Chapter 258

She likes Pokémon and people who love Pokémon.

"Should I give you a brief explanation or a more detailed one?" Qiao Ran asked.

"Of course I'll explain in detail." Cynthia couldn't help but roll her eyes at him. Was this guy asking a question he already knew the answer to?

Having read so many ancient scientific research documents, she wasn't afraid to discuss these things in detail. Besides, it was already evening, and she didn't need a little more time—at least, she was quite happy chatting with him.

"Then I'll start from when we first set foot on Ula'ula Island."

"Our first trip to Ula'ula Island started with a Buzzwole..."

At this time, on the Ula'ula Island, within the Aether House.

"What... what should we do, Mei? Qiao Ran hasn't come back yet!"

At the door of Qiao Ran's room, a bewildered Lillie held Mei's hand, completely at a loss for what to do.

"Just say he's Rest and resting, right? Just pretend he's really, really tired and resting..."

Mei also looked very troubled.

"I already gave that reason, but Acerola seems really worried about him and keeps wanting to go in and check on him. I'm about to lose her!"

Lillie was relatively easy to deal with other people, but Lillie was completely helpless against this Ghost Type Captain from Alola. Besides pleading and cajoling, she would also try to charm her. Most importantly, she was genuinely worried about Qiao Ran's situation, Lillie simply had no reason to refuse her.

"Little--Li--Li--Ai--"

Suddenly, just as Lillie and Mei were talking, Acerola's voice slowly drifted over from afar.

"Huh!" Lillie was startled. She was standing guard here to protect Qiao Ran's secret from being discovered, which was really hard work.

"Let me in, let me in! I'll definitely help you out. Qiao Ran hasn't even eaten dinner yet. If he doesn't eat properly, his health will definitely collapse."

Acerola approached Lillie and coaxed her for a long time, but in the end, Lillie looked troubled. Helpless, Acerola could only stomp her Stomping Tantrum.

"Why won't you let me in? I won't take him away... Humph."

She genuinely cared about everyone in the facility. When she heard that Qiao Ran had done what he did—closing a massive rift and averting a crisis that could have destroyed Alola —she took on the responsibility of caring for Qiao Ran all by herself.

Even though Lillie, Mei, and Mei would usually stay by her side, Acerola would also interfere.

It must be said, she is indeed very good at taking care of people. Although she looks like a child on the outside, she has already become a good... mother?

At least, seeing how she took care of other orphans, Lillie couldn't help but make that connection. During that time, Lillie also learned a lot from her that she didn't know before.

But now...

"No... we can't go in... we just can't go in!"

Lillie is almost in tears! Please stop asking me questions like this!

What... what should I do? The secret is really going to be exposed! It's really going to be exposed!

Finally, after a prolonged tug-of-war between the two, the door in front of them trembled slightly.

A man dressed in loose clothing stood in front of the two women, looking at the scene before him with a somewhat puzzled expression.

"Wait..."

What are you two doing???

At this moment, Qiao Ran was unaware that his appearance had prevented a potential confrontation. Upon seeing him, Acerola, who had initially looked unhappy, also showed...

A smile appeared on his face.

"Qiao Ran —So you're alright? Lillie kept stopping me; I thought something bad had happened..."

"How... how could anything have gone wrong..." Lillie's expression stiffened as she hurriedly offered an explanation.

"Eh--" Acerola couldn't help but mutter after hearing Lillie's explanation.

"I'm actually quite scared. It's like those movies where they secretly take someone for surgery, and then something goes wrong, so they keep stopping me from going in, afraid I'll see something strange... Actually, when someone is undergoing surgery..."

"This... this isn't a movie!" Lillie interrupted Acerola's ramblings. She was only stopping her to protect the secret; she had no ill intentions whatsoever.

Besides, the current Aether Foundation is a healthy and positive organization. Even if my mother did a lot of shady things in the past, things will definitely get better in the future.

"Alright, alright, stop talking now."

Qiao Ran wasn't quite sure what exactly happened between them, but it seemed rather complicated.

He rubbed his stomach; after wandering between several worlds for so long, he hadn't eaten anything, and by this time, he was starting to feel hungry.

"Um... do you have any food or anything like that here?"

Yes, there are. *3

Not only Acerola and Lillie, but even Mei next to them rushed to answer. Because of Qiao Ran's special circumstances, they had specially saved a portion of food for Qiao Ran at dinner, actually just for this moment.

Let's go to the Restaurant together.

Acerola jogged a few steps forward, then turned back and smiled at Qiao Ran.

"You look like you're recovering quite well; the children are really eager to see you."

The children Acerola mentioned were orphans adopted by the Aether House.

In the relatively underdeveloped Alola, there are many families who are unable to raise their children for various reasons, including some irresponsible parents. Aether House, as a welfare facility, provides temporary shelter for these children and homeless Pokémon.

Standing beside a group of children, Lusamine looked at them, feeling a warmth Lusamine had never experienced before.

In the children's hearts, she wasn't some scheming schemer; in their minds, she was simply their adoptive mother who had always been kind to them.

"The Aether House... thankfully I didn't shut it down back then."

Lusamine sighed. For her before, the Aether House was just a marginal project that could be dispensable. It was a necessary existence to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Aether Foundation, and through the Aether House, funds could be raised from all sectors of society.

However, it now appears that its function extends beyond that.

Lusamine has been spending a lot of time with the children every day lately.

However, children's interest doesn't last long in one place. After discovering that Qiao Ran and Lillie and the others had also arrived, the group of children swarmed around Qiao Ran.

"Older Brother Qiao Ran, which Ultra Beast is the strongest? Is it as strong as Pokémon?"

"Older Brother Qiao Ran, did you really send hundreds of Ultra Beast flying back then?"

