The apprentice nearby was also waving the flag with an astonished look on his face, announcing the result of the match.
Volcarona had won.
[Your Pokémon 'Volcarona' has won the battle, gained '' experience points, and leveled up to Level 54!]
(TN: I don't why the author made the gym battles 1v1 only.)
Hearing the voice in his ear, Nathan couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.
"Not bad. It leveled up right away. Only seven more levels until it reaches Champion level."
Although seven levels didn't sound like much, it would still take a fair amount of time. The higher the level, the more experience was needed, and the slower the progress.
Shaking his head, Nathan took out a Pokéball and said, "Come back, Volcarona."
The flames on the battlefield had already dissipated, and Volcarona was recalled into its Pokéball.
Opposite him, Felix also recalled his Venusaur and handed it to an apprentice for healing. He then walked over to Nathan, took out a green badge, and handed it to him with a smile.
"Trainer Nathan, this is your prize—the Flower Badge."
The badge wasn't carved with a Pokémon symbol, but rather a Pokéball with a blooming flower on it.
Very beautiful.
Taking the badge in hand, a smile appeared again on Nathan's face.
The fourth badge was now his. He was halfway there—just four more to go.
…
"Oh right, Gym Leader Felix, I wanted to ask—do you know where I can find a lot of Grass-type Pokémon?" Nathan asked.
"Grass-types?" Felix rubbed his chin and asked, "Are you thinking of capturing one?"
"Yeah, that's the plan." Nathan nodded without hiding anything.
"I'll have to think about that for a second." Felix pondered briefly and then said, "There are actually quite a few places in the country with a lot of Grass-types—it mainly depends on which ones you're targeting."
"Bulbasaur or Snivy, probably."
Nathan answered without hesitation.
"I see..."
Felix smiled and said, "If it's those two you're after, I recommend going to Spring City."
"Spring City?" Hearing that, Nathan's eyes revealed a thoughtful look. Then he patted his forehead and said, "You mean that experimental city?"
Spring City was a newly established city. It was called an experimental city because it was part of a trial—to see whether it was possible to build cities in certain places.
With the advent of the Pokémon era, Mystic Realms had appeared, and many had merged with the real world. Some of these merges drastically altered the natural environment.
The area where Spring City now stood was once a vast plain, but after the fusion of two C-Rank Mystic Realms and one B-Rank Mystic Realm with the real world, the area had become almost entirely covered by forest. The terrain there was vast and complicated, making it easy to get lost.
Spring City had been built right in the center of that area.
It had only been around for a year.
If nothing went wrong in the next two years, it would be opened to the public, and more new cities would follow.
Notably, because of its surrounding environment, Spring City had a huge population of Grass-type Pokémon.
Nathan frowned slightly. "But isn't Spring City currently not open to the public?"
Due to its experimental nature, very few people were allowed in during the trial period.
"There's a Pokémon ranch over there now, with a large number of Pokémon living in it. Because of this ranch, they need a lot of food, including meat-based Pokémon food," Felix explained. "And coincidentally, there's a company in River City that partnered with Spring City's ranch to supply that food. That company has access to Spring City."
"I happen to know the company chairman's kid. He's heading to Spring City soon—I can talk to him and get you in."
Felix grinned. "Actually, with your status in the Poplar City League Branch, you could easily request the League to help you get access too. And that kid I mentioned—you've met him before."
"I have?"
"Yeah."
"What's his name?"
"Derek Mace!"
Outside the Gym.
After setting a meeting for the day after tomorrow with the Gym Leader, Nathan recalled the guy he saw at the trial tournament who had a Feraligatr—surprised by the coincidence.
"Two days later, huh?"
Nathan furrowed his brow slightly, then shook his head and hailed a taxi.
He'd meet this Derek Mace guy two days later, agree on a time, and head to Spring City. Though the trip wouldn't be right away—probably in about a month.
He could wait.
Besides, Spring City was indeed a great place to catch Grass-types.
If lucky, he might even find starters from all major regions as mentioned in the original story. With such a large Grass-type population, finding one with decent potential would be a lot easier.
At the very least, in terms of finding one that suited him, Spring City was worth the trip.
…
Back at the hotel.
After a bit of rest, Nathan pulled out his phone and gave the Poplar City Pokémon League Vice President a call to ask about Spring City.
After all, as a newly established experimental city, many details weren't public—only the officials had access to the full picture.
Once the call connected and Nathan asked his question, the Vice President sounded surprised.
"You want to go to Spring City?"
"Yeah. From your tone—what's wrong with it?" Nathan asked curiously.
