" Tsk." Flint chuckled and shook his head at the sight.
He turned and waved over the squad captain from earlier.
"That Togepi egg—I want it. Record the League Merit Points needed for the exchange, and have it sent to Pewter Gym."
"Yes, sir!"
Flint then casually explained to Silas,
"My old man told me to prepare an early coming-of-age gift for the youngest over at Cerulean Gym. I was thinking… she's just a little girl, and a Water-type specialist at that. Our Rock- and Ground-types aren't really suitable for her.
"As for other Pokémon, Cerulean Gym doesn't exactly lack anything. But a Togepi? Cute, rare—perfect.
"And it's thanks to you, really. Otherwise, given the priority list, I wouldn't have gotten the chance to exchange for it. Pokémon like that are in high demand.
"Honestly, I don't even know why the old man's preparing this so far in advance. Her adulthood's still a long way off."
He ended with a little complaint about his elderly father.
"Tsk, that I do know," another Gym Leader—without anyone noticing—had walked up beside them, responding to Flint's grumbling. "I heard the two of them made another bet."
"Huh? Even I didn't know that! How do you know, Jikou?" Flint stared at him in disbelief.
"Oh please. You think your old man would tell you? I remember Kasumi mentioning it to my wife a while back," Jikou Ota, the Gym Leader, shrugged casually.
Flint immediately squatted off to the side, pretending to reflect on his life. His own father kept him in the dark while outsiders knew all the gossip.
"Heh." Jikou chuckled, ignoring Flint, then turned to Silas.
"So, you're Silas? My son mentioned you before. Not bad—handsome young man."
He looked Silas over and nodded approvingly.
"Uncle Jikou, you're too kind. Your Beedrill is also really strong," Silas replied with a shy smile to return the compliment.
Jikou Ota, whose gym shared the same name as his city, had a son—Takeshi Ota—who was Silas's opponent in the quarterfinals aboard the S.S. Anne.
His Beedrill was notably well-trained.
"Hmph, that kid still has a long way to go," Jikou said, though the pride in his tone was unmistakable.
"What's the conversation? Sounds lively."
A lazy voice drifted over as a man in ninja attire approached—it was Koga.
"Hello, Leader Koga," Silas greeted politely.
"Hello, Silas. My useless little sister must've caused you trouble," Koga said with a friendly smile.
"Oh, no, not at all. Jannie's great," Silas quickly waved his hands.
"Well then, are you interested in—"
Before Koga could finish, Jikou interrupted.
"Hey, Koga, about that poison formula I mentioned last time—what do you think of the price? I'm telling you, that's already the highest I can offer."
"No way, you'll have to add a bit more. Those materials aren't cheap. Didn't I send you the list?"
"List? That's robbery! I'm telling you—"
Silas, smiling politely, quietly took a few steps back until he was out of earshot.
Before long, the group returned from the underground to the surface. After all, building a protected habitat was going to be a massive project.
The once-barren Grampa Canyon was now bustling with League staff everywhere, hard at work.
Silas walked over to Professor Oak, who was speaking with Bruno and Professor Ivy, to bid farewell. His role here was over.
Still, as the one who discovered the site, his contribution would not go unnoticed.
"Mm, travel safely—and try not to stir up trouble again. I'm too busy to rush over if something happens," Oak advised, sensing that this kid had a knack for stumbling into surprises.
"Well, it's not like I plan these things," Silas said with an awkward laugh.
"Go on, go on." Oak waved him off. "Oh, right—these were ancient Pokémon, sure, but their fossils have been discovered long ago, so you don't get naming rights this time.
"We professors discussed it, and we're calling them 'Fossil Pokémon,' to signify Pokémon that cross time from fossil remains. No objections, I trust?"
Silas, of course, had none, nodding vigorously in agreement.
As they watched him leave, the group chuckled and shook their heads. In the end, he was still just a kid.
"The League's future," Oak murmured meaningfully.
Once out of sight, Silas quickly released Pidgeot and flew toward the southernmost port of the Kanto region.
"Welcome aboard the Cinnabar! We've reached our final stop—Cinnabar Island. Hope you enjoy your stay."
When the passenger ship docked at the island's port, Silas stretched his stiff body before stepping off the deck.
Shops filled his view immediately.
Cinnabar Island, located in the southern seas of Kanto, was home to a massive volcano and was famous for it.
Though just an island, its commercial development was surprisingly rapid.
Thanks to the volcano, Cinnabar boasted numerous natural hot springs, earning it the nickname "Hot Spring Paradise."
This attracted tourists from all over for vacations.
The Cinnabar Gym Leader, Blaine, was a renowned Fire-type Master and researcher.
