"Why?" Mark asked without thinking.
"To the east, the mountains are higher and the forests are denser. Also, I want to visit Mt. Pyre!"
"Mt. Pyre? I heard a bit about it back when I was in Hoenn. It's supposed to be a famous Pokémon graveyard, where many Trainers bury their deceased Pokémon."
Joseph spoke while recalling. He had once stopped briefly in the Hoenn Region, and had the good fortune to catch a Kirlia.
"Grave... graveyard?" Mark's face turned pale beside them, full of expressions like 'I can't do this, I don't want this, I refuse!'
"Yeah. A lot of Ghost-type Pokémon live there too. I want to take Gengar for a look around. Maybe we'll gain something from it."
Sato pretended not to see Mark's refusal, wearing a look that said he had everything already planned.
"I don't mind!"
Joseph, ever agreeable and laid-back, made Mark's face go even paler.
"How about we go south instead? Look here, Slateport City! Sun, beach. It's great! Don't you think so, Joseph?"
"Yeah, that sounds nice too." Joseph nodded, secretly laughing to himself.
Sato glanced at Mark and casually said, "Are you afraid of ghosts?"
"No way!"
"Not afraid?"
"Not at all!"
"Really?"
"Re... really!"
"Alright, then it's Mt. Pyre."
"Alri... huh!"
Mark's raised right hand froze in the air, and he forgot to lower it, just staring blankly at Sato.
How had he gotten looped in by just a few sentences? Oh no, they were going to a graveyard? This was awful...
---
The next day, the three packed their bags and left the hotel early, officially heading toward Mt. Pyre.
Seeing the look of despair on Mark's face, Joseph kindly tried to console him.
"It'll take about half a month to reach Mt. Pyre from here. The mountains are steep and the road is long. It won't be easy."
"Half a month?!" Mark was stunned, but then immediately relaxed and brightened up again.
Sure enough, simple-minded people are not only easy to fool but also never worry about the future in advance.
Happy today, worry tomorrow!
After leaving Mauville City, they headed east and traveled for half a day before reaching a small port.
The port was about the size of a marketplace, with a few scattered ferries swaying idly at the docks, unattended.
From the port, they could vaguely see a long, narrow stretch of land across the water. None of the ferries were long-range ships; they were only used to ferry people between the two sides.
The three of them bought S.S Tickets for the next available departure and boarded the ferry right away.
The distance between shores wasn't far. The ferry would take about two hours to cross.
Sato released Sharpedo into the sea. Having not seen the ocean in a long time, Sharpedo was extremely excited, leaping and diving all around the ferry!
Its massive size startled the captain, who thought a whole school of Sharpedo was coming to attack the ship.
"Kids these days are unbelievable… so young and already so powerful."
The old captain steadied the wheel and sighed as he watched the mighty Sharpedo.
Judging by his look, it was clear the captain was someone with stories of his own.
Joseph busied himself preparing food for the Pokémon. Altogether, the three had eleven Pokémon, and feeding them daily took a considerable amount of supplies.
Moreover, most of Sato's Pokémon were physically robust and consumed even more due to high energy use.
Especially now that Sato didn't have to prepare every meal himself, it gave him more time for training instead.
In addition, Joseph was also responsible for treating the Pokémon's injuries, recording their growth, doing regular check-ups, and so on.
So, an outstanding Pokémon Breeder really is in high demand!
Whether it was Wester or Joseph, Sato had traveled alone with both of them before. He knew very well what a difference having a Breeder made.
As for Mark, under the astonished gaze of the captain, he kept reeling in Pokémon that even locals in Hoenn considered precious!
Horsea, Luvdisc, Corphish; those weren't even worth mentioning. Huntail and Gorebyss were still somewhat acceptable, since it could be chalked up to luck.
But that one just now… wasn't that a Milotic?
"Hey! Milotic!"
'Why did that bird's nest head just marvel at it for a moment and then let it go? A Pokémon that so many Water-type Trainers dream of, and he just... let it go?'
The captain clutched his chest and decided he couldn't look at bird's nest head anymore. Otherwise, his heart wouldn't take it.
Sato was also watching this unfold. He could tell that Joseph clearly had a strong desire to catch it!
Mark might not have known just how rare Milotic was, which was why he didn't capture it.
But among the Pokémon he had fished up, there were several that were rare and strong even in Johto, like Horsea and Corphish.
And from start to finish, Joseph had only ever had one Arbok. When it came to catching more, he always avoided the subject, which made Sato curious.
After thinking it over for a while, Sato decided to intervene. After all, as the team's mascot, he still had to show some care.
"Hey, Boss Sato, if there's any Pokémon you want to see, just say the word! I'll fish it up for you!"
Seeing Sato sit down beside him, Mark thought he wanted to catch something and eagerly volunteered.
"Why don't you catch a few yourself?" Sato asked directly, getting straight to the point.
"Huh? Nah, forget it. I've got Arbok and that's good enough! It's super reliable!" Mark shook his head like a hyper Growlithe and even took the chance to praise the sleeping Arbok beside him.
"Cha-cha?" Arbok raised its snake head in confusion, it seemed it heard its Trainer call it handsome!
Heh, so proud!
Arbok shifted its body, rested its head in Mark's lap, found a comfy position, and went right back to sleep.
It was hard to imagine such a vicious-looking Arbok being this clingy, on par with an Umbreon.
"No, you do want to catch Pokémon." Sato's firm tone made Mark pause in the middle of his "cast".
Sato didn't push. Mark silently lowered his head, set the rod on the stand, and gently stroked Arbok's large head.
"I want to… but I'm scared." Mark murmured, his voice drifting, clearly lost in memories.
Just then, Joseph had just about finished his work. Seeing the two sitting side by side, he curiously came over.
"Joseph!"
Joseph waved a hand to say there was no need to be so formal, then sat down on Mark's other side.
"When I met it, it was just an Ekans. But to catch it, both it and I nearly lost our lives!"
Sato and Joseph both froze for a second. Could this be… capture trauma?
"But luckily, I did catch it. But when I tried to catch a second Pokémon… it was a Hoothoot…"
Mark paused for a long while before slowly continuing, "There was an accident. I was seriously injured, and Hoothoot… died."