The rest of the journey was quite smooth.
With the blessing of the "Friend of Nature" aura, instances of being ambushed by irritable Pokemon were greatly reduced.
Without any interruptions, Roy's group of three soon arrived at a fork in the road.
The three finally emerged from the mountainous area and reached a wide intersection.
The road sign clearly marked two directions: Vermilion City to the left, and Cerulean City to the right.
Misty's eyes instantly lit up!
"Let's go this way! Let's go this way!" She pointed toward the road to Vermilion City on the left, almost jumping, her voice filled with obvious urgency.
"Vermilion City is great! It has a su~per big pier! And luxury cruise ships."
"Every evening, the sunset spills over the sea, sparkling like gold. It's incredibly romantic."
She gestured with her hands, trying to paint a beautiful picture: "We can go for walks on the beach, listen to the waves... we might even run into a Lapras."
Then, she suddenly turned toward the direction of Cerulean City on the right and made an exaggerated grimace: "But Cerulean City... it's not good at all! The city is small and old. And... and I heard it's been haunted lately!"
"Strange shadows float around at night, it's super scary."
After speaking, she even cooperated by giving a shiver.
Delia looked at the map, then at Misty, feeling somewhat hesitant: "But... it takes three days to reach Vermilion City, and our supplies might not be enough. We can reach Cerulean City in just half a day, where we can have a good rest and resupply..."
"If we don't have enough supplies, we can pick berry on the way!" Misty said hurriedly. "I can also help catch fish. It's better than going to that run-down, haunted Cerulean City, right?"
She looked at Roy expectantly, her eyes practically screaming "Choose Vermilion City, choose Vermilion City."
Roy suppressed a laugh, stroked his chin, and pretended to be deep in thought.
He naturally knew why Misty didn't dare return to Cerulean City.
The three Gym Leaders of the Cerulean Gym, who came from a "Water Ballet" background, were Misty's older sisters.
Misty had grown up in the shadow of her three radiant sisters and always felt that her path as a Water-type Pokemon Trainer wasn't recognized. That's why she ran away from home in a fit of pique, vowing to become a Water Master who surpassed her sisters.
She hadn't been out for long; if she went back now... she probably wouldn't escape her sisters' nagging and teasing.
However, the main mission in Cerulean City was to help Misty build her confidence, so they definitely had to go there first.
"Hmm..." Roy drew out his voice.
Misty's heart jumped into her throat.
"I've thought about it." Roy finally spoke, revealing a "gentle" smile: "Let's go to Cerulean City."
"Eh?" Misty's face instantly fell.
"First of all, our supplies really won't last another three days," Roy analyzed reasonably. "Secondly, the Cerulean Gym is an official city Gym; we might as well take care of it since it's on the way."
He paused and looked at Misty, his smile deepening: "Finally... I also want to see what kind of 'ghost' could scare our fearless Misty like this."
"No... that ghost, it..." Misty was incoherent.
"It's settled then." Roy made the final decision and started walking toward the road on the right.
"Wait! Roy! Let's talk about this some more!" Anxious, Misty grabbed Roy's arm, practically hanging off of it. "Vermilion City is really fun, I promise!"
"Misty seems particularly unwilling to go to Cerulean City." Delia blinked, thoughtful. "Is there a reason?"
"No, no reason, I just don't like it!" Misty stiffened her neck, but her hands gripped Roy tightly.
Roy let her drag along, but his pace didn't slow down at all.
"Let's go, let's go. The sooner we get to the city, the sooner we get a hot meal. Pikachu, don't you agree?"
Pikachu!
Pikachu jumped onto Roy's shoulder and waved a small paw energetically, indicating he had plenty of energy and was totally fine.
"See, even Pikachu can't wait."
"Pikachu, why are you joining in the fun~" Misty wailed... The half-day journey passed amidst Misty's non-stop "persuasion" and "intimidation."
"I heard the rivers in Cerulean City have Grimer, they're super smelly!"
"The pool water at the Cerulean Gym is only changed once every three months!"
"The Nurse Joy there is particularly mean and doesn't treat Pokemon properly!"
And so on.
Roy let it go in one ear and out the other, while Delia's initial confusion gradually turned into a thoughtful smile.
By afternoon, the three finally arrived at the entrance to Cerulean City.
"Wow..."
Delia couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Before them was a typical waterfront city.
A clear river flowed through the city, with exquisite arched bridges spanning across. The buildings on both banks mostly had light blue or white exterior walls and deep blue tiled roofs, giving the overall style a fresh and bright look.
The streets were clean and tidy, and pedestrians moved at a leisurely pace.
By the river, a few Trainers could be seen giving their Water-type Pokemon their daily exercise, with splashes of water gleaming like crushed gold in the sunset.
Where was any sign of the "small and old" or "haunted" city Misty had described?
"Cerulean City... is very prosperous and beautiful." Delia looked at Misty, a playful smile in her eyes. "Misty, it's not as scary as you said, is it?"
Misty's face was as stiff as if it had been coated in paste.
Her eyes darted around, and she gave a couple of dry laughs: "Ma-maybe I remembered wrong... haha, hahah..."
The laughter was dry and completely unconvincing.
"That!" She suddenly raised her voice, pushing Roy and Delia toward the city. "Let's hurry to the Pokemon Center to recover."
"Once we've recovered, we'll restock our supplies and leave immediately."
"Pikachu is also about to collapse from exhaustion."
Pika?
On his shoulder, Pikachu tilted his head and patted his little chest, indicating he was full of vitality.
Roy stopped, turned around, and showed the kind of playful and knowing smile that Misty least wanted to see at this moment.
"No rush."
He said unhurriedly, "Pikachu and the others haven't done much today, they have plenty of energy. I think... let's go to the Gym first."
"The sooner we get the Badge, the sooner you guys can go shopping and play, right?"
Pika-pi!
Pikachu cooperated perfectly by puffing out his chest, with small, energetic sparks of electricity crackling from the pouches on his cheeks.
Misty's face turned white instantly.
"The-the Gym... it's too late to go now, isn't it? The Gym Leader might have already finished work for the day!" she made a final struggle.
"It's only afternoon, how could the Gym be closed?"
"Even if it is, we'll go check it out."
"Wait! Roy! There's really no need to be in such a hurry!"
Misty pounced forward again in desperation, her hands tightly clutching Roy's arm, practically hanging her whole body on him in an attempt to use her weight to slow him down.
"Let's talk about it. At least wait until tomorrow! I'll treat you to Cerulean City's most famous floating restaurant! I heard it's delicious!"
Roy felt the soft touch and warmth of the girl's body against his arm, along with her obvious panic, and the amusement in his heart grew.
He naturally knew what Misty was afraid of.
But it was precisely because he knew that they had to go.
And so, Roy once again dragged Misty toward the Cerulean Gym...
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