Why is my Pokémon girl a bit strange?

Honestly, he didn't have much confidence. After all, if the time dragged on too long, the entire cave would be buried by rubble. Therefore, this battle could only be a swift victory to achieve the final triumph.

"If that guy wasn't here, I wouldn't have gotten this key... As expected of a League Elite Four member. My strength is still not enough..."

Qiao Ran reached his conclusion and rested his head on his hands behind his head. Recalling the events of the day, he gradually grew tired.

"Mmmph."

Especially thinking of Yi Ruoyun's lazy face, he felt even more drowsy. It was the strongest lullaby.

However, for some unknown reason, Qiao Ran, who was gradually falling asleep, felt that the space around him was getting more and more crowded, until finally, he woke up.

"...Holy crap!"

Qiao Ran sat up straight and looked at the pile of Pokémon lying around him in all sorts of disarray. He felt like crying but had no tears.

The humanoid Vulpix wriggled on his chest, Dianxi lay beside him, and the blue Suicune slept next to him.

My tent... My small tent is going to explode!

"Vulpix, Dianxi, you guys... Wait, why did Suicune come out too!"

"Awooo."

Suicune blinked its innocent eyes, indicating that it had opened the Poké Ball and come out. In Pokémon Pioneer Land, it was actually possible to connect to this world through a Poké Ball, as long as Qiao Ran didn't explicitly prohibit it.

"You've all become bad, even Suicune has learned bad habits."

Qiao Ran sighed deeply, his face full of disappointment.

Originally, only Vulpix and Dianxi liked to sneak out at night, but now Suicune had joined them...

Do I really need to get a bigger tent???

Section 26 026[New Town]

"Phew, it's so crowded, my head hurts."

After a night of cramped sleep, by the next day, Qiao Ran's entire head felt groggy. He didn't even know what had been pressing on his head.

And the sleeping postures of these guys were really bad. Especially Vulpix, he had to criticize it specifically. It was really ridiculous that its tail would pop out of its butt while sleeping.

There was no other way. Qiao Ran had to get up early and do some calisthenics by the river to slowly recover.

"Master, we'll continue along the river. We should reach the next town within today. Should we take a boat directly to Jinling from there?"

"Mhm, the standard of 100 Pokémon is almost complete. I can take care of the remaining water-type Pokémon on the boat then."

Drinking the nutritious porridge that Suicune had cooked for breakfast, Qiao Ran comfortably inhaled the morning air. After day after day of training, Suicune's cooking skills had gotten better and better. He believed that soon, she might even be able to make glowing dishes.

Moreover, Qiao Ran hadn't forgotten that their detour into the forest this time was specifically to collect flying and water-type Pokémon. The number collected had already reached over 80, so it was time to speed up.

Besides, they could also encounter some water and flying-type Pokémon on the boat. So, taking a boat along the water was indeed a very good choice.

After breakfast, Qiao Ran and his group walked along the river. Just as Rotom had said, they didn't spend too much time before reaching the next town.

"Zhenhui Town... Why does this name sound so strange? And the buildings here are so empty, is it because everyone has left... But the strangest thing is still this name, it's too weird."

Qiao Ran was browsing his phone map with his Rotom Phone disguised as a phone, but no matter how he looked at it, he felt that the name of this place was strange.

However, just as Qiao Ran was muttering to himself, a girl's voice came from beside him.

"You're the weird one, you look weird."

"...?" Qiao Ran blinked in confusion.

What the heck?

But when Qiao Ran turned his head to see what it was, he saw a girl with twin tails run past him. Before he could even see her face clearly, she had already darted into an alley and disappeared.

Qiao Ran was completely bewildered: "?????"

What is this? I'm just muttering to myself on the street, and someone talks back to me??

What's wrong with this town? Are all the residents expert straight men who can deliver punchlines?

Qiao Ran pouted helplessly. Despite the strange incident, he still couldn't figure out the origin of this so-called "Zhenhui Town."

It wasn't until he entered the Pokémon Center and started checking in that he finally understood the origin of the name.

