The Pokémon journey begins in Galar

After watching Hop's match to the very end, the only thing Marie was truly certain of was how much leeway Gym Leaders gave to rookie Trainers.

Wooloo and Eldegoss had knocked each other out in a one-for-one exchange Wooloo had been taken down, while Eldegoss collapsed due to exhaustion after tanking two tackles.

What came next made the favoritism even more obvious: a Dynamax showdown between Raboot and Eldegoss's evolved form. Given that Eldegoss was naturally lightweight, even in Dynamax form its agility should have made it difficult to hit directly. Especially with Tailwind in play, dodging a Dynamax Fire-type move with that slow of a release speed should have been no issue at all.

And yet, both sides just stood there, trading blows without even trying to dodge. After one round of Protects and counter-reads, the match ended.

"..."

Marie didn't exactly mind. After all, Gym Leaders wouldn't humiliate a rookie in front of a crowd. Offering a little leeway was only natural, and nobody would fault them for it.

Everyone had to start somewhere, after all.

That said, Milo's gentle nature likely played a part too. It was one of the reasons he was chosen as the first Gym Leader on the circuit.

"Are you staying for the next match?"

Marie tugged on Yuri's sleeve. Yuri had been fiddling with her phone, but the next challenger was said to be pretty strong, and Marie figured it'd be a good fight to watch.

"Hmm... I think I'll pass. Let's go say hi to Hop instead. Now that he's cleared the challenge, I need to step up my game!"

Yuri still didn't have a clear goal, but with Hop and Marie by her side, she felt motivated to push forward. The Gym Challenge was just as much about growth as it was about competition.

"Let's go then, before the next match starts."

"Yeah yeah! Let's go!"

They made their way out against the flow of the crowd, and soon found Hop standing just outside the stadium.

"Congrats on getting your first badge!"

Yuri waved energetically. No matter what, earning that first badge was a big milestone for Hop.

"Congrats on clearing the challenge," Marie added.

"Hehe, thanks! You guys watched, right? I think I saw you in the stands!"

Hop scratched his head and chuckled. It was his first time standing on such a big stage, and the excitement hadn't worn off yet.

"Are you heading straight for Route 5?"

"Nope. Isn't it almost time for your challenge and Marie's? I figured I'd stick around and watch before heading out to Hulbury."

"Oh? I thought you'd rush ahead like last time."

Yuri's voice carried a trace of complaint. She hadn't forgotten how Hop had left her alone in the Wild Area. If not for running into Marie, she didn't even want to think about how rough that journey would have been.

"Hahaha, it's just a few days. I might as well look around and see if I can find any new Pokémon to join my team."

Hop didn't seem to notice her tone at all. He just laughed and kept going.

"Well, I'll see you later then!"

He didn't stay long, quickly taking off again probably eager to explore and catch something new.

"Tch, I kinda wanna punch that guy."

Yuri pouted and muttered, before grabbing Marie's hand and heading toward Route 4.

"By the way, have you found that Eevee you've been obsessing over?"

"Yeah, I found it, but I haven't caught it yet. The little guy's pretty strong. Today, I'm taking Flapple for a rematch!"

"Going for revenge already? But if even your Sobble couldn't handle it, I'm not sure Flapple stands a chance. She just evolved today and hasn't even done any adjustment training."

Yuri paused, clearly unsure of herself.

"W-well... I'll let her try out her new moves first. Then I'll go find that little brat!"

"If it makes you happy."

Flapple's adjustment period should be short anyway. Her evolution hadn't been forced by external items; it was a natural, biological transformation like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. That kind of change came with an innate instinct to quickly adapt to newfound power.

It would be a different story for Pokémon that needed items to evolve. Without proper strength and training, they'd spend a long time learning how to wield their new forms.

Take Eevee, for instance.

All eight of Eevee's evolutions weren't the result of smooth, organic growth, but transformations triggered by the environment or external influence. If Eevee evolved before gaining enough experience and control over its energy, even if there were no harmful side effects, it would still struggle significantly for quite some time.

Now that they were properly on Route 4, Marie released her Pokémon. Training over the past few days had paid off Balu's progress was soaring. According to him, he'd never trained this efficiently before, especially with moves that weren't even his type specialty.

Which made Marie begin to question whether I-chan's abnormal growth speed had more to do with her than with the Pokémon themselves.

But the sample size was too small to be sure. It could also be that Balu's recent diet of nutritional supplements was finally kicking in.

Marie had also begun considering some items to help I-chan and Balu's training. Stuff like the Flame Orb or Dread Plate tools imbued with elemental energy might be worth investing in.

As for Si-chan, Marie wished she could find a powerful Psychic-type Trainer to help her develop. But Galar wasn't exactly known for its psychics. If she really wanted a proper teacher, she'd have to look outside the region.

In fact, the more she thought about it, the more Marie realized: if she truly wanted to get stronger fast, she couldn't afford to stay cooped up in Galar forever. She'd need to explore other regions and discover more ways to grow.

They continued walking down Route 4, with Si-chan clinging playfully to I-chan's side. She used Teleport to take I-chan and the two baby Deino on joyrides, zipping around the path and giggling all the while.

In just over a week, Si-chan had made incredible progress. What used to be a struggle was now second nature carrying someone else with her through Teleport wasn't even difficult anymore.

And she didn't look the least bit tired either, despite having Teleported several times in a row. Her psychic energy seemed stable and abundant.

Marie had never seen other Psychic-types using Teleport firsthand, nor did she have the proper tools to measure their psychic output, so she couldn't say whether Si-chan's talent was exceptional.

But from Marie's perspective, it was impressive enough. The more fluid Si-chan's technique became, the better their chances in battle.

Eventually, she could be darting around the battlefield like a ghost, dropping opponents with Hypnosis before following up with Dream Eater. What could be more satisfying than that?