The woman, Sonia, said this and held out her hand to Kaim. Kaim took it and returned her handshake.
"I'm Kaim. I'm a supporter of Cynthia, the Sinnoh Region Champion."
"Miss Cynthia's supporter! Then your next battle is against Leon!"
"Yes, that's right."
Kaim answered Sonia's cheerful words matter-of-factly. Sonia wasn't offended and happily continued.
"These are Miss Cynthia's Pokémon, aren't they? Are you getting them ready now?"
She suddenly asked whether she should call him, but Kaim answered calmly, as though he didn't mind.
"Adjustment and recovery."
"Wow, you really act like a supporter."
"Don't you?"
Sonia spoke quite frankly, and Kaim, who figured she was about his age, questioned her in a slightly frank tone himself.
"Yes."
"The route?"
"Yes. Actually, Leon has a terrible sense of direction! He gets lost even going somewhere nearby and never makes it there. I thought he'd never reach the Indigo Plateau! That's why I'm his supporter. I brought him here."
"No sense of direction, huh?"
Kaim felt an unexpected flicker of familiarity, something he could never have imagined from merely watching the previous match. Cynthia, too, had a side to her that her usual cool demeanor never suggested. Just as Cynthia couldn't tidy up, Leon had that little weakness of his own. Kaim relaxed a little at last. These Champions were human, too, and their flaws made them seem somewhat more approachable.
"So after the match, I took him to the Pokémon Center, but he left as soon as he got his Pokémon back. I've been looking for him, but I can't find him."
"That's rough."
"But I love watching Leon enjoy battling. And as his former rival, I'm happy to see him doing so well."
"Rival?"
Hearing something rather different from what he expected of an attendant, Kaim couldn't help