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"Delia! Take me with you. I want to play too!"
Watching Delia have so much fun riding on the back of her little Lapras, Liam couldn't help but get excited and shouted to her, signaling that he wanted to ride Lapras too… but Lapras flat-out ignored him.
After hearing Liam's request, Delia patted Lapras's neck and urged it to go pick Liam up—but Lapras refused. With a glance at Liam, it proudly turned its head away, acting like it didn't care for him at all.
Delia also pleaded verbally, but it was no use. No matter what, Lapras just wouldn't swim over to Liam. It was clear that Lapras didn't respect him one bit. In the end, Delia could only offer a helpless apology with her hands clasped together.
"...Forget it. I didn't really want to ride anyway. Aerodactyl, take me to the other side of the lake… Delia~ I'll wait for you there!"
Rejected, Liam climbed onto Aerodactyl's back with a visibly dejected expression, holding a Pokémon Egg in his arms. He called out to Delia across the water, and then Aerodactyl took off, flying toward the far shore.
...
Once on the other side, Liam recalled Aerodactyl and didn't have to wait long. Within minutes, Delia had steered her Lapras to shore with joyful splashes of water.
"Return, Lapras! That was so much fun~"
"Wuu~!"
Delia grinned as she took out a PokeBall and returned Lapras, who was parked by the lakeside, with a flash of red light.
"Hehe Sorry to keep you waiting, Liam"
In high spirits, Delia turned to see Liam sitting bored on a rock by the shore, drawing circles in the dirt. She dashed over, scooped up the Pokémon Egg beside him, and chirped playfully, "Don't pout~!"
"Ahem… all right, now that you're done playing... let's keep moving. There shouldn't be much distance left. Let's push through and get out of this cave system."
Liam was powerless against Delia's playful tone. His serious expression collapsed instantly. With a sigh and a smile, he reached out to brush the bangs under her sunhat and pointed toward a nearby tunnel.
"Oh! Roger that! Let's go!"
Delia quickly nodded, stretched out her right hand high above her head, and shouted with excitement.
...
After another stretch of walking, Liam and Delia finally exited Union Cave and emerged onto a rainy path.
Holding umbrellas, they stepped out of the cave and immediately noticed a crooked, weather-worn sign stuck at the entrance. Liam walked over, propped it up, and read the inscription aloud:
"Rainy Trail — This trail is covered by dark clouds year-round and constantly experiences rainfall. Once past the Rainy Trail, you will arrive at Azalea Town. The road is slippery, please proceed with caution."
That was all it said. At the bottom of the sign was a faded red arrow pointing in the direction they were to go.
"This kind of constant drizzle is just miserable…"
The temperature outside had dipped due to the light rain. Feeling a bit cold, Delia huddled closer to Liam and clung to his arm, grumbling with annoyance.
"Yeah, it's a bit soggy, but we'll manage. Azalea Town is really close now. Once we get there, let's head straight to the Pokémon Center and rest up."
Liam smiled and reassured her.
"Huh? How do you know it's close? What if this trail goes on forever?"
Delia wrinkled her nose in doubt.
"Haha, why would I lie about something like that? Look over there, and you'll see."
Liam chuckled, slipped his hand free, and pointed toward the distant end of the trail.
Still skeptical, Delia followed his gaze—and sure enough, through the misty drizzle in the distance, the hazy outline of a town shimmered in and out of view, looking quite mysterious through the veil of fog.
...
The Rainy Trail wasn't very long after all. Liam and Delia walked for about half an hour before stepping into their destination—Azalea Town.
Strangely, the weather in Azalea Town was the complete opposite of what they'd just experienced. The Rainy Trail was damp and drizzly, but Azalea was bone dry. The sky was clear with not a single cloud, and the whole town felt parched—as if it were going through a drought.
"So this is Azalea Town? What a strange place…"
Delia finally free from the dampness, looked around curiously—but realized this kind of bone-dry air wasn't exactly pleasant either.
"Yep, this is Azalea. The town's Gym is right here. Let's head in and get some rest at the Pokémon Center first. Once we've recovered, we'll go challenge the Gym."
Liam looked up at a sign in the distance, where the words "Azalea Town" were boldly written. He nodded with a small smile.
"Mhm! Rest first, definitely! We've been walking all day… I'm starving~"
Delia wholeheartedly agreed with Liam's suggestion.
And so, the two walked hand in hand into the heart of Azalea Town.
...
"Wow! I've never seen that Pokémon before! It's pink, slow, and super cute! Liam! Liam! What's this Pokémon called?"
As they entered town, Delia quickly spotted a Slowpoke lying near the dried-up riverbed with its mouth open, lazily basking in the sun. It was clearly her first time seeing one, and she eagerly asked Liam.
"Oh, that? That's a Slowpoke. It's a Water/Psychic-type Pokémon and the town's signature species. They're famous for being incredibly slow to react—like, if you poked them with a needle, they'd take forever to notice. But the people of Azalea absolutely adore them. They're considered the treasures of this town."
Liam glanced at the loafing Slowpoke and calmly explained.
"Ohhh! I see!"
Delia nodded with sparkling eyes.
After walking a bit further—
"Ahh! Liam! Another one! Is it taking a nap?"
"Huh? Here too? Is it really okay for them to just lie in the middle of the road like that?"
"Ugh… another Slowpoke? Aren't there any other Pokémon around here?"
"Oh no!! Enough already! Please, I beg you!"
Following the signs toward the Pokémon Center, Liam and Delia encountered Slowpoke after Slowpoke. By the end of the walk, even Delia had reached her limit. Her eyes twitched with dread as she looked around—it felt like the entire town had been overrun by these dopey, vacant-eyed Pokémon.