A high-level tournament

The two wandered around the mall, and Cynthia bought an outfit Kaim had chosen.

Now Shirona sat alone on a bench, partly because she was a little tired after walking around for a while. Kaim was buying drinks from a nearby coffee chain.

Today was fun, too.

Today, I got to enjoy ordinary pleasures unlike anything at the League or during my research. Cynthia genuinely enjoyed battling and research. That was why I had been able to keep going and accomplish so much.

But Cynthia was human. Sometimes things did not go well, and no matter how much she enjoyed herself, she would eventually reach her physical and mental limits. Honestly, after the Sinnoh League, I still had plenty of research-related work to do as Champion, so I was exhausted. More importantly, I hardly had any time to spend with Kaim, whom I knew so well. Being able to spend time with him after coming to the Unova Region-even if he sometimes teased me-and enjoy being a Pokémon Trainer was incredibly refreshing.

They had done some research, but that in itself was a valuable experience, so Cynthia treasured it. Experience had also taught them the importance of seeing the real thing firsthand.

Kaim seemed to be having fun, too. Thanks to Caitlin and Iris, he sometimes scolded her, but he never said he disliked it. Perhaps it was a hassle, like having two younger sisters. From some of his answers during Shikimi's interview, it was clear he was grateful to all three of them.

I had not decided what to do tomorrow yet, but I was sure it would be another wonderful experience. Cynthia firmly believed that.

"Hey, gorgeous!"

However, those words doused Cynthia's happiness.

She looked toward the speaker. There was a bald man and another man with a solid build. They looked utterly awful, and there was something sleazy about them.

In other words, they were trying to pick her up. Cynthia was beautiful, so it was hardly surprising.

"Are you alone, gorgeous? Want to have some fun with us?"

"No."

Cynthia rejected the man's invitation.

But men who gave up that easily would never have gone out of their way to approach her.

"Don't be like that. You're alone, right? Come hang out."

"I'm with someone. I'm not alone."

"Then why are you sitting here by yourself? Well, whatever. Let's bring that kid along, too. I'll take you somewhere nice."

Shirona had gone to considerable lengths to enjoy herself, and having cold water thrown on her mood felt deeply unpleasant.

I wanted to enjoy my time with Kaim to the fullest, not waste it here. She decided to settle this using the quickest method.

"If you have a Poké Ball, you're a Pokémon Trainer, aren't you?"

"Well, you're pretty strong, huh? I've got a few Badges myself. Does that make me good enough for you?"

"If you can beat me in a battle, I'll go with you."

If her opponents were Trainers, she could simply overwhelm them in battle. Shirona figured they would leave immediately once they lost, so she challenged them.

"Nah, don't bother. You can't beat us, gorgeous. If you want to go, let's get moving."

But the man refused to battle.

"We're strong, you know. You don't want your Pokémon getting hurt, do you?"

"Oh, right. Besides, you already know how a battle against the two of us would end, don't you? Looks like you've agreed to come, so let's go."

It was an outrageous argument. Even against both of them at once, Shirona could defeat them instantly. But she could not prove that unless they battled first. Even Cynthia lacked the physical strength to handle two men.

"Come on, let's go. It's my treat."

Just as the man reached for Cynthia's hand, another hand seized his, stopping him from touching her.

That hand belonged to the person Cynthia treasured most.

"Do you need something from my companion?"

His voice was colder than usual.

Clear anger flashed in his eyes.

Along with a bloodthirsty killing intent.

"What, you brought a guy along?"

"Poor little buddy. This lovely lady's going to hang out with us now. Could you let go of my hand? I'd rather not have to make you suffer."

"No."

"Is that so? Then this might hurt a little."

The man tried to wrench his hand free, but he could not escape Kaim's grip. Instead, Kaim tightened his hold on the man's wrist, which began making ominous creaking sounds.

"Y-you... I..."

"What's with that pained look? Are you okay? Your hand's shaking."

As Kaim squeezed his arm, the man's hand clenched, and it began to go numb.

"Let go."

"I could, but who knows what you'd do once I let go?"

"Don't get cocky, you little punk!"

The other man raised his fist and swung at Kaim, but Kaim blocked it with his hand.

"No."

"Come on!"

"So? What's with that pained look?"

"You bastard!"

