After a good night's rest, Steven arrived at the entrance of the Rustboro Gym.
However, what made Steven feel uncertain was the noise coming from inside the Gym.
It sounded like... reciting type matchups?
Type matchups are fundamental knowledge that every Pokémon Trainer should know.
But why was it echoing from inside the Gym?
Steven pushed open the door, and what greeted him were rows of neat desks, with a group of children reciting type matchups in unison.
"Uh..."
Steven took a few steps back and looked up at the building he'd entered. This was definitely the Rustboro Gym.
"Teacher Roxanne! Someone's here to challenge the Gym!"
Someone shouted, and a girl in a fluffy skirt walked out from inside, holding a book with her hair styled in two buns.
"Oh? A challenger this early?" Roxanne looked surprised.
Challengers usually didn't arrive during the students' morning study time.
"Um, may I ask if a Gym battle can be held right now?" Steven asked cautiously.
He really hadn't known that Roxanne had moved her classroom into the Rustboro Gym!
"Of course. If you don't mind, may these children observe the battle?" Roxanne smiled gently, her whole demeanor calm and composed.
Steven glanced around at the students in this makeshift classroom and readily agreed.
"Thank you very much." Roxanne bowed slightly, then turned to the side and raised her hand in a welcoming gesture.
"Please follow me."
"Uh... alright..."
Steven walked behind her, suddenly surrounded by a group of young students with sparkling, admiring eyes.
It seemed he hadn't experienced this kind of attention before—now he had to endure the starry-eyed gazes of young fans.
Had he somehow put his charm points in the wrong place?
Following Roxanne to the battle arena inside the Gym, she casually handed her book to a student and explained the rules to Steven.
"The battle rules are two-on-two. Only the challenger can freely switch Pokémon, and the side whose Pokémon all lose their ability to battle loses."
"Understood." Steven nodded. These were the standard rules.
"May I ask how many Badges you currently have?"
Steven replied, "I just earned one Badge three or four days ago."
"I see. I understand. Then, shall we begin the battle?" Roxanne nodded, raising her hand toward the battle arena.
"No problem."
Steven and Roxanne took their positions, and Roxanne pulled out a Poké Ball.
"The Gym Trainer sends out their Pokémon first," Roxanne announced, throwing her Poké Ball.
The Poké Ball arced through the air, then opened mid-flight.
A flash of white light revealed a gray, spherical rock waving two powerful arms on the battle arena.
A Rock and Ground dual-type—Geodude!
"The Pokémon I'm sending out is this one!" Steven held up his Poké Ball, pressing the button in the center with his finger.
A small Aron appeared on the field.
"Aron... Aron?"
Aron, who had been full of anticipation, instantly lost its enthusiasm upon seeing its opponent was a Geodude.
What the heck! It's just a Geodude!
"Don't get discouraged, Aron. Don't you want to know what kind of Rock-type the opponent's next Pokémon will be?" Steven smiled helplessly, trying to reignite Aron's fighting spirit.
As Aron appeared, a flurry of page-turning sounds erupted across the field.
A young boy excitedly shouted, "Found it!"
"Aron! The Iron Armor Pokémon! It's a Steel and Rock dual-type Pokémon! When it charges with its steel body, it can demolish even a dump truck in one hit! Then it devours the smashed dump truck in huge bites!"
Upon hearing this, the children gasped in amazement.
They never expected such a small Aron to have such an incredible appetite!
"I apologize for the interruption. We can start the battle now." Roxanne offered an apologetic smile, clasping her hands together and giving Steven the first move.
Steven didn't hesitate, as he was the challenger after all.
"Iron Head!"
"Aron!"
Aron charged forward, the color of its steel helmet deepening.
"Defense Curl," Roxanne said calmly.
Geodude immediately curled into a ball, wrapping itself in protective energy.
At Aron's running speed, Defense Curl could be completed at least once.
"Defense first, huh?" Steven wasn't worried about his opponent powering up—instead, he felt somewhat curious.
He wondered how much damage Aron's attack could deal to Geodude.
After all, there was an advantage in both level and type matchup.
Bang!
The Defense Curl-boosted Geodude was sent flying by Aron's headbutt.
"Wow!" The students' eyes followed the airborne Geodude intently.
"Use the momentum to land, then Rock Tomb!" Roxanne said with a light laugh.
"Geodude!"
Geodude's round body landed, and its arms slammed into the ground with the momentum.
"Jump out of the way!"
One shouldn't underestimate the jumping power of Aron's four short legs—it could leap at least half a meter high.
Aron jumped backward with force, and a rock suddenly jutted out from the ground where it had just stood. If it had reacted even slightly slower, it would have been hit!
Just as Aron felt relieved, Steven's voice rang out.
"Don't stop moving!"
Bang!
The next second, Aron wore a stunned expression as it was launched into the air by a second protruding rock.
"Teacher Roxanne is so amazing!"
"Aron!"
Aron's eyes sharpened. It landed on the third protruding rock, bit off a corner of the rock in one bite, and chewed it casually in its mouth.
This kind of rock—I can just nibble it off easily!
"That's not how you're supposed to vent your frustration, you know?" Steven wiped his brow in exasperation.
"This Aron is quite interesting," Roxanne said with a soft laugh, covering her mouth, though the battle didn't pause because of it.
"Geodude, Rock Throw!"
Geodude plunged its hands into the ground, forcibly prying out a rock larger than its own body, and hurled it!
"Don't be scared! We'll use Rock Tomb too! Full offense!" Steven looked at the rock thrown into the air—its size was nothing compared to what Aron usually demolished.
Aron raised and lowered its legs, controlling rocks to protrude and trap Geodude within them.
It seemed Aron still needed more training.
Even the less experienced Geodude had better control over rocks than it did.
Or perhaps it was due to exceptionally high proficiency with Rock Tomb.
Bang!
The Rock Throw struck Aron, but it only caused Aron's short legs to bend slightly.
Even Aron's steel helmet wasn't affected at all.
"Aron?"
That's it?
"Don't get overconfident! Jump over its Rock Tomb and use Iron Head!"
"Geodude, can you use Defense Curl?!"
"Geo... dude..."
Geodude's two arms were stuck in the gaps between the rocks, preventing it from fully executing Defense Curl.
Aron leaped from the rock and looked down at Geodude trapped among the stones. It immediately lowered its head and plummeted toward Geodude.
Have you ever heard of a headbutt descending from the sky?
That's right—it's my Aron's Iron Head attack!