The group moved forward along the passage, which had obviously been artificially groomed. The ground beneath their feet was flat and solid, completely different from the small path covered in mycelium and tree roots that they had come from.
With the sound of their advancing footsteps, lights would continuously turn on ahead of them.
The inner walls of the passage were inlaid with guide lights emitting a soft white glow, illuminating the road ahead.
"This really is an experimental ground built specifically for research," Brock sighed with emotion. "Miss Erika is truly thoughtful."
They didn't walk for long before the light from the exit ahead gradually expanded.
Walking out of the cave, the afternoon sunlight was slightly blinding. Fresh air surged into their lungs, replacing the damp, slightly sweet scent from inside the cavern.
"I choose you! Sky Eye!"
"Go to the sky and check the road conditions for us~"
Ash released Pidgeotto.
Among the trio, he was currently the only one who could easily check the surrounding situation.
After all, Misty couldn't keep releasing Gyarados just to check the direction and location, right?
On one hand, this didn't fit Gyarados's preferences. On the other hand, it wasn't necessary. There was Pidgeotto who could fly. Why make a Gyarados fly? Gyarados preferred swimming!
As for Brock? With Rock-type and Ground-type Pokémon, he had too few that could fly.
"Bii—!"
Pidgeotto let out a clear cry, flapping its wings to rush into the high sky, its sharp gaze sweeping over the surroundings.
It circled a few times in the air, quickly locked onto a target, swooped down, and landed steadily on Ash's raised arm.
"How is it, Pidgeotto? Did you see the city?" Ash gently stroked the bird's head.
One couldn't ignore Pidgeotto just because it was well-behaved and obedient.
"Bii! Bii-bii!" Pidgeotto first narrowed its eyes to enjoy the stroking for a bit. Then it nodded forcefully, its wing pointing toward the northwest, letting out an affirmative and urgent cry.
"It says it saw it! A very large area of urban buildings; it should be Celadon City, and it's not far!" Ash translated, a look of excitement appearing on his face.
This could be considered an improvement in the tacit understanding between the two parties. Ash could roughly understand the meaning of his Pokémon, even without needing Misdreavus to translate.
Of course, sometimes there were inaccurate situations that caused jokes. But generally speaking, it wasn't far off.
"That's great!" Misty cheered. "Finally, I can take a good hot bath and sleep in a soft bed!"
Although she had slept fairly peacefully last night, being in a bizarre underground mushroom cave still made her feel somewhat psychologically strange.
The key point was that Misty loved cleanliness much more than Ash and Brock. When Ash and Brock felt they could make do, it often made Misty feel it was unbearable.
But there was no helping it; this was wilderness travel. How could hiking be that relaxing? It wasn't like they were driving an RV.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu also raised his small paw to express agreement.
"Mai mai~" Misdreavus floated up curiously, looking in the direction of the city, full of anticipation for the new environment.
Misdreavus hadn't been to a big city yet. Maiden Gorge was just a small town; it could be said to be quite remote. If not for the protection of the Thousand-Year Gastly, the humans there would have found it difficult to live so smoothly.
There is competition between Pokémon and Pokémon. So naturally, there is also competition between Pokémon and humans.
Collisions in living territories are ubiquitous. In the wild, humans have to get used to the ecology of Pokémon. In the city, Pokémon have to get used to human society.
The three didn't delay any longer. They walked quickly in the direction Pidgeotto had indicated.
Sure enough, after passing through a patch of woods, a wide road and rows of modern architectural complexes in the distance came into view.
Celadon City.
This largest commercial metropolis in the Kanto region was already in sight. It was situated in the central part of the Kanto region. It was also one of the largest cities in the region, second in scale only to the super metropolis in the east, Saffron City.
One could enter Celadon City from both the east and west passages; to the east of the city was Route 7, while the west connected to Route 16.
After entering the city, the noisy sounds of people and traffic, and the shop windows filled with a beautiful array of goods formed a sharp contrast with the quiet primitiveness of the forest before.
But the three had no mind to go window shopping at this moment; their first goal was very clear—
"Let's go find the Pokémon Center first!"
Ash took the lead. Relying on the guidance of road signs and his familiarity with the unique red-roofed architecture of the Pokémon Center, he quickly found the destination.
Walking into the bright and tidy Pokémon Center lobby, the familiar smell of disinfectant and Nurse Joy's gentle smile made them feel doubly at ease.
Compared to survival in the wild, life in civilized human society... woo woo woo, sure enough, it was still more comfortable in the city. Especially when seeing Nurse Joy, it was particularly moving.
Nurse Joy's smile warmed the heart.
But there was no helping it; as a Trainer, traveling outside was still the fastest way to improve strength.
"Welcome to the Celadon City Pokémon Center," Nurse Joy greeted with a smile. "Do you need any help?"
"Sorry to trouble you, Nurse Joy. Please help check our Pokémon," Ash, Misty, and Brock said almost in unison, taking the Poké Balls off their waists one after another and placing them on the counter.
Continuous travel, coupled with the thrilling interlude last night, meant their partners indeed needed a comprehensive recovery.
Reality was not a game; especially for a Pokémon Trainer's Pokémon, it was a combat profession. And combat inevitably involved injuries.
These injuries could be large or small; some could self-heal, while others might appear to self-heal on the surface but would leave behind hidden damage. These all required professional personnel to conduct checks and recovery conditioning.
Just like professional combat athletes have specialized medical teams. Misty and Brock usually used their own Gym's medical teams, but being out of town, they obviously didn't have that.
And among shared medical teams, the most trustworthy was the Joy family of the Pokémon Center. More importantly, for League Trainers, all of this was free.
Perhaps the medical care at the Pokémon Center couldn't compare to the configuration of a Gym, but it wouldn't be too far off.
Every Nurse Joy in a big city Pokémon Center was a super medical talent and Elite Trainer who integrated roles such as:
① Sports Rehabilitation Therapist: Responsible for daily body relaxation, sports injury prevention, and post-operative recovery training.
② General Practitioner/Orthopedist: Handling acute injuries, judging the severity of injuries, and formulating basic treatment plans.
③ Physiotherapist: Using acupuncture, massage, physical instruments (such as ultrasound, shock waves), and other means to relieve pain and promote tissue repair.
④ Pharmaceutical Formulator... and so on.
They also had professional medical equipment and specialized Pokémon assistants. Their academic qualifications and abilities were top-notch tough.
After all, their status was benchmarked against Pokémon Professors and Gym Leaders.
Of course, the difficulty of this position was also top-notch. After all, there is a saying—[Advise someone to study medicine, and may heaven strike you down].
"Okay, please rest assured and leave it to Chansey."
Nurse Joy skillfully placed the Poké Balls into a tray. Beside her, Chansey pushed a cart, sending the Poké Balls toward the treatment room in the back.
She generally was responsible for emergency aid and rough screening. After glancing over them once, other doctors would naturally handle them.
After completing the check-in registration, the three sat down in the rest area and finally let out a long sigh of relief.
The fatigue of the journey seemed to be slightly alleviated in this moment. Next was figuring out what to do in Celadon City.
____
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