The man grabbed the Poké Ball hanging at his waist and tried to throw it, but Kaim stopped him.

"Now, hold on. A battle here would make a mess. I don't mind battling at all, but that would waste time. I'd rather not get held up. If you want to fight, let's take it outside."

"...Fine."

"There's two of us. If you apologize now, we'll forgive you."

"You can't win unless you gang up on someone. Your skills are truly disappointing. Don't make your Pokémon suffer for it."

"Huh?!"

"Don't look down on us!"

Kaim regarded the furious men with an even colder gaze.

"You're the ones looking down on me. Thanks for wasting my precious time."

With that, Kaim took Cynthia's hand and headed outside. The men's voices were beginning to attract attention, so they left before a commotion could break out.

The men obediently followed Kaim outside. Once they reached the plaza, he turned to face them.

"All right. I don't want to waste any more time."

"You're dead, you little brat."

"Either way, this is a waste of time. Come on, both of you at once."

"Oh?! You're looking down on us!"

"Don't come crying to us afterward!"

The men sent out Scolipede and Gigalith.

Kaim took out two balls as well. Then he turned toward Shirona behind him and spoke.

"I'll finish this right away."

Kaim threw the balls, releasing Blaziken and Lucario.

"Clean this up quickly."

At Kaim's words, Blaziken and Lucario cried out.

A few minutes later, the men's Pokémon lay defeated before them, beaten by Blaziken and Lucario.

"No way..."

"We've got six Badges, and we lost like this..."

Kaim stood before the men, lowered his gaze toward them, and spoke.

"Get lost."

Those words terrified the men. Faced with an icy gaze that seemed ready to kill them, they fled.

Left behind, Kaim let out a heavy sigh.

What a waste of my time.

He muttered to himself, then turned to Cynthia.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes. Thank you."

"Did anything happen?"

"Yes."

"Okay..."

In fact, the men had not even touched Shirona. One would have if Kaim had not stopped him, but he had prevented that.

"This isn't good. I left you alone."

"It's fine. You helped me, didn't you?"

"Even so. I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize. It wasn't your fault."

Shirona took Kaim's hand as she said this.

"I wish I could have chased them off sooner."

"Those guys only half understand anything. Sometimes, being direct doesn't get you anywhere."

"You sound experienced."

"Well."

Kaim shrugged.

He did not seem inclined to answer, but in any case, Cynthia had indeed been rescued. Holding his hand, she decided there was no need to press him now.

"That was cool."

"Well, thanks."

Kaim shook his head lightly and answered in his usual tone. Whenever he was embarrassed or hiding something, he would scratch his neck. It was hard to imagine he was keeping a secret in this situation, so he was probably embarrassed.

"You don't need to be embarrassed."

"Let's go. I need to take care of the Pokémon."

A crowd was beginning to gather, so Cynthia took Kaim's hand and led him back inside. He followed obediently.

"Hehe. You've got some skill."

Neither of them noticed the beautiful, brown-skinned, blue-eyed woman watching them from behind amid the crowd.

Evening came.

It was the height of summer, and the days were still long. Although the sun was setting, the sky remained bright-so bright that there was no need for streetlights yet.

As their meeting time drew nearer, Cynthia headed toward the rendezvous point with her bags, and her phone vibrated. When she looked at the screen, she saw the word "Iris."

"What's wrong?"

"It's a call from Alice. She might be running a little late."

Since it was nearly time to meet, Cynthia guessed that a call at this hour meant they would be delayed.

But that expectation proved wrong.

"Hello, Alice?"

"Ah! Cynthia! Can you talk right now?"

"Yes, I'm fine. What happened?"

"Well, I've got a favor to ask!"

"A favor?"

From the way the conversation was going, there did not seem to be any delay or trouble. It was a little odd to ask for a favor at this hour, but this was not a group that would make a special request just to spend time with Cynthia. She would not know until she asked.

"I don't know what it is yet, but if there's anything I can do, tell me."

"Really?!"

"Yes. Why don't you tell me?"

"Well, well! I want you to be a model!"

"...?"

Cynthia's eyes went blank.

They had asked her to come to the Nimbasa Gym, so the two went where they had been told. When she entered and spoke to the receptionist, they were immediately led to the staff room.

In the staff room were not only Iris, Caitlin, and Shimi, but also a beautiful, fair-skinned woman with long black hair and headphones, and a brown-skinned woman with blue eyes.