"Nonsense! There aren't just a few hundred, there are definitely several thousand!"

"It's not just a few thousand! There must be tens of thousands!"

"Hahahaha."

Looking at this group of overly enthusiastic children in front of her, Qiao Ran didn't even have time to eat. Not only that, she wondered where they had heard their stories; their boasting about themselves was a bit too much, wasn't it?

If there were really thousands or tens of thousands of Ultra Beasts, they would just devour him whole. How could he possibly fight them?

"I estimate there were only about one or two hundred in total? Anyway, I wasn't the only one fighting the Ultra Beasts back then; they also helped me a lot, as did Lillie's brother Gladion... I wonder how he is now."

Qiao Ran tried his best to answer the children's questions. Boys seem to have a natural interest in comparing battle power levels. After talking for a while, they started discussing the strength of several Trainer. For example, two of them even started arguing about whether Qiao Ran or Modan was stronger.

The other little girls were much gentler, only asking some more serious questions, such as the Pokémon Qiao Ran used and his favorite Pokémon.

"The Pokémon I used back then... were Yveltal, and Reshiram, I Latias."

"Pfft." Modan, who was lying on the sofa, was drinking water when he couldn't help but spit it out.

What... thing?

Are you kidding me with this team composition?

He was quite old, and had served as International Police all over the Pokémon World. He only retired to this tiny Alola as a local police officer after a period of disillusionment. In his experience, such an outrageous team configuration was unheard of, even by those super Pokémon that intimidated entire regions.

The criminal organization, by pooling all its technology and resources, was able to briefly control one of its Pokémon.

Is this a joke?

"My favorite Pokémon... um... I actually like them all."

On the other side, Qiao Ran was still answering the child's questions. If he had to choose his favorite Pokémon, he definitely wouldn't be able to. He would cherish the time he spent with any of his Pokémon. After all, being able to come to this world and experience all of this was something he couldn't have imagined before.

"Um... why have you become so powerful? You look... so much younger than Uncle Modan..."

A little girl with pigtails timidly stepped forward and asked in a low voice.

Modan: "..."

Why do they have to mention my name in this way when I wasn't even there?

"If you love Pokémon, you will become stronger."

Qiao Ran held up one finger.

"That's a quote from a Pokémon League Champion. Now, I'm secretly telling you all about it."

Sometimes, all it takes to ignite hope in a Trainer's heart is a single sentence; at least, that's what Qiao Ran thinks.

I love Pokémon.

He sensed this belief from one of his favorite Champion, and he deeply identified with it.

"This is very important, so don't tell anyone else, just keep it to yourself."

Liking someone isn't something you can just say casually; it's something you do consistently. Looking at the group of children standing there, seemingly lost in thought, Qiao Ran didn't know how much they had actually taken in. At least they understood some of it... As long as he said those words, they had already had some value.

While the children were thinking, Qiao Ran also took the opportunity to quickly eat a few bites of food. He had been traveling through several worlds without time to rest, and now that he finally had something to eat, he was being chased by a group of people asking him questions. He was actually having a tough time.

He's about to starve to death if he doesn't eat something soon.

Do you like Pokémon...?

Nestled on the sofa, Modan stroked his Meowth while chuckling softly. To say something like that, he truly deserved to be someone who could fight alongside Legendary Pokémon. At least, he himself couldn't possibly utter such cheesy words.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Acerola, watching Qiao Ran wolf down his food, seemed to have a thoughtful expression on her face.

She didn't know much about Qiao Ran. She had only met him once before, and then heard Lillie and Mei's comments about him. In their words, Qiao Ran was like a very, very good person. However, after seeing him interact with the children today, Acerola truly felt that she had gotten a little closer to him.

"What you love is power..."

Did a Champion actually say that?

Which Champion is it?

Night.

The Aether House has quite a few rooms, and even after many staff members and children moved in, there are still some empty rooms. Therefore, Qiao Ran and Lillie each have their own rooms, and it's definitely impossible for them to live together.

With so many eyes watching in the Aether House, any slight movement will be known to everyone in less than half a day.

Moreover, since Lusamine and the others were also there, Lillie and Mei kept a slight distance from Qiao Ran. At least... in front of her mother, Lillie was still quite a traditional young lady and had to maintain some face.

If we want to meet at night, we have to sneak out.

"So, you all sneaked out at this time?"

Seeing several girls in their pajamas, with lights on, coming to his room in the middle of the night, Qiao Ran couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

"Shh—we can't do anything else at other times." Lillie wanted to find a chance to be alone with a few people, but there were just too many people here, and such an opportunity was hard to find. So, after thinking it over, she realized that this was the only time she could get such a chance.

"Yeah, do you think we want to do this?" Mei glanced at Qiao Ran with an unfriendly tone. She wasn't the kind of woman who would sneak into a man's room in the middle of the night.

"So, where did you go when you Disappearance?" Mei asked about Qiao Ran's previous movements. Lillie had even gone out of her way to cover for Qiao Ran for a long time, so there must be a reason for Qiao Ran's Disappearance.

"I just went to the Wild Area and then to the Real World."

Qiao Ran briefly explained what she had done, mainly mentioning some situations in the Real World to put their minds at ease. As for the Altaria suddenly Humanoid Transformation... well, we'll talk about that another time.

Besides, they might see it themselves when they get to the Wild Area, so he won't need to mention it.

"Sabrina is doing quite well too. Cynthia told me that she hasn't been staying at home these past few days, but has moved to the Gym instead, all for the Gym Leader Competition the day after tomorrow."

"This

"So fast?" Mei gently covered her mouth. So Sabrina was already competing for the Gym Leader.

As expected of the pride of Kanto, as expected of Miss Sabrina, