Scenic Shop and the Start of the Challenge

He rode his bicycle all the way into the scenic area, wobbling his way to a storefront. After parking the bike, he took out his key and opened the rolling shutter, revealing a shop that had long been prepared.

The U-shaped glass display cases held all kinds of accessories, while the walls had been painted sea blue. The décor was standardized; every connected storefront followed the same style, since this was, after all, a seaside scenic area.

Various photographs hung on the walls—some of Blake, some of Blake's parents, and even some of much older people. They were all photos taken with others, people who had once received help from their family. The shop sold all kinds of charms.

Yes, charms: Round Charms, Shiny Charms, Stability Charms, Exp. Charms, as well as inherited Safety Charms, Substitute Charms, Health Charms, and more. Blake made all of them by hand. Aside from their skill at banishing ghosts, his family had also passed down the craft of making charms. Blake's little shop sold precisely those charms.

Of course, as a family that banished ghosts and commanded Ghost-type Pokémon, they could also make Cleanse Tags and Spell Tags. However, those were not easy to produce. Unless they were specially commissioned, they would not be displayed in the shop.

"It's already been renovated."

Lulina looked at the little shop before her. It was clean, tidy, and very much to her liking.

"Actually, the renovation was finished half a month ago. Restocking just took a little longer. Give me a hand and put these in the display case on the other side."

As Blake spoke, he took out one box after another, each containing pearl necklaces. After all, many people did not understand the effects of charms, so they needed something to draw in tourists. Pearl necklaces were a good choice. In Hulbury, such pearls were nothing rare, unless they were exceptionally large or extremely uncommon special pearls nurtured by Shellder.

"Sure. Oh, right, when my dad came back last time, he got a Shellder pearl. It was super pretty."

Looking at the pearl necklaces in the boxes, Lulina suddenly remembered the pearl at home.

"Shellder pearls aren't easy to get. They live in the deep sea, and they're extremely sensitive to malice. If you bear ill will toward one, you simply can't get a pearl from it. Your uncle was really lucky."

Blake sighed in admiration.

"Yeah, that's what my dad said too. Too bad that Shellder didn't want to be caught, so it didn't come back with him. Speaking of which, isn't Gastly about to evolve?"

Lulina spoke as she watched Gastly use Psychic to help out. Though Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar could all learn Psychic, few Gastly actually mastered the move, since their psychic power was usually insufficient.

"To be honest, Gastly could have evolved a long time ago. He just wanted to consolidate his strength a little more. He's only this cautious when it comes to power."

Blake smiled and stroked Gastly's icy body.

"Gehehe! ヽ(￣▽￣)ﾉ"

Gastly laughed happily. Although his trainer was not a professional Trainer, Gastly himself loved battling. He had even specifically trained under his senior—Blake's father's Gengar. Blake would definitely inherit the family tradition in the future, and he had to become Blake's strongest support!

"Chewtle is about to evolve too, but my teacher said there's no need to rush it. Staying in the first stage a little longer is all benefit and no harm for Pokémon."

After arranging the last box, Lulina picked up the Chewtle beside her.

"That's right. Not only can Pokémon in their first stage potentially learn moves that their evolved forms can't, it's also greatly beneficial to their development."

After arriving in this world, Blake had initially believed that his knowledge would let him crush everyone around him. Later, however, he realized how horribly wrong he had been. The real world was not a game or an anime, and Pokémon were not numbers or images. They were living beings.

For example, in games and anime, Pokémon could battle and train as soon as they were born. But how could that be possible in real life? Newborns were all very fragile. If a newly born Pokémon trained excessively, the effects on its body would be almost irreversible. At best, it might develop slowly or remain undersized. In more serious cases, it could even suffer disabilities or illnesses, leaving it unable to evolve. That was not even mentioning psychological issues.

Take his own Gastly. According to the Pokédex, a typical Gastly, including the spread of its black mist, measured around 1.3 meters tall. His Gastly, however, stood between 1.5 and 1.6 meters, already comparable to a Haunter. That was not only because his Gastly was the product of generations of careful breeding by the family, but also because of the way Blake had raised him since childhood.

Not to mention the proportions of different foods. A Pokémon's personality could also affect its tastes, and learning to balance meals alone had been enough to give Blake a headache. Fortunately, Pokémon could eat ordinary human food without much issue, but Pokéblocks were also essential. Not everyone had Professor Oak and Brock to help care for their Pokémon.

"Don't worry, I know."

Lulina smiled, picked up the remote control, and turned on the television in the shop. Blake walked over to his workbench and began working on a new Exp. Charm.

After working for a while and threading the finished charm onto a pendant, Blake looked up and discovered that Lulina was completely absorbed in the movie playing on the television, Puss in Boots Meowth.

On the television, a bipedal Meowth wearing boots held a rapier as it faced off against a Lycanroc's Midnight Form. An Espurr behind it cheered it on. Just as the battle reached its climax, the screen suddenly switched.

"Ahhh! What are they doing?! It was getting to the good part!"

The sudden interruption made Lulina cry out in dissatisfaction.

"Shh—look. It seems like something important."

Blake interrupted Lulina's wailing. Though he understood how frustrating it was to be interrupted like that, the figure now appearing on the television showed that this was definitely no minor matter.

On the television, inside an obviously brand-new stadium, a man around thirty dressed in a silver-gray suit, with side-parted hair and a flamboyant little mustache, waved to the audience.

"Ladies and gentlemen! I am Rose, chairman of the Galar Pokémon League! To all the guests present and friends watching at home, thank you for your patience!"

As Rose shouted, the screen cut to the audience at the venue.

"The long-awaited Gym Challenge is about to begin! Only outstanding Trainers who earn the recognition of all eight Gym Leaders and gather all eight Gym Badges will be qualified to participate in the Champion Challenge and challenge our champion!"

Rose raised a hand behind him as he spoke. A man in a suit, who looked ninety percent identical to Rose, smiled at the camera. However, anyone could tell just how forced that smile was.

"So who will that person be?"

The screen switched back to Rose. He pointed forward, and from a distant passageway, boys and girls in matching uniforms walked out one after another. They were the participants in this year's Gym Challenge.

"Let's wait and see! Oh, right! I almost forgot to mention it! Starting this year, we will officially introduce Dynamax battles! All newly built battlefields will be equipped with Dynamax Amplifiers and Spectator Protection Devices! If you have any questions, you can check the official website! But for now, let's cheer for all the challengers!"

After Rose finished speaking, he was the first to applaud. The next moment, applause rang throughout the entire venue, offering blessings to the young boys and girls present.

"This year's Gym Challenge? It looks pretty grand."

Lulina had lost her earlier anger. Looking at the extraordinary opening ceremony, she spoke in surprise.

"Yes, there are quite a few promising talents this year. I heard both the chairman and the champion have issued letters of introduction, and they're all youngsters who set out on their journeys at the age of ten." At that moment, a gentle female voice came from behind them, and Lulina hurriedly turned around.

"Teacher!"