"That's because a long, long time ago, a high-ranking official came here. When that official saw that the land here was barren, he commented, 'So barren,' and from then on, it was called Zhenhui."

The nurse at the Pokémon Center was helping Qiao Ran check in while introducing him to the local customs and traditions.

"That's really... quite arbitrary."

Qiao Ran's mouth twitched. What if that official had said something like "So yellow," "So white," or "So new" back then? Would they really have to call them by those strange names?

"Alright, check-in is complete."

The nurse smiled and handed Qiao Ran his ID card back. However, she mentioned something else.

"Oh, right. Actually, there's a Pokémon Performance Competition in our town tonight. Are you interested in participating? If you're an Adventurer, you should be interested, right?"

"Pokémon Performance Competition, huh."

Qiao Ran stroked his chin. Since coming to this world, he had actually heard of this type of competition. Although the name was unusual, it was actually a localized version of a Grand Festival. This competition didn't focus on the Pokémon's strength and power, but rather on the Pokémon's beauty and the ability to create beauty.

In simple terms, it's a Pokémon beauty pageant.

Although Pokémon battles are the absolute mainstream in this world, beauty pageants outside of battles are also an eternal classic. Many trainers who lack talent in battles have achieved remarkable results after transitioning into performers, and some top performers can even secure a place in the League.

Of course, those people can't compare to orthodox trainers, and they aren't really presentable in more formal occasions.

"Sorry, I'm already very tired from my travels, I might not be very interested in this kind of competition."

Qiao Ran thought for a moment and still chose to refuse. After traveling in the forest for so long, he really needed to rest. He would rest tonight, book his ferry ticket, and set off again tomorrow.

Besides, he was a man of iron resolve, how could he possibly participate in such a competition? He would rather be defeated by a Dratini in the gym than participate.

"I see..." The nurse showed a hint of regret upon hearing this. There weren't many outsiders in their town, and personally, she hoped that adventurers from outside could help boost the local aesthetic.

"The grand prize for this competition is thirty thousand yuan in cash... I wonder who will win in the end."

The nurse shook her head and went back to her work. However, she didn't notice that the moment she finished speaking, a strange light flashed in the eyes of the boy standing in front of her.

"Wait, the competition is tonight, right?"

"Huh...? Y-yes."

Seeing Qiao Ran practically lunging over the counter, the nurse was almost startled.

"Where is the competition venue?"

"It's in front of the Pokémon Center... the park plaza."

The nurse answered, her voice trembling as she looked at Qiao Ran's aggressive gaze.

However, she was also extremely puzzled. Didn't he just refuse...? Why was he suddenly so excited?

"Thank you, Nurse."

After hearing the nurse's answer, Qiao Ran dropped a sentence and, under the nurse's confused gaze, grabbed his room key and ID card, then jogged back to his room.

As soon as he entered the room, he opened a Poké Ball and called out his Pokémon.

"Heh heh, who wants to make big money with me tonight?"

Zhenhui Town wasn't a large town, so the Pokémon Performance Competitions held here were usually not strictly regulated main events. However, as one of the few local entertainment activities, tonight's competition had attracted quite a number of spectators.

It wasn't time for the competition to start yet, but a large crowd had already gathered in the plaza, waiting nearby and quietly anticipating.

"How is it, Dianxi? How are you feeling?"

Meanwhile, Qiao Ran had already submitted his registration materials to the competition organizers and successfully entered the backstage area. This time, he chose Dianxi as his partner, or rather, it was Dianxi's passion to participate in the competition that moved him. When she heard about the beauty pageant, Dianxi excitedly jumped up; her enthusiasm for this kind of competition was indeed the highest.

"Dian dian."

Upon hearing Qiao Ran's question, Dianxi happily spun around, indicating that she had no problems. She had considerable confidence in herself and believed she could definitely win.

"Alright, when we're on stage, we'll do this, then this, and then this."

After discussing skill combinations on stage with Dianxi in the lounge, Qiao Ran recalled Dianxi and left the backstage. Instead of waiting in such a stuffy place, he preferred to walk around outside. As for Dianxi, Qiao Ran sent her back to the Pokémon Pioneer Land to practice her skills with Suicune and the others.

