"Oh, right, right— you should already know about the Steel type that's about to be officially announced, right?"
Still feeling extremely embarrassed, Jasmine hastily and somewhat awkwardly changed the subject.
"Yes. It's a truly astonishing discovery," Silas smoothly followed along with the topic.
He wasn't bold enough to tease Jasmine.
"By the time you travel to Olivine City, our Olivine Gym may already be very different from how it used to be."
Jasmine secretly let out a sigh of relief and smiled as she spoke.
"Are you planning to clearly develop Olivine Gym toward Steel-type specialization?"
Silas asked while continuing his dinner.
At this point in time, Olivine Gym—unlike most official Gyms did not yet have a clearly defined single-type specialization, instead developing multiple types at once.
Or rather than multiple types, it was more accurate to say it focused on several specific Pokémon families.
For example: the Magnemite line, the Onix line, the Pineco line, Skarmory, and the Scyther line, among others.
The common trait among these Pokémon was that their final evolutions all possessed the newly discovered Steel type.
Although the concept of the Steel type had only recently been proposed, their innate resistances did not lie.
Through long-term battling and breeding, Olivine Gym had discovered that these Pokémon differed noticeably from others.
That was why they were selected as the Gym's primary development focus.
Of course, this also meant that Olivine Gym's specialization was not as clearly defined as other single-type Gyms.
This inevitably brought up the historical development of Gyms themselves.
Originally, Gyms were private dojo-like facilities established by retired veteran Trainers to teach "Trainer techniques" to newcomers.
However, as human–Pokémon interaction increased and society progressed, more and more people chose to become Trainers.
As Gym numbers exploded, some unscrupulous Gyms appeared purely to scam money.
Thus, the Pokémon League introduced a certification system, giving rise to official Gyms.
Originally, Gyms were established based on the number of trainee Trainers in a given area.
However, due to economic decline and local development issues, some Gyms struggled to attract enough students.
This led the League to recognize single-Trainer Gyms and unofficial Gyms, as well as enforcing the rule that each city could only host one official Gym.
Otherwise, regional development would become difficult to sustain.
Trainers were important but the League never wanted everyone to become a Trainer.
Since each Gym Leader had their own area of expertise, Trainers who trained at only one Gym often developed obvious strengths and weaknesses.
This led to the Badge system and the concept of type specialization.
As of now, among the officially evaluated eight Gyms in each region, Olivine Gym was the only one that still lacked a clearly defined type specialization.
This was not particularly beneficial for the Gym's long-term development.
Student recruitment was a two-way choice—if people weren't interested in these Pokémon lines, they might simply choose another Gym.
And the consequences of having no new blood were obvious.
The discovery and announcement of the Steel type was the perfect opportunity for Olivine Gym.
It might even raise its ranking within the Johto region by one or two places, though it already ranked quite highly.
At the very least, it would greatly improve Olivine City's ability to retain local Trainers.
In the past, because Olivine Gym's signature Pokémon were relatively rare compared to other specialized Gyms, it had struggled in this regard.
As for why Silas understood this so clearly—it was because he also planned to open a Gym someday.
Of course, that would have to wait until he became a full Elite Four–level Trainer.
Even with his confidence, Silas didn't believe this was a goal he could achieve anytime soon.
"Exactly! So, how about it—would you like to consider joining the ranks of Steel-type Trainers?"
Jasmine's eyes lit up as she spoke enthusiastically.
"I'm telling you, Steel-type Pokémon are incredibly charming! That metallic sheen on their bodies—doesn't it captivate you?"
"And if the preliminary conclusions hold true, Steel-type Pokémon have extremely strong resistances against Sandstorm and Poison-based techniques, which means—"
Once the topic turned to Pokémon especially the Steel-type Pokémon she had been cultivating, Jasmine immediately became unstoppable.
Even while eating vigorously, her speech remained crystal clear.
She also no longer seemed embarrassed about her appetite.
This was probably the common state of every Trainer in the Pokémon world.