If it weren't for his age and desire to give young Trainers more opportunities, Blaine might still hold a position among the Elite Four—making Kanto's current lineup uncertain.
As Silas walked through the bustling streets of Cinnabar, shopkeepers' cries filled the air.
"Mm, this is the place," he murmured.
He stopped before a hot spring inn, glanced at its name, and stepped inside.
Cinnabar Hot Spring Inn
"Welcome! Do you have a reservation?" the staff greeted warmly.
"Yes, I have a reservation under the name Silas Alaric, for tonight and tomorrow night," Silas replied.
This was the reason he had rushed to get here—hot spring inns in Cinnabar Island were notoriously difficult to book, and the prices weren't cheap either. If he had arrived late and lost a night's stay, it would have been a huge loss.
"Alright, your room number is 102. From the entrance on your right, turn left and you'll find it. You also have your own private hot spring!"
Following the staff's directions, Silas entered his room.
"Phew…"
Silas sank into the outdoor hot spring, exhaling in comfort. He felt all his fatigue melt away.
Leaning against the edge of the pool, only his head above the water, the unique sulfur scent of the volcanic hot spring constantly drifted into his nose. "
"Servine"
"Togepi~"
"Pidge!"
"Blaz!"
His Pokémon soaking with him let out cries of delight.
…Wait a second. Someone was missing.
"Gigalith!"
His Gigalith called out from a sand bath nearby, clearly enjoying itself. Unfortunately, it couldn't soak in the water.
Thankfully, this highly rated inn had anticipated that guests might bring Rock-type or Ground-type Pokémon, and had prepared sand baths for them—ensuring Gigalith wasn't left out.
What really surprised Silas was that Blaziken could actually enjoy this natural hot spring. Usually, even bathing it in warm water made it uncomfortable.
Perhaps it had something to do with the volcano here.
It was also lucky that the private hot spring was large enough. Otherwise, Pidgeot alone could have taken up all the space.
"Toge~!"
The Togepi, which had been lazily floating on the water's surface, suddenly squealed—it had been yanked under the water.
Pfft!
It quickly bobbed back up, spurting a stream of water from its mouth straight toward a snickering Servine.
"Servine!"
Servine wasn't about to back down. It had been the one to pull Togepi under with Vine Whip in the first place, but since they were just playing, it swiped its tail, sending a leafy splash toward Togepi.
"Blaz!"
Blaziken walked over to Pidgeot, motioning for it to spread its wings to help shield them from the splashing.
Pidgeot lazily rolled over in the water, draping one wing on the ground outside the pool while the other stretched over the surface, blocking most of the water flung about by the two little troublemakers.
"You two, that's enough!" Silas wiped hot spring water from his face and scolded them without much force in his voice.
Above them, the sky was filled with faint stars under a thin moon.
From a bird's-eye view, more than one outdoor hot spring on the island was filled with trainers and their Pokémon enjoying themselves together.
Oh! Wait a second—what was that? Something huge… white… and…
The next day, at noon.
"Does Infernape prefer catching birds, or fish?"
An elderly man with a completely bald head and a thick white mustache appeared in front of Silas. He was wearing a ridiculously colorful beach shirt, standing out like a sore thumb.
"It's birds! Anyway, Master, Silas is here to challenge the Gym, not answer your riddles," came a voice from the side.
It was Celeb, someone Silas knew well.
From the way he addressed the man, it was clear—this quirky old fellow, whose every word and gesture radiated the spirit of a mischievous child, was Blaine, the Cinnabar Island Gym Leader.
By now, Blaine had grown older, and with the booming hot spring industry on the island, he was seriously considering retiring from running the Gym.
Even though Gym staff could handle the day-to-day work, Blaine often shut the Gym entirely—no Gym battles, no challenges—leaving the staff with nothing to do but enjoy paid vacation.
If you wanted to try booking a challenge through the Pokémon Center, well… you'd better be lucky.
Fortunately, Silas knew someone on the inside.
A few days ago, he had told Celeb he wanted to challenge the Cinnabar Gym, and Celeb had immediately agreed to arrange it.
"Ah, don't mind me," Blaine waved his hand dismissively. "Gym challenges are nothing—piece of cake!"
Silas looked helplessly at Celeb, who only gave a resigned shrug.
Blaine, however, seemed to notice their exchange, and a sharp gleam flashed in his eyes.
"Silas, my boy—you want to challenge the Gym, right? But today, I'm closed. I gave my staff the day off, so there's no one to battle you. And I don't want to bully a kid by battling you myself.
"How about this—fight my useless apprentice instead. If you win, I'll give you the Badge."
"Master, that's not how the rules—"
"I am the rules," Blaine interrupted without the slightest hesitation.
.....
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