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As the old saying goes, the early bird catches the worm.
Sam got up early in the morning, washed up, ate a simple breakfast, and headed straight for Celadon Gym.
After arriving, he handed his Pokédex to a Gym apprentice for verification. Once everything was confirmed, the apprentice led Sam inside.
Over the past two days, Sam had interacted quite a bit with the staff at Celadon Gym and noticed something interestingâmost of them were young and beautiful women. He couldn't help wondering whether they had been personally selected by Erika herself.
After entering the main hall, Sam felt as if he had stepped into a botanical garden. Greenery surrounded him on all sides, and the air was filled with a refreshing fragrance. If an uninformed visitor walked in for the first time, they would never guess this place was actually a Gym.
"This way, Challenger," the apprentice said respectfully. "Gym Leader Erika has been waiting for you for quite some time."
Eager to begin the challenge, Sam didn't pay much attention to those words and stepped directly into the battle arena.
Unlike the arenas he had seen before, Celadon Gym used a Grass-type battlefield, something rarely encountered.
The entire arena was covered in artificial turf.
As Sam entered the field, he finally saw Erika, the Gym Leader of Celadon Gym.
She wore a traditional kimono, her presence elegant and refined. Her gentle smile and graceful demeanor gave off the aura of a classic Yamato Nadeshiko, instantly putting others at ease.
Looking at her, Sam's thoughts briefly wandered. He felt that if he had lived in ancient times, someone like Erika would have been the perfect wife.
"I've been waiting for you for quite a while, Mr. Sam," Erika said warmly.
Her voice pulled Sam back to reality.
He remembered the apprentice mentioning this earlier, but had assumed it was just polite phrasing. He hadn't expected it to be true.
"Miss Erika⊠were you really waiting for me?" Sam asked, puzzled.
"We can discuss that later," Erika replied softly. "You're here to challenge the Gym, aren't you? Let's begin the battle first~"
Since Erika clearly didn't want to explain yet, Sam didn't press the issue. The Gym challenge was the priority.
"The rules of Celadon Gym are simple," Erika continued calmly. "A 1v1 battle, with two Pokémon on each side. Only the challenger may switch Pokémon during the battle. If you understand, we may begin."
"No problem," Sam replied, focusing himself.
Once he won this match, he would earn his sixth Gym Badge. After that, only the Volcano Badge from Cinnabar Gym would remain. Combined with the Soul Badge from Fuchsia Gym, he would have all eight Badges needed to enter the Indigo Plateau Conference.
"You're very confident," Erika said with a smile, clearly amused rather than offended.
"Announce the start of the match, Amu."
"Yes, Miss Erika."
The referee immediately declared the battle's start.
"Come out, Gloom."
Erika released her Pokémon onto the field.
"Mou-na! Mou-na!"
The moment it appeared, Gloom happily clung to Erika's leg. A strong stench spread through the air, but Erika showed no discomfort at all. She squatted down gently and spoke softly:
"Be good. Let's start the battle."
Watching their interaction, Sam couldn't help sighing inwardly.
No wonder Erika was known as the woman most men in the Kanto Region dreamed of marryingâgentle, kind, dignified, elegant, and beautiful. Very few men could resist someone like her.
Sam considered himself devoted to Pokémon, but even he doubted he could interact so calmly with Gloom while ignoring the smell.
Of course, that might also be because Gloom wasn't his Pokémon.
"Detective Eye."
[Pokémon]: Gloom
[Type]: Grass / Poison
[Strength]: Elite High Level
[Potential]: Gym Level
Erika clearly knew Sam already possessed five Badges. Sending out an elite high-level Gloom right away showed that she was taking him seriously.
Rather than going easy on him, she had actually raised the difficulty.
"Come out, Charmeleon," Sam said without hesitation.
Charmeleon had suffered several defeats recently. It was time for a win.
"Roaaar~!"
Charmeleon let out its familiar roar, confidence blazing in its eyes. Being beaten twice in a row clearly hadn't shaken its spirit.
"Charmeleon? A good choice," Erika nodded. "But don't think type advantage alone will secure you victory."
Her demeanor shifted instantly. The gentle elegance vanished, replaced by sharp focusâshe had entered full battle mode.
"Gloom, use Toxic."
Gloom's sluggish look disappeared. Its eyes sharpened as deep-purple venom sprayed from the stamens on its head, forming a poisonous stream that shot toward Charmeleon.
"Charmeleon, Flamethrowerâburn it away!"
Sam didn't dare let that venom touch Charmeleon. Even at a glance, its lethality was obvious.
Flames and poison collided midair with a loud hiss.
The venom evaporated on contact.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
The droplets that fell onto the turf immediately corroded it. Within moments, the grass soaked in poison withered and died.
Sam felt his scalp tingle.
For a Grass-type specialist to wield poison so effectively⊠then Koga, the Poison-type master of Fuchsia Gym, must be even more terrifying.
Just thinking about his next challenge gave Sam a headache.
Noticing Sam's momentary distraction, Erika's voic
e turned cold.
"Thinking about something else during battle, Sam? That's quite arrogant."
"Gloomâuse Grass Knot."
---------------Author---------------
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