Pokémon from Galar

"Well done, looking forward to the next match."

Kawu was generous with his praise. Although the Pokémon's strength wasn't among his strongest, he was incredibly decisive in his command. Marie was very bold; many trainers couldn't even bring themselves to use Dynamax at the start like Marie.

"Thank you for your mercy, Gym Leader Kawu. Your use of Will-o'-the-Wisp is truly eye-opening."

Mary reached out and grasped Kawu's rough hand. The Ghost Fire move had opened her eyes. Perhaps Balu could try training in the same way, subtly incorporating Ghost Fire into some other special moves.

After a brief handshake, Kawu released her hand and took out the Fire Badge that she had prepared beforehand, handing it to Mary.

"This Emblem of Fire is yours."

"Thank you."

……

After handing the three Pokémon over to Nurse Joy inside the gym, Marie emerged from the Challenger's Gate, where Yuri was already waiting.

"Are you alright, Mary? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Instead of congratulating herself immediately, she rushed over and grabbed her arm, examining it from all angles to check for possible burns, which made Mary a little amused.

"Of course not, how could I get hurt with the protective shield on?"

Mary raised her hand and patted Yuri's head. "Why are you so nervous?"

After carefully examining her and finding no burns as she had imagined, Yuri breathed a sigh of relief, then looked up, opened her arms, and hugged Mari tightly, flashing a big smile:

Congratulations! You've successfully cleared the third gym challenge!

"Yes, thank you."

Feeling the warmth and softness of her skin through her clothes, Mary gave up struggling and let Yuri hug her and rub against her.

On the other side, a staff member came over with the complimentary fire-type outfit and the Will-o'-the-Wisp skill machine, smiling as he looked at the two girls hugging each other, and said calmly:

"Mary, congratulations on successfully collecting the Gym Badges of the Grass, Water, and Fire types. Please accept this TM and the replica set as a souvenir."

"Ah, thank you, just a moment..."

Mary patted Yuri's head shyly, trying to get her to let go of her, but all she got in return was a few snuggles in her arms before falling silent.

"Forehead……"

"Haha~ It's okay, the challenge just now was really thrilling at the end, your friend might have been scared."

There aren't many challengers who can fight to the level of Mari. The staff member chuckled and explained on Yuri's behalf, then handed the clothes and skill machine to Mari's empty hands before turning and leaving.

With a slightly apologetic expression, Mary watched the staff leave, then turned her head somewhat helplessly to look at Yuri's profile.

"Can you get up now?"

"Well……"

Yuri hesitated, grabbing Mary's hem and pulling herself out of her embrace, her face flushed red as she dared not let Mary see her.

The two were just standing face to face. No matter how much they lowered their heads, Mary wasn't blind. How could she not see Yuri's flushed cheeks?

Mary smiled but didn't call her out. She let her hold onto the hem of her dress and walked towards the dressing room.

"Wait a minute, I need to change my clothes."

"Oh, oh!"

Realizing her mistake, Yuri nodded as she let go of Yuri's hand, then led Su-chan and I-chan, who had been invisible for a while, to a corner against the wall.

The two stayed in the arena and watched another match. After Kyon and the others finished their treatment, Marie retrieved her Pokémon and left the Motostoke Arena together.

"Marie, are we heading to the wilderness tomorrow?"

Yuri strolled leisurely along the commercial street, tilting her head to look at Mary. Although it meant walking the same route again, it didn't matter to Yuri. After all, she was traveling with Mary, so walking it again was fine.

Mary thought for a moment, turned to look at the two excited little dragons, and said with a smile:

"The day after tomorrow, I'll take Xiaoxi and Xiaoya for a walk around the city tomorrow. They've been training a lot lately, I guess they've been cooped up for a while."

This is the first time these two little ones have come to a human city with Baloo. They've always been in the wild before. Marie has been busy with training lately and hasn't had time to play, so a day off is fine.

"Hmm~ So tomorrow's the date~"

Yuri, without batting an eye, uttered a highly ambiguous statement, then subtly observed Mary's reaction.

Mary simply smiled and nodded, agreeing with Yuri's statement.

"Then let's go on a date. Buy some clothes and get your hair done too."

"Well……"

As a result, Yuri became a little embarrassed by Mary's words.

Chapter 200: Departure, Heading Towards Quan Guan City

Two days later, the two checked out of the Hanxiubao Inn, shouldered their backpacks, and headed towards the city gate leading to the wilderness.

Yuri stretched and yawned, then said with a smile:

"Hmm~ We're going camping again. At times like this, I really miss the bed at the Shybud Inn."

"There's nothing we can do about it, but it's fine if we just take the train to Motogakure. You've already been there once, haven't you, Yuri?"

The gym challenge didn't have a strict requirement for challengers to walk the entire Galar. The reason Marie and her friends chose to walk was simply to broaden their horizons and hone their skills.

"Haha~ No need, I was just saying. I'll get to eat Mary's cooking again."

"...Speaking of which, did you cook properly for yourself while I was away?"

Mary paused for a moment before suddenly realizing the question. She hadn't noticed before, but Yuri's cooking skills shouldn't be too bad, right?

