Roy and the other two headed straight along the main road toward the volcano.
As they walked, the surrounding shops became fewer and fewer.
The residential buildings also began to thin out.
Replacing them were some old, worn-down buildings.
Some houses looked like they were built decades ago, with a lot of their plaster peeling off.
Compared to the bustling commercial area at the foot of the mountain, this place felt like another world.
"It's actually quite quiet here."
Delia said, looking at the surroundings.
Misty also nodded.
"Finally, there aren't so many people."
"Just now back at the pier, I was almost squeezed flat."
Togepi also chirped twice in agreement.
They walked a bit further.
The road ahead began to narrow.
A few crooked old trees appeared on both sides of the road.
There seemed to be a clearing behind the trees.
Some wooden structures could be faintly seen in the clearing.
Misty, having sharp eyes, was the first to spot them.
"Over there! There are houses over there!"
She pointed to the clearing and said.
"Could that be the Gym?"
Roy took a look.
Those buildings did indeed look somewhat like a Gym.
Wooden structures, with a bit of an old-fashioned architectural style.
But the problem was...
They seemed a bit too run-down.
The three of them quickened their pace and walked over.
As they drew closer, Misty's expression shifted from anticipation to disappointment.
Actually, scratch that.
It would be more accurate to say it went from anticipation to a blank stare.
The scene before them...
was a bit ridiculous.
Several dilapidated wooden shacks stood crookedly in the clearing.
Some had roofs that had already half-collapsed.
Some had walls covered in cracks.
The glass in the windows had shattered long ago, leaving only empty frames.
A messy pile of clutter was stacked in front of the doors.
There were rusty iron barrels, broken wooden planks, and a pile of junk that was unrecognizable.
A faded banner barrier was stretched around the clearing.
Written on the barrier was 'Construction Zone, Keep Out'.
But the banner had already been blown by the wind, tearing several holes in it.
Only half of the word 'Keep' remained.
The weeds around were growing incredibly tall.
Almost burying the corners of the wooden shacks.
A gust of wind blew past.
The door of one of the shacks made a creaking sound.
It sounded like it might fall over at any moment.
Misty stared at the dilapidated ruins before her, feeling utterly speechless.
"Ah..."
She opened her mouth, struggling to find the words for a long time.
"Is... is this the Gym?"
Misty turned her head to look at Roy.
Her face was filled with disbelief.
"Isn't the Cinnabar Gym supposed to be a high-level Gym?"
"Why does it look to me..."
Misty looked at the ruins again.
"Why does it look even more run-down to me than Aimi's declining fighting Gym?"
"At least Aimi's Gym is still livable."
"But this place..."
"I'd be afraid the roof would collapse on me if I went inside."
Togepi quickly shrank its small body upon hearing this.
Delia also frowned as she looked at it.
It was indeed too run-down.
Far more run-down than any Gym they had seen before.
Roy looked at the ruins and couldn't help but chuckle.
He reached out and patted Misty's head.
"Aimi is a martial artist, you know."
"If you talk about her Gym like that, watch out or she might challenge you to a sparring match if she finds out."
Misty stuck out her tongue.
"Just a joke."
"Sister Ai Mei wouldn't hold it against me."
"But seriously though."
Misty looked at the ruins again.
"Is this really the Cinnabar Gym?"
"Could we have gotten the wrong place?"
Roy shook his head.
"We didn't get the wrong place."
"This is indeed the Cinnabar Gym."
He paused, then added,
"To be precise, this is the old site of the Cinnabar Gym."
Roy observed the surroundings.
Although this clearing was dilapidated, its location was actually quite good.
It was backed by the volcano, with a forest not far ahead.
If it hadn't been affected by tourism development, it would have been a very peaceful place.
But walking just a few hundred meters further would lead to the bustling commercial street.
All kinds of shop signs could be seen.
The noisy voices of people drifted over faintly.
A new road had even been built next to the Gym.
From time to time, tourists on rented electric scooters passed by on the road.
Some tourists, seeing the ruins, would even stop to take a couple of photos.
Before being urged by their companions to keep moving.
Looking at the scene before him, Roy had a rough understanding in his mind.
He knew what Blaine, the Gym Leader of the Cinnabar Gym, was like.
Blaine had originally chosen to build the Gym on Cinnabar Island because he valued how far it was from the hustle and bustle.
