After a match that could only be described as a tutorial, Aiden easily secured his first victory. However, due to the large points gap, his score barely increased, and Roxanne only dropped a few ranks.
"Thank you for the lesson, Teacher Azure!"
After the battle ended, Roxanne quickly adjusted her mood and walked up gracefully to shake Aiden's hand.
"It's an honor to face a Trainer as powerful as you. I hope I'll have another chance to battle you in the future."
This was a lie.
After finishing the match just now, Roxanne had actually come to terms with her current strength—
However, the golden spirit of the Stone family was to never admit defeat, so she couldn't show any timidity at any time!
What if she couldn't beat Teacher Azure?
Then she'd leave it to her stronger cousin Steven. He would definitely be able to contribute a wonderful offensive and defensive battle with Teacher Azure!
As for herself—
Roxanne felt she was still too young and needed more experience, so being a spectator was fine too.
"You already did very well."
"As a rookie, having the courage to accept defeat is already rare. You will definitely become stronger in the future."
Aiden also offered her a few timely words of encouragement.
"But—let me give you one more tiny piece of advice."
"Sometimes, compared to 'absolutely correct' judgments, unexpected choices can be even more important."
"If you can grasp this point, your commanding style will definitely become more mature."
Roxanne was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then nodded after thinking for a bit.
"I understand."
"Thank you again for your guidance, Teacher Azure!"
After watching Roxanne hurry away, Aiden also let out a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness, Roxanne's psychological resilience was quite strong.
If he made another Trainer cry, he couldn't help but feel a vague sense of guilt—
Even though the request to go all out was made by Roxanne herself.
Wait, why did I say "another"?
Aiden scratched his head, didn't pay too much attention to this point, and soon turned to leave the arena.
Walking out of the stadium, Cynthia, dressed in a white dress, was waiting for him.
"Congratulations?"
After Cynthia spoke up, the two exchanged smiles.
"Just an expected victory."
When alone with her, Aiden rarely showed a bit more confidence. After all, if he said he won easily in front of others, it would definitely be seen as bragging, but in Cynthia's eyes, it was perfectly normal.
As a holder of the "Top 8 Masters" title, Cynthia was eligible to skip the first qualifier round entirely, making her even more leisurely than Aiden. By points ranking, there were still several places between Aiden and her.
"Let's go get dinner first. Want to try some local Galar specialties?"
After casually glancing at the sky, Aiden issued the invitation.
"Sure."
Cynthia smiled and nodded.
"I heard Galar's curry is famous, and there's also a dish called fish and chips."
"Let's try them today~"
Inside an "Authentic Traditional Galar Flavor" restaurant in Wyndon, Aiden looked at the food on the table with an indescribable feeling.
How should he put it—
Although he knew that Galar was based on Great Britain, historically known as a food desert where internationals automatically awakened cooking skills upon arrival, only after truly experiencing the local food culture did he have the right to sincerely exclaim—what kind of hard lives were these Galar people living!
Fish and chips could actually count as a dish, and it was even the most representative local food???
It would take more talent to make fried food taste bad—
And don't even get him started on the curry.
Was this really your region's specialty? Even Paldea's specialty sandwiches were better!
If only the curry masters from the subcontinent had gotten their visas by now, he'd definitely have a cook-off with these Galar chefs!
Fortunately, among all the misfortunes, this restaurant didn't have the legendary "Stargazy Pie," otherwise he might have actually ordered a plate to try.
No matter how bad his own cooking skills were, at least the things he made were edible—
Probably?
He'd really like to see what tricks the hell chefs of other regions had up their sleeves!
"Not used to the food?"
Seeing Aiden holding his knife and fork but not starting to eat, Cynthia took the initiative to ask.
"No, just thinking about tomorrow."
Aiden shook his head, picking up a chip with his fork.
"The qualifiers are just a formality for me, and the other contestants probably don't want to be matched with me too early either."
"So, I'm free these next few days and can go to the Crown Tundra with you."
