Catch Feelings, Not Just Pokemon

"Larry, huh… are you two here to commit a massacre today or what?"

Upon hearing the name Larry, Iono couldn't help but feel a wave of sympathy for her fellow Gym Leader.

As a fellow Gym Leader in Paldea, Iono naturally knew who Larry was.

Despite bearing the title of "Normal," the man still somehow left a deep impression.

But now, she knew Larry was about to face two opponents who were almost impossible to beat.

Nemona was simply powerful through sheer brute strength—every one of her six Pokémon was formidable.

Unless Larry brought out his real power, just relying on the three Pokémon allowed in a standard Gym Challenge would make victory extremely unlikely.

And Nemona was the kind of Trainer who, once fired up, would never hold back. She always gave it everything she had.

As for Haru… Iono didn't even want to think about it. Forget whether Larry could win—she just hoped Haru wouldn't blow up the battle arena.

Noticing Iono's face morph into an expression that screamed "Use Fire Punch on Larry," Nemona tilted her head in confusion.

"Why that face? You don't think we can win, Iono?"

She might be brushing it off, but Nemona knew Haru was someone who had a Legendary on his team. Surely he wouldn't lose to a Gym Leader.

"Heh heh~ of course not. You'll understand once we get there," Iono replied with a nervous laugh, scratching her head.

She definitely wasn't going to spill the beans about Haru's third Pokémon—not in front of someone like Nemona, who was already plenty threatening on her own.

Larry's Gym was the Medali Gym, located in the town of Medali in Paldea. His specialty was Normal-type Pokémon.

To quote Larry himself, "There's beauty in the ordinary."

But it's worth noting that Larry wasn't just a regular Gym Leader. He had two other identities.

On one hand, he worked as a clerk in the Pokémon League's business division. Yeah… not very good at sales, and very much had the vibe of a middle-aged man in crisis.

On the other hand, he was also one of the Elite Four—specifically, the Flying-type specialist of Paldea.

Yes, despite his plain looks, he was actually one of the top-tier Trainers in the entire region.

So really, he was anything but ordinary.

Maybe Nemona had some kind of weird radar for strong opponents—out of all the Gyms to pick, she just had to choose the strongest one.

After making their decision, the trio didn't use Paldea's signature motorcycle Pokémon (Cyclizar). Instead, they relied on Flying-types to reach the somewhat remote town.

At moments like these, Haru couldn't help but miss that all-terrain miracle ride from the game—Koraidon/Miraidon.

Now that was a real mount: soaring across skies and scaling cliffs, all while taking a Legendary for a spin. That's the kind of experience a Pokémon protagonist deserved.

Too bad his sandwich-loving cat-dog hadn't shown up yet… based on the timeline, it'd still be a while.

Still, this was real life. Relying too heavily on game or anime knowledge could easily backfire.

For all he knew, he'd end up mid-air one day and accidentally crash into his own future Legendary.

Once they landed, Nemona suddenly seemed to remember something. She smacked her left fist into her right palm and said,

"Oh right, the principal asked me to show you how to use your Tera Orb."

"No time to waste—let's go over it before the Gym Challenge."

With that, she pulled out a crystal orb identical to the one Clavell gave Haru, then summoned a Paldean regional Pikachu-clone: Pawmo.

"Galar had Dynamax, Alola had Z-Moves, Hoenn and such had Mega Evolutions…"

"And we Paldeans have our own battle mechanic—Terastalization."

"When a Pokémon Terastallizes, it transforms into a different type, and moves of that type get a boost in power."

"For example, if a Normal-type Terastallizes into Ghost, its Ghost-type moves will get stronger, and it'll also become immune to Normal-type attacks."

"Although Terastalization is unique to Paldea, not every Trainer can master it. Tera Orbs are generally only given to elite Trainers. Anyone with a Tera Orb is, without exception, a powerhouse."

So said Nemona, who in the games casually slipped the player a Tera Orb before their Pokémon even hit level 10.

Then, she channeled energy into her orb and tossed it at Pawmo.

In an instant, Pawmo turned into a radiant crystal sculpture.

When the transformation burst outward, Pawmo's entire body became transparent and gleaming like fine crystal craftsmanship.

Though… perched atop its head was a weird, chunky yellow gem that looked utterly bizarre.

"This is what a Terastallized Pokémon looks like. Since Pawmo is already Electric-type, Terastalizing into Electric amplifies its Electric-type moves even further."

"But the Tera Type is fixed. Changing it is a pain, so that's one of the downsides of Terastalization."

In his heart, Haru silently added a second con:

The other downside is that Terastallized Pokémon look hella ugly!

No way was he using that thing until he got one with a cool special form.

These Japanese devs really had a thing for trampling gamers' aesthetic sensibilities. Between Capcom and Game Freak, their design choices were getting weirder and weirder.

Terastalization as a battle system wasn't bad. The problem was just the absurd junk stuck on top of Pokémon heads.

That said… there were exceptions. Some Pokémon did look decent after Terastalizing—especially those with special Tera Forms.

Like Ogerpon, for instance. That one had four unique Terastal Forms tied to different types.

"What do you think? Got it now?" Nemona asked when Haru stayed silent.

"Yeah… I got it," he replied.

"Great! Then let's get started!"

Brushing aside the hair on her forehead, Nemona beamed and looked toward the Treasure Eatery.

According to what they'd learned earlier, Larry wasn't at his desk. Instead, he was slacking off inside the restaurant.

As they approached, Nemona turned to Iono again:

"By the way, are you gonna stream this? Isn't it about time for your live broadcast?"

"I'd love to," Iono sighed, "but this isn't the right moment."

She looked a little exasperated.

If Haru had any Pokémon presentable enough for camera, she'd absolutely go live in a heartbeat.

But right now… forget it. She had to respect his privacy.

Truth was, she knew Haru still harbored ambitions of using those Pokémon for "stomping noobs in secret competitions." If she blew the surprise, it'd ruin the whole plan.

It wouldn't matter if just a few people saw—but she was way too popular for that…

Ah, the curse of being a beloved streamer.

Honestly, she should probably lock Haru in a basement. A Trainer who spends all day thinking about noob-stomping is truly despicable!

Just then, a middle-aged man with dark circles under his eyes appeared before the trio:

"Um, are you three here for the Gym Challenge?"