Aspertia City, in the southwestern Unova Region, was a small city facing the sea on one side and surrounded by forests on the other three.
Since they had spent the night aboard the ship and arrived in Aspertia City in the morning, they had no need to rest and could head straight for the Aspertia Gym after disembarking.
As they left the docks, Makomo gave a big stretch. "Traveling by ship is nice, but having solid ground beneath your feet still feels much more reassuring!"
"It really does." Dawn nodded in agreement. "I prefer the mountain breezes on land to the damp, salty sea wind, too."
Turning to Xia You, Makomo asked curiously, "Did you often travel by ship like this before?"
Xia You chuckled. "No. Given the choice, I prefer walking. I only take transportation or ride Pokémon when I have no other choice."
"Ride Pokémon!?"
Makomo looked a little surprised, her gaze sweeping over the small Pokémon beside them.
"He certainly doesn't mean riding them." Seeing her misunderstanding, Cheryl waved a hand. "Xia You has a Dragonite and a Charizard. They're usually his partners in battle, but sometimes they serve as mounts, too. I've ridden with him a few times before. Being up in the sky like that feels pretty nice!"
"Oh?" Makomo adjusted her glasses. "Then I'll have to try it myself if I get the chance."
As they talked, they left the docks and followed the broad streets toward the city center.
Their objective went without saying. The Pokémon Contest would not take place until tomorrow, leaving them with just one goal today: challenging the Aspertia Gym!
To their surprise, however, even after searching for quite a while, they could find no information about the Aspertia Gym on the map.
As the women puzzled over this,