Aiden was firmly in 9th place, and the points gap between him and those outside the top ten was enormous. Even if he didn't play another match, it was unlikely he'd drop out of the top 16. He'd just wait until the last day of the qualifiers and see if he needed to slightly manage his points.
"Sure."
Cynthia's smile grew even gentler.
As a Champion whose primary profession was a mythology scholar, she had always been more interested in regional myths and legends than in battles. Previously, due to her role as Champion, she had to be stationed in Sinnoh, causing her to miss many opportunities and only hear about the Legendary Pokémon that had awakened in various regions from Aiden.
Now that she finally had the chance to personally visit a "hermit," Cynthia, who happened to be free, naturally wouldn't miss it.
Regarding the deeds of the "King of Bountiful Harvests," Galar had only left behind a few legends. But whether it existed, and during what period of Galar's history it was active, were basically blank.
Even Zacian and Zamazenta, the heroic duo, had ancient murals to prove that they were indeed respected in the past.
But Calyrex had nothing; it left behind no proof of its existence—
This in itself was very strange.
A king who was said to have once ruled Galar, and who also possessed the authority of "bountiful harvests," the most attractive power to humans.
It was absolutely impossible for it to be unknown.
So, there was only one truth—this sage king named Calyrex had likely deliberately erased the history about itself, completely disappearing from human society.
But why would it do such a thing?
Perhaps no one knew; even Aiden or Galar's own Professor Magnolia couldn't draw an accurate conclusion.
So curious~
As she thought about this, the corners of Cynthia's eyes curved into crescent moons. Unearthing truths buried by history had always been the tireless work of mythology scholars like them.
Compared to battles and Championships, weren't myths and legends indeed more interesting?
After simply finishing dinner, Aiden and Cynthia prepared to return to the hotel to rest and build up energy for tomorrow's Crown Tundra trip.
On the way, they encountered a group of boys and girls wearing black leather jackets with strange patterns painted on their faces.
"Hello everyone, welcome to join Team Yell, and let's protect the world's cutest Miss Marnie together!"
"Miss Marnie is so adorable! Come and be part of her cheer squad~"
"If you don't join, we'll just have to force you to become one of us through battle!"
"Let's all cheer together! The world's number one cutest Miss Marnie is the best!!!"
This group of people looked quite abstract, and their actions were more like some kind of performance art. But the passersby didn't seem unfamiliar with them; on the contrary, some people even smiled and greeted them—and those tough-looking kids would politely wave back at this time.
"Are Galar people always this... expressive?"
Cynthia stopped and looked at Aiden, asking curiously.
The reason they didn't choose to avoid them was simple—because the spot where Team Yell was doing their promotion happened to be right outside the entrance of their hotel—
"Probably because they're used to it."
Aiden shrugged, continuing to watch them with interest.
"Team Yell is a small group from Spikemuth. Although they look a lot like a villainous organization, they don't actually do anything bad. At most, they just disturb the local peace—"
"As for the 'Marnie' they keep mentioning, she's the younger sister of Piers, the Spikemuth Gym Leader."
"But she's still a rookie, so she shouldn't have qualified for this Masters Tournament, right?"
Aiden had briefly browsed through the participant list for this tournament, so he was also a bit curious about their behavior.
"You're mistaken about that!"
Just as he and Cynthia were whispering to each other, a tall Team Yell member handing out flyers suddenly pointed at Aiden.
"Can't we cheer for Miss Marnie even if we're not participating in the Masters Tournament?"
"Of course not! How could our love be affected by external factors? We must transmit our energy to Miss Marnie every single second!"
"..."
Aiden scratched his head, momentarily unsure how to respond.
Actually, a "villainous organization" as pure as Team Yell could be quite endearing sometimes. After all, their love was pure, and they didn't cause trouble for society. Rumor had it they even occasionally did good deeds under Marnie's guidance?
How was this a villainous organization at all? They were clearly good youngsters who had transcended vulgar tastes and had lofty aspirations!
