I caught a Pokémon

I'm also missing this type of Pokémon!

Thinking of this, he gestured to the equally dazed Frog, who, after receiving his instruction, snapped out of his daze and quickly chased after him.

Previously, Chimchar could outrun Froakie thanks to its agility and familiarity with the terrain, but now, dragging its battered body, it was easily caught up by Froakie in just a dozen steps.

Just as Froakie was about to attack, Little Flame Monkey rolled to the side and into a relatively hidden cave. The cave was pitch black, and sunlight couldn't penetrate it because of the angle. Without Xia You's command, Froakie didn't dare to make any rash moves and could only stand there and look back at Xia You in the distance.

Xia You naturally wouldn't let the Pokémon she was about to get slip away.

He, Xiaoyao, and Yami followed closely behind, taking the Guagua Paopao Frog with them as they entered the cave.

Surprisingly, the cave was very dark and slippery, with a constant cold wind blowing in. The group, holding flashlights, had only gone a few dozen steps into the cave when they turned several corners. The path was very winding and twisting, making them worry that they might get lost if they went any deeper.

Yami hesitated for a moment, but seeing that Xia You and Xiao Yao looked indifferent, she didn't speak rashly.

Fortunately, the injured Chimchar can neither run fast nor far.

They chased after him, and Chimchar ran ahead. After only two or three minutes, Chimchar was exhausted and collapsed.

This made it easy for Xia You to find it.

"Now you can't get up, can you?"

Xia You smiled, took out an empty Poké Ball, and was about to capture the Chimchar when they heard a cry for help coming from afar!

Because they were too far away, they couldn't hear what she was shouting, but judging from the tone of her voice, it should be a young girl!

This left the three of them looking at each other in bewilderment.

"Did you hear that?" Haruka asked nervously. "It sounds like someone is calling us. Could we have encountered a ghost?"

"Idiot!" Xia You couldn't help but reach out and flick her forehead. "Where in the world are there so many ghosts? Especially in a cave like this. I guess if it's not a trap set by some Pokémon to lure us in, then some human has encountered some danger here."

"Should we go over and take a look?"

"Of course we should go and take a look. After all, when traveling, we should help each other, but..."

At this point, Xia You threw the Poké Ball at the Chimchar.

That's right, no matter what's happening in the distance, the most important thing for him right now is to catch the little Chimchar!

Because of the close proximity, the Poké Ball hit Chimchar directly, and with a red light enveloping it, it was immediately absorbed into the ball.

Since Chimchar had completely exhausted its stamina, this time, the Poké Ball didn't even shake, and it was easily captured with the click of the switch on it!

After picking up the Poké Ball, Xia You led Xiao Yao and Ya Mi towards the direction from which the sound came.

The deeper you go into the cave, the darker it gets.

When even the beam of a flashlight could no longer illuminate very far, Xia You had no choice but to release Blaziken to light up the path beneath her feet so that she could continue forward.

Pokémon that lived underground would occasionally peek out from the gaps and side paths around them, but they would all shrink back when they saw the flashlight beams and torches, and so many people.

All I can say is that even if these Pokémon have a strong sense of territory, they wouldn't dare attack so many people at the same time.

The main theme is "from the heart"!

As they got closer, they could hear the voice from afar more clearly.

It was indeed a young girl making the call, and it was definitely a cry for help. However, judging from her tone, it didn't seem urgent. It just kept coming up every now and then, sounding more like random shouts, as if she hadn't actually encountered any danger.

This left the three of them somewhat puzzled.

Driven by curiosity, they finally saw what it was when they crossed a side road.

A girl, slightly smaller than Xiaoyao, was seen wandering back and forth in the dark cave, accompanied by a Cassie. She held a wooden stick in one hand and a flashlight in the other, muttering to herself as she went.

Seeing this, Xiaoyao couldn't help but whisper, "Why is she here all alone?"

"She must be lost, right?" Yami clearly noticed something. "Look, she's already appeared in the same place twice in just a short time. She obviously can't find her way out."

"Is that all?" Xiaoyao shook her head. "When I heard that sound just now, I thought she had been attacked by some Pokémon."