"Ah! Cynthia! Kaim!"

Iris noticed the two and hurried over.

"Thank you for coming! Sorry for asking so suddenly."

"I've heard a little about it, but I'd like a more detailed explanation."

"I'll explain."

Shinren, the beautiful black-haired Gym Leader of the Nimbasa Gym, stood beside Iris.

"First, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Shinren, the Gym Leader of the Nimbasa Gym. It's an honor to meet the Champion of the Sinnoh Region."

"Thank you for your kind words. I'm sure you already know, but I'm Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion. Beside me is my assistant, Kaim."

"I sincerely apologize for the sudden request. We're planning an exhibition match and a show."

"I've already heard about that from Alice."

"I see. To get to the point, I'd like you to appear in this fashion show."

"Why me?"

Honestly, no one doubted that Cynthia had the looks for a fashion show. But she did not understand why they were asking so suddenly.

"Originally, the exhibition match was going to be between me and Nessa, a Gym Leader from the Galar Region."

"Tell me why you want to take part."

"Hehehe. Actually, I heard this Gym was making a Champion outfit for me, and when I saw it, it was so cute that I wanted to wear it right away! That's fine, but I wasn't sure whether I could ask her to set aside time just for me."

"In short, she wants to wear her new clothes."

"Yes!"

Kaim sighed and looked at Cynthia. Cynthia herself did not seem particularly bothered; she simply watched Alice with a smile.

"So, time itself isn't the issue, but it depends on what Miss Cynthia wants."

"All right."

"Huh?! You're answering right away?!"

"Yes. I know this won't be easy. That's what fires me up."

"Are you sure you're okay with this?"

"Yes. An experience this valuable isn't something you can just arrange, is it? I wouldn't say I'm being forced, but if you're offering to let me do it, then please do."

"Thank you."

After taking Chamomile's outstretched hand and giving it a firm shake, everyone headed off to the meeting.

"Hey, neighbor, are you all right?"

While Shinren, Cynthia, and Alice checked their actual movements onstage, someone called out to Kaim, who was sitting in a chair beside the stage, working on a computer.

I looked over and saw a beautiful, brown-skinned woman who had introduced herself earlier as Nessa.

"What can I do for you?"

"I was a little worried about you."

"That guy really likes things."

An ordinary man would surely have danced for joy. Unfortunately, Kaim was a sarcastic man devoted entirely to Cynthia, so he showed no reaction at all. Of course, Nessa hadn't meant it that way either, so she wasn't particularly hurt.

"You were fighting in the mall earlier, weren't you?"

While strolling through the mall on her break, Nessa had just witnessed Kaim's fight with the thugs.

"Oh, you saw that?"

"I just happened to be there."

"No, I'm just a personal trainer."

"A gymnastics coach? Can you really move like that?"

In Nessa's eyes, Kaim's Pokémon had performed exceptionally well. An ordinary personal trainer couldn't pull off moves like that. Of course, a Gym Leader could reach that level, but Gym trainers rarely did. Honestly, I felt it was a waste for him to remain a personal trainer. I knew that because Nessa was in charge of a Gym. Even if Kaim and Nessa battled now, regardless of the outcome, it would be quite a good match.

"Well."

"Then how would you feel about becoming the next Gym Leader?"

"I don't know. My main job is archaeology, so I don't know how long I'll stay at the Gym."

"Oh, so being a Trainer isn't your real job?"

"I'm not very good at battling."

"...Right."

Nessa seemed about to say something, but she didn't press the battle issue any further.

"By the way, Miss Nessa, you said you're a Gym Leader in the Galar Region. Did you know Miss Shinren before this?"

After the conversation broke off, Kaim asked Nessa without taking his eyes off the monitor.

"Just Nessa is fine. You're not that old, and there's no need to be so formal. I'll call you Kaim, too."

"Understood. Then I won't hold back."

"So that's your connection to Chamomile."

"Ah."

"We met at the PWT."

"I see. Then that explains how you met in another region."

The PWT drew world-famous Trainers. It had a division whose minimum entry requirement was being a Gym trainer or higher, and from there, the tournament separated participants into tiers. Renowned across the world, it was an exceptionally high-level event that even Gym Leaders and members of the Elite Four from other regions came to enter.