Bugsy

Outside Violet Gym.

"I'd seen Evolution before, and I'd even seen it happen in battle, but you're the first Trainer I've ever met who evolved two Pokémon at once." Feng and Falkner stood together, smiling at the enormous purple serpent and the yellow wasp holding a lance beside Heiduo.

Heiduo neither confirmed nor denied it. Pokémon evolving was perfectly normal, especially after gaining enough experience to meet the requirements for Evolution while fighting opponents so far above their level.

After saying goodbye to the two of them, Heiduo returned to the Pokémon Center and waited in the lobby for Elekid and the others to finish their treatment.

Gible was on duty today. The little guy was sulking because it had not gotten a chance to battle. Clinging to Heiduo's pant leg, it glared at him with both eyes.

Gible had originally ranked second in Energy Level, but now the two behind it had caught up, leaving it in last place instead.

As a Dragon-type Pokémon, Gible could not accept that.

It had to be the strongest!

"What are you in such a rush for? Embarrassing!" Heiduo pinched Gible's cheeks. Its Rough Skin Ability kept him from using much force, and his gloves had been rather expensive.

Gible struggled, reaching out with its tiny claws to pinch Heiduo's face while making clicking noises.

"Oh? So you're not convinced after a few words? What can you do with claws that short?" Heiduo mocked Gible's little eight-inch arms. Enraged, Gible broke free from his hand, scrambled up his pant leg onto his shoulder, and bit down on his hair with its huge mouth.

Ow, damn!

Heiduo winced in pain. The little guy had no sense of restraint when it bit; he felt like his hair was being yanked out by the roots.

"Let go! You're going to eat all my hair!" Heiduo "pulled" Gible off his head and gave it a thorough scolding.

Gible looked aggrieved. It remained unconvinced, but Heiduo bribed it with Razz Berries and Ganlon Berries.

The former were its favorite fruit, while the latter were its favorite to eat together with Razz Berries.

Razz Berries had no special effects, but Ground-type Pokémon loved them. Their texture was rough, their flesh fine like sand, and they contained very little moisture.

Ganlon Berries could raise a Pokémon's Defense when it was exhausted. They tasted bitter and astringent, but when paired with Razz Berries, the bitterness was softened, making them quite refreshing.

Gible did not have many hobbies. A mixed fruit salad made from those two berries was one of the few things that could make it bend.

Oh, and all kinds of crystal-clear gems. Unlike the bloodstone goose pebbles Elekid liked, Gible particularly loved transparent gems. It would not even spare opaque ones a glance.

But Heiduo could not afford such luxuries. Even the cheapest Evolution Stone cost three thousand, far beyond his reach.

"Your Pokémon have all recovered. Please take them."

Joy pushed over a small cart carrying three Poké Balls and an envelope.

Heiduo put away the Poké Balls, and Joy handed him the envelope.

"This is the reward for successfully completing the Gym Challenge. Keep up the good work!"

Joy smiled sweetly. To be honest, obtaining his first Gym Badge at Heiduo's age was already rather late.

People who had not earned a Gym Badge by this age generally chose other paths instead of becoming Trainers. They might become Coordinators, Breeders, Rangers, or Performers.

"Thank you." Heiduo bowed to Joy. Every Joy was one of the pillars of social stability and deserved respect.

He had received the reward, and his Pokémon had recovered.

With that, Heiduo was about to bid Violet City farewell. His next destination was Goldenrod City.

As Johto's largest metropolis, it was bound to be prosperous.

Besides, before Ruby had gone to Hoenn, he had lived in Goldenrod City. His father had also passed the Gym Leader examination there before eventually being assigned to Petalburg City as its Gym Leader.

Ruby's father was Norman, a character Heiduo had liked very much in Pokémon Adventures. He specialized in Normal-type Pokémon, with Slakoth, Vigoroth, and Slaking as his signature Pokémon.

If Heiduo could learn something from him, that would be even better.

Route 36.

Heiduo strode forward with his back to Violet City. If he turned around now, he could still vaguely make out the spire of Sprout Tower.

As he was leaving, Falkner had ridden over on Noctowl to thank him. Though Heiduo had no idea what Falkner was thanking him for, the man had come to see him off, so Heiduo could not reject his goodwill.

Crystal and her mother had come with him, carrying box after box of red bean tea cakes. Elekid, inside its Poké Ball, made restless noises at the sight.

Their excessive enthusiasm left Heiduo somewhat embarrassed. Back on Earth, he had rarely met people like them. The "light" and "warmth" they gave off made him feel deeply ashamed.

Even Shuangye, who had been watching nearby, received a box.

It was the first time Heiduo had ever enjoyed such treatment.

Now, he was walking along Route 36, close to the Ruins of Alph.

Heiduo planned to take a look around the ruins, a crystallization of ancient human wisdom that was said to have some connection to Sinnoh's creation myths.

