Pokémon from Galar

"Aren't we waiting for Mary?"

"Let her sleep a little longer; she didn't get a good rest last night."

"So gentle~"

Mizuki gave Yuri an ambiguous smile, then grabbed her toiletries and went into the bathroom.

……

After they had both finished getting ready, Yuri and Mizuki glanced at Mari, who was still fast asleep on the bed, and smiled at each other.

"Is it okay for him to go out like this? Leaving Mary alone in the room."

"It's alright, just have Balu pass on a message."

As Yuri said this, she waved to Balu, who had already woken up.

"roar~"

Balu wagged his tail and nodded in agreement. The two little guys on his head were still asleep, and he was too lazy to go out.

"Let's go."

"oh oh……"

The two left the inn with several Pokémon that were willing to go out.

The Pokémon's breakfast was arranged by the hotel, but of course, the Inteleon and Eevee who came along were planning to eat something else.

Mizuki, meanwhile, was observing Inteleon's appearance, still quite curious about the unique Pokémon of Galar.

"But then again, this city is really well hidden... Even Alola doesn't have a town built in such a dense forest."

"Well... this is a unique feature of Dance Town. No one wants to destroy the Mystic Forest, so they have assimilated the city and the entire forest."

Yuri led Mizuki to a nearby breakfast shop. After ordering, she held Eevee and looked at Mizuki, asking:

"Um, Mizuki-chan, what are you planning to do in Galar this time?"

"Hmm? Hasn't Mary told you yet?"

"...I haven't asked her yet."

Seeing Yuri's subtle reaction, Mizuki raised an eyebrow, rested her chin on her hands, and gave a knowing smile.

"I'm basically just a tourist in Galar, and I'll mention a little about Alola in the meantime."

"So...it really is something dangerous?"

"That's right."

"I see."

Unexpectedly, Yuri gave up even faster than she had imagined. Curious, Mizuki pressed for an answer:

"Aren't you going to ask any more questions?"

"No, I want Mary to explain it to me in person."

"Hmm~"

Mizuki's reaction made Yuri blush slightly.

"W-what?!"

Despite Yuri's glare, Mizuki remained completely unmoved, her expression unchanged.

"Nothing~ I just think you really like Mary."

"No, is that not allowed? I'm Marie-chan's daughter—"

Yuri was about to say that Mary was her girlfriend when her voice abruptly stopped, as if cut off, because she suddenly realized a very subtle problem.

Although Mary had confessed her feelings to him before, had they ever talked about starting a relationship?

Suddenly feeling uncertain, Yuri tried to search through her memories, but couldn't find any statements that seemed to confirm their relationship.

"Woman what?"

"Uh...no, it's nothing..."

Because Yuri couldn't find the relevant memories, she suddenly became ashamed to say that word. What if Mari didn't consider her her lover yet? Wouldn't that make it seem like she was being too proactive and it was all one-sided?

If Mizuki heard this and then went to Mari to confirm it... wouldn't that be too embarrassing?!

"Um……?"

Mizuki, who had expected to hear something interesting, blinked in confusion at Yuri's shy and self-doubting expression. What did she mean by that?

Chapter 249 Popella

The next day, after Yuri finished her gym challenge, it was Marie's turn to challenge the gym.

Mizuki naturally followed along into the arena's main hall.

"Although it's not the first time I've seen it—the gyms in Galar are all so well-built. I should let Professor Kukui build a few in Alola sometime."

While each has its own merits, there are some places that can be built in a less ancient style, aside from certain island pilgrimage sites.

Of course, the Pokémon League in Mizuki World, and the stadium where the final champion is contested, are examples of the first one.

"Alola also has its own style. I personally quite like the natural and primitive feel."

Mary tugged at the collar of her dress, then smiled and continued:

"After all, island pilgrimage is not a highly competitive activity, which is quite different from other regions."

