Chapter 152

As Lillie pondered this, a smile involuntarily appeared on her face, but immediately, she trembled and looked shakily behind her.

Something soft landed on her shoulder, startling her so much she almost jumped out of her skin.

"It seems she quite likes you."

Mei chuckled at the scene before her. The one with its body draped over Lillie's shoulder was undoubtedly the Nihilego that Lillie had brought with her. At this moment, Nihilego looked as if it were Charm with Lillie.

"No... don't rub against me like that, I know... I'll go out with you more often in the future."

Lillie still seems a little afraid of interacting with Pokémon, but she's much better than she was at the beginning.

"Can you understand what she's saying?"

Mei looked at Lillie, who seemed to be communicating with the Nihilego, with some surprise. If she remembered correctly, this was the first time Lillie had commanded this Nihilego, wasn't it?

Moreover, Nihilego, being Ultra Beast, speaks in a way that even Pokémon themselves cannot understand.

"Hmm... if it's Nihilego, I can understand."

Lillie nodded, though she didn't know why, but she could understand Nihilego's language.

Lillie's eyes flickered slightly.

Perhaps... it's because of what happened before.

Section 293, page 289: [I'm Getting Better]

Lillie and Mei were out fighting monsters, while Qiao Ran at the Pokémon Center took another day off to relax.

As time went by, his condition gradually improved.

But there was one thing that had always puzzled him.

"How strange, why is the reward still loading?"

After completing the Singularity mission, Qiao Ran usually receives some rewards, but this time it seems to be a little different from usual.

Qiao Ran held Rotom in his hand, staring at the progress bar that had just reached "32.45%", and fell into deep thought.

Is this time something special?

Or is it because he's not in good health right now?

"Never mind, as long as this world exists, that's enough."

Qiao Ran stretched and yawned, seemingly accepting the situation.

After witnessing the Unova League, his thoughts subtly changed. At the same time, it served as a wake-up call, making him constantly vigilant.

"Master, would you like some water?"

"Thanks."

Qiao Ran accepted the tea from Suicune, thanked him, and then added, "You don't have to keep giving me water, I've already drunk more than ten cups today..."

Due to his health condition, Qiao Ran did not leave his room all day, and Suicune stayed there the whole time, constantly bringing Qiao Ran water.

Qiao Ran was terrified of her water.

Faced with Qiao Ran's complaints, Suicune replied with a serious expression, "Water is the source of life. As long as Master drinks more Scald, he will definitely get better soon."

This wasn't some personal interest of hers, nor was it an attempt to feed Qiao Ran incessantly; she simply hoped her master would recover quickly.

That's it.

Hmm.

Qiao Ran didn't know how to answer for a moment, but still took a sip of the tea in her cup.

Despite saying he had drunk too much, for some reason, the water that Suicune handed him was indeed quite delicious, and it had a special flavor compared to the water outside.

I don't know what method she used to do it.

Delicious.

Qiao Ran held the teacup with the Energy Root Levitate, blew away the Smokescreen, and looked out the window.

The world is so peaceful.

Despite having only rested in her room for two days, Qiao Ran already had the illusion that she was retiring.

... It seems pretty good??

Or, when I no longer feel like traveling, I could open a beverage shop or something in Longjiang.

Just as Qiao Ran was thinking this, the door to the room was suddenly flung open.

A woman with long, light blue hair appeared in front of Qiao Ran. She had a sullen face and an unfriendly expression. Behind her were Lillie and Mei, who both looked helpless.

"Today's operation is over, and nothing unexpected happened, so there's a victory celebration party for the Pokémon League tomorrow night. You should come too."

Yi Ruoyun walked to Qiao Ran's bedside and explained her purpose.

"Although you disobeyed orders midway through the battle and have been lying here doing nothing, you did play a role at the very beginning, and you did get up..."

No problem."

Qiao Ran couldn't help but mutter, "Is it only of some use...?"

"Otherwise what?" Yi Ruoyun glared at Qiao Ran.

"If it weren't for something that suddenly appeared that night and took care of most of the bugs, probably no one would have been able to save you."

Qiao Ran rolled her eyes. "..."

This guy still remembers this?

However, Qiao Ran himself did not intend to explain. When Yi Ruoyun asked him before, he explained that he had been teleported to an unfamiliar Forest and traveled for a long time with Pokémon before finding the exit.

That's why he was so exhausted that he fainted.

As for Lillie, she just happened to be passing by and brought him back.

Although Qiao Ran's reasoning was somewhat far-fetched, only he himself knew the true situation within that ring. His explanation was so far-fetched that it couldn't be verified, so whatever he said seemed reasonable.

Anyway, as long as Reshiram's affairs aren't exposed, it's fine.

After all, the more you expose yourself, the greater the risk. Such absurd things as Rose from Otherworld Substitute and Pokémon World from the Genesect world invading Hangcheng have already happened. Who knows what else this world is hiding?

Moreover, the power Reshiram unleashed that day would surely make even the people of this world envious—even if this world doesn't have the legends of these Legendary Pokémon, or doesn't understand these Pokémon, strength doesn't lie.

If they knew that such a powerful Pokémon existed, poachers would likely have designs on it, and trouble would follow one after another.

To avoid any accidents, Qiao Ran has always kept a low profile.

He not only has to be responsible for himself, but also for his Pokémon and the people around him.

