Winona

"Castform, Hydro Pump!"

"Beautifly, Solar Beam!"

"Mismagius, Shadow Ball!"

"Growlithe, Flamethrower!"

"Altaria, Erase!"

Four Pokémon took turns to battle. Since Altaria used its cry to erase the Hydro Pump, Terrance had been particularly focused on Altaria's success rate with Erase.

After three days of practice, unfortunately, besides Hydro Pump, Altaria still couldn't find that "spot" for other moves.

Only against.Hydro Pump, it had shown improvement through constant practice, with its success rate significantly increasing.

A concentrated pillar of water surged forward, and with a loud "bang," the pillar shattered, water droplets scattering everywhere.

"It succeeded again." Terrance felt both joy and worry. He was glad Erase had worked, but worried that this success seemed largely coincidental; he had no idea why it suddenly became effective against Hydro Pump.

Altaria was also uncertain. It had suddenly found that "spot" and then increasingly got more familiar with it, but for other moves, it still couldn't replicate the feeling when dealing with Hydro Pump.

"Is this a technique you developed yourself?"

"Yeah, but it's not perfect yet," Terrance replied, turning his head.

Steven had arrived long before, but Terrance didn't immediately divert his attention during training.

"Very impressive," Steven remarked. He could tell that the sound wasn't a sonic wave move with powerful frequency like Boomburst, but just a simple cry.

Yet, such a cry managed to block such a strong Hydro Pump... Steven couldn't figure out the principle behind it.

"Since you're here, Steven, how about a 3v3 battle?" Terrance suddenly suggested.

Steven was formidable, even stronger than Cynthia at the moment... From the opponent's Metagross, Terrance sensed the aura of a top-tier Trainer.

After training alone for so long, he suddenly wanted to test his skills against someone like Steven, with winning or losing being secondary.

"Sure...But I came here to tell you that there's been some progress in meteorite's research. I believe it won't be long before we have conclusions regarding its effects on weather," Steven said.

Terrance nodded. This place was a natural battling ground, with the open ground providing an excellent environment for battles. They didn't need a referee; they each sent out their Pokémon to start the battle.

***********************

Fortree City, apart from the Fortree Gym, houses in the city were built on the trees. The people here mostly lived long, healthy lives. Wild Bug-type Pokémon could often be seen flying around inside houses. Regular heavy rain made the trees here much taller than those elsewhere.

Fortree Gym specialized in Flying-type Pokémon. At this moment, outside the gym's large doors, an unexpected visitor stood there, taking a deep breath.

That person was Terrance.

After battling Steven, Terrance had been recommended by Steven to challenge Fortree Gym.

"It's evident that your Erase Technique focuses on sound. You might gain something by challenging Fortree Gym," Steven.

Fortree Gym...

As Terrance had just learned, the Gym Leader of Fortree Gym's trump card was also Altaria, just like Terrance's.

And although their fighting style was Flying-type, they have their own unique battle methods.

The outcome of Terrance's battle with Steven... Terrance indeed did not win, and even in the 3v3 battle, he couldn't force Steven's ace Metagross to come out.

"What on earth did his Aggron eat to grow like that?"

Aggron feeds on iron, and most Trainers provide iron as food for their Aggron...

But Steven's Aggron... its food couldn't possibly be ordinary iron. Considering Steven's background, Terrance strongly suspected it might be some rare and precious metal.

Regardless, Terrance lost, and he experienced the gap between himself and a top Trainer. For someone who had only been training for two years…..he was still far away from that level.

"I am a challenger!!"

In front of Fortree Gym, Terrance knocked on the door and shouted.

Shortly after, a girl with a blue Pokémon perched on her head ran out. "Are you here to challenge Fortree Gym?"

Swablu...

Seeing the Pokémon on the girl's head, Terrance felt a wave of nostalgia. Back then, Swablu used to perch on his head like that too.

"Yes, I'm Terrance, a challenger from Fallarbor Town."

"Oh, then follow me," the girl said.

Terrance followed the girl into the Gym. Unlike outside, Fortree Gym had various stone statues of different Flying-type Pokémon, representing most of Hoenn's Flying-type Pokémon.

During this time, Terrance registered for the Gym challenge using his Pokédex.

"All right, Terrance, if you defeat me, this Feather Badge will be yours."

Terrance was taken aback. Wait... the Gym Leader shouldn't be a girl barely older than him.

"Wait a minute, are you the Gym Trainer of Fortree Gym?" Terrance asked in surprise.

According to Steven, the Gym Trainer of Fortree Gym was a mature woman skilled in Flying-type Pokémon, with Altaria as her ace.

But the girl in front of him, aside from being too young, even had Altaria replaced with Swablu on her head... something didn't seem right.

"Yes, it's me... I'm Winona, the new Trainer of Fortree Gym!" the girl confirmed.

Terrance was confused for a moment, but soon realized that most Gyms operated under the inheritance system. After a Gym Trainer retired, they had the right to pass on their Gym Trainer status to their children.

Additionally, based on the challenger's registration information... the Gym might selectively send out Pokémon that were more suitable to test the challenger.

Terrance's Gym and Conference information were currently blank. From the perspective of the Gym Trainer, he was a complete rookie. Even if this Winona wasn't the Gym Trainer yet, it was very normal for her to handle his challenge.

Realizing this, Terrance felt a surge of helplessness. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to challenge the Altaria from Fortree Gym that Steven had mentioned…not Winona, who was standing before him with her Swablu.

After hesitating for a moment, Terrance decided to be honest and expressed his desire to challenge the former Gym Trainer as Steven had mentioned.

"No way!" Winona puffed up her cheeks instantly, saying indignantly, "I am the Gym Trainer of Fortree Gym now. If you want to get the Feather Badge, you'll have to defeat me!"

Furthermore, Winona had seen Terrance's information; he was just a newly registered rookie Trainer, daring to challenge a senior... Could it be... he looked down on her?

"Okay, but if I can defeat you, can you help me with a recommendation?"

"Regardless of the outcome, just give me a chance," Terrance said.

"You have to defeat me first," Winona replied.

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