Join my p@treon for more chapters
[email protected]/Tempest_29
"Ding! You defeated Erika, the gym leader of Celadon City, and obtained Power Herb, TM24 Thunderbolt, and TM83 Work Up!"
"Ding! Charizard gained experience! Level increased by 1, now at level 50!"
"Ding! Lucario gained experience! Level increased by 1, now at level 50!"
"Ding! Sceptile gained experience! Level increased by 2, now at level 50!"
"Ding! Greninja gained experience! Level increased by 2, now at level 50! Learned Extrasensory!"
"Ding! Eevee gained experience! Level increased by 3, now at level 46! Learned Charm!"
"Ding! Gengar gained experience! Level increased by 3, now at level 46!"
"Ding! Snorlax gained experience! Level increased by 2, now at level 49!"
"Ding! Pupitar gained experience! Level increased by 2, now at level 49!"
"Ding! Gabite gained experience! Level increased by 2, now at level 49! Learned Dragon Rush!"
Gym leader-level Pokemon were exactly what Eddie had been hoping to face. The amount of experience gained was tremendous. Just one level 52 Venusaur had managed to upgrade all of Eddie's Pokemon significantly.
Except for Charizard and Lucario, his other Pokemon had gained either two or three full levels each. As Eddie had mentioned before, leveling up became increasingly difficult at higher levels, but gaining so much progress in a single battle left him grinning from ear to ear.
"You won, Morning Sun. I am thoroughly convinced—this was truly a wonderful battle," Erika said with genuine admiration.
Erika recalled her Venusaur to its Poke Ball and walked gracefully toward Eddie.
She reached into the sleeve of her kimono and withdrew the Rainbow Badge, presenting it to Eddie with a warm smile.
Although Erika had been defeated, the smile on her face was no less bright than Eddie's, as if she was genuinely happy that Eddie had managed to overcome her challenge.
"He is truly worthy of being the man I have chosen," Erika thought to herself with pride. "He can defeat opponents in cross-level battles, and this wasn't even a narrow victory or a hard-fought win. This battle can truly be called a decisive victory. This is Morning Sun, the man I have chosen."
Erika's heart filled with happiness and admiration as these thoughts crossed her mind.
Of course, Eddie felt somewhat embarrassed under her intense gaze at this moment. He wasn't thick-skinned enough to remain completely unaffected when someone kept staring at him with such obvious affection.
"By the way, Morning Sun, I forgot to mention something important," Erika said suddenly, her expression brightening as she remembered something from the previous day.
She had been quite amused watching Eddie's embarrassed reaction, but suddenly recalled what had happened yesterday.
Since she had missed Eddie's visit yesterday and had arranged for this gym battle today instead, she had planned to give Eddie some valuable information as compensation.
"There is a dense forest in the northeast of Celadon City. Go to these coordinates," Erika said mysteriously, taking out a piece of paper with specific location details written on it. "There are some very special Grass-type Pokemon waiting there for you."
"Although they won't recognize you as their trainer so easily, I believe you will definitely find a way to earn their trust and acceptance."
Erika handed the paper to Eddie, speaking with an air of intrigue and mystery.
"Can't you tell me what kind of Pokemon they are?" Eddie asked, feeling puzzled by all the secrecy.
Eddie was thoroughly confused by her mysterious behavior. He suspected that Erika was deliberately trying to tease him and build up suspense.
"No way! If I tell you now, there won't be any surprise left, hehe!" Erika replied with a mischievous smile.
Erika displayed that same playful grin again, but she looked absolutely adorable doing it.
Eddie found himself somewhat captivated by her expression. Perhaps this was what people called "gap moe"—the appealing contrast between different sides of someone's personality.
The elegant and dignified kimono-wearing gym leader had suddenly revealed a completely different, playful character. Eddie was certain that many people would find such contrasts utterly charming.
Of course, Erika secretly made a victory 'V' sign with her fingers in a spot where Eddie couldn't see her doing it.
"Well, since the gym battle is finished, let's go shopping!" Erika announced cheerfully.
Erika waved her hand to signal her gym assistants to handle the post-battle cleanup. She then took Eddie's arm and enthusiastically pulled him out of the gym.
Eddie's mouth twitched slightly as he wondered, "Are all women in love this proactive and forward?"
