"Gardevoir, catch!"
Axel sighed at his unlucky fate and decisively threw out two large Moon Stones.
"Garde~", Gardevoir smiled sweetly and winked at Axel, feeling a bit joyful in her heart.
'Master treats me so well.'
'Time to reward him.'
Her eyes gently closed, bringing a memory about a skill to the surface of her mind.
When Gardevoir opened her eyes again, the two Moon Stones were already flying to her side.
Points of starlight shattered, and the Moon Stones gradually turned pink, fully merging into Gardevoir's body.
Her level began to rise again.
35…36…39....
When the glow faded, Gardevoir's level had reached forty.
Now, the hair on her body became more vivid and agile, each strand seeming like condensed energy, constantly emitting a faint glow.
The fairy energy condensed around her automatically transformed into butterfly shapes, dancing around her and making her look like a banished immortal.
Besides that, a crucial skill also appeared on Gardevoir.
Substitute.
This skill's effect was very special, allowing a Pokémon to use part of its stamina to create another version of itself.
And Axel remembered clearly, the Substitute skill in the real world was not just for blocking damage.
In a special episode, Red's Pikachu had used Substitute multiple times to engage in long-distance combat.
This time at Mt. Moon, Gardevoir's strength could be said to have doubled.
As the Moon Stones on the field were all used up, beams of light burst skyward from the Clefairies.
They were completing the most important part of the ritual, their mass evolution.
The full moon in the sky seemed like a spotlight, casting all its moonlight down onto the altar.
Everything else seemed to darken in an instant.
Except where Gardevoir stood.
A slender beam of light shone down on Gardevoir, as if thanking this Pokémon who saved the ritual.
Axel was thoroughly enjoying the scene when a mystical voice echoed in his mind.
["Master… Dragonair… opportunity…"]
Axel didn't hesitate and immediately released Dragonair's Poké Ball.
The little one let out a "Meee~" sound and instinctively turned around wanting a hug from Axel, but then felt an irresistible force pulling her beside Gardevoir.
The next moment, a scorching pink energy erupted, landing right on Dragonair's forehead.
A mark resembling a Fairy Tera-type emblem appeared on Dragonair's brow.
Axel blinked hard.
'Gardevoir isn't turning Dragonair into a Fairy-type, is she?'
'That will reduce her type weaknesses, but she won't be as strong…'
As a Dragon-type Pokémon, her strongest trait was her robust physique.
Even with Dragon, Fairy, and Ice all being super effective against her, Dragon was still the strongest type.
Axel quickly opened Dragonair's panel and finally let out a sigh of relief.
Dragonair's typing hadn't changed, only a golden trait had been added.
[Fairy's Favor (Gold): A token of gratitude from a Fairy. A Pokémon carrying this trait will not be countered by Fairy-type moves.]
Seeing this trait, Axel couldn't help but blink.
The origin of the Clefairies of Mt. Moon had always been a mystery, some said they were extraterrestrial beings, others said they had migrated from somewhere else.
Judging by this trait that resembled a blessing from the Dragon God, the Clefairies really did seem to have some connection to the Fairy deity.
'Are they under Xerneas' command?'
Of course, Axel was just speculating, Xerneas didn't even live in Kanto.
———
The Clefairy ritual ended, and it was already deep into the night.
Axel left the matter of handing things over to Team Rocket to Daisy, ignored the increasingly suspicious Little Blue, and took Ho-Oh toward Cerulean City.
On the way through Cerulean Cave, Axel even encountered a massive Gyarados.
However, Axel didn't pay it much mind.
These kinds of Pokémon were quite violent, unless raised from the Magikarp stage, they were hard to bond with.
As for forcibly catching it… that didn't align with Axel's style.
If he really wanted one, he could go find a Magikarp with decent potential and raise it later.
Just before entering the city, Axel put away the little phoenix and walked the streets of Cerulean City with Gardevoir and Pheromosa.
The scenery here was far prettier than Pewter City. Even though it was late at night, there were still many tourists.
Clear rivers ran on both sides of the street, and the lights from the shops along the way lit up the entire Cerulean City like a city that never slept.
Occasionally, people could even be seen swimming in the river.
It was clear how much the Cerulean Sisters had contributed to this city.
There were plenty of Gym Leaders who could fight, but ones who could dance? Not so many.
Axel didn't have time to admire the scenery and went straight to the Cerulean Poké Mart.
After so many days of battles, he was low on supplies.
He was completely out of Fire-type resources, nearly out of Psychic-type resources, but still had a fair amount of Dragon and Fairy-type ones.
He definitely needed to restock.
As for money…
Daisy and Little Blue had both said that once Officer Jenny took control of the three Rocket executives, she would grant Axel a large bounty.
Even if that money wasn't as precious as Moon Stones, it was still enough for Axel to use for a while.
There was also the issue of the Toxic Orb's dwindling usefulness. Axel was thinking of selling it.
If fate permitted, he might try catching a Poison-type Pokémon.
Even with a legendary Pokémon on his team, traditional skills shouldn't be forgotten.
The golden trait [Poison of Growth] in his backpack was practically gathering dust.
"Hello, welcome!"
Seeing Gardevoir, who was clearly very well trained, and the unfamiliar Pheromosa beside Axel, the two reception ladies bowed warmly.
"Hello."
Axel politely replied with a thank-you and was just about to take the glass door handle when a loud crash of water echoed behind him.
Immediately after, the two receptionists let out terrified screams.
In their pupils, a massive blue Gyarados' silhouette appeared.
Axel quickly turned around and saw a Starmie carrying a badly injured beautiful girl, fleeing in panic.
The girl was wearing something like a swimsuit on her upper body, and very short denim shorts on the bottom.
It was clear that her leg had been scraped by a Gyarados scale.
Behind them, the massive Gyarados was rampaging wildly.
In just a short moment, Axel had already seen two small bridges get smashed to pieces.
If he wasn't mistaken, that should be the same Gyarados they saw when passing Cerulean Cave.
"Gardevoir, use Heal Pulse on Starmie and its trainer."
"Pheromosa, use Stomp + Icy Wind on Gyarados!"
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