Just then, the little girl called out to the air again, "Is anyone there?! I'm lost, please help me!"

That's really true...

It has to be said that her actions were somewhat amusing, and one couldn't help but marvel at her carelessness. But thinking about it, it makes sense; when someone is lost in such a cave, they can only hope that someone will find them.

Seeing this, the group stopped hiding and stepped out from the side.

Their appearance immediately caught the girl's attention. She was startled at first, then quickly shone her flashlight on them. When she saw that they had actually helped her call for help, her eyes lit up!

Xia You and the others walked up to the girl at that moment.

Once we got closer, we could really see her attire clearly.

She looked to be about eight or nine years old, shorter than Xiaoyao by about half a head. She was quite pretty, with fair skin, and long red hair styled into two ponytails, one hanging down and the other tied in a loop. She wore a white velvet-sleeved shirt, red shorts, a large bow tied in front of her chest, white stockings, and red sneakers. She seemed to come from a relatively wealthy family.

Before Xia You and the others could speak, the girl shouted, "Great! Finally, someone's here!"

In a single sentence, her personality was revealed to be completely at odds with her quiet appearance.

Looking at her, Xiaoyao couldn't help but ask, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

The girl puffed out her chest: "My name is Mai, and like you, I'm a trainer. As for why I'm here... cough cough, of course, I'm here to catch some rare Pokémon!"

"Huh?" Yami asked in surprise, "You mean there are rare Pokémon here?"

“Well…” Mai’er’s face stiffened. “I haven’t found it yet, but this cave is so long, there must be one!”

Oh, so it was just a guess...

Xia You summarized: "So, not only did you not find any rare Pokémon, you also got lost?"

Mai stuck out her tongue shyly: "That's right, that's exactly it!"

You're quite bold in admitting it...

At this point, Mai'er belatedly asked, "Then why are you here?"

"Just like you, I'm here to catch Pokémon." Xia You said casually, then looked at the Abra beside her. "But don't you have a Psychic-type Pokémon? Why don't you let her use Teleport to take you away from here?"

“Oh dear, it’s complicated.” Mai waved her hand. “When we came in, we didn’t pay attention to our surroundings or use any GPS. Once inside, it was too dark and we couldn’t tell which way to go, so we tried to teleport out several times but couldn’t.”

I initially thought she was a brave trainer, but it turns out she's just an inexperienced and unlucky one...

But then, looking at her age, everything makes sense.

After all, it's already quite an achievement for an eight or nine-year-old girl to dare to travel alone and survive; she shouldn't be viewed with normal standards.

Giving a thumbs-up, Xia You pointed behind her and said, "Alright, we're going out now. Do you want to come along?"

“Of course!” Mai exclaimed excitedly. “I’ve been wandering around here for hours, and I don’t want to stay here for another second!”

Shaking her head, Xia You turned back first.

With his rich experience and memory, this not-so-complicated cave could not trap him at all.

Under his guidance, the four of them, protected by several Pokémon, retraced their steps and returned to the cave entrance in just over ten minutes.

This greatly impressed Mai'er.

During their journey, she learned the names of Xia You and the others through casual conversation, and that they were traveling companions, which sparked her interest.

"Hehe." Reconnecting with the outside world, she closed her eyes for a moment, feeling the breath of nature once more. Then, turning to Xia You with a smile, she said, "If you ask, I'd be happy to travel with you!"

Unexpectedly, Xia You only glanced at her before decisively refusing.

"Forget it, I'm already exhausted from traveling, I don't want to take care of a little kid on top of that."

Chapter 967 Arrival at Black Gold

Because she had played the game, Xia You knew that whether it was Yami or Mai, they were both partner trainers.

There are five so-called partner trainers in the game. They are male and female, young and old, and they don't know each other. To put it simply, they are partners who can travel and battle with you.

Even in the anime, these five people appeared, and they even acted with Ash and his friends for a period of time.

This allowed Xia You to recognize Mai'er's identity after a deeper conversation, even though she didn't realize it immediately.