It was precisely this boundless love for Pokémon that allowed them to devote themselves completely.
As they talked, the number of empty plates beside them continued to grow.
Perhaps because they were enjoying the conversation and because they had company, both of their appetites were fully unleashed.
"Amazing…"
One of the restaurant staff stared at the pile of plates, utterly shocked.
It was the first time she had ever seen someone capable of matching Gym Leader Jasmine in eating capacity.
As for cleanup?
That was incredibly easy.
After all, Pokémon were a blessing to ordinary people.
"Burp~"
Having eaten their fill, both of them let out an inelegant but satisfied burp at the same time.
Jasmine now looked at Silas with noticeably more warmth, likely due to what could only be described as a shared-meal bond.
"It looks like they're still chatting. I'm planning to tend to my Pokémon, would you like to join me?"
Jasmine glanced toward the distant flashes of electricity and asked Silas.
Silas nodded.
With nothing else pressing, it was a good time to clean and check on his own Pokémon as well.
Under Jasmine's guidance, the two arrived at a wide open field.
"Come out, everyone."
They simultaneously released their Pokémon.
In an instant, cries of varying pitches filled the grassland, so powerful that even the nighttime clouds above seemed to scatter.
Of course, the decisive contribution came from Jasmine's three Pokémon.
"This is Nair, this is Sheer, and this is Anner."
She introduced the three massive Pokémon naturally, their names clearly reflecting her personal style.
Nair was a gray, steel-bodied, snake-like Pokémon with red eyes and a massive spike-like tail.
This was Steelix, evolved from Onix via trading while holding a Metal Coat.
Although Steelix was less than half a meter longer than Onix, its weight was nearly double.
This drastically reduced its speed but greatly enhanced its overall performance, especially its physical defense.
Silas felt that even if all of his Pokémon attacked with full force, they probably wouldn't deal much damage to this Steelix.
This was undoubtedly Jasmine's strongest ace Pokémon.
Its enormous body and overwhelming presence were suffocating when those red eyes locked onto someone.
Yet in front of Jasmine, Steelix behaved like a spoiled baby.
Its massive steel head gently rubbed against her.
Silas silently clicked his tongue.
This was absurd.
Even with Steelix's incredible body control, the scene was eye-twitching.
He had never imagined a vehicle-sized object repeatedly pressing against a human without the human moving an inch.
Jasmine even casually reached out and patted Steelix's head.
Sheer, the second Pokémon, was primarily black with blue markings, a penguin-like Pokémon.
Three crown-like horns extended from its beak, its most distinctive feature.
Its tuxedo-like body exuded elegance.
This was Empoleon, the Emperor Pokémon and the final evolution of Piplup, one of Sinnoh's starter Pokémon.
The arrogance in its small eyes was reminiscent of Serperior.
As for the last Pokémon, Anner, it was the final evolution of the commonly seen Magnemite line in Kanto and Johto—Magnezone, which evolved from Magneton only in a special magnetic field.
Counting the one Silas had previously seen belonging to Lt. Surge in Vermilion City, this was only the second Magnezone he had ever encountered.
All three Pokémon shared one trait.
They all looked massive.
Even though Empoleon and Magnezone were slightly lacking in height, their sheer width more than made up for it.
Standing next to the slender Jasmine, the visual impact alone made Silas unconsciously gape in shock.
"I still have several partners back at home. Next time you come to challenge the Gym, I'll introduce them to you."
As Jasmine spoke, she rolled up her sleeves and prepared to start working.
Silas nodded inwardly.
He knew very well that those partners wouldn't be small either.
He turned to look at his own four Pokémon.
Even after the three massive Pokémon had deliberately restrained their pressure, the little ones still looked somewhat stiff.
Fortunately, none of them showed fear
instead, their eyes were filled with excitement.
Especially Blaziken.
Its surging fighting spirit burst forth like flames.
"Tch."
Silas showed no mercy as he dumped sand straight onto it.
