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Veilstone City is located in the eastern part of the Sinnoh Region, built on excavated steep rocks, while its northern side faces the ocean.
The entire city is famous for the meteorite in its museum, an item coveted by Team Galactic, the underground organization of the Sinnoh Region.
And today, Ash and his companions, after a day's journey, arrived in Veilstone City from the previously lush green city.
The three are now on the outskirts of the city, preparing to enter Veilstone City via the road.
But as expected, an unexpected incident occurred again.
A massive azure Aura Sphere suddenly appeared out of nowhere, heading straight for Ash's handsome face.
Frightened, Ash instinctively conjured an even larger Aura Sphere and threw it back.
He repelled and detonated the slightly smaller Energy Ball, thus resolving this terrifying scene.
"Who was that! How can someone be so inconsiderate, throwing moves around randomly?"
"Pika~"
Dawn and Pikachu indignantly looked around. What if such a large Aura Sphere hit someone?
Even if it didn't hit anyone, hitting flowers and plants would still be bad.
"Let's find the source of the Aura Sphere!" Brock observed the surroundings seriously, calming the angry Pikachu and Dawn.
And under Brock's persuasion, both quickly calmed down.
After all, Ash was protected by Aura, so he wasn't threatened.
"Everyone, the attack source is over there, let's go take a look!" Through Aura and the continuously flying Aura Spheres, Ash quickly pinpointed the location.
After walking about ten steps and crossing a patch of grass, they saw a breathtaking scene:
A short-haired pink-haired girl with a band-aid on her nose was barefoot, constantly dodging Lucario's attacks, which included azure Aura Spheres.
However, this girl was bare-handed, using unique footwork to kick the Aura Sphere back.
"So amazing~"
Dawn covered her mouth, her blue pupils turning into starry eyes, unable to imagine the scene before her.
Because a human was actually able to continuously dodge Pokémon attacks and kick Lucario's Aura Sphere away.
What made Dawn even more surprised was the opponent's age.
From her appearance, she was almost the same age as Dawn and Ash.
"Indeed, no wonder she can be the Gym Leader of Veilstone City! She really has some tricks up her sleeve~" Ash secretly sighed.
"If there are no surprises, they should be a Trainer and Pokémon, but why would Lucario attack its Trainer?"
Brock was very confused; he could tell that Lucario wasn't using its full power, and its eyes were filled with the emotion of hating that iron cannot be made into steel.
That look was just like how he viewed his immature parents at home.
"Miss Maylene, please have a Gym Battle with me!"
Since he met the person, Ash directly proposed a Battle request.
"Ah, can someone so young become a Gym Trainer? That's truly amazing~"
Not listening to the other party's response, Dawn was even more surprised by Ash's words.
She didn't expect that the young girl in front of her, who could withstand an Aura Sphere with her bare hands, was a Gym Trainer even younger than Brock.
On the other side, upon hearing someone challenging her, the Battle between Maylene and Lucario stopped instantly.
Lucario looked at Maylene with expectant eyes, hoping she would accept the Battle.
"Sorry, can you challenge other Gyms? I don't plan to be a Gym Trainer anymore!" Maylene gave an awkward smile, shaking her head and refusing.
"Olu~"
The loyal dog immediately aimed at Maylene's head and angrily gave her an Aura Sphere, successfully knocking out its Trainer.
"Hiss~"
Such a brutal scene made Dawn and Brock gasp, successfully increasing the temperature around Ash by one-billionth of a degree.
The most crucial thing was that after Maylene was hit by the Aura Sphere, she still stood up as if nothing had happened, yelling somewhat angrily:
"Lucario, no matter what you do, I will not be a Gym Trainer again!"
"Miss Maylene saying that makes things very difficult for me~" A deep voice came.
Three burly middle-aged men wearing karate gis walked towards Maylene, accompanied by a man who somewhat resembled Paul.
"I've already decided not to be a Gym Trainer anymore, please understand~"
Maylene came before the three middle-aged men and responded dejectedly.
Such a strange scene left Dawn and Brock bewildered.
However, the man in an apron beside them voluntarily explained to them, stating his position at the moment.
And he revealed his identity—Paul's poker-faced brother, Reiji.
"Eh, so you're cold Paul's brother?"
Dawn eyed Paul's appearance suspiciously; his humble and polite demeanor made the two seem nothing like biological brothers.
And Lucario, hating that iron cannot be made into steel, seeing Maylene's dejected attitude, threw another Aura Sphere, but the silent Maylene slapped it away with one hand.
"Is it because of Paul?"
Seeing this, Reiji once again stepped forward, taking the blame for Maylene's dejected state.
"Excuse me, Mr. Reiji, what does this have to do with Paul?"
Seeing Ash remain silent, Brock took the initiative to break the deadlock and ask.
"It's like this…"
Reiji eloquently spoke a long passage, revealing the reason why Maylene was so resistant to being a Gym Trainer.
To put it simply, Paul, that kid, unfairly sent out Honchkrow and Magmar, who had a type advantage.
He used an absolute advantage to crush Maylene's series of Pokémon.
And after it was over, he even left behind a remark: "Your true level is just this, you're practically dragging down the Gym Trainers."
"My goodness, how did the version change!" Hearing this, Ash secretly complained.
It seemed that because of his interference, Paul's attitude towards Gym Trainers had changed somewhat.
The only similarity was that he was still not very friendly towards Maylene, this new Gym Leader.
"Sorry, Miss Maylene, Paul just has a foul mouth~" Reiji, as the older brother, consoled her without reservation.
But Maylene stubbornly believed it was her own fault, and she turned and ran away emotionally, not giving Lucario a chance to catch up.
"This… Ash, it seems we can only challenge other Gyms~" Brock said with regret.
After all, this new Gym Leader, having encountered Paul's sharp tongue, seemed unchallengeable in a short period of time.
"Olu~"
Lucario's expression tensed, wanting to keep Ash and his companions.
"No!"
Dawn stood out with determined eyes, rejecting Brock's suggestion.
Because she saw her own failure at the The Tournament of Fate in Maylene.
It was just that she was luckier than the other party, having Ash by her side to guide her.
"Leave Maylene to me!" Dawn said, "Lucario, please take me to Maylene!"
"Olu~"
As if seeing a turning point, Lucario happily led Dawn to Maylene's location.
And Brock looked at Ash, waiting for his opinion; Ash was naturally indifferent, believing Dawn could successfully bring the other party back.
"Ash, are you interested in coming to my Pokémon Day Care? I want to see how strong you are, the one Paul keeps mentioning!"
Reiji, who was nearby, suddenly walked over and extended an invitation.
"Of course~"
To this, Ash naturally agreed without hesitation.