You can try to leave now- but Hugh wants to see how good of a trainer you are, and insists that you battle him.  Unfortunately for you, it turns out that the Pokemon he wants to use, which he raised from an Egg, is the starter with a type advantage against yours!  Fortunately, both your Pokemon and his are only level 5, lacking the ‘elemental’ attacks they will develop later that actually grant them that advantage and disadvantage, so for now the fight is actually fairly even.

Generally just attacking constantly will give you a win- if things get desperate, don’t worry too much- the only real thing you lose out on by losing this battle is a hunk of experience, which you can pick up soon anyways by spending an extra couple of minutes running around in the tall grass.  Either way, the battle concludes with Russel surprised by how that differed from battling with wild Pokemon.  He brushes that off though, simply saying that he’s glad you’re ‘a Trainer [he] can count on’.... whatever that means.  With an admonition to get stronger, he says he’s heading off, and departs.

Bianca enthuses that both Pokemon tried their best, but you should be sure to train yours so that it gets stronger.  She then escorts you to the Pokemon Center, the two of you stopping outside it.  The blonde explains that the Pokemon Centers are all shaped and built the same, regardless of where you go, and takes you inside to show you around.  Each part of the Pokemon Center, the front desk, PC, and in-house Item Shop, is given a brief explanation- the last one comes with a fistful of Poke Balls so you don’t have to spend what little money you start with on such a basic supply.

With the initial offering given, Bianca heads out from the Pokemon Center, telling you to follow so she can show you how to use the Poke Balls she just gave you.

You’re set loose again, and can meander around and talk to the people in the Pokemon Center, and get some additional explanation of what there is to do here, if you feel you need it.  Eventually, it’s time to go- and as soon as you step outside to meet up with Bianca again, your mother and Hugh’s sister show up.  Your mom greets Bianca and notes your choice of Pokemon, then gives you possibly one of the most useful items to ever exist in a Pokemon game.  That’s right, now you’ve got Running Shoes.  Hugh’s sister then gives you a copy of the region’s Town Map which, while not nearly as useful as the Running Shoes, isn’t by any means a bad thing to have ahold of.

Bianca looks puzzled though- because you’ve been given two Town Maps!  Hugh’s sister explains that she wants you to give one to Hugh, who has apparently run off without his because there’s only one way to really go from Aspertia.