May won the Guiluba Pokémon Contest and earned her second Ribbon Medal in the Kanto Region.
For Xia You, whether he had traveled with Sabrina, Erika, or Misty before, his own adventure had always taken center stage, with everyone else revolving around him. Now that May was with him, they would inevitably be attending Pokémon Contests regularly, which seemed like something of a waste of time for his own journey.
In truth, though, Xia You was quite happy to participate as a spectator like this. It gave him different insights, helped improve his mindset, and let him learn many different things from these Coordinators.
He might not have had anything to do, but it was both a break and a chance to relax.
A balance of work and rest.
As for Ogata, whom May had defeated, he returned to his honest, unassuming self after the competition and left the Contest Hall, his retreating figure looking a little lonely.
Although he had failed to win and seemingly failed to fulfill his dream, he had at least gained his family's approval, which was a considerable reward in itself.
Perhaps they would run into him at other contests because of this!
But that was a matter for the future. For now, with the victory secured, it was time for Xia You and May to continue their journey.
Since they had bought their tickets the day before, they did not return to the Pokémon Center after leaving the Contest Hall. Instead, they waited at the pier for a while, then boarded a small passenger ship and left the Kanto Continent.
Just as they had planned, their destination was Metal Island, not far from Cinnabar Island, where the Battle Palace stood!
However, they could not reach it in just a few short hours. They would