Pokémon from Galar

Meanwhile, the young woman hung up the phone, returned to her seat, thought for a moment, smiled, turned on the camera, and snapped a picture of Mary's delicate appearance as she fell asleep, recording it on her phone.

"Hum~"

With a hint of smugness, the young woman hummed a tune softly, ignoring the gaze directed at her colleague, and pulled up a chair to squeeze in with the girl next to her.

After waiting for a while, Yuri cautiously entered the office, peeked around, and easily spotted Mary not far from the door.

"..."

Amused, Yuri walked over and glanced at the two older women huddled together next to her. She immediately realized that Mary was taking up their workstations, so she whispered:

"I'm sorry... Mary-chan has caused you trouble."

The young lady smiled and waved, also handing Yuri a bag of snacks from the table.

"It's alright, it's alright, this is a good opportunity to rest for a while."

Yuri took the snacks somewhat embarrassedly, then looked at Mary, who was completely still, and was reluctant to wake her up.

So he placed Little Nebula in Mary's arms, then reached out and hugged Mary's neck and knees, lifting her up with some difficulty.

Wow~

Deliberately ignoring the teasing exclamations from the two young ladies behind her, Yuri blushed, turned around, quickly thanked them, and then hurriedly left the office with Mary in her arms, unaware of the subtle clicking sound behind her.

Mary is very light and often does manual labor, while Yuri, who is quite strong, can barely hold her in her arms like this.

Walking down the empty corridor, Yuri felt both nervous and relieved, afraid that someone might suddenly appear and see her holding Mari.

Yuri lowered her gaze slightly to Mary, who was nestled in her arms and breathing calmly. She felt a pang of urge to bite Mary's cheek, but then worried that it might disturb her sleep.

At the end of the match, a close-up shot from the camera clearly showed Mari's exhaustion. Yuri was no exception.

Back at Nurse Joy's place, before the Pokémon check-up was even over, Yuri, under Nurse Joy's amused gaze, sat down with Marie on her lap and rested in her arms.

After relaxing her hands for a moment, Yuri couldn't help but raise her hand and gently pinch Mary's little face. Mary, wearing a light-colored dress and a sheer coat, looked exceptionally adorable.

Reaching out, she took Rotom from the side, turned on the camera, and then directed Rotom to fly a little further away so that most of her body could be captured in the frame.

Then came a series of clicks as Rotom's phone, under Yuri's direction, circled the two of them, snapping a series of photos.

Chapter 408 Worries

After Mary won her match against Cibana and advanced to the semifinals, the online sentiment shifted subtly. After all, many people thought before the match that Mary would unfortunately be eliminated in the quarterfinals.

Because of her consecutive victories against Nie Zi and Qi Bana, both of whom are top-tier gym leaders, many people have even started comparing Marie to Leon from back in the day.

After all, the last rookie trainer to shine so brightly was only the year Leon debuted.

Moreover, this view has grown stronger as Mary has won the championship of this year's challenge tournament without any obstacles, after defeating Ayaka in the semi-finals and Yuri in the finals.

However, Mary, as the person involved, was not particularly relaxed.

With the elimination rounds over and the upcoming closing ceremony performance and Dante's exhibition match, the atmosphere in Miyamon City has reached its peak in recent times.

As the most talked-about contestant this year, Mary naturally couldn't show her face in public at this time.

"It looks like we can get the best seats for tomorrow's performance."

Yuri, who was snuggling close to Mary, held up her Rotom phone and displayed it to Mary, attracting her attention.

"Hmm... performances? I've never really watched one seriously before."

Mary glanced at the advertisement page, but she wasn't as excited as Yuri.

"Relax a bit, you can't be so tense."

She raised her arms and hugged Mary, then reached out and patted Mary's head. After the elimination rounds ended, Mary had explained everything to Yuri, so she now knew what Mary was worried about.

"call--"

Mary let out a long breath, shifting her weight onto Yuri. Looking ahead at everyone training, she felt she needed to move around too to stay calm.

"When things come to a head, it's always hard to stay calm."

As she said this, Mary felt the arms around her tighten even more. A little concerned, she turned to look at Yuri's face, only to meet her gaze.

"Heh heh~ This time it's my turn to protect you."

"You... don't take things so lightly."

Mary leaned over and gently bit Yuri's cheek. Even if the sword and shield were summoned, they might not necessarily come to protect them immediately, since Mujita was the purpose for which they had been waiting for their savior.

"Since the sword and shield went into slumber after solving the darkness in the past, it means they didn't have any special feelings for humans. Don't be too blind."

"Well……"

Because of their last night's conversation, Yuri actually had a very good impression of the sword and shield, which is why she was slightly less aware of the danger. On the other hand, Hop, whom she hadn't met yet, trusted her own strength more than the sword and shield.

