The dream of becoming a Pokémon master

Standing outside the town of Qiongtu once again, Kyosuke clearly felt that the town was completely different from before.

The once bustling scene vanished with that avalanche.

Or perhaps those bustling scenes were just an illusion.

This place is ultimately just an ordinary small town.

Clearing his mind of distractions, Kyosuke stepped into this somewhat unfamiliar place.

The houses on both sides have resumed various businesses, and the scene of eagerly seeking guests to stay in every room is gone. Everyone looks worried and seems lost in thought.

From frugality to luxury is easy, from luxury to frugality.

Having experienced the town's economic boom, the residents were naturally unwilling to return to their former hardship.

They even fantasized that such things could happen more often each year.

As for the dead? That has nothing to do with them. They were just making money.

When Kyosuke entered the town, they were no longer as aloof as before and quickly surrounded him.

"Trainer, would you like to buy some food to help you stay warm?"

"I have the best warm-up gear here!"

"No, no, no, I'm the best!"

After the avalanche, some journalists initially came seeking big news or victims' families came looking for the remains, but naturally there were no news stories, and the remains were probably destroyed by the blizzard.

With the avalanche incident, naturally no other trainer would want to come here.

There are so many snow-capped mountains in the Kanto region, all of which are home to Pokémon, so there's no shortage of places to visit.

Therefore, Poor Earth Town is now even poorer than it was before the news of Articuno spread.

The residents of Poor Earth Town seem to be addicted to seeing trainers as if they're about to start a new life.

Kyosuke ignored them and walked right past them.

We arrived at a familiar place in a poor, rural town.

Pokémon Center in Poor Town.

As Kyosuke walked in, Miss Joey at the front desk remained as languid as ever.

"Hello, welcome... You're Kyosuke!" Joey stood up abruptly.

How could she possibly forget that?!

This person has excellent physical abilities, hogged the Pokémon Center room, and even provoked the young members of powerful families. She is also one of the only two trainers to escape the avalanche. What reason could she possibly have not to remember her?

Kyosuke didn't expect to be recognized, but this also proved that Miss Joey hadn't changed people.

That makes sense; a lucrative job has turned into a retirement home, so naturally, other members of the Joey family wouldn't go there anymore.

"Hello, Miss Joey," Kyosuke greeted her as well.

"You, you..." Joey looked at Kyosuke, hesitant to speak.

Kyosuke smiled back: "Ask whatever you want."

Joey was one of only two people who knew he was a survivor after the last incident, and Kyosuke guessed he was probably asking about the previous incident.

After all, he left this place as soon as he returned from the snow mountain last time.

"Are you... going to stay here?" Joey asked.

Kyosuke never expected Joey to ask such a question, but it was indeed very much in line with her profession and identity.

"No, I'll go replenish my supplies and then leave." Kyosuke shook his head.

"Then go ahead, the store's location hasn't changed, you can find it, right?"

"kindness."

Looking at Kyosuke's back, Joey knew very well that Kyosuke's goal was undoubtedly to go back to Qiongtu Mountain.

Although we don't know what's on it, it's undoubtedly something that would drive trainers crazy.

And he himself was just an ordinary Joey who kept her mouth shut.

Upon arriving at the store, Kyosuke began a major shopping spree.

Food, fuel, water purifiers, windproof lighters, Blu-ray discs, and so on.

Kyosuke's plan this time is to go directly to the top of Mount Qiongtu, set up camp, and wait for Articuno to come to the top of Mount Qiongtu again. Then, he will not give it a chance to create weather and will capture it directly with Moltres.

Although in Kyosuke's opinion, Moltres's level doesn't seem to be as high as Articuno's, there is still a type advantage.

Fire-type has a double advantage over Ice-type.

When the level difference between the two sides in a battle is not significant, attributes have a huge impact on the outcome of the battle.

Besides, even if they can't beat him, maybe the two legendary bird Pokémon will chat and Articuno will still be caught by Kyosuke.

However, this was Kyosuke's first time visiting the snow-capped mountains and living there, so he had to do his best in every aspect.

Buy and buy!

Buy everything you need and everything you might need.

The items at the Pokémon Center are much more expensive than outside, but for Kyosuke, money is not the problem; the problem is that Kyosuke's inventory is already full.

However, there's no need to worry about the quality of items from the Pokémon Center, so it was still a pleasant shopping experience.

Spend with peace of mind, buy with confidence.

Everything is ready; it's time to hit the road.

Back in the Pokémon Center lobby, Kyosuke bids farewell to Nurse Joy and heads outside.

"Be careful on the road!" The voice came from behind Kyosuke.

It's Joey's voice.

Yes, she should have guessed it long ago.

"Yes, I will," Kyosuke replied loudly, and walked out the door.

Ignoring the "enthusiastic" crowds along the way, Kyosuke arrived at the foot of Qiongtu Mountain.

Last time, a large group of people piled up the snow-capped mountain, and he was one of the last few.

This time it was just him, with his own Pokémon.

Instead of having Lao Pen or Huang'er carry him directly to the mountaintop, Kyosuke continued climbing along the same path he had taken before.

There were no dark clouds, and no blizzard.

The sky was bright, though there was no sun.

The hill wasn't particularly high, and it didn't take Kyosuke long to reach the top.

Without too much interference, hiking is a very simple thing.

Just as Articuno had said, most of the ecosystem on the mountain had recovered, and not all Pokémon had been wiped out.

A group of circly bears tried to intercept Kyosuke's supplies, but they lost an arm-wrestling match to Kyosuke and slunk away.

As for the woman with the slicked-back lips... Kyosuke avoids her...

There is no story in it.

In short, Kyosuke successfully reached the place where Articuno had stopped.

Standing at the highest point and looking down, the road I had traveled before was all in sight, and Qiongtu Town was just a small part of the view.

A small town I'd never been to before came into view in the distance.

Looking towards the Quartz Plateau, it is blocked by mountains.

To get there, you'll need to cross even more mountains.

The feeling of standing at a high place is completely different from the feeling of flying on a Flying-type Pokémon.

Kyosuke felt himself grow bigger, like a giant.

But in reality, I didn't get bigger; I just stood taller.

Of course, it's not high enough, let alone the highest.

But in the future, he would definitely go to even higher places. Kyosuke thought to himself.