But as he said, games are games, animations are animations, and this is the real world. He simply doesn't have the extra energy to take care of a companion who is too young and weak.

Most importantly, with the addition of Yami, his team was already at full capacity.

In the end, Xia You still took Mai'er with her to Black Gold City for the time being.

There was no other way. Neither Xiaoyao nor Yami could stand by and watch such a little girl be left here alone. Therefore, after discussing it with Xia You, they agreed with his idea of ​​not wanting to add more companions, but they still unanimously decided that Mai'er could be taken to Black Gold City first, and then they would decide whether to let her stay or leave.

With Mai'er joining them, their journey became even more lively.

Her mouth seemed to have endless things to say, never stopping. First she chatted with Xia You, then with Xiao Yao, then with Ya Mi, and finally with Xia You again, repeating this cycle endlessly. Even when the three of them had nothing to say to each other, she could talk to herself for a long time.

It's clear that traveling with other people has brought her a novel experience.

No wonder she became a partner trainer.

……

Black Gold City, a coal mine city blessed with abundant natural resources and brimming with energy.

Originally, there were only a few taverns and bathhouses built here, just to allow miners to rest after their hard work. But with the establishment of supermarkets, banks, hospitals and schools, the area has grown larger and larger, and has become what it is today.

Before even entering Black Gold City, a towering, massive mountain peak could be seen in the distance.

The mountain is tall and majestic, seemingly shrouded in deep blue, piercing the clouds. At its foot, surrounded by lush forests and lawns, the outline of a steel city can be seen.

After rescuing Mai'er and traveling for more than a day, the four of them finally arrived here. They stood on a hillside and gazed at the heavy industrial city from afar for a long time.

It has to be said that even with environmental protection measures in place and the surrounding area covered in greenery, the peculiar smell has only become stronger.

Just then, with a whistle, a train loaded with coal departed from the city, crossed a steel bridge, and headed off to other places.

Sinnoh's industrial lifeline...

With a sigh in her heart, Xia You called out to the people around her, then walked down the hillside and headed towards the Black Gold City.

When they walked onto the lawn, they discovered that it was covered with countless ventilation openings protruding from the ground, extending all the way into the city, which looked quite out of place.

When they passed by a ventilation vent again, Xiao Yao couldn't help but ask, "Brother Xia You, what are all these things for?"

"I know! I know!" Before Xia You could speak, Mai'er interjected, "There are many underground factories beneath Black Gold City, and these are used to exchange the underground air with the fresh air above ground!"

"Huh?" Xiaoyao's eyes widened. "I didn't expect you to know so much at such a young age!"

Mai raised her head: "What's the big deal? I already found out when I came here the day before yesterday!"

"What?" Xia You, Xiao Yao, and Ya Mi all turned to look at her. "You came here the day before yesterday? Then why did you come back to us again?"

Unexpectedly, Mai turned to look at them and asked, "Didn't you bring me here?"

Xia You: ! ?

Xiaoyao: !?

Yami:?

Seeing the three people's confusion, Mai smiled and said, "Actually, I just left Black Gold City the day before yesterday. I was originally going to Eternia City, but I happened to come across that cave on the way, so I went into the cave to look for rare Pokémon. Then I got lost and met you guys."

Upon hearing this, Xia You and the other two immediately sensed something was wrong.

"You mean..."

Mai nodded: "I was originally going to Baidai City, but I didn't expect you to bring me to Black Gold City."

Xia You: ...

After a long pause, Xia You turned to look at Xiao Yao and Ya Mi.

"Didn't either of you ask her where she was going?"

Xiaoyao and Yami shook their heads in confusion at the same time: "We thought you asked."

Xia You: ...

He was both helpless and speechless, never expecting to make such a huge blunder!

He looked at Mai in disbelief, his brows furrowed: "Since you went the wrong way, why didn't you say so?"

"You didn't ask me! Besides, I think it doesn't matter where we go on a trip!"

Ok……

This was their oversight, and of course, it was also a problem with Mai's own personality.

But since it had already happened, there was nothing else he could do but feel a pang of regret and take her into Black Gold City.