"Above is a great flood, below is a great bathhouse. Solve this riddle, and you'll know the location of Cinnabar Gym."
After saying that, the middle-aged man turned and left, leaving Red alone still chewing the rice lingering at the corner of his mouth.
"A bathhouse, huh? Perfect—I also want to try the effects of the hot springs here."
...
A short while later,
Red arrived at the bathhouse not far behind the inn, soaking comfortably in the hot spring. Since he was the only one there at the moment, there was no separation between men and women, allowing him to enjoy the entire space alone.
Red glanced at the Gyarados statue beside him, which was spouting warm water. This statue was the switch to access the location of Cinnabar Gym.
However, Red didn't immediately head there for the match. There was plenty of time, and he wanted to relax properly to avoid fatigue affecting his battle condition.
"I'll be counting on the four of you for the match later," Red murmured, playing with the four Poké Balls in his palm.
After finishing his relaxing soak and adjusting his state for the challenge, Red got dressed and pressed the switch on the Gyarados statue. Immediately, the rock beneath the statue slowly sank, and a massive boulder behind it began to move, gradually revealing a dim passage illuminated by faint firelight.
Red leisurely walked down into the passage. Candle flames flickered intermittently along the walls. Following the stone steps, he eventually arrived before a massive iron gate.
As he got closer, the temperature steadily rose, causing brief discomfort even for an ordinary person.
Red glanced at the iron gate in front of him. Due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures, it had become so scorching hot that even a slight touch would cause burns.
Seeing this, Red immediately used his psychic power to forcibly push the iron gate open.
At a glance, an unusual Pokémon battle arena appeared before him. The battlefield was suspended above boiling magma, with its four corners tightly secured to the rock walls above by iron chains. Beneath the arena, the molten lava bubbled and churned from time to time, sending chills down one's spine.
The scorching air filled every corner of the battlefield, making those with weaker constitutions feel uncomfortable, even causing symptoms of oxygen deprivation.
"Welcome, Red!"
Bright lights lit up from the rock wall above. The middle-aged man who had left earlier appeared on the opposite side of the field, standing at the trainer's position facing Red.
"Good thing I made it in time. As expected, your speed is unmatched by ordinary people!"
"Tell me—what is something that's easy to say when you don't know it, but impossible to say once you do?" the man asked Red with another riddle.
"It's a wig—just like your superb disguise, Mr. Blaine!" Red replied teasingly, his eyes filled with fighting spirit as he looked at the man before him.
"As expected, my true identity was exposed from the start."
Blaine sighed helplessly as he swiftly removed his disguise—taking off the wig, sunglasses, and fake beard. In an instant, his middle-aged appearance turned into that of an elderly man with a balding hairstyle.
"After all, wearing wigs and loving riddles are your specialties, Mr. Blaine," Red said casually.
"The Gym challenge will be a 3 vs 3 battle. As the challenger, you may freely switch Pokémon during the match. There is no time limit," Blaine explained the rules.
"I've long been prepared to battle you—the Fire-type Elite!" Red said, his tone filled with excitement.
"Good! My first Pokémon is this one!" Blaine shouted, throwing his Poké Ball.
The white light faded, revealing a Ninetales covered in beige fur, with striking crimson eyes. Its body was well-proportioned, exuding nobility and elegance. Its nine tails were smooth and slender, with golden tips.
"It's been a while since I sent you out—go cause some chaos, Gengar!"
With that, Red threw his Poké Ball. As the white light faded, a sinister laugh echoed around them. Soon, the figure of Thousand-Year Gengar gradually appeared before Red and Blaine.
"Boss, I missed you so much~"
The moment it appeared, Thousand-Year Gengar started fooling around, excitedly drifting to Red's side and complaining about all the "abuse" it suffered at Professor Oak's Laboratory. Out of every three sentences, one was a "complaint" about Professor Oak.
It even grumbled that Professor Oak treated Pokémon kindly, yet somehow treated it so harshly.
Because of Pokémon senryu, Thousand-Year Gengar had also begun training its mental power—otherwise, one day it would be driven insane by Professor Oak.
"So you gained something good out of misfortune, didn't you?" Red teased.
"What do you mean, boss! That's not gaining from misfortune—that's surviving death!" Thousand-Year Gengar retorted, its face turning even gloomier, though it already didn't look very bright to begin with.
"Not only can it speak human language, it's also a rare shiny Gengar… quite a troublesome opponent," Blaine said cautiously.
"Alright, get on the field. Consider this battle compensation for neglecting you lately—so you'll stop complaining about being stuck at Professor Oak's Laboratory all day," Red said calmly.
"Heh, didn't expect such a beautiful 'fox spirit.' I wonder if you can charm me to death?"
Thousand-Year Gengar floated in front of Ninetales with a grin. Its teasing tone successfully angered Ninetales.
Since Cinnabar Gym's battlefield was built above magma, the surrounding temperature was extremely hot. However, as a Ghost-type, Thousand-Year Gengar was completely unaffected. Instead, like a heat absorber, it lowered the surrounding temperature by about 5 degrees Celsius, as its presence drew heat away.
"Ninetales, use Fire Spin!" Blaine commanded.
At the start of the match, Blaine immediately launched the attack. He knew Red's strength was far from ordinary, so he didn't give up the initiative like he would with typical challengers.
"Use Psychic to send the Fire Spin back at Ninetales," Red said calmly, his eyes seeming to ponder something.
Upon receiving the command, Thousand-Year Gengar didn't hesitate. Its eyes glowed with a brilliant blue light as it used psychic power to halt the incoming flames midair. Then, under its control, the Fire Spin abruptly reversed direction and engulfed Ninetales.
"Red, you're still too careless. My Ninetales has the Flash Fire ability," Blaine said calmly, showing no concern at the sight.
Under the calm gazes of both trainers, Ninetales wasn't burned by the flames. Instead, it gradually absorbed them. The incoming fire covered its body but caused no harm at all.
"A fine ability. Gengar, let's see your performance," Red said leisurely.
"Got it, boss!"
Thousand-Year Gengar grinned at Ninetales. Suddenly, a strange phenomenon occurred.
Above both Pokémon, a mysterious scale-like image appeared, tilting in different directions over each of them.
Then, Ninetales' body underwent a peculiar change—the flames that had been covering its body suddenly flared up violently, beginning to attack Ninetales itself.
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
+100 chapters and support me on Patreon(.)com/Jixo