Gary found a small garden in Artazon and pulled a Poké Ball from his pocket.
"Come on out."
[Lv. 37 Pawniard ♂ / Champion Tier]
"Nyar?"
Pawniard thought Gary had let him out for a battle, but when he looked around and saw no other Pokémon nearby, he turned back to Gary, clearly confused about why he'd been called out.
"It's nothing. I'm just raising your level."
With that, Gary placed a hand on Pawniard's head and began feeding him Intermediate Rare Candy.
Using thirteen pieces at once, he pushed Pawniard's level all the way to 50, bringing him into Elite tier.
Even though Pawniard's level had caught up, his actual strength still lagged behind other Elite-tier Pokémon in their final evolved forms. That gap existed simply because Pawniard hadn't evolved yet.
Pikachu was a perfect example of this kind of gap. Later on, though, Pikachu would get an opportunity to make up for its weaker base stats.
Gary guessed that opportunity would come during the Unova region.
While traveling through Unova, Ash would run into Zekrom near Opelucid City. Zekrom's lightning was unlike anything else, and by accident, some of that power ended up absorbed into Pikachu's body.
After that, Pikachu's body started drawing in Zekrom's electricity on its own, which left it unable to properly use its own electric attacks. Its condition stayed unstable for a long stretch, and that was actually the reason Pikachu ended up losing to Trip's Snivy.
In fact, Pikachu spent most of its time traveling through Unova in that weakened, half-broken condition. It didn't fully recover until they reached the Kalos region.
"...!!" Pawniard let out a startled cry.
He could hardly believe what had just happened. Gary had raised his level once before, but that time it had only been by three levels; nothing especially dramatic.
This time, though, his level had jumped by thirteen all at once. That was something else entirely. The further a Pokémon progressed, the more a single level meant in terms of strength, and jumps like this were nothing short of astonishing. Pawniard didn't even know how to react.
"Get used to this new strength for now. I'll let you evolve once the chance comes," Gary said.
"Nyar!"
Pawniard nodded eagerly. He'd been hoping for his evolution for a long time, and it seemed like he'd finally found the right Trainer to make that happen.
"We're heading to Levincia next. Get back in."
Gary recalled Pawniard and released Togekiss instead.
"Togekiss, let's go. Levincia's to the northeast." Gary said, hopping onto Togekiss's back.
"Toge..."
But Togekiss responded half-heartedly, showing no interest in flying at all. It just hovered in place.
"What's wrong?" Gary asked.
"Toge! Togekiss!"
Togekiss complained that it was bored. It didn't want to keep being used as nothing but transportation. It wanted to go out and have some fun.
Gary really didn't dare let Togekiss run loose. Whenever this bird said it wanted to "have fun," what it actually meant was causing trouble somewhere. In most other places, Gary might have let it go stretch its wings a little.
But not in Artazon. The streets here were lined with stone sculptures made by famous artists. If Togekiss broke even one of them, Gary would be paying for it out of pocket.
The worst part was that these sculptures were just carved stone, but once an artist got their hands on them, the value skyrocketed. A completely worthless rock could suddenly be worth millions.
"I promise, once we get to the next city, I'll let you play as much as you want. A whole day, just for fun," Gary said.
"Toge?"
Really?
"Of course it's real. When have I ever lied to you? But you have to promise me something too. You can play around, cause a little mischief if you want, but don't take it too far, and don't let anyone figure out it was you."
"Toge!"
Deal!
Togekiss nodded eagerly. Its reputation for pranks was well known, and it had already caused plenty of trouble back in the Sinnoh region.
"Alright, let's go," Gary said.
"Toge."
Togekiss flew steadily toward the northeast, and within an hour, they arrived at Levincia, a coastal city known for its advanced technology.
Sitting right by the sea, Levincia was easily the most developed city in the entire Paldea region.
"Wow, this place is really something."
"Toge!"
Both Gary and Togekiss were impressed by just how developed Levincia was.
Gary had traveled to plenty of tech-focused cities across many regions, and Levincia held its own without any trouble compared to the rest.
Togekiss landed near the Pokémon Center in Levincia.
"I'll let you out again later. While I'm doing my Gym battle, feel free to look around, but don't wander too far. Understood?" Gary reminded it.
"Toge."
Togekiss bobbed its head like a rattle. No worries there—this queen had learned her lesson and wouldn't be doing anything reckless.
Even with that promise, Gary still felt uneasy. This bird had quite the track record, and even though it had calmed down somewhat since Gary caught it, old habits died hard.
Gary still remembered clearly the time Togekiss had launched a Team Rocket rocket straight into the sky, nearly letting Ash and the others get shot down along with it.
Gary brought Togekiss along toward Levincia Gym.
They arrived at the entrance.
Gary studied the glass-walled building in front of him, structured almost like a giant wine glass. It was hard to believe this was actually a Gym; it looked far more like a corporate office.
"Where's the actual battlefield?"
Gary looked around but couldn't spot anything resembling an arena nearby.
"Guess I'll just go ask inside."
He had no choice but to head into the building first.
The moment they stepped through the doors, Togekiss slipped away from Gary's side and shot straight up into the sky on its own.
"Toge!"
Togekiss gazed down at the city below, a mischievous grin spreading across its face.
Finally. Freedom.
Levincia would be this queen's very first conquest. The target...
Togekiss glanced left, then right, before locking onto the tallest building in the city and zooming straight toward it.
Gary, still walking into the Gym, hadn't noticed Togekiss slip away at all.
Inside, Gary found the lobby packed with young men and women, more women than men, all of them strikingly good-looking. Something about their appearance felt oddly familiar though; they all had that same polished, almost too-perfect look, like internet influencers back in his previous life. Beautiful, sure, but in a way that looked suspiciously like cosmetic surgery.
Gary walked up to the front counter. Before he could even open his mouth, the young woman behind it widened her eyes and blurted out, "Wow, handsome! You've totally got what it takes to be a streamer. Not only are you good-looking, but you've got serious charisma too."
Gary: (⊙o⊙)!
...What? What is happening right now?
"Um... I'm not here to be a streamer. I'm here to challenge the Gym," Gary explained.