That being said, Marie and Mizuki both knew that it wasn't that simple. Some people liked it, and some people didn't. How the Pokémon League that Mizuki had established would operate in the future was still an unknown.

"Putting that aside, I didn't expect that your Galar Gym Challenge would even have special uniforms... and the Galar League's president is really impressive with this kind of publicity and system."

After learning about the Galar Gym Challenge, a sport that can be considered a nationwide competition, Mizuki was quite impressed, noting that the overall atmosphere was very different from that of Alola.

"You'll get used to it. They also sell commemorative sets over there. You can buy one or two if you're interested."

He pointed to a small shop inside the gym, which was a store where the League sold various attribute sets. Every gym had one. Although the price was a bit expensive, the quality was indeed very good. As a souvenir, buying one or two sets would be a good choice.

Yuri, who had already passed the challenge the day before, was quite relaxed at the moment, but Mary felt that Yuri seemed to want to say something to her.

"Yuri".

"..."

"Yuri?"

"Huh—ah?! You're here, what are you doing?"

Yuri, jolted back to her senses by being suddenly called, trembled and looked at Mari blankly, wondering why she had suddenly called her name.

Mary frowned slightly, moved her face closer, and looked directly into Yuri's eyes.

"What's wrong? You've seemed a bit distracted since yesterday."

"Um...it's nothing, it's not important."

Although Yuri said that, Mari didn't believe her at all and continued to follow her gaze, asking:

"Really? But you look so troubled. If you don't tell me, I might get distracted during today's gym challenge."

"Eh--"

Seeing that Yuri was successfully frightened, Mari finally grinned and smiled:

"So tell me, what is it?"

"Ah... well, let's talk about this after you finish your challenge, Mary. It's really nothing serious."

Yuri blushed as she was pressed for answers. It was too embarrassing to ask the other person to confirm things in person.

"Really?"

Really?

"It's a deal then, you're not allowed to lie to me."

"Mmm, no, no, Mary, you should hurry up and get ready."

Yuri, feeling a bit overwhelmed, pushed Mary's shoulder and led her toward the entrance, not wanting Mary to continue looking at her burning face.

Mari glanced at Mizuki, who was still trying on outfits at the store. Mari didn't resist much and followed Yuri's lead towards the challenger's passage.

"Don't forget to take Mizuki to the audience seats."

"Okay, okay, is it really necessary to bring this up?"

Hearing the slightly disapproving voice behind her, Mary smiled and stepped into the passage.

the other side,

Having bought two outfits she liked, Mizuki returned to her previous spot only to find Yuri there. She glanced towards the entrance and asked:

"Where's Mary? Did she go inside?"

"Okay, we can head over to the stands now."

Yuri smoothed her hair, trying to calm herself down. Seeing Yuri's expression, Mizuki asked with concern:

"Are you alright? You seem really nervous..."

"It's nothing! What could possibly happen to me? Let's go, or we won't be able to find a good spot later."

"……OK then."

Mizuki isn't lacking in emotional intelligence, and she could naturally see the subtle atmosphere between Yuri and Mari, which was clearly a step further than her relationship with Lillie.

Subconsciously recalling Lillie's face, Mizuki shook her head and followed. If the other party didn't want to talk about such private matters, she shouldn't press them. But were the two of them serious?

Mizuki was silently pondering the relationship between Mari and Yuri, as this was the first time she had come into contact with such matters.

After Mizuki realized this, she also gradually became aware of some of the more subtle interactions she had with Lillie.

Of course, Marie, who had already entered the inner side of the arena, was unaware of Mizuki and Yuri's conversation. When she entered the rest room, she unexpectedly met Popula, the gym leader, who was waiting inside.

After a brief moment of surprise, Mary closed the door behind her and walked curiously toward Poplar, sizing up the powerful old woman in front of her.

"Hello, Popira Gym Leader, I didn't expect to meet you before the competition."

"Hehe~ Sit down and rest for a bit. Don't make yourself too nervous before the competition."