Chapter 238: The Gate to the Spirit World Reappears!
By the time Sunflower's performance ended, another half an hour had passed.
"No wonder so many people watch. That was really good," Will thought, being carried by Lorelei.
The two little ones made their way against the flow of the crowd, heading back to the prep room.
When they arrived, Sunflower had already changed back into her pencil skirt. Will couldn't help but nod. The bikini was sexy, but the pencil skirt was more alluring.
"Here."
Sunflower tossed a translucent, water-blue stone to Lorelei.
Will reached out and caught it.
He instantly felt the abundant Water-type energy contained within the stone. Just holding it sent a pleasant sensation through his body. Even for a Pokémon that didn't need a Water Stone to evolve, carrying one around all the time would definitely be beneficial.
This gave Will an idea. If a Water-type Pokémon slept in a house made of Water Stones from birth, would its leveling speed be much faster?
...But that was just a passing thought. Only someone from the Devon Corporation family would have the resources to pull that off.
"Auntie! What about that new League policy you mentioned? You promised you'd tell me!"
"Oh my~ You actually remembered~" Sunflower rubbed her forehead, a little exasperated. She had been hoping the kid would forget so she could dodge the question.
"I can tell you, but you must promise not to tell anyone else, okay?" Sunflower said, tapping Lorelei's head.
"Mhm!"
"A little less than six months ago, the Pokémon League held a major meeting. They're planning to revise the League's structure and update the tournament format."
As soon as Sunflower said this, Will already guessed what was coming.
"Oh?!"
"The League is preparing to establish Eight Gyms. In the future, to register for the Pokémon Conference, trainers will need to challenge eight Gyms and collect eight badges. However, the Gym Leaders won't be allowed to use their main Pokémon. They'll have to raise new, moderately strong Pokémon specifically to battle challengers."
After saying this, Sunflower gestured to the three Poké Balls on her hip.
"?! Then won't the tournament be harder in the future?"
"No, it will be easier."
Sunflower smiled and shook her head, continuing to explain. "The League is introducing this system to improve the current tournament environment and give younger trainers more opportunities to rise up."
She didn't get into the complicated details. Lorelei was still a kid and wouldn't understand the pressures of adult life.
Take Sunflower, for example. She had to manage her battle instruction duties for the League and keep the Cerulean Art Museum running. She was swamped every single day. But even so, she still had the spare time to participate in the Conference. It was only a few days, after all.
But for a Battle Department instructor to compete in the Conference... wasn't that just bullying?
In recent years, the Conference had been just like that. By the time they got to the Top 64, there was almost no one under the age of 20. The Top 4 were all over 30.
How were young people supposed to get a chance to shine?
The League had originally created the Conference to encourage everyone to get stronger, not to let the older generation crush the spirit and motivation of the new one.
So, the tournament format was being updated.
Did this mean things got worse for the adults and seniors? Not at all.
The Pokémon Conference would become the stage for kids, teenagers, and young adults.
Meanwhile, the middle-aged and older generations would get their own stage—the Gym Leader Tournament!
Sunflower had already been internally selected as the Cerulean City Gym Leader. But the other seven Gym Leader positions were still open. Those were seats reserved for non-League trainers, and they would be selected through this new Gym Leader Tournament.
Of course, there were requirements to enter. First, you had to be a trainer specializing in a single type. Second, your entire team of six Pokémon had to be at the "Gym Leader level." League officials would check all applicants.
"Eight Gyms! Piplup, maybe we should just go home and come back in a few years?"
Lorelei was trembling with excitement.
Challenging Gyms. Collecting badges.
For young people, especially kids, this sounded incredibly fun!
"Don't get ahead of yourself. This is just a proposal for now. They haven't decided when to officially implement it. There are still a lot of flaws in the policy that everyone is discussing," Sunflower said with a helpless shake of her head, patting Lorelei.
"Exactly," Will thought, sighing. "You should just focus on accumulating experience in this year's Kanto Conference."
He was relieved, though. Once the eight-Gym system was in place, the difficulty of the Conference would drop by at least one tier. At the very least, you wouldn't be seeing Elite Four or Champion-level trainers in the finals. A strong, Gym Leader-level team would be at the top.
Of course, you couldn't rule out the possibility of some bored-to-death trainer wanting to "smurf" and crush rookies in the "baby cup"... like that certain Legendary-spamming guy from Sinnoh. But the probability was low.