"Oh, there's definitely something unusual," the Vice President said in a low voice. "Spring City may look like it's made for humans, but really, it's more like a city built for Grass-type Pokémon."
"Huh?" Nathan's eyes widened in shock. "A city for Pokémon?"
"Yep," the Vice President replied seriously. "You already know how vast the wild Pokémon population is on this planet. There are many places humans can't even enter, and countless powerful Pokémon dwell in the wild—some we've never even seen. There are even mythical Pokémon capable of catastrophic destruction."
"So, the Pokémon League wants to build a city that fosters coexistence between humans and Pokémon—to improve our relationship with wild Pokémon."
"Spring City is that experiment. If it works, the League will start investing in building Pokémon cities in remote areas—not to control wild Pokémon, but to maintain constant contact with them."
Nathan fell silent.
After a long pause, he finally said, "That's... ambitious."
"It sure is," the Vice President agreed. "If it succeeds, humans could build Pokémon cities in the far north, on remote islands, even in forbidden mountain ranges and deserts. We'd be able to hear the 'voices' of wild Pokémon anytime."
"But success won't come easy."
He sighed. "Not all Pokémon are as gentle as Grass-types. Spring City might work out, but other cities? Their chances are slim."
Nathan nodded in agreement. "True. Especially for Dark-types and Ghost-types... tch. No way that would work."
"Anyway, if you want to go to Spring City, that's fine," the Vice President said. "That place really does have a lot of Grass-types. And honestly? It's beautiful. The League brought in top designers to merge natural Grass-type habitats with human architecture. I'll notify the people over there to help you out once you arrive."
Hearing that, Nathan's eyes lit up with even more anticipation.
Even setting aside everything else, just seeing how human and Pokémon elements were integrated into city design was worth the trip.
"Sounds good. Also, I'm planning to apply for the Elite Trainer evaluation," Nathan said.
There was a long pause on the other end.
Then the Vice President finally responded. "You already have three Pokémon at Gym Leader level?"
"Yeah."
"Damn... that's fast."
At the League's Poplar City branch, Shane was shocked. After a moment, he said, "If that's the case, then yeah, you should apply ASAP. Some of the exploration missions are far, and the national tournament isn't that far off."
"I know," Nathan nodded. That's exactly why he was in a hurry. "That's why I'm asking—anything I should know about the Elite Trainer assessment?"
"Not really. They mainly check if you have the required-level Pokémon, then assign you exploration missions."
"Right. I remember you can apply at any Pokémon Center, correct?"
"Yep."
"Alright, that's all. I'll hang up now."
"Sure. Reach out if you need anything."
After hanging up, Nathan rubbed his chin in thought.
A moment later, he got up and headed to the Pokémon Center.
The sooner he passed the test, the sooner he could take on missions.
Grabbing three Pokéballs, he hailed a taxi to the River City Pokémon Center. The place was bustling with trainers.
After scanning the window signs, he spotted a door labeled "Elite Trainer" and his eyes lit up.
He walked over and knocked.
"Come in."
A voice called out.
Nathan pushed open the door and walked into what looked like a small office. A muscular man sat behind a desk and was momentarily surprised by how young Nathan looked.
But he quickly smiled and said, "Hello, here to apply for the Elite Trainer assessment?"
"Yes." Nathan nodded, took a seat, and asked, "Anything I need to fill out?"
"Yeah," the man replied, pulling out a form. "You'll need to write down your personal info, the Pokémon you have that meet the requirement, and a contact number. In about three days, we'll notify you for the actual test to confirm your Pokémon's level."
"If you pass, you'll be assigned three exploration missions. Complete those, and you'll become an Elite Trainer."
Nathan nodded, glanced at the form, picked up a pen, and filled it out quickly.
It was unexpectedly easy.
After finishing up, he left the center and waited for the notification.
He also bought two new phones—one for Gengar and one for Mimikyu, since they always played with his.
And a stack of horror books.
Oh, and a solar-powered gaming console.
Once everything was settled, he returned to the hotel, opened the two new phones, and started downloading horror movies for Gengar.
Once all was done, Nathan finally had time to lie on the bed and mess around on his phone.
He ordered takeout, released all his Pokémon, and started checking messages.
There were a bunch—from his parents, friends...
But the one who sent the most was Lily.
Good grief—over a hundred messages.
And they were all the same meme.
[Child, don't be mad at your mother!]
The exact same sticker, over a hundred times.
Nathan couldn't help twitching his mouth.
Nathan: [???]
Lily: [Lil' Nathan~ What are you doing~? Do you miss your mommy~?]
Nathan: [I'm chatting with my daughter (smile).]
....
TN: Spring City is sometimes referred to as an Experimental City so I'm warning you guys in advanced.