Sinnoh Region, True Sand Town.
Nestled near the sandy beaches of True Sand, a resort hotel lay hidden among lush greenery, with the sea breeze brushing gently through. Beside the rooftop pool, a soft-bodied shell Pokémon, Gastrodon, lazily lapped at the pool water with its tongue. Nearby, a poised and elegant Glaceon lay quietly under a sunshade, yawning softly with its eyes half-closed.
A blonde beauty reclined on a beach chair, draped in a white bath towel, her damp golden hair cascading casually around her. Scooping a bite of ice cream, Cynthia held the spoon in her mouth, her attention fixed on the handheld console before her.
[GA OVER]
"So difficult..."
"Can't I pay to win? Seriously, this is such a hassle..."
Cynthia sighed, setting the PSP down. She rose gracefully from the beach chair, her long, pale legs moving with ease as she stepped through the glass door into the cool indoor air.
Beneath the air conditioning, a spooky Spiritomb was attempting to disguise itself as a potted plant.
Three days had passed since her battle with Aaron, and this was a rare vacation for Cynthia. Though even during her "work" days, her routine was mostly carefree—occasionally researching tablets in Eterna City, visiting the library in Sootopolis City, or even shopping with Diantha when their schedules aligned.
Still, accepting challenges from the Elite Four was part of her job, one of the few tasks she couldn't shirk.
After the collapse of Cyrus' sches with Team Galactic, the Sinnoh Region was relatively peaceful compared to Kanto, where Team Rocket was making moves, or Unova, plagued by Plasma's unresolved issues.
It was rumored that the Champion of Hoenn had an even more relaxed lifestyle—digging up rocks around the world and eventually handing over the championship to soone else. Compared to Steven, Cynthia felt her leisurely approach was perfectly reasonable.
This ti, she had a three-day vacation and decided to make the most of it by clearing her backlog of gas. Once the break ended, the Type Specialist Tournant and World Master Championship would keep her too busy to indulge.
Cynthia combed through her voluminous golden hair, tidying it with ease. As she secured it with a hair tie, not a single strand fell out. Even Diantha had expressed envy over Cynthia's hair, often running her fingers through the silky locks when given the chance.
For Cynthia, though, it was a matter of convenience—her initial long hair grew out naturally due to the demands of her research and early championship duties. Now, her waist-length hair was an unmistakable feature, always drawing attention when she stepped out.
Every ti Diantha suggested disguises for their shopping outings, she'd give up as soon as she saw Cynthia's dazzling blonde hair.
"Hmm, what other gas are there?"
Sitting cross-legged on the floor, her legs smooth and porcelain-like, Cynthia browsed the ga nu on her console. Her trophy collection was almost complete.
She handed a controller to her Garchomp, who politely declined. Smiling, Cynthia searched for a single-player ga.
"Pokémon Battle... it's been ages since I played this. Let’s try it!"
Her eyes lit up as she connected her voice command setup and launched the ga. To avoid trouble, Cynthia had opted not to use her official account in Pokémon Battle. After all, she didn’t want Bug-type Master Aaron or Fire-type Master Flint catching her. Those two were terrible at the ga, and playing against them was no fun.
The matchmaking screen spun, and Cynthia tilted her head curiously.
"A player from the Donghuang Region? That’s rare."
"Single match, one round to decide the winner?" Cynthia read the rule set, her lips curling upward.
"Of course, Garchomp is the way to go."
In the virtual display, Cynthia threw a Poké Ball, and her sharp-bladed Garchomp roared onto the battlefield.
The real Garchomp, busy munching on Pokéblocks, glanced up at the screen dismissively before resuming its snack.
anwhile, the opponent’s red beam revealed a grinning Gengar, hovering in the arena while emitting its trademark eerie laugh.
"A Ghost-type Trainer? How confident of them…"
Before Cynthia finished her sentence, her gaze sharpened. She commanded in a low voice, "Crunch!"
Her Garchomp, trained for maximum speed, shot forward like a missile. Its dragon-tail cleaved the air with a sonic boom as it lunged to sink its jaws into Gengar.
Crack!
A sturdy barrier materialized in front of Gengar, repelling Garchomp several ters back with a "Protect."
At the sa ti, a haunting lody erged from Gengar's mouth, causing Garchomp to visibly shudder.
Cynthia frowned. In real battles, Perish Song worked through terrifying soundwaves to gradually erode the opponent’s willpower. Over ti, it could make a Pokémon completely lose the will to fight, effectively ending the match.
Though rare in actual combat due to its psychological nature, in regulated battles, a loss of will counted as a defeat.
Cynthia’s eyes narrowed. Was this Donghuang Trainer a master of psychological warfare?
On screen, a tir displayed the remaining ti for the Perish Song—five minutes to end the battle, or she’d lose automatically.
"Dragon Rush!" Cynthia ordered after a mont of thought.
Like a blazing cot, Garchomp launched itself across the arena. Cynthia’s other Pokémon gathered around the screen, watching intently as their Trainer took on the challenge.
The "Protect" barrier flickered up once more in front of Gengar, just as Cynthia had predicted. She smiled slightly, her tone calm but commanding:
"Now, Dig!"
Using its Dragon Rush montum, Garchomp plunged underground instantly, erging right behind Gengar.
Rip!
With a powerful strike, Garchomp tore through Gengar, dealing double damage with Dig.
anwhile, Lu Ye, the opposing player, was comntating boastfully:
"Garchomp? That trash Pokémon? Can it even hit Gengar?"
"My Gengar has Levitate—huh?!"
"Wait, is my Levitate ability fake? How did Dig hit ?!"
"Ha, the heavens are against you, Teacher Lu!"
The chat exploded with laughter:
"Even you get out-predicted sotis, huh, Lu Ye?"
"But it’s fine," Lu Ye smirked confidently. "I’ve got a Focus Sash!"
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