At that point, Lorelei's goal of becoming a tournament champion would be much easier to achieve.
"Okay! Then let's head out!" Lorelei nodded, turned, and ran out of the museum.
"? You're not staying for a few days?" Sunflower asked, stunned. She then put her hands on her hips and shook her head, exasperated. Kids these days... so full of energy, unwilling to wait even a second.
"Where to?"
"Saffron City!"
The distance from Cerulean to Saffron was short. There was a direct road and a bus route heading south. They arrived in Saffron City that same day.
Saffron City was the largest and busiest city in all of Kanto, and famous in other regions as well. It was not only Kanto's central business district but also had the region's largest infrastructure.
I remember Silph Co. is here, Will mused. He had been killed by the Silph tribe a thousand years ago in his first life. But so much time had passed. The Silph tribe probably only had a few descendants left, if any. Will had no intention of seeking revenge.
That night...
"Saffron City~ I remember coming here once when I was little."
Walking through the brightly lit city of skyscrapers, Lorelei was practically dizzy with excitement.
Will saw her expression and knew. They were probably going to be in Saffron for a while.
And he was right. They ended up staying for over half a month.
Saffron City had Kanto's biggest amusement park, its biggest arcade, and its biggest Battle Club. Lorelei almost lost her mind with all the fun. Forget her; even Will found himself getting immersed at times, let alone a kid like Lorelei.
But the novelty wore off as quickly as it had come on. After half a month, Lorelei took the initiative to head east with Will.
East of Saffron was Lavender Town.
It was famous for supernatural occurrences and the Pokémon Tower (Pokémon Cemetery).
Legend said that at night, Lavender Town would be enveloped in a mysterious fog, making it seem to flicker in and out of existence.
Ash had once come here specifically to befriend a Haunter in order to defeat the Saffron Gym Leader, Sabrina.
"Piplup, look at that central tower. That's the Pokémon Tower~" Lorelei carried Will as they walked, muttering, "I heard that tower is full of ghosts~"
Will glanced up at her, then turned to look at the tower's entrance.
It was broad daylight. People were constantly going in and out of the tower; hundreds came every day to pay their respects. So even if the tower had a creepy reputation, it didn't look scary at all right now.
"Let's go exploring tonight, okay? I heard there are lots of Ghost-type Pokémon in Lavender Town at night. We haven't really battled many Ghost-types, have we?"
"Fine." Will waved his flipper.
He always let Lorelei have her way with small things like this. It was a big town; even at night, it wouldn't be deserted. It was almost impossible they'd run into any real danger.
Besides, this was different from the Icefall Cave situation. Lorelei wasn't a total rookie anymore, and while his and Lapras's levels weren't maxed, they were strong enough to handle most dangers you'd find in a human city.
That night, Lorelei, as promised, carried Will outside.
"Where to? The Pokémon Tower?" Will looked at the tower in the city center. At night, it definitely looked a lot gloomier. And there was no one going in or out.
Especially... that familiar feeling. Is a ghost watching me again?
Will followed the sensation, turning his head to look at a specific floor of the Pokémon Tower.
There was nothing.
But thanks to his experience in Parfum Palace Town, he knew what had just glanced at him.
It was nothing to be afraid of. Will knew these lingering spirits didn't have the power to harm anyone. In fact, most living beings didn't even know they were there. If Will didn't have Aura Power, he probably wouldn't have sensed them either.
"Of course! Everyone says that if you come to Lavender Town and don't visit the Pokémon Tower at midnight, you haven't really been here!"
"Who is 'everyone'?"
"Heehee." Lorelei giggled, not answering.
Will sighed, not surprised at all.
Just as Lorelei, holding Will, reached the entrance of the Pokémon Tower and was about to step inside...
"Wait!" Will suddenly shouted.
"What's wrong? Piplup, you promised you'd come exploring with me!"
"Just put me down."
Will patted Lorelei's arm, and she put him on the ground.
"?! That stone over there is glowing!" Lorelei gasped, staring at a stone by the tower's entrance.
That was why Will had told her to stop.
He walked all the way to the stone and placed his glowing, Aura-filled flipper on it.
A voice instantly echoed in his mind:
"Will, get away from there! There's a spiritual disturbance! The Gate to the Spirit World might be opening near you!"
~~~
Get early access to 30+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
~~~
Every 5 new reviews = 1 extra chapters
Every 150 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter