He knows Pokémon better than me.

Before long, with Mary's help, the members of the cheering squad gradually dispersed.

Since Ash and Galarian Moltres had made peace, Ash naturally didn't say anything more.

Regarding the latter becoming Mewtwo's punching bag
"By the way, has Mewtwo left the Isle of Armor by now?"

Ash suddenly remembered something. More than a month ago, when Master Marco came to check on the construction of the castle, he specifically mentioned to him that Mewtwo had completed all the physical combat training on the Isle of Armor and then left the island.

This guy definitely has incredible potential in combat.

When did you leave the Isle of Armor?

Upon hearing this, Galarian Moltres blinked, its face showing no trace of evil, but rather appearing innocent and naive.

Does that mean it can go back to the Isle of Armor now?!

Moltres, full of energy, stood up from the ground in an instant.

It left about four months ago, which, if you calculate the time, is roughly the same time as Mewtwo.

"A terrifying scream!?"

Galarian Moltres's joyful expression suddenly froze.

Wait a minute, could it be that the humanoid monster saw the three of them run away and, instead of leaving, came out to arrest them?!
"Uh, that humanoid Pokémon probably doesn't have that idea."

Ash chuckled dryly. After all, given Mewtwo's psychic power, Moltres, hiding in Spike Town near the Isle of Armor, would have been caught long ago if they really wanted to.

Based on Mewtwo's personality—

He thought for a moment, and figured that now that Mewtwo had mastered the Divine Skill, he was probably going to various places to challenge real masters.

Level 2 gods are really just "punching bags," they can't force Mewtwo to use its true abilities.

"Hah!"

Upon hearing this, Galarian Moltres immediately flapped its wings and took flight again, extremely excited, for it could finally go home!

But before that, it had to tell the other two divine birds about it and go home with them.

It doesn't matter for Articuno, but it's necessary to notify Zapdos.

That arrogant, even crackling, anger—just thinking about it makes my mouth water!
In the blink of an eye, the Galarian Moltres soared into the sky, and the surrounding clouds seemed to turn into an evil black and red, causing many members of the town's cheering squad to look up.

"."

Mary also looked up into the distance, her face filled with hope.

Such a creature must be the Pokémon that all trainers like her, who specialize in Dark-type Pokémon, dream of capturing, right?

Before long, the firebird transformed into a black and red flame shadow and soared into the sky, gradually disappearing from sight.

A few seconds later, a small black flame scattered from the sky and slowly drifted down.

Mary instinctively reached out and caught the "flame," but it wasn't hot. She then realized it was a black feather with a deep pink flame slowly burning along its edge.

"Oh~ it's a feather from the Galar Moltres, is it its apology gift?"

Xiao Zhi came closer and said with a smile.

Or maybe I've hit it off with Mary? I'll leave a mark first.
Mary held the feather, looked up at the sky, and smiled faintly.

With the Galarian Moltres gone, Spiketown finally returned to its former peace.

No, it wasn't peaceful on ordinary days either; there were always noisy shouting groups everywhere.

Ash spent one night in Spiketown, staying at Marnie's house. Compared to the messy and dilapidated streets, Marnie's house was very tidy.

Given that Spiketown has a large land area and a small population, and the houses are cheap, it can already be considered a luxury home.

Stepping out onto the balcony, the view wasn't pleasant at all. In broad daylight, all I saw were light pollution neon lights and the buildings across the street with cracked exteriors.

It was also covered in countless graffiti from various cheering groups. The view in the other direction was much better; just open the door to a wide-open sea view—

"That direction should be where the Isle of Armor is, right?"

Ash squinted and looked out. Marnie's house was located in the northern corner of Spiketown, but Isle of Armor was not an adjacent island and was still some distance away, so it was not visible to the naked eye at the moment.

After grabbing a quick bite, the two headed to the local Pokémon Center.

At the front desk, the same burly member of the Chengdu shouting team greeted them with a smile.

After a night's rest, Nie Zi woke up in her hospital bed.

Although her eyes were still sunken and her face was pale, it wasn't because of the Flamebird incident, but because Nie Zi had always looked exhausted.

He had regained his composure, and his face no longer showed any violence; instead, he appeared very gentle.

"So all this happened? Thank you for your help this time, Mary and Ash."

Nie Zi let out a long breath, her brows relaxed, and she couldn't help but sigh.

I also thanked the two of them.

He had heard the legend of the Galarian Moltres, but he never imagined it possessed such amazing abilities.

"Brother! You have to apologize to the Trembling Salamander and the Blocking Bear afterwards."

Mary reminded her that she had seen Nie Zi on stage, berating the band members.

Nie Zi immediately showed a regretful expression and nodded repeatedly. He had indeed been a bit impatient these past few days.

However, he was unable to assemble the final piece of the band's puzzle, and without a suitable drummer, he couldn't even organize a proper band performance.

His solo career is not a big problem, and his songs are quite well-known in the Galar region.

But nobody cares.

Galar players only enjoy watching Dynamax battles and only listen to crazy, energetic rock music.

"Oh, right, Mary, this is a badge for you."

Suddenly remembering something, he took out a pentagonal badge and handed it to Mary.

"Ah, brother, you were out of your mind back then, so it shouldn't count, right?"

Mary was about to shake her head in refusal, but Nie Zi had already placed the Badge of Evil in Mary's palm.

"No, your Pokémon battle skills are more than enough to qualify you for this badge."

Nie Zi smiled and continued:

"And the result of this match has already been recorded by Drone Rotom."

Upon hearing this, Mary had no choice but to accept it. After taking out her own badge ring and fastening it, only one thin, elongated notch remained.

Dragon Badge in the Hammerlocke Arena!

"Chibana? That guy's not easy to deal with."

Nie Zi sat half-upright on the hospital bed, her expression solemn, and gave a reminder.

He was defeated by Cibana last year.

Although he was the only participant who didn't use "Dynamax," ...
Even if they had used Dynamax, they probably wouldn't have been a match for Raihan.

"Ok, I know."

Mary nodded. She planned to train hard before challenging the last gym.

As for the location, it hasn't been chosen yet.
Spiketown, or the Wild Area where Ash is, will both work. (End of Chapter)