Not long after, they were only half an hour's walk from Pewter City.
Delia's voice carried very far from here.
"Dugtrio, if you don't listen to me again, I'll let them gang up on you."
At this moment, she stood with her hands on her hips, giving orders to an unruly Dugtrio. Beside her were several Pokémon whose injuries had stabilized.
The physical quality of Pokémon was beyond words; even if they suffered severe injuries, as long as they survived the critical period, they could recover quickly.
However, no matter how much she roared, that Dugtrio wouldn't give her a good look.
This might be the reason she took advantage of the situation instead of doing it herself.
Not far from her, Giovanni, though displaying similar gestures, presented a stark contrast.
Don't be fooled by the fact that the Dugtrio Giovanni caught was a Gym Leader Level Pokémon; there wasn't a single problem.
As for why?
Initially, the Dugtrio was still a bit emotional. After all, it was a leader, and even if it was caught, it still had to maintain its dignity.
But when Giovanni's eyes slightly narrowed and his hand gently rested on a Poké Ball, it sensed a terrifying crisis.
Coupled with Rhydon's playful gaze from the side, it immediately cowered.
A wise man knows when to retreat. It wasn't the type to only realize pain after being hit. As a leader, it was still very intelligent.
So, it knelt before Giovanni, fawning with its three faces.
As for Rhydon, who didn't see the scene it wanted to see, it simply chose to ignore it. It was clear this brainless, stubborn fellow had been beaten before.
Wanting it to try it too? Dream on!
Giovanni sensed its goodwill with Power of Viridian and smiled slightly, "As expected of a Gym Leader Level leader Pokémon, you are very smart and know how to adapt."
Dugtrio gave Giovanni a fawning smile.
However, it would still take some time for Giovanni to fully trust it. As for basic battles, it could certainly be sent out.
Hearing Delia's noisy voice behind him, Giovanni frowned.
Indeed, it wouldn't be easy for that woman to capture that Dugtrio.
With Pewter City in sight and the two about to part ways, Giovanni could certainly give her a farewell gift.
Giovanni raised his hand and pointed to the Dugtrio over by Delia, saying to the Dugtrio beside him, "Dugtrio."
Dugtrio immediately understood Giovanni's meaning.
Its body quickly moved across the ground to that Dugtrio and let out two low Growls at it.
That Dugtrio was initially delighted to see its leader, but after hearing Dugtrio's Roar, it stiffened.
It hadn't expected its leader to also be captured by the hateful humans.
And it had already become a human's slave. This Dugtrio would not surrender like this, not even for its leader.
"Hmm?" Giovanni's head slightly turned, and his cold gaze swept over it.
Its body suddenly trembled uncontrollably, then it hid behind Delia and sweetly called out to her.
It was beyond fawning.
Giovanni's Dugtrio snorted when it saw its subordinate's behavior. Indeed, it was its subordinate, and it knew how to assess the situation.
Delia glanced at the Dugtrio by her leg, then at Giovanni's Dugtrio. First, she thanked Giovanni's Dugtrio.
Then she looked at Giovanni, "Thank you."
Giovanni waved at Dugtrio, and Dugtrio hurriedly went to Giovanni's side, where Giovanni returned it and Rhydon to their Poké Balls.
"You're welcome. Since we've arrived here, and Pewter City is just ahead, let's part ways here."
Delia paused but didn't argue, simply nodding, "Okay, thank you for saving me this time. If we meet again in the future, I will definitely repay you."
Giovanni turned and walked away without looking back, leaving only one sentence: "No need, consider it a transaction."
Delia stared blankly at Giovanni's retreating figure until he completely disappeared from her sight.
Perhaps, the two were merely the most ordinary passersby in life.
Half an hour's walk was for ordinary people; for Giovanni, he could reach the destination in ten minutes.
Soon, Pewter City completely came into Giovanni's view.
Rocks were everywhere, as they were the main food source for Rock-type Pokémon and relatively easy to obtain.
In fact, ordinary people in Pewter City lived much better than those in other cities; at least they didn't have to take special risks.
As soon as Giovanni stepped into Pewter City, he heard people nearby discussing Evolution Stones and him.
"Have you seen the new video from the Cat-Loving Master?"
"I have. It's just a shame it's a Water-type Pokémon. If only there were Evolution Stones for our Rock-type and Ground-type Pokémon."
"What would they be called? Rock Stone? Sounds weird."
"I heard this master is a Champion's student, and this project even has the Champion's help. Otherwise, how could he achieve so much with such a young appearance and voice?"
"You don't know anything! This is called genius! I even suspect the Champion is trying to ride on our master's popularity!"
This clearly came from a Trainer who had a Nidorino or a Pokémon corresponding to an Evolution Stone.
Otherwise, they wouldn't react so strongly.
"That's right, even a prodigy has limits. And he's hiding his face; maybe the Champion doesn't want to show up and is having someone cover for him."
"You old man, is it so hard to admit someone else is excellent?"
"I'm going to fight you today!"
"Come on, who's afraid of whom!"
The scene was chaotic, which was bound to happen.
However, for Giovanni, none of this mattered; everything would wait until the day of the exchange conference.
While Giovanni was watching the show, a dark-skinned young man suddenly popped out, "Excellent Trainer, do you want to buy excellent quality rocks or Evolution Stones?"
Giovanni was about to refuse, but when he saw the person's appearance, he paused. That single slit, that appearance, it was exactly like Brock.
Thinking of the source of that excellent gene.
Giovanni confirmed that the person in front of him was Brock's irresponsible father, Flint.
A man who could have many children.
But did his stone-selling business start so early?
Logically speaking, he should have a chance to be the Gym Leader of Pewter City at this time.
When Flint saw Giovanni staring at him, although he felt strange, he still had to continue for a living.
"Young man, how about it? Are you interested?"
Whether Flint was the Gym Leader or Brock's father, it didn't matter to Giovanni.
Flint was not an excellent talent in any aspect, and Giovanni looked down on him, so there was no need to waste time.
"No interest, I still have to challenge the Gym."
— — —
Dugtrio
Ground-type
Female
Aptitude: Blue
Ability: Sand Force (In a Sandstorm, this Pokémon is immune to Sandstorm damage and increases the power of its Rock-type, Steel-type, and Ground-type moves by 30%)
Level: 52
Height: 0.9 m
Weight: 40 kg
Moves: Sand Tomb, Feint Attack, Triple Kick, Slash, Sand Attack, Growl, Astonish, Mud-Slap, Stomp, Sucker Punch, Slash, Sandstorm, Dig, Earth Power, Earthquake, Fissure
Egg Moves: Ancient Power