If Yong's guess was right, he already had his answer.
Seeing him sink into thought, Steven asked curiously,
"What, you know the Temple Family?"
Uh... how should I put this?
Yong shook his head.
"No, the name just sounds pretty noble..."
Steven nodded.
"That's right. They really are a family with noble blood and a long history, and they hold a special position in the Sinnoh Region!"
"I see!"
Pretending not to know, Yong put on a look of sudden understanding, then asked,
"So who's the girl you mentioned?"
"Ah... she's the most gifted rookie Trainer I've ever seen..."
Glancing at Yong beside him, Steven said pointedly,
"Far ahead of you as you are now..."
"Ahem!"
Steven's words stung Yong a little-not because he was being called weak, but because he dreaded being compared to her!
Steven chuckled.
"Her name is Cynthia!"
I knew it!
"She's the next-generation heir to the Temple Family! She only began her journey last year, but she won the Sinnoh League's Lily of the Valley Conference in her very first year! That certainly left plenty of people eating their words!"
As though recalling something amusing, Steven gave a scornful chuckle before continuing,
"Cynthia's talent is terrifying... she only turned thirteen this year, but she performs nothing like a rookie!"
"Although she's had the Temple Family's training, there's no denying that her own talent is absolutely top-tier! She might... become the youngest member of the Elite Four..."
As Steven marveled at Cynthia's strength, Yong inwardly pursed his lips.
The Elite Four?
If you knew that in two years, when Cynthia turned fifteen, she'd skip straight past the Elite Four, challenge Sinnoh's Champion, and win in a landslide, becoming the youngest Champion in Pokémon League history...
Your jaw would probably hit the floor, wouldn't it?
"But what