Pokemon: My Trainer Simulator-Chapter 523 - 394: Dragon’s Heart_2

"Alright!"

Alice nodded, leaving only the Fraxure, which looked like it was wearing green armor, by her side, while the rest were withdrawn into her Pokeballs.

She had previously checked her Pokémon’s condition; they mostly had minor injuries, none as severe as the Emolga with a fracture, clearly the Emolga was just a bit unlucky.

However, just as they were about to set off.

Baimu was surprised to see Alice walking in a different direction, "Where are you going?" 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Uh, isn’t the Phantom Tower in that direction?"

Alice pointed a finger.

"Of course it’s not, you’re heading in the completely opposite direction." He helplessly picked up his phone, "Do you see the red dot on the screen? That’s where we’re supposed to be heading."

It seems that everyone who travels with Ash Ketchum has a lost sense of direction attribute. It’s one thing to be directionally challenged, but not using a map or checking your phone? That’s just something else.

Alice sheepishly scratched her head, "This..."

"Alright, let’s hurry, unless you want to spend the night in the desert."

Baimu took the lead and walked ahead, with Alice and Fraxure following closely behind.

——

In reality.

Their location wasn’t far from the Phantom Tower; it only took them about two minutes to get there.

"Please, Steelix."

Baimu patted Steelix’s body, quickly retreating to give it space to work.

"Roar!"

Steelix roared, spinning its massive steel body to create a terrifying sandstorm, swiftly covering an entire area ahead.

Amid the haze, the towering Phantom Tower appeared.

Baimu didn’t rush in, instead, he extended his hand towards Alice, "Can I borrow your phone?"

"Huh? Oh!"

At first, she didn’t catch his words, but after he repeated them, she handed over her phone.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Baimu got the phone, he tossed it directly into Steelix’s open mouth.

Alice and Fraxure’s eyes widened.

"Once we get inside and grab your luggage, I can call Steelix to open the door. This way, we don’t have to worry about exhausting Steelix’s power."

He shouted the explanation.

Alice suddenly understood, "Got it! Wait, are you going inside too?"

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, not going in would be such a waste!" Baimu laughed and shouted, running towards the Phantom Tower.

Alice, who always thought he was reliable, stood there dumbfounded.

Soon after, she briskly followed, unable to resist shouting:

"You’re supposed to be an adult—so childish!"

"Roar!"

Fraxure responded in agreement.

In no time, they found themselves inside the Phantom Tower.

Sunlight streaming through the cracks in the stone illuminated the surroundings—a wall connected to the ceiling was in front of them, with long corridors extending left and right.

"Where’s your luggage?"

Baimu turned to ask Alice who had followed him inside.

"At the top floor."

"Huh? How did it end up on the top floor?" He looked puzzled.

Alice explained, "Because Gible accidentally fell into a trap while it was fighting the Pokémon Stone Statue. When I chased after it, I also accidentally fell in, and then we kept falling until we reached the bottom floor."

Following that was the brief story of them trying to get back up, only to find the Pokémon Stone Statue from the top floor chasing them, and then suddenly the elusive main door opened.

"Falling into traps..."

Baimu looked up at the ceiling, which was somewhat dim due to the lack of light. Shining a flashlight revealed spider web-like cracks in some areas.

But according to what Alice said earlier, these falling traps would automatically repair over time, just like those Pokémon Stone Statues.

Suddenly.

The door behind them disappeared.

As if it had never existed.

Baimu turned and felt the thick earthy wall, asking, "Have you tried breaking the walls?"

"We have... but they can’t be broken at all."

Alice sighed and shook her head, with Fraxure nodding along.

"Try it again now."

Baimu moved a little to the side.

Alice didn’t hesitate and directly commanded, "Fraxure! Use Dragon Claw!"

"Roar!"

Fraxure raised its claw, enveloped with a glowing green light, and fiercely struck the earthy wall, causing a burst of dust with the energy explosion.

As the dust settled, it was clear that only small scratches were left on the wall.

Alice remarked, "See, it can’t be broken."

"..."

Baimu frowned slightly, pulling out a Pokeball and opening it.

Bam!

A flash of white light.

Mawile landed on the ground, "Chii~"

"Mawile? It’s so cute! The red ribbon is so pretty~" Alice was immediately captivated by its appearance, trying to reach out and hug it.

Unfortunately, Mawile cleverly sidestepped, firmly refusing the act.

A celebrity cannot be hugged by strangers!

Ever since it learned how popular it was, it dropped the "Lady" title and sees itself as a "celebrity," though it still resists learning how to read.

It seems determined to remain illiterate.

Baimu didn’t notice Alice’s disappointed look and tapped the wall, "Help me take it down, use Sword Dance and Iron Head."

"Chii!"

Mawile understood, spinning in place to boost its physical attack, then suddenly swinging its massive jaw that emitted a silver light, striking the wall like a heavy hammer!

Thud!

The deafening sound scared Alice and Fraxure, causing them to jump back. The terrifying force shook the ground, and dust swirled everywhere.

"What’s going on? What’s going on? An earthquake?"

She nervously repeated, unable to believe the cute Mawile had such destructive power.

Fraxure was similarly astonished, its mouth agape.

Then.

A gentle breeze dispersed the dust, revealing Mawile and Baimu.

The latter was standing before the cracked wall, poking and prodding at it.

But after a long while, nothing could be pried loose.

"The wall can heal itself too..."

Baimu observed the sand and gravel filling the cracks like a living thing, feeling a bit of trepidation as the phenomena in cartoons and ancient ruins were quite mysterious, with no clear explanation for how they occurred.

If not for the backdrop of a perfect pseudo-utopia, the cartoon world wouldn’t seem any more structured than the special episodes.

Alice didn’t seem frightened at all, even when trapped before, she wasn’t scared. She simply waved at Mawile, "Hello~"

"Chii..."

Mawile glanced at her and decided to keep a distance from this peculiar human.

Realizing she’d been rejected, Alice sighed with regret but responded listlessly to the mention of setting off and leading the way.

"What’s wrong with her?"

Baimu asked in surprise.

Fraxure and Mawile shook their heads together, expressing they didn’t know.

As they proceeded forward.

They soon arrived safely at the staircase. The broken steps appeared difficult to navigate but were sturdier than anticipated.

According to Alice, on the second floor, Pokémon Stone Statues and falling traps would appear, with the former hidden within the walls, suddenly emerging and launching relentless attacks.

Baimu noted, "Sounds a bit like gargoyles."

"Gargoyles?"

"A fictional creature from film and television, not a Pokémon and doesn’t exist."

"Film and television? Do you mean movies? I love watching movies!"

"You could say that."

The two chatted idly as they reached the second floor. Like the first, the light through the cracks gave a faint illumination, but visibility was still low.

Baimu shone his flashlight ahead, revealing many cracks on the ground, likely the falling traps Alice mentioned.

But to be honest, these weren’t really threatening. You could safely pass by riding on Hydreigon and Dragonite. The key was how the Pokémon Stone Statues would appear.

If there are mechanisms, there are likely triggering conditions.

Temperature, sound, even light and so on...

"It’s too complicated, let’s just go through directly."

Baimu gave up on figuring out the puzzle, feeling he could just use Aggron and the others to power through.