"What a coincidence. Oh, right, I've heard a few things about Red."
At Kaim's words, Red tilted his head. Despite everything that had been said, he had not spoken a single word, but neither Kaim nor Green particularly minded, and they continued the conversation.
"Where did you go after winning the Kanto League?"
After winning the Guangdong League, Red had appeared in various competitions and claimed victory, but at some point, he had suddenly vanished. Where had he been, and what had he been doing before appearing today? Green might have been the only one who knew, but with Red standing before him, Kaim thought this was a good time to ask.
Hearing Kaim's question, Red took out a town map and pointed to a spot. The place he indicated was a mountain.
"Ah, so the rumors were true."
"The rumor was that Red was training on Mt. Platinum."
"Yeah. I heard that story now and then too, but you really were serious about it."
Mt. Silver was an undeveloped area where Pokémon were terrifyingly high-level, so entry was generally forbidden. Only powerful Pokémon could survive its harsh natural environment, and ordinary Trainers were no match for them. Trainers whose strength equaled or exceeded the Elite Four's should have been able to reach the summit, but in an environment without rules, where creatures killed one another, even the Elite Four could have their feet swept out from under them. The mountain was so terrifying that the Pokémon League had forbidden entry.
And Red had trained in just such a place. By living for so long amid bitter cold and savage Pokémon, he had gained strength unlike anything he had possessed before.
"Haha, that's pretty extraordinary."
"Yeah. I don't think I'd do that either."
He had risked his life to train.