Although Dianxi was full of confidence, to steadily secure the championship, they still needed a little preparation.

However, as Qiao Ran opened the lounge door and walked into the backstage corridor, he saw a familiar figure.

Familiar might be an understatement; he had seen her earlier today.

That petite figure, like an elementary school student, and those iconic twin black ponytails – Qiao Ran found the person very familiar. Wasn't this the little brat who had complained about him on the street and then ran away?

Although Qiao Ran hadn't seen her face at the time, based on her build and hairstyle, he was sure he wasn't mistaken. He hadn't expected... she looked quite cute.

However, unlike her casual attire back then, she was now wearing a very gorgeous black and white Lolita dress. If this wasn't the venue for a beauty pageant, Qiao Ran would have assumed she was playing some kind of cosplay.

"You're a contestant too? And can elementary school students participate in this competition?"

Qiao Ran wanted to strike up a conversation with her, or at least get some information about the competition. However, when the girl saw Qiao Ran, she just let out a cold snort.

"...Hmph."

After snorting, she huffed and left immediately, not even wanting to say an extra word to Qiao Ran.

Qiao Ran's expression froze. Why was this girl so similar to Long Jiangxue? Did I say something wrong again?

That shouldn't be it?

Qiao Ran touched his head and asked his conscience. He, Qiao Ran, said everything with a clear conscience and acted righteously. How could he possibly be mistaken about anything?

"I don't get it."

Qiao Ran shook his head and walked out of the backstage door. The atmosphere here was suffocating; it was better to go out for some fresh air.

The night deepened, and the bright moon began to shine. The plaza was brightly lit, illuminated solely for tonight's competition.

"Welcome! Welcome everyone to Zhenhui Town's monthly Pokémon Performance Competition!"

The elaborately dressed female host stood on stage and announced the start of the competition. Although it was just an internal town competition, the setup was quite grand.

"Due to the presence of a special guest tonight, who sponsored our competition out of her own pocket, the first prize for tonight's competition has increased to an unprecedented thirty thousand yuan! Who will capture the favor of the entire audience and win this amazing first place? Let's wait and see!"

"First, please welcome our contestants to the stage!"

The very beginning of the competition was the contestant introduction segment. In this segment, contestants didn't need to showcase their Pokémon, in order to maintain a sense of mystery for later parts of the show. During this segment, all the contestants just needed to get on stage and make themselves known.

Qiao Ran stood among them. However, looking at all the pretty, neatly dressed, cute girls around him, Qiao Ran still felt a bit out of place. Usually, in competitions like this, if there were ten contestants, it would be considered a lot if three of them were male.

Moreover, he was wearing a wilderness adventurer's tracksuit. Standing amidst a sea of dresses, he looked completely out of sync, as if he had just run out of a forest and casually decided to join a competition.

"Hello everyone, hello everyone."

However, to make a good impression, Qiao Ran followed the example of the girls next to him, smiling and greeting the audience.

The audience cheered, but Qiao Ran could clearly feel that they were deliberately avoiding looking directly at him. Or rather, when their gaze landed on him, it automatically skipped over.

Qiao Ran could only wave his hand, mentally expressing his feelings with a string of expletives. What was wrong with wearing a tracksuit to a beauty pageant? This was health!

The contestant introduction segment ended, and the host once again took the stage.

"Finally, let's welcome the judges of our competition! They are—the Mayor of Zhenhui Town! The President of the Zhenhui Town Pokémon Enthusiast Association! The Nurse at the Zhenhui Town Pokémon Center! And—"

The host shouted loudly, and the audience below erupted with an unprecedented, deafening cheer.

Was some huge celebrity about to appear?

"Let's welcome tonight's most important guest and the competition's sponsor! She is—the four-time champion of the Golden Crown Tournament, the third-place winner of the National Master-level Performance Competition, the Black Swan of the stage, the pride of our Zhenhui Town—"

"Miss Shi Yiyi!"

"ROOOOOAR ROOOOAR ROOOOAR!!!"

The audience's cheers drowned out the entire plaza, and the stage lights shone upon the judges making their final appearance.