Since he had absolutely no experience with such situations, he had little choice but to let Erika drag him along out of the gym.
And so, after finishing their gym battle in the morning, they spent the entire day shopping together until evening arrived.
During their extended outing, they strolled through the famous Celadon Department Store, where Eddie accompanied Erika as she purchased numerous items.
Erika seemed to be releasing pent-up energy and stress, showing a completely different side of her personality from her usual gym leader demeanor. This time, she acted like a cheerful young woman, constantly and enthusiastically shopping for various items.
Bags, clothes, all kinds of accessories, shoes—she bought everything that caught her eye.
Of course, Eddie was responsible for carrying all these purchases, while Erika focused entirely on the shopping experience itself.
At noon, the two of them enjoyed a meal at a luxurious restaurant. The prices at this establishment were quite high, but cost was not an issue for either Eddie or Erika.
However, since Erika made no attempt to hide her identity, everyone in the restaurant immediately recognized her. The restaurant owner was so honored to have the famous gym leader dining there that he provided Eddie and Erika with a completely complimentary meal.
Erika accepted the gesture graciously and without hesitation. She had done so much for Celadon City over the years that she felt comfortable accepting such expressions of gratitude from local businesses.
In the afternoon, the two of them continued exploring various locations throughout the city. They visited Celadon University, the Celadon Building, and even stopped by the Game Corner, where order had been fully restored, to play some games together.
Naturally, Erika also took Eddie to her favorite archery range.
Erika used the excuse that Eddie didn't know how to properly use a bow and arrow, claiming that she needed to teach him archery techniques personally.
Eddie actually wanted to make a playful joke about only needing to learn certain things that were more practical, and that hand-based skills weren't as important. However, he wisely realized that making such a comment would probably result in him getting hit, so he kept the thought to himself.
As a result, Erika taught Eddie archery in an extremely hands-on manner, which made him feel rather distracted and flustered.
He could only focus on the soft, cool sensation of her guidance and the pleasant floral fragrance that seemed to emanate naturally from Erika.
Having spent years in contact with nature and surrounded by Grass-type Pokemon, Erika carried a refreshing, natural flower scent that was absolutely delightful.
Erika was carefully observing Eddie's reactions throughout the lesson, and she smiled secretly in moments when Eddie couldn't see her expression.
Just like that, they spent an entire day shopping together—or perhaps it would be more accurate to call it a date.
When night finally fell, Eddie and Erika returned to her home to rest and have dinner.
However, Eddie was completely exhausted from their day-long adventure, while Erika still seemed to have boundless energy. This made Eddie marvel at the apparent fact that women simply didn't get tired when they went shopping.
"Morning Sun, are you planning to leave tomorrow?" Erika asked suddenly after they had finished dinner.
At this moment, she reminded Eddie of Misty in some ways. She seemed to intuitively understand that Eddie was preparing to depart, which was probably why she had insisted on taking him shopping today to spend quality time together.
"The truth is... Team Rocket is incredibly powerful, and if I continue staying here in Celadon City, I won't be strong enough to face them when the time comes," Eddie replied honestly.
Eddie naturally understood the real reason behind Erika's question. He wasn't completely oblivious to social cues, and he could clearly see that Erika's affection level showed "like" in his mental assessment of their relationship.
He could more or less guess what Erika was thinking and feeling, which was exactly why he had agreed to accompany her shopping for the entire day.
According to his original travel plan, he would have left Celadon City immediately after defeating the gym leader today.
However, seeing Erika's genuinely affectionate attitude and feeling the warmth of being pursued by someone who cared about him, he naturally felt too guilty to leave so abruptly and heartlessly.
But today had been his compromise—he absolutely had to leave tomorrow. As he had explained, Team Rocket was incredibly dangerous. If he remained in Celadon City, he might not be prepared for his eventual confrontation with the criminal organization.
This was naturally something Eddie could never accept, so he had to continue taking risks and keep leveling up his Pokemon in order to become stronger.
Eddie had a strong intuition that his future battles with Team Rocket would be completely different from the conflicts between Ash, Gary, Green, and Team Rocket that appeared in the manga.
Based on the current situation and what he had observed, his battles would likely be far more difficult and dangerous than anything shown in those stories. Therefore, he absolutely had to become much stronger!