He won't be too flamboyant until he has the strength to bear all the risks.

In short, it boils down to one word: "Stability".

"What about that Illuminate thing from that night? What conclusions has the Pokémon League reached?"

Qiao Ran asked indirectly.

"No, there are absolutely no relevant clues. However, there are some videos online that are not very clear, and many people have already taken it as a miracle or something." Yi Ruoyun sighed, recalling the scene she saw that night, and her heart was filled with mixed emotions.

Even though that thing made her spend an entire night squatting for nothing, she couldn't bring herself to hate it; on the contrary, she felt a little grateful to it.

"Although I don't believe in any gods, it's good that more people have been saved."

As she spoke, Yi Ruoyun glared fiercely at Qiao Ran again. "I'm not like you, who disobeys orders, takes risks, and then just slacks off the whole time."

"Ha ha ha ha."

Qiao Ran scratched his head, unsure of what to say in response, and could only manage an awkward laugh.

Qiao Ran glanced furtively at Lillie and Mei behind Yi Ruoyun and noticed that they were also looking at him with strange expressions, as if they were trying not to laugh.

Hey, don't look at me like that! I'm the victim here, okay?!

What exactly have I been protecting?

Qiao Ran silently wept.

However, the thought of the party that evening improved Qiao Ran's mood a little. Not only would the Gym Leader be there, but some of his old acquaintances would also be attending.

For example, Iron Maiden and her friends from the Jinling Gym, as well as Lillie and Mei, can also go along and experience the passion of the Trainer in this world.

That's great.

Watching Yi Ruoyun's departing figure, Qiao Ran took a sip of his tea. The dim sunlight streaming through the window shone on him, creating a harmonious picture of an elderly person enjoying their retirement.

This tea smells wonderful.

Section 294, page 290: [Can I do it too?]

The Pokémon League's victory celebration party is tomorrow night, so Qiao Ran has even more time to slack off.

As for Lillie and Mei, having fought monsters with the Pokémon League teams for so long, they were naturally invited as well. Moreover, judging from the respectful attitude of the other Trainer at the Pokémon Center, Qiao Ran felt that their status was definitely much higher than his.

After all, Mei is Trainer whose rank is below that of Elite Four Elite Four.

Reasonable.

But what about Lillie...?

"You mean... you want to train another Nihilego?"

That evening, Lillie approached Qiao Ran again and whispered something to him.

"Hmm... I think I've got a feel for it. Can I try it out?"

Looking into Lillie's bright, pitiful eyes, how could Qiao Ran refuse her? There were still many unused Nihilego in the Wild Area, and their strength was not bad; they just didn't have the corresponding Trainer.

Furthermore, even among Challenger Pokémon League Trainer, there's no rule that a team must contain different Pokémon. What if someone just likes to carry six Caterpie along?

However, Lillie's sudden change still caught Qiao Ran somewhat off guard.

... Is it because of Mei's influence?

Qiao Ran glanced at the girl holding Suicune's hand, asking questions incessantly, her face full of curiosity, and with a donut on her head, and understood.

As expected, the female lead is the female lead.

This passion for Pokémon even moved Lillie!

In Qiao Ran's heart

Suddenly, I had the feeling of an old father watching his daughter grow up.

He was truly pleased with Lillie's transformation.

"I'll take you to the Wild Area later. If you need any Pokémon, just tell me."

The current Wild Area already has quite a few Pokémon, and most of them are very familiar with Qiao Ran. However, no matter how familiar they are, they can't get even a tiny bit of Tokiwa Power from Qiao Ran, because some Pokémon are keeping a close eye on them.

Qiao Ran's Tokiwa Power is a resource that can be controlled.

"Th... thank you." Lillie whispered a thank you, she was quite afraid that Qiao Ran would refuse her.

"Why are you being so polite with me?" Qiao Ran didn't think he had done anything special. Besides, if Lillie wanted to train Pokémon, it would depend on the Pokémon's own choice.

In the end, he was just a matchmaker; the decision ultimately rested with Pokémon and Lillie themselves.

During their break, Qiao Ran took Lillie and Mei to the Wild Area.

Lillie already knew about this, Mei was pretty much aware of the truth as well, so Qiao Ran saw no need to hide it any longer and simply took them both with him.

However, Qiao Ran was still a little guilty. After all, his relationship with the Pokémon had become slightly strange, and if it were discovered, Qiao Ran really didn't know how to explain it.

Besides, these two girls accepted it way too quickly, didn't they?

Not even one person questioned his ideas?

"You even told me such an important secret..." Looking at the beautiful new world before her, Mei's big eyes filled with tears of emotion.

"Legendary Pokémon live alongside ordinary Pokémon, creating a vibrant and lively world. This must be what the Pokémon World should be like."

Perhaps it was because of Reshiram's arrival that the Wild Area gained a touch of ethereal reality. Qiao Ran couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he felt that compared to the original Wild Area, this place was more like a real world.

Everything became extremely reasonable and extremely real.

However, due to the intensity of the last battle, most of Qiao Ran's Pokémon were resting in their own places, so Qiao Ran's arrival this time did not attract much attention from the Pokémon. Only the enthusiastic Rotom and the Suicune, who was his Maid, stayed by his side.

"Rotom, take them to find Nihilego first. I'll go check on Reshiram. She was quite exhausted last time; I wonder how she is now."