"Yes, although it's not as good as Mary's, I can still make it! Otherwise, how could I have traveled in the first place?"

As the two were walking leisurely along the roadside, Kawu jogged up from behind.

"Sa~ (Mari, the Gym Leader is here.)"

"Ok?"

Suddenly, Siri called out to her, and Mary turned around in confusion, only to see Kawu, the Gym Leader, getting closer and closer. She had initially thought he was just passing by, but Kawu stopped right in front of the two of them.

"Hello, Gym Leader Kawu. Are you here to see Marie off?"

Yuri looked familiar and raised her hand to greet them. Only then did Mary remember Kawu's habit: because his pass rate for the Fire-type Gym was always low, he would come back to see off every contestant who passed.

Kawu looked at Yuri, a rare smile appearing on his face as he nodded and said:

"Yes, I came over immediately after I heard that you checked out of the Shy Bud Hotel."

"Thank you, Gym Leader, for coming all this way to see me off."

Mary smiled and thanked her.

"Because many trainers have given up on the challenge here, I personally come to see off every trainer who passes the Fire-type challenge. And if nothing unexpected happens, Lurina and Alo will also come."

Not every one of the other two gym leaders will come to see them off. Even if there are flying taxis, they may not have enough time. So usually, only trainers they have high hopes for and who happen to be available will show up.

“Ah…when I left with Hop last time, Gym Leader Lurina and Gym Leader Alo came by.”

Perhaps they really thought highly of them? Marie didn't know what the standards were for judging these gym leaders, but it was true that Yuri and Hop were very talented.

Kawu's Rotom phone suddenly floated out of his pocket, displaying a message. After reading it, Kawu said:

"It seems that Yalo is unable to leave, but Lulina will be here soon."

As soon as she finished speaking, a Steel Crow flew over from the sky, grabbed the carriage, and landed by the roadside. Then, as always, Lurina, dressed in light clothing, pushed open the door and walked out. She then looked at Mary and Yuri and smiled amicably.

"Long time no see, you two."

"We are too, it's been a long time, Master Lulina."

Lulina turned and said goodbye to the flying taxi, then walked to Mary's side and said:

"The videos and information you brought back about the swarms of wakizashi fish were a great help. Maybe before long, Waterboat Town will also have a guardian deity protecting the harbor."

"That's great news! And Gym Leader Lulina will become even stronger."

Mary had previously sent Lulina some information about the Overlord Wishiwashi, which she had obtained from Mizuki, and she had also obtained the island king's consent.

Of course, this information is quite advanced for Lulina at the moment, since Alola here has not yet let Lana take charge of the Trial of Stream Hill, and some information is not very comprehensive.

As a gym leader, Lulina naturally has access to a lot of things, but she was still taken aback by the information Marie brought. To be honest, she was very curious about where Marie got these things from, and even a little worried that Marie might have stolen from some research institute in Alola...

Shaking her head inwardly, Lurina shook off these jumbled thoughts, then smiled and said to Mary:

"Let's not talk about that anymore. Today we're here to see you off. From now on, the difficulty of the challenges for the next few dojos will increase significantly. Marie, you should be prepared."

"I will work hard."

"I won't say anything more. And this is a return gift from before. Now that you have a Water-type Pokémon, you should be able to use it."

Lulina glanced at the Popplio clinging to Kyon, then sent Mary a training guide on Water-type Pokémon from her phone.

"Thank you so much! I will study hard."

Mary was pleasantly surprised. Her research on water-type trainers was only average, but this was the data of a water-type specialist, which was a real surprise.

"Marie and Yuri, good luck! Looking forward to seeing you in this year's elimination rounds!"

Finally, Kawu warmly conveyed his blessings, and the group parted ways halfway through the journey, with Mary and Yuri heading towards the wilderness.

……

The journey from Motostoke to Motostoke is actually quite convenient, with many direct trains running every day. However, considering the travel factor, crossing the wilderness would take several days.

This open area is a long, narrow canyon-like terrain with high elevations on both sides. In many places, towering cliffs stand, which seem to block the spread of energy points. Beyond the cliffs are Water Boat Town and Grass Road Town.

There is currently no reasonable explanation for why Dynamax Power Points are so densely distributed in the Wild Area. Perhaps someone knows the answer but hasn't made it public.

After crossing the bridge next to Motostoke City, Mari officially embarked on her journey to Motostoke City.

A Snorlax was fast asleep under some fruit trees by the bridge. Fortunately, it didn't lie down directly by the bridge and block the way, so this Snorlax had lived in the area for a long time without anyone bothering it. It was strong enough and didn't cause trouble, so no one bothered it.

"When I passed through here before, this Snorlax seemed to be sleeping there... It's been so long, but I don't think it has moved at all?"

Yuri tilted her head and whispered something in Mary's ear, probably because she felt guilty for talking badly about her.

"Is he that lazy? Although there are quite a few fruit trees in this area, it's probably not enough for him to eat."

Marie blinked. Snorlax was consuming quite a bit of energy; perhaps there were other ways to feed him, otherwise this orchard wouldn't be enough. Hearing Marie's words, Yuri suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said with a smile:

"Maybe someone is keeping this Snorlax as a pet?"