He could quietly raise Fire-type Pokémon here.
But in recent years, Cinnabar Island had been fully developed into a tourist resort.
There were tourists everywhere.
Commercial streets were everywhere.
And the noise was constant.
For Blaine, such an environment was far too noisy.
It completely contradicted his original intention of retiring to Cinnabar Island.
Therefore, after the old Gym was demolished, Blaine didn't make any special effort to promote the new Cinnabar Gym.
It could even be said that he deliberately arranged the Gym's battlefield in a hidden location.
Only allowing those who were truly determined to challenge it.
Simply put, he didn't want to deal with tourist Trainers who came with a sightseeing mindset.
But this also brought about a problem.
Namely, ordinary people had absolutely no idea where Blaine's new Gym actually was.
In Roy's consecutive challenge quest, the final Gym he needed to challenge happened to be the Cinnabar Gym.
So he couldn't give up.
Roy took another walk around the old Gym.
Checking to see if there were any clues nearby.
The doors of the old Gym had been gone for a long time, and the space inside was empty.
There were a few puddles on the ground, with fallen leaves floating on the water.
There was also some graffiti on the walls, looking like it was drawn by local mischievous kids.
There was a pile of ashes in the corner.
No one knew who had lit a fire there.
Other than that, there was nothing.
No signs, no contact information, and absolutely no clues regarding the location of the new Gym.
It seemed Blaine was truly determined not to let people find it easily.
Roy patted the dust off his hands.
"Forget it."
He walked back to Delia and Misty.
"Blaine's people aren't here today."
"And there aren't any clues left at the old Gym."
"Let's find a place to rest first."
Delia nodded.
"Yes, it's getting late."
"It won't be too late to look tomorrow."
Although Misty was a bit disappointed, she didn't say much.
Since Roy said they would keep looking tomorrow, then they would keep looking tomorrow.
Besides, there are hot springs here.
They could soak in the hot springs tonight.
Thinking of this, Misty's mood brightened up again.
After wandering around the old Gym and confirming that there were indeed no clues nearby,
they headed toward the nearest hotel.
After leaving the old Gym, Roy and the other two walked back along the main road.
They first went to the nearest hot spring hotel.
The receptionist at the front desk didn't even look up.
"Sorry, we are fully booked."
Delia tried asking,
"What about tomorrow?"
Only then did the receptionist look up and glance at the three of them.
"Tomorrow is also fully booked."
"We're fully booked for the next week."
"If you want to stay, you have to book half a month in advance."
Roy frowned.
The three of them tried another place, but it was also full.
Hot spring hotels, guesthouses, hotels, capsule apartments...
They were all fully booked.
Even the run-down little inns had 'No Vacancy' signs hanging on their doors.
Misty's legs were aching from all the walking.
She sat down on a stone pillar by the roadside.
"What's going on!"
"This Cinnabar Island is too ridiculous!"
"We've visited so many places, and not a single one has a vacancy!"
Delia was also a bit worried.
"It seems that since the hot springs were developed, there are too many tourists."
"And this season is peak tourist season."
"We didn't time our visit well."
Roy looked at the gradually darkening sky.
The sun had already sunk below the sea level.
Only a bit of orange-red afterglow remained in the sky.
The streetlights on both sides of the road lit up.
Tourists were walking on the streets in groups.
Laughing and chatting.
If it got late into the night, they wouldn't even have a place to stay.
He couldn't very well make Delia and Misty sit on the street all night.
Besides, Cinnabar Island was developed everywhere.
It was hard to even find a spot to camp out in the wild.
Everywhere was filled with man-made landscapes and shops.
The open spaces were either planted with flowers or paved with bricks.
It was hard to even find a patch of grass.
On top of that, this was a volcanic island.
There were particularly many mosquitoes and insects on the island at night.
If they slept in the open, they'd probably wake up covered in bites the next day.
Misty rubbed her ankle. "Let's go check out the Pokémon Center."
"Can't Trainers stay at the Pokémon Center for free?"
Roy thought about it, and it seemed that was their only option.
He had originally wanted to experience the local tourist accommodation on this resort island and have some fun with the two of them.
But with so many tourists on Cinnabar Island, the standard commercial lodging facilities were definitely fully booked.
Now, their only choice was to go to the Pokémon Center.