Thanks to N's efforts, Purrloin's condition gradually stabilized.
Liam helped as well, carefully bandaging several of the wounds on Purrloin's body. However, this was only emergency treatment. It could prevent the injuries from worsening, but if Purrloin was to recover properly, it needed professional care at a Pokémon Rescue Center.
With that in mind, Liam immediately set off toward the next city, Striaton City, together with N and Purrloin.
Striaton City was a major city, and there was no doubt it would have a Pokémon Center. More importantly, it wasn't very far from their current location.
Liam released Garchomp and recalled Empoleon into his PokeBall. Then he had N sit on Garchomp's back while holding the injured Purrloin.
He instructed Garchomp not to fly too high and instead skim close to the ground while moving forward. Liam himself activated his Speed Shoes and followed closely behind.
Fortunately, Garchomp deliberately slowed down enough for Liam to keep up.
Thus, Liam and Garchomp raced forward at full speed. After nearly half a day's travel, they finally arrived in Striaton City.
Striaton City was home to the first Gym in the Unova region and was also one of the largest cities in Unova.
As one of the region's major cities, it possessed many unique features. The Unova Trainer School was located there, and the city also boasted the largest urban park in the entire region.
The Striaton Gym itself was particularly distinctive. It operated as a restaurant during normal business hours while simultaneously accepting Gym challenges from trainers.
However, Liam's purpose in coming here had nothing to do with the Gym.
Upon entering the city, the very first place he visited was the Pokémon Center.
...….
"Phew... I'm exhausted..."
After running all that way, Liam was feeling more than a little tired. Once he saw Nurse Joy take Purrloin into the treatment room, he walked over to the waiting area and collapsed into a chair.
Turning his head, he noticed that N was still standing in front of the reception counter with a serious expression.
"N? You don't have to keep standing there. Don't worry—Miss Joy is here. Everything will be fine. Come sit down and rest for a bit."
However, N simply shook his head.
He didn't move at all.
"...So stubborn."
Liam sighed helplessly.
"Fine. Stand there if you want. In the meantime, let's see where Mewtwo has gotten to now..."
Muttering to himself, Liam took out the tracker and casually began operating it.
As the search radius gradually expanded—
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
The tracker suddenly sounded an alert again.
"Hmm?! There it is!"
Liam instantly sat upright and zoomed in on the location of the red dot.
"Distance: fifty kilometers. Location... huh? Dreamyard? What's that place?"
He clicked his tongue in surprise.
Without realizing it, he had gotten incredibly close.
Fifty kilometers was the closest Mewtwo had ever been to him.
Because he had been focused entirely on traveling these past few days, Liam hadn't checked the tracker often. He never expected that Mewtwo would end up so close.
But then...
He glanced at N, who was still standing nearby waiting anxiously for news of Purrloin.
A faint sigh escaped him.
After a moment's hesitation, Liam put the tracker away and leaned back in his chair once more, choosing to remain where he was.
...….
As expected, Nurse Joy's skills were impeccable.
Less than thirty minutes later, Purrloin's injuries had been treated almost completely. The only thing left was rest and recovery.
By then, the sky outside had already begun to darken.
Liam registered a room at the Rescue Center, planning to spend the night there with N.
Afterward, N carefully accepted Purrloin from Nurse Joy and followed Liam back to their room.
Since Purrloin still needed plenty of rest, N gently placed it on the bed and watched over it attentively.
Meanwhile...
Liam took out the tracker once more. To his surprise, Mewtwo hadn't moved at all during that time.
It was still in the place called Dreamyard.
This was extremely unusual. Mewtwo had never stayed in one location for so long before.
Something was clearly different this time.
"N, I have something I need to take care of. Nurse Joy will bring you some dinner later. Stay here and rest. I'll come back as soon as I can."
After carefully considering the situation while staring at the blinking red dot on the tracker, Liam finally decided to investigate the Dreamyard himself.
Purrloin was no longer in any danger, and N could take care of it.
This gave Liam the opportunity to handle his own business.
"Mm. I understand."
N replied without even turning around, his eyes remaining fixed on Purrloin.
"..."
Liam pursed his lips helplessly before turning and leaving the room.
After informing Nurse Joy of his plans, he left the Rescue Center.
Activating the Speed Shoes beneath his feet, he dashed off toward the east side of Striaton City.
The Dreamyard was located just east of the city.
With Garchomp carrying him across a forest, Liam eventually arrived at a vast stretch of ruins.
The area before him was filled with collapsed walls and shattered structures, as though it had once suffered a massive explosion.
Years had clearly passed since then.
Vines covered the walls, and the few remaining entrances were completely blocked by overgrown branches.
"Garchomp, use Dragon Claw."
"Grahh!"
Faced with the obstruction, Liam didn't hesitate.
Garchomp's sharp claws flashed through the air, slicing through branch after branch until a passageway was quickly cleared.
As the branches fell away, a sign that had been hidden beneath them gradually came into view.
Dream Mist Research Institute
A research facility dedicated to studying a new energy source known as Dream Mist.
"Hmm. Looks like the experiment failed."
Liam read the information on the sign and then looked around at the ruined buildings.
The conclusion was obvious. The experiment had failed, and the facility had been abandoned.
Incidents like this weren't uncommon in the human world.
Mewtwo itself was a perfect example.
Perhaps the reason Mewtwo had remained here for so long was because the place felt familiar to it.
"Let's go, Garchomp. Let's take a look inside."
Now that the entrance had been cleared, Liam stopped dwelling on the matter and stepped inside.
Garchomp immediately followed.
As soon as they entered the interior of the ruins, Liam spotted a huge circular structure.
The building no longer had a roof.
Only a ring of broken remnants remained overhead, clearly destroyed during the accident years ago.
The lower half of the structure was still largely intact.
Following the main entrance, Liam walked inside.
But only moments after entering—
"Grahh!"
Garchomp suddenly let out a low, warning growl.
At the same instant, streams of pink mist began drifting out from every corner of the building.
The mist spread rapidly, enveloping both Liam and Garchomp within moments.