And Aiden was also quite honored, because he himself had once been a member of Team Yell—
Damn, Marnie is seriously adorable!
He didn't know if his thoughts were written on his face again.
"Comrade, you seem quite interested in our Team Yell. Want to join us?"
That tall Team Yell member suddenly leaned in and proactively handed him a poster with Marnie's cute portrait printed on the front.
(A/N: Marnie is cute, huh)
Aiden: ???
Under other circumstances, he might have gladly accepted this gift from his good brother.
But—
Do you have any sense of situational awareness!
There's someone right next to me!
Feeling the grip on his wrist gradually tightening, Aiden was about to tearfully decline the invitation to join Team Yell.
And right at that moment—
"What are you all doing again!"
The hotel doors suddenly swung open, and an angry girl's shout came from within, immediately causing the surrounding Team Yell members to panic.
The girl was wearing a black studded jacket over a pink dress, with her hair sticking up like Morpek's ears.
She was exactly the cute girl printed on the flyers Team Yell was distributing.
"M-M-M-M-Marnie!!!"
"Reporting, Miss Marnie! We were promoting your beauty to excellent Trainers from other regions—?"
"Idiots, stop causing trouble for other people!"
It was the first time Aiden clearly saw a girl with veins popping on her forehead. Although she sounded imposing, combined with her still-youthful face and voice, it actually added a bit of gap moe?
"If you really have nothing better to do, go be volunteers at Wyndon Stadium!"
"Stop doing things that only make me embarrassed!"
Clearly, Marnie was already well-versed in how to command her rabid fanbase. She quickly calmed down, and her tone softened a bit.
And the Team Yell members, as a result, became even more passionate. A chorus of "Oohoo" sounds rose and fell.
"An angry Miss Marnie—so cute!"
"Understood! I will carry out all of Miss Marnie's orders!"
"Team Yell, full charge!"
"Oooooh—!"
Soon, under the lead of some unknown minor boss, the dozen-plus Team Yell members marched grandly toward Wyndon Stadium.
Marnie finally let out a sigh of relief, looking up at Aiden and Cynthia, who were silently watching her.
Her cheeks visibly became a bit rosier.
"Sorry, the Team Yell people caused you trouble."
"It's fine, I completely understand."
Aiden smiled and waved at her.
"Overly passionate fans can sometimes be troublesome, but I suppose it's also their way of showing love."
The little Team Yell interlude just now reminded him of the Team Star members back in Paldea. If only his own fans could be as united and supportive as Team Yell—
Both villainous organizations, but Team Star should look at these guys!
The kids in Paldea, after being taught a lesson by him, now all had rebellious bones behind their heads, and were more stubborn than anyone. When he returned to Paldea next year, he'd probably face another round of "raids" from Team Star members.
"I think those Team Yell kids weren't wrong."
"They said you're the world's number one cutest princess, and they were right~"
Although it was her first time meeting Marnie, Cynthia quite naturally started joking with her. A casual remark instantly made Marnie's face even redder, with steam seemingly rising from her head.
"C-C-Champion Cynthia, please don't joke like that!"
"And Teacher Azure too—"
"I've always been your loyal fan!"
Marnie tried to maintain her cool expression while shyly waving her hands repeatedly, her speech already becoming incoherent.
But this only made her seem even cuter.
Cynthia and Aiden exchanged a smile and didn't continue teasing the young girl.
After chatting with Marnie for a bit, they entered the hotel elevator to prepare for tomorrow's journey.
As for Marnie?
After glancing around with her peripheral vision and confirming that no one was in the lobby for the moment, the blushing Marnie finally let out a sigh of relief.
'To think both Teacher Azure and Champion Cynthia called me cute—'
Thinking about how she had just been praised by both her idols at the same time, the corners of Marnie's mouth showed a tendency to rise.
After noticing her expression through the reflective mirror on the wall, Marnie proactively raised two fingers, pulling the corners of her mouth upward, manually making herself smile.
Next time, she definitely had to smile properly!
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