It would still be another five or six years before Gringey City completely declined. How toxic the lake of sludge would become over those five or six years, and whether it could raise the Muk he envisioned, would depend on fate.
However, once Gringey City had fallen into decline, this old district would become a ghost town. At that point, he would be able to come here and peacefully continue raising and selecting Muk.
Since he had an appointment with Lorelei tomorrow, Tetsuya headed to Celadon City overnight. Fortunately, there was still one last train. Otherwise, he would have had to ride on Golurk again.
By the time he arrived in Celadon City, it was already ten o'clock at night. The moment he got off the train, a pleasant fragrance greeted him. As expected of Celadon City, which was famous for its perfumes. Compared to Gringey City, it was like night and day!
He found a nearby inn and spent the night there.
The next morning, Tetsuya headed toward Celadon Gym. Just as he arrived, Lorelei also happened to appear at the entrance of the Gym.
Seeing Tetsuya approach, Lorelei walked over to greet him and said, "I didn't expect you to be so punctual."
"Not bad. I arrived last night. It looked like you just came out of Celadon Gym…?" Tetsuya asked.
"That's right. I challenged Celadon Gym yesterday, and I've already earned the Rainbow Badge." Lorelei took out the colorful badge and showed it to Tetsuya.
"Congratulations! So where are we going to battle?" Tetsuya asked. If it had not been Lorelei, he would not have cared much about an ordinary battle. There were still many things he needed to do after arriving in Kanto.
Going to Viridian City to find Giovanni was naturally the highest priority!
Since Tetsuya would be passing through Saffron City along the way, he definitely intended to visit Sabrina. Between Kanto and Johto, she was the only psychic user he knew of. Naturally, he wanted this expert to evaluate the level of his own psychic abilities.
"There's a mountain range outside Celadon City with plenty of space for our battle. Let's go there tomorrow. I also want to look around for some perfumes while I'm here~ Erica, oh, she's the Leader of Celadon Gym, strongly urged me to stay, so I'm planning to visit her perfume shop," Lorelei said.
"Hm, that works too."
After receiving Tetsuya's agreement, Lorelei left on her own.
The Gym Leader of Celadon City also ran a perfume shop, a family business passed down through generations. As the Leader, Erica was indeed quite strong. However, she devoted too much of her time to indulging in perfumes, inevitably neglecting her training. As a result, her level would decline considerably in the future, forcing her to hand over the position of Gym Leader to her younger sister, Erika[1]¹.
Tetsuya wandered around Celadon City, taking in the local customs and atmosphere of the Kanto Region. The city truly put people at ease, and beautiful women could be seen everywhere, making it especially pleasing to the eye.
He was just about to find a hotel for the night so he could rest well and prepare for tomorrow's battle with Lorelei.
By chance, he passed by Erica's perfume shop. It was naturally the largest perfume shop in all of Celadon City, with the widest selection. However, Tetsuya did not stop. A place like that was indeed inconvenient for a, eh… young man(?) like him to enter.
Tetsuya continued walking forward when he saw a young man, around twenty years old, stroll into the perfume shop without the slightest hesitation. The young man looked strangely familiar…
Although there was no shortage of handsome young men with refined features, the "flirtatious charm" that radiated from his very bones was not something an average person could have.
In particular, the decorative folding fan he carried to shield himself from the sun made him especially recognizable.
Tetsuya had already confirmed who this person was…
Kenny, the former student of Johto Elite Four Aoi Maiko!
Kenny's level was mediocre, ranking near the bottom among the Elite Four students, but he had certainly learned the feminine mannerisms of his mentor.
Why was this person here? Could Aoi Maiko also be nearby?
Tetsuya could not help becoming suspicious. If Aoi Maiko was here, he naturally would not dare act rashly. However, if it was only this fellow, he certainly would not let him off so easily. He intended to settle the score with each person responsible for what had happened back then, even if he was only a student.
At the moment, it was also inconvenient for Tetsuya to enter the shop. His main concern was that Kenny might recognize him. If that led to Aoi Maiko appearing, it would put him at a tremendous disadvantage.
Tetsuya sat down on a bench outside the shop. Since the glass windows were transparent, he could clearly see inside. Kenny wandered around, carefully selecting different perfumes, looking quite knowledgeable about them. Naturally, this drew many disapproving glances, but Kenny paid them no attention whatsoever.
Kenny looked thoroughly delighted as he sampled one perfume after another, a sight that Tetsuya found particularly revolting.
After choosing several perfumes, Kenny paid and left. This actually caught Tetsuya by surprise. The fellow had behaved himself without causing the slightest trouble. Thinking about it, it made sense.
At present, both Kenny and Maiko could only keep a low profile. Although Tetsuya was still not certain whether Maiko had already joined Team Rocket, she had undoubtedly entertained the idea long ago and had probably already received an invitation from Team Rocket.
Otherwise, there was no way an Elite Four would simply resign without reason!
After Kenny left Erica's perfume shop, Tetsuya quietly followed behind him. With his psychic abilities, he could track Kenny's movements in advance, making it impossible for Kenny to notice him within the crowd. All he had to do now was wait until they reached a deserted place before making his move.
After passing through the busy district, there were fewer and fewer people around. At this point, it became much easier for Kenny to notice him. However, now that there was no longer a crowd to conceal him, it did not matter even if he was discovered. Tetsuya was confident Kenny could not escape the range of his pursuit.
---◓---
After they left the city and reached a country road, only a few scattered pedestrians remained. Kenny finally realized someone was following him. Even so, as an Elite Four student, he did not think much of ordinary people and continued walking forward with an arrogant swagger.
At the end of the road lay the forest on the northern outskirts of Celadon City. There was no one else around. Kenny suddenly turned around, waved his folding fan, striking an affected pose as he said, "Little shota, why are you following me? Don't tell me you want to sneak into the woods with your aniki~ Fufufu…"
Tetsuya let out a cold laugh and stared at him icily. "Tell me… where is Aoi Maiko?"
The moment he heard the name "Aoi Maiko," Kenny's expression immediately turned serious. He closed the folding fan in his hand and asked, "…Who exactly are you?"
"Tell me where Aoi Maiko is, and I'll spare your life," Tetsuya said coldly. Sparing him was impossible. If this fellow was still in contact with Maiko, letting him go would only be digging his own grave.
"Those eyes… You're… Pryce's student!? No… that's not right. Weren't you dead!?" Kenny's face was filled with terror. "Impossible! How could the Shadow Team have failed!?"
Tetsuya snorted. "Hn. So it really was all of you who harmed me back then. Who else was involved? Kurokawa Ryosuke, Hattori Tōkichi, Aoi Maiko, and you? Were Karen and Aya involved as well?"
By now, Kenny had already confirmed that this was indeed Tetsuya. Although Tetsuya had already been stronger than him five years ago, Kenny believed his own combat power had improved remarkably over those five years, while Tetsuya had merely struggled to survive under the Shadow Team.
There was no way Tetsuya could have become much stronger!
After thinking it through, Kenny was no longer afraid of Tetsuya.
•.
•.
¹. The older one is Eri"c"a, the younger one is Eri"k"a! I know...
[1] The older one is Eri"c"a, the younger one is Eri"k"a! I know…