“Teacher, what do you think those two people’s purpose is in looking for a Trainer who owns an Altaria?” After Albus and Fujiki left, the current Gym Leader of Fortree Gym, Winona, asked her teacher, Hana.
“I’m not sure, but both of them are very strong. To have such strength at their age is truly rare…” Hana gazed deeply in the direction the two had departed, sighing slightly.
Especially since they came from the Almia region, a place she didn’t know much about. That made Hana even more curious.
Could such a little-known region really produce a Trainer with so much potential?
Now that they had come to Hoenn, she wondered whether their presence was a good or bad thing for Hoenn’s younger generation of Trainers. Given the strength of Hoenn’s young Trainers, there were probably very few who could force them to go all out in battle.
“Why are they searching for a Trainer with an Altaria?” Winona couldn’t figure it out no matter how much she thought about it.
“Terrance.”
“Teacher, do you still remember Terrance?”
Suddenly recalling something, Winona asked, “The Terrance who once challenged Fortree Gym? His Growlithe once fought against my Swablu and your Altaria.”
“The young Gym Leader of Fallarbor Gym?” Hana said. “That boy…”
“His name has been everywhere recently.”
“That’s right, him. Not long ago, during Terrance’s challenge to all the young Trainers of Hoenn, there were rumors that he had a very powerful Altaria!”
“Unfortunately, during that time, you and I were busy with the renovation of Fortree Gym.”
“That must be it. Back then, the reason he challenged Fortree Gym was probably because of his Altaria… Are you saying that Terrance might be their next target?” Hana speculated.
“It’s possible. Maybe they’ve already challenged Terrance…” Winona exhaled deeply.
“Teacher, I need to undergo special training to increase my strength.”
…
…
“Our next destination is Fallarbor Gym?” Fujiki asked.
“Yeah, the Gym Leader there seems to have an Altaria too. Hopefully, his strength is at least passable.”
“But just having passable strength isn’t enough. What a hassle.” Albus waved his hand helplessly.
In their search for a suitable Trainer with an Altaria, they had already challenged many people. Among them, only two had the strength to gain their approval.
To put it into perspective, even Fortree Gym’s former Gym Leader did not meet their requirements in terms of strength. That alone showed that those two Trainers must have been quite famous in their respective regions.
“Although the strength of those two people’s Altaria was decent, neither of them could resonate with the Key Stone and Altarianite. That’s the real problem.”
Albus’s face was filled with worry. It was all because of that strange device attached to the Key Stone, which increased the difficulty of Mega Evolution. Even if they found a suitable candidate, they couldn’t proceed to the next step of their plan.
“Fallarbor Gym’s Gym Leader seems to be quite famous in Hoenn,” Fujiki said.
“Yeah, and he’s apparently younger than you. Heh, honestly, I almost dismissed him as an option because of that. After all, how could someone so young possibly be strong? But the rumors about him are pretty exaggerated—something about being the top Trainer among Hoenn’s younger generation. Sounds interesting.”
Fujiki glanced at the man walking leisurely ahead, recalling his childhood.
Born in Almia, a region without Trainers, Albus’s dream was to become the strongest Trainer in the world. How that dream came to be was a mystery.
“Because of the irremovable device attached to the Key Stone, Mega Evolution has become more difficult. However, according to the data we obtained, after Mega Evolution, the power boost of the Fairy- and Dragon-type Pokémon will significantly increase. That said, if a Trainer doesn’t have a strong enough bond with their Pokémon or can’t withstand the physical and mental strain, it’s difficult to establish a connection between the Key Stone and the Mega Stone,” Albus explained.
“In any case, let’s go and test that Terrance,” Fujiki said.
“If that still doesn’t work, we’ll have no choice but to turn our sights to Drake and Lance.”
“Uh… Champions, huh? To be honest, with our status, it’d be difficult to approach them. Plus, even with Lucario’s strength, it can handle ordinary Elite Four members, but if we’re up against an Elite Four Champion, it might be difficult,” Albus muttered quietly.
“Then do you have any other ideas?” Fujiki shot him a glance.
“Alright, alright. But let’s keep those two as a last resort. Honestly, I’d rather catch an Altaria myself and train it, though we might not have enough time for that…”
Two days later.
Fallarbor Gym.
Since Terrance left, Fallarbor Gym had not officially held a single Gym Battle.
Most of the challengers who arrived would either schedule an appointment or temporarily give up on challenging Fallarbor Gym after listening to Ayan’s explanation.
On this day, Fallarbor Gym welcomed two unexpected visitors.
“This is Fallarbor Gym?”
“This…it seems like the rumors are true, it’s a Bug Type Gym. Is there really an Altaria here?” Albus fell into deep thought before quickly stepping forward and knocking on Fallarbor Gym’s door.
However, after knocking for a while, he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw Fujiki pointing at a piece of white paper beside the door.
“Stop knocking.”
“Gym Closed.”
“Damn! It’s closed?!” Albus smacked his forehead, feeling like their two days of rushing here had been wasted.
“Are you here to challenge the Gym?” At that moment, Ayan, having heard the knocking, walked out from the Old Green House and looked at the two people who seemed to be Trainers.
“Yeah.” Albus quickly responded, “Are you the Gym Leader of Fallarbor Gym, Terrance?”
Ayan quickly waved his hands. “No, the Gym Leader is currently away somewhere else. He probably won’t be able to accept challenges for a while. If you’re not in a hurry, you can come back after some time or make an appointment in advance.”
“Look, it’s written clearly on that paper.”
Albus looked at Fujiki. The two exchanged glances before Albus finally asked, “Where did the Gym Leader go? How long until he returns?”
Where did he go…?
Actually, Ayan did know.
“Seems like… the Alola region.”
“As for when he’ll be back… I think he should be able to return within ten days?”
Albus: “……”
Fujiki: “……”
A vein popped on his forehead, but Albus quickly calmed himself and said, “Can you contact Terrance and ask him to return as soon as possible? We’re not here for a Gym Battle, but for some other reasons.”
“Well…” Ayan hesitated.
“Don’t worry, just pass my message to him. If he understands, I believe he’ll be more than happy to return.” Albus flashed a confident smile.
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