion.
In the Charizard community, a Pokémon with Charla's particular looks apparently qualified as a bona fide "super beauty."
However, Ash's Charizard had, after all, endured rigorous training; despite his budding interest in Charla, he didn't go charging in headfirst like Brock would have. He believed that by simply demonstrating his own formidable strength, he would naturally capture Charla's attention.
...
"Alright, that pretty much covers the situation here in Charicific Valley. Is there anything else you'd like to take a closer look at?"
After leading them on a winding tour, Liza had brought Ash and his companions back to the main entrance of Charicific Valley.
Over the course of their two-hour tour, she had successfully guided Ash and the others through almost every corner of the valley.
When all is said and done, this place is merely a valley; taking two hours to tour it is actually quite a leisurely pace.
"We haven't checked out that spot yet, have we?" Liza followed the direction Ash was pointing.
When she clearly identified the location of that particular peak, her beautiful emerald eyes narrowed slightly.
"That place is off-limits. It is the sanctuary of the strongest Charizard in the entire Charizard Valley. Even I have to submit a request an hour in advance just to visit... It's not that he's some kind of diva; it's simply that the environmental conditions inside are on a completely different level than those outside. If an ordinary person were to walk in there, their legs would likely melt right off."
"Aside from the valley's strongest Charizard, no other Charizard could possibly endure training in such an environment. Every time I visit, that strongest Charizard pauses his training for an hour and steps outside to meet me. If we were to approach while he was in the midst of training, the sheer shockwaves radiating from his power would likely be enough to land us straight in the hospital."
Liza's words caused Ash and the others to exchange glances. To be honest, her description did sound a bit exaggerated; yet, judging by the expression on Liza's face, she didn't appear to be exaggerating at all.
Just how harsh are the conditions inside that place?
And just how powerful must the Charizard capable of training there truly be?