"I'm here to challenge the Battle Castle, and I have Mr. Scott's authorization. Please confirm it," Gary said calmly.
The Caitlin family owned this castle, which was used specifically for battling. They also employed security guards to protect it—not only at the entrance, but bodyguards stationed throughout the front and back gardens as well, all dressed in black suits.
"Understood. Please wait," the guard said.
The guard pulled out a communication device from the inner pocket of his suit and reported, "Sir Darach, a Trainer has arrived to challenge the Battle Castle. He claims to be qualified."
Inside the back garden of the castle.
Darach, who was pouring tea for Caitlin, heard the voice through his earpiece and replied softly, "Understood. Let him in."
Caitlin took a sip from her teacup, savoring the aftertaste, then asked, "Did Scott recommend another Trainer to challenge the Frontier again?"
"Yes, Miss."
Caitlin nodded with satisfaction, then looked at Cynthia sitting across from her. "Cynthia, would you like to watch Darach battle and relax a little?"
"Sure, let's take a look," Cynthia said with a slight nod of agreement.
Cynthia had been dealing with Team Galactic these past few days, but she still had no leads.
Ever since Team Galactic stole the Adamant Orb and the Lustrous Orb, they had completely disappeared. The Sinnoh League had been sending investigators to search for them, but nothing had turned up.
Cynthia had been traveling all over, yet she still couldn't find any trace of Team Galactic—almost as if the organization had vanished entirely.
She had recently come to Sunyshore City to see if there were any leads here. Coincidentally, Caitlin was also attending a business event in the Sinnoh Region, so she had invited Cynthia to stay at her family estate.
The relationship between Caitlin and Cynthia was very close.
How close, exactly? Cynthia could stay in any of the Caitlin family's villas whenever she wanted. The Caitlin family was one of the top real estate companies in the world, with villas in nearly every major city across every region.
If Cynthia traveled elsewhere, as long as it wasn't some remote village or the middle of nowhere, she could always find somewhere to stay.
Outside the castle.
After receiving Darach's confirmation, the security guard led Gary into the castle.
After walking along a forest path, they arrived at the back garden inside the castle. The garden was beautifully maintained, clearly the result of careful and expensive upkeep.
When they reached a resting area in the backyard, Gary spotted two figures from a distance. As he got closer, he recognized them immediately—Caitlin and Cynthia.
These two women were simply too eye-catching to go unnoticed.
"Gary, it's you?" Cynthia said, also surprised to see him.
"Miss Cynthia, long time no see. I didn't expect to run into you here," Gary responded with a greeting.
Caitlin noticed that Gary and Cynthia clearly knew each other and immediately became curious. "Do you two know each other?"
"Yes, I met him back in Celestic Town. Gary helped me deal with Team Galactic," Cynthia explained.
"Oh, that's impressive," Caitlin said.
She hadn't expected Gary to have actually helped Cynthia before, but she figured he couldn't be too weak if he had received a recommendation from Scott in the first place.
"Darach, use your full strength later. I want to see Gary's true strength," Caitlin said.
"Yes, Miss."
Darach nodded. "Actually, there's no need for you to say that. I intended to use my full strength regardless. Mr. Scott specifically called me and told me I must fight seriously against Gary, otherwise I'd lose badly. He's already defeated Mr. Brandon."
"What?! Even Mr. Brandon has lost to him?!" Caitlin exclaimed.
Brandon wasn't an ordinary Trainer. His strength was in no way inferior to any current Elite Four member. He had been invited multiple times by various regional Leagues to serve as an Elite Four member.
But Brandon preferred adventure over such positions, so he had always declined.
"I didn't expect you to have defeated Brandon," Cynthia said, slightly surprised.
Although Agatha was an Elite Four member, she was already quite old. Aside from her Ghost-type Pokémon, the rest of her team's strength had been declining over the years.
Brandon, on the other hand, was in his prime and had Legendary Pokémon. If compared directly, Brandon's overall strength was clearly stronger than Agatha's.
"It was just a Frontier battle, not a full-scale match. It's nothing worth mentioning," Gary said calmly.
Gary didn't particularly like using his past achievements as a talking point. But Scott, worried that the Frontier Brains of Sinnoh might suffer unnecessary losses, had gone ahead and revealed Gary's past victories anyway—just to prevent an embarrassing defeat.
"What are we waiting for? Darach, hurry up and start the battle," Caitlin urged.
"Alright. Shall we hold the match here in the backyard?"
"That works."
And so, the venue for the match was decided to be the backyard.
Gary had no objections to this arrangement.
The Battle Castle also had its own designated battlefield, clearly built for training Pokémon.
Gary and Darach were already standing in their respective command areas at opposite ends of the field.
A maid stood in the referee's position and announced, "The challenger Gary and the castle's steward Darach will now begin their Frontier battle."
"This match will use three Pokémon per side. The battle continues until all three Pokémon on one side have lost the ability to battle."
[Ding! Obtained the Castle Symbol mission. Reward: Advanced Rare Candy ×6, Ability Enhancement Stone ×1, Silver Bottle Cap ×1, Self-selected Permanent Skill Learner ×1!]
Looking at the reward issued by the system, Gary could tell that all three of Darach's Pokémon were likely above Level 65.
"Now, castle steward Darach, please send out your first Pokémon."
Darach, dressed in a gentlemanly suit, nodded slightly. "Then let us decide the outcome."
"Staraptor, take the stage."
Darach threw his Poké Ball.
Flash!
[Lv.65 Staraptor / Elite-tier]
Staraptor again.
Since Gary had already faced Barry earlier that morning, whose opening Pokémon had also been a Staraptor, seeing another one left a slight impression on him.
However, this Staraptor was still very strong. It had the Intimidate Ability and was likely equipped with a move like Endeavor.
Barry's Staraptor hadn't known Endeavor, but Darach's almost certainly did. Gary had to be careful not to get hit by it—otherwise, even a Champion-tier Pokémon could end up defeated in an instant.
"What an impressive presence. This opponent should satisfy you," Gary murmured.
"Go, Tyranitar!"
Gary threw out his Poké Ball.
Flash!
"Tyra!"
Tyranitar, its body covered in dark green armor, made its entrance onto the battlefield.
Cynthia was also taken aback. She had only seen Gary's Garchomp before and hadn't yet witnessed Tyranitar in action.