He was also curious about the Unown that were unique to the place.

These Pokémon, which only knew Hidden Power, could produce incredible power when gathered in large numbers, even warping time and space.

In the film Tower of Time and Space, they filled the two worlds inhabited by Dialga and Palkia.

But when Heiduo approached the Ruins of Alph, he found numerous off-road vehicles and a large group of archaeologists wearing field uniforms.

"A tourist?"

A middle-aged man spotted Heiduo looking on from afar and called out loudly.

"Yes! Excuse me, are the Ruins of Alph closed to visitors right now?" Heiduo asked.

It would have been such a disappointment if they were not open.

He had heard that Alph's spring water was famous throughout the world for its sweetness.

"Of course not. The Ruins of Alph belong to the whole world. As long as you don't interfere with our work, you can visit however you like." The middle-aged man smiled, then turned back to his work.

Being allowed to visit was naturally the best outcome.

Heiduo climbed down the high slope. Due to changes in the terrain, the Ruins of Alph were not situated atop a hill like they were in the games, but sunken underground instead.

There was surely nothing much to see in the outer ruins. The important things would be in the stone chambers deep within.

In the games, bringing Arceus to the Ruins of Alph would trigger a special event.

Upon entering the ruins, the sight before him gave Heiduo the impression of a mine. Earthen gray stone walls lined both sides, their upper sections painted with patterns shaped like Unown.

Half an hour later.

Heiduo sighed as he crawled out of the ruins.

As expected, the areas open to visitors had already been fully explored. The unopened areas were tightly sealed off, or had not been excavated at all.

These excavated ruins were not even as large as a single district of Violet City. There were probably many more stone chambers buried beneath the rock layers.

Suddenly, a conversation in the distance caught Heiduo's attention.

"Mr. Bugsy! Are you heading back today?"

A young man in an explorer's hat smiled at the "young woman" sitting in an off-road vehicle.

Bugsy!

Heiduo looked at the "young woman" and immediately recalled that among Johto's eight Gym Leaders, there was one whose gender was hard to distinguish.

When Gold first met Bugsy, he had been drawn in by Bugsy's beautiful face and mistaken him for a woman.

"Yes! There are simply too many Gym Challenge appointments, so I have to go hand out Badges." Bugsy smiled faintly. Beside him sat a giant green insect holding two scythes.

Scyther...

As one of Bugsy's signature Pokémon, this one that had not evolved into Scizor possessed an incredibly terrifying Fury Cutter. During a Gym Leader exhibition match, it had once driven Sabrina's Mr. Mime into a desperate situation.

Of course, Sabrina had also deliberately held back and set traps.

Still, Scyther's extraordinary rapid Fury Cutter had left a deep impression on Heiduo.

The two were chatting, while Heiduo hesitated over whether to go say hello. Bugsy was a Gym Leader he intended to challenge, and making a good impression beforehand might let him learn something.

Just as he wavered, a figure walked up beside him.

It was Bugsy. The Bug-type expert stretched out his neck and lightly sniffed Heiduo, as if he had smelled something.

"Ah, hello! I'm Bugsy, the Gym Leader of Azalea Gym." Bugsy cheerfully extended a hand to Heiduo with a smile.

"...Hello. I'm a Pokémon Trainer. My name is Heiduo." Heiduo lightly shook Bugsy's hand.

Contrary to what he had imagined, Bugsy's hand was somewhat rough. Perhaps because he often held a bug-catching net, Bugsy had thick calluses on the web between his thumb and forefinger.

When Bugsy heard Heiduo call himself a Pokémon Trainer, he smiled. "You haven't challenged Azalea Gym yet, have you? Do you want to earn a Gym Badge? We can have a Pokémon battle right here. If you win, I can award it to you immediately!"

Uh...

There was such a good deal? Heiduo was dumbfounded. He had only earned the Zephyr Badge today, yet the Hive Badge was already about to fall into his hands?

"...No, thank you. I don't think I'm ready yet." Heiduo ultimately chose to refuse. You had to eat one bite at a time; there was no need to rush.

To his surprise, disappointment immediately appeared on Bugsy's face.

"Ah... I wanted to see your Beedrill."

Beedrill!

Heiduo was startled. How did Bugsy know he had a Beedrill?

He could not help lowering his head to look at the bewildered Gible. Gible was clearly the one he had out today.

"I smelled it with my nose."

As if he could see Heiduo's confusion, Bugsy explained with a smile.

"I've done a lot of research on Bug-type Pokémon! Everyone calls me the 'living encyclopedia of Bug Pokémon'! I know Beedrill's scent better than anyone!"

That was right! There had been introductions related to Bugsy in Pokémon Adventures too!

P.S. Oh my God, I almost forgot to update. Sorry. Also, to all the readers who voted and bookmarked this, love you all, mwah~ (*＾3＾)