The sparks that had just begun to flicker around Blaziken's wrists were instantly extinguished.
"…Down."
Blaziken tilted its head and looked at its Trainer.
"Don't mess around. Bath time."
Silas said irritably.
Seriously, how reckless could it be?
The fight with Machamp last time hadn't made the gap clear enough? At least wait until you're stronger.
Trainer and Pokémon stared each other down, neither willing to back off.
"Haha~"
Jasmine, who was thoroughly cleaning Steelix, burst out laughing at the scene.
"It really is just like Chuck said. Your Blaziken is truly impressive."
Silas scratched his head.
"Yeah… it's just a bit too stubborn sometimes."
If a pseudo–Elite–level Pokémon wanting to fight a pseudo–Champion–level Pokémon wasn't considered stubborn, then he didn't know what was.
An Advance Pokémon challenging a Champion?
It would probably be knocked flat before it could even stand.
Watching Jasmine pull out one enormous rock after another from the gaps between Steelix's body segments, rocks that were small relative to Steelix but absolutely massive for a human, Silas silently felt relieved.
Thank goodness he hadn't gone insane and raised an ultra-large Pokémon himself.
Doing this kind of cleaning even once would leave him exhausted for half a day.
"Gigalith!"
Gigalith's voice rang out beside him.
"Yeah, yeah, I know."
Silas replied helplessly.
But Gigalith's cleaning job wasn't exactly easy either.
Although the stones lodged in its body were tiny compared to Steelix's, the smaller ones were actually harder to remove.
Some couldn't even be washed out with a sand bath and had to be carefully picked out using special tools.
Given Gigalith's size, this was still a massive undertaking.
That was why Silas sometimes shamelessly asked Nurse Joy at the Pokémon Center for help.
For a while, the vast clearing fell silent—
only the contented cries of Pokémon occasionally echoed through the air.
The night grew deeper.
The lights surrounding the clearing illuminated the area brightly.
Silas slapped Ampharos, who was lying comfortably on the ground, with mild annoyance.
"Alright, get up. We're heading back to rest."
This little guy really knew how to time things
returning exactly when Silas had just finished cleaning the other four.
Otherwise, he could've waited until tomorrow and taken a breather.
Silas was convinced Ampharos had done it on purpose.
Amphy had returned a full half hour earlier.
Thinking that, Silas shot Togekiss a suspicious glance.
It had to be this little one that corrupted Ampharos.
He hadn't missed the fact that Togekiss had disappeared for a while earlier.
Floating in the air, Togekiss blinked innocently.
It hadn't done anything at all
definitely hadn't encouraged Ampharos.
Ampharos had simply decided on its own to come back later.
There was just a tiny accident on the way back, that's all.
"If you're heading back, go on ahead. I still have a long way to go here."
For Jasmine, who had only just finished cleaning Steelix, today's work was far from over.
"Then I'll head off first. Thank you very much, Gym Leader Jasmine."
Still worried about Pidgeot's condition, Silas sounded rather eager.
"Make sure you tell me next time you come to challenge the Olivine Gym~"
Jasmine's voice echoed across the open ranch.
On the way back to the Poké Mart, Silas immediately opened the Zero display to check Ampharos's status.
The stat he cared about most had changed
Ampharos's level had risen from Level 49 (Advance) in the afternoon
to Level 50 (Pesudo Elite).
The sight instantly filled him with joy.
This breakthrough had come at least a month earlier than expected.
That meant he could now be considered half a pseudo–Elite–level Trainer.
In fact, he could fully call himself one.
Silas didn't believe for a second that he wouldn't make the semifinals of this year's Johto Silver Conference, the championship was his true goal.
Even if aiming for the title in only his second year did seem a bit fast.
But he was a genius.
"Then… could Pidgeot break through to Elite level too?"
Silas couldn't help indulging in a bit of wishful thinking.
Even though he knew the leap from Advance to pseudo–Elite wasn't the same as from pseudo–Elite to true Elite…
Still, dreams were meant to be dreamed.
.....
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