Chapter Forty-Six: Setting Out Once More

As Su Yi’s four companion beasts appeared, the already compact arena—never designed for Dynamax battles—suddenly became cramped.

“Wow! Those Pokémon are huge!” Sonia exclaimed, her face filled with astonishment.

The Dire Wolf, lying down, was the size of a small truck, and the longer Grimclaw Dragon was even more intimidating, the very embodiment of a ferocious beast that preyed on all it saw. By comparison, the Scratching Bird and the Direjaw Dragon looked almost like underlings beside them.

“So fierce, so powerful!” Marnie’s eyes lit up as she gazed at the Dire Wolf and Direjaw Dragon. As the sister of the Dark-type Gym Leader, her tastes were indeed unique—and both of those companion beasts happened to be part Dark-type.

Suddenly thrust into this bright, spacious place, the Dire Wolf and Scratching Bird adapted well enough, but the Direjaw Dragon and Grimclaw Dragon, so long accustomed to the dim mists of the Poison Valley, were visibly uneasy.

“Rrraww!”

The Direjaw Dragon growled restlessly. But since Su Yi had subdued it in battle, and now stood as its leader, it restrained itself, working hard to adapt.

But Grimclaw Dragon was different. Still wild and savage, it let out a startled cry, nostrils flaring as it caught the unfamiliar scents of this new place. It responded with a threatening growl.

“Mobe!” Morpeko, close by, was startled and quickly hid in Marnie’s arms.

“Su Yi, did you just catch this Pokémon?” Sonia immediately spotted the issue.

“Yes, and to be precise, I didn’t catch it through battle,” Su Yi replied, quickly approaching Grimclaw Dragon.

“Don’t be nervous. No one here will hurt you. There’s no danger. I’m right here.” Gently stroking Grimclaw’s head, Su Yi patiently reassured it.

Grimclaw twitched its nose, caught Su Yi’s scent, and relaxed a little, though its posture remained wary.

“Take your time to adjust,” Su Yi said, knowing this could not be rushed.

“Even though it’s a newly caught Pokémon, it trusts you so much, Su Yi,” Sonia said admiringly.

For such a wild, intimidating beast to calm so quickly under Su Yi’s touch spoke volumes about the trust he had already earned.

It was clear, even without knowing their history, that Su Yi had given his genuine heart to these seemingly ferocious Pokémon—and was rewarded with their loyalty.

“Truly remarkable,” Sonia murmured in awe.

“Gaining a Pokémon’s trust…” Marnie mused quietly, watching as Su Yi soothed Grimclaw Dragon and interacted warmly with his team.

“Beep beep! New Pokémon detected! Pokédex activating, Rotom!” The Rotom Phone zipped out from the side pocket of Su Yi’s backpack and scanned the four companions.

“Beep beep! No data found—are these undiscovered Pokémon? Rotom!” the phone exclaimed in surprise.

“Really? I thought when Leon spoke of unseen Pokémon, he meant ones from other regions. I didn’t think they’d be completely unrecorded! This is a major find!”

Sonia opened her own Pokédex to confirm that none of these Pokémon were listed anywhere in the League’s records.

“Su Yi, where did you catch these Pokémon? Are there others like them? What’s their ecology?” Sonia fired off questions, her curiosity piqued.

Though still just a professor’s assistant, Sonia’s deep fascination with Pokémon was what drew her to this path. For anyone studying Pokémon, an unseen species was a treasure waiting to be discovered.

“Uh…” Su Yi, faced with Sonia’s relentless probing, hesitated. “Um, Sonia, calm down a little.”

“Sorry, I just got excited seeing so many unknown Pokémon at once. But this is a big deal—aren’t you planning to report them to the League?” Sonia composed herself, then asked in puzzlement.

“Sorry, but I don’t intend to make this public right now. These Pokémon are unique in this world—I don’t want them to be hurt,” Su Yi replied, shaking his head.

He spoke sincerely. He wasn’t yet strong enough to deter those who coveted rare Pokémon. If word got out too soon, trouble would surely follow.

Sonia quickly pictured all sorts of scenarios, but reporting new discoveries wasn’t her responsibility, so she let the matter drop.

“The world of Pokémon remains full of mysteries—so much we have yet to discover,” she sighed, gazing at the diverse companion beasts.

“Su Yi, you’re truly lucky to have encountered so many extraordinary Pokémon,” Sonia said enviously.

“I am lucky,” Su Yi replied, smiling as he patted his companions.

“I feel lucky to have met you too, Su Yi!” Leafcat piped up cheerfully.

“To meet powerful partners you can trust…” Watching the scene, Marnie suddenly felt a surge of determination to catch her own Pokémon.

“If I want Spikemuth to thrive again, I need to take action. I’ll start by catching Pokémon! I want to meet trustworthy, powerful partners just like him!” she vowed to herself.

...

“Thank you for the ice cream. I’m heading out now—let’s swap contact info. When I’ve caught a reliable partner, I want to battle you,” Marnie said, holding Morpeko and taking out her phone.

“No problem,” Su Yi replied with a smile.

“Beep beep! Contact info exchanged!” Rotom Phone hovered close to Marnie’s device and completed the process.

“See you then.” With a lighter step, Marnie set off from Hammerlocke, her earlier worries unexpectedly resolved today.

After Marnie left, Sonia said, “Su Yi, I’ll be going too—Leon needs my help. If you have any questions, just ask.”

“And if you catch any new Pokémon, you have to share them with me!” Sonia insisted, exchanging contact info before departing.

Now alone, with the park nearly empty thanks to the festival outside, Su Yi felt a restless urge to act.

“What should I do next? Keep wandering around?” he wondered aloud, seeing that it was still early.

“I really can’t sit still. Seeing these characters, once only pixels in a game, now alive and expressive, each going their own way…”

“I want to take action too!”

“Next destination: Coral Plateau!”

Without pause, Su Yi found a quiet spot in the park and chose to travel to the cavern camp in the Poison Valley.