Mary raised her hand and pinched Yuri's chubby cheeks, then smiled faintly.

"Why did you suddenly become so depressed again?"

"...Because I'm still not as good as you, in the end I'll still need you to protect me."

Listening to Yuri's remarks, Mary found it both funny and heartbreaking. It was quite childish of her to get stuck on such a delicate matter.

"They're still just kids after all~"

"What! You're making fun of me again."

Yuri's embarrassed expression made Mary stop smiling, and she said seriously:

"This plan is a collective operation, not an individual task. Do you understand? From the champion to the police, everyone, regardless of their strength, has been placed in a suitable position to contribute their strength to the whole plan, rather than it being based on who is the most capable."

Yuri clearly hadn't thought that far ahead; her gaze was mostly fixed on the gym leader and the people around him, ignoring the many more members of the league.

Are they strong? Most of them are actually only at the level of elite trainers, but did these people not play a role? Obviously not.

Yuri's thinking was a bit off, and although it might not necessarily have a negative impact on the overall plan, Mary still hoped that she could change her mind.

……

Meanwhile, President Rose was still in his manor, listening to Olive's report to him on the screen.

"According to intelligence, the other party seems to have forged a video of the chairman, but the specific content is still unclear."

As she said this, Olive's tone became noticeably fierce. The other party clearly wanted to force Chairman Rose out, so they were definitely not a good person.

"Then their exact time of action will probably be on the day of the exhibition match."

President Loz stroked his mustache. Since the other party wanted to frame him and cause chaos, the highly anticipated closing ceremony and exhibition match would be the perfect stage.

"Yes, this is the information Nie Zi sent, but the exact time has not yet been intercepted."

Because it's a delicate situation where you need to convey that you are indeed on guard but haven't been able to detect any movement, obtaining intelligence is somewhat difficult.

"However, Nie Zi guessed that the other party would probably make their move after the exhibition match."

Guild Master Rose chuckled. On the surface, Galar's strongest fighters are Leon and Marie. Once the exhibition match is over, regardless of the outcome, Marie's team and Leon's Charizard will likely be in serious trouble.

"Then let's detonate it ahead of time. The timing is easy to predict. The other side may deliberately stagger the time to disrupt our rhythm. Let's take the initiative."

"..."

Olive paused for a moment, then banished her thoughts.

"So when exactly should we take action?"

"How about we do it when the exhibition match opens? It's a bit of a shame about the castle in Hammerlocke. Olive, you can make the arrangements. Remember to bring plenty of trainers and ensure everyone's safety."

"I understand. Also—"

After Olive's report ended, Chairman Rose finally breathed a sigh of relief, picked up the wine glass beside him, and took a sip.

"Everything is almost arranged. Olive, why don't you take a day off and go see how the closing performance goes?"

"...I regret to decline."

"Then consider it helping me see what kind of video they prepared for me. Go to the site in person and supervise the personnel arrangements while you're at it."

"..."

Olive fell completely silent, looking intently at President Rose through the screen. Although it was the same as usual, she felt that President Rose seemed to have something about her that he hadn't told her.

This made her feel a little uneasy.

"...I understand. I will be there on the closing day."

"Hehe~ It's a rare closing ceremony, have fun."

After saying this, President Loz smiled and waved, ending the call.

Chapter 409 The Activated Dark Night and the Revival of 'Mutantana'

The closing ceremony proceeded smoothly, and everyone in the Pokémon League was extremely busy, with Gym Leaders rarely seen.

If Nie Zi hadn't sent someone to deliver a communicator to Mary halfway through, Mary would have thought she would have to handle the rest of the operation herself.

After giving Yuri her instructions, Mary went to the rest room in the arena alone, where she met the long-lost Dan.

"Long time no see, Mr. Dante."

"Long time no see, how are you getting used to being a celebrity?"

Dante sat in his chair, raised his hand to Mary, and smiled as always.

"What celebrity? If he can't beat you, Mr. Dan, no one will care in a couple of months."

Mary smiled and shook her head, then sat down next to Dandi, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at the performance still playing on the screen.

After a moment of silence, the Pill Emperor suddenly spoke up:

"President Loz probably wants to step down."

"Ok?"

The abrupt, seemingly unrelated statement made Mary turn her head in confusion, only to meet Dante's expectant gaze. As if thinking Mary was questioning his words, he continued:

"President Loz allowed the other party to cause chaos, and afterwards many people will definitely use this as an excuse to hold him accountable."

"Ah... um."

Mary thought for a moment, but didn't know what to say, nor did she know what Dante meant by those words.

"Therefore, when you fight later, you must go all out and not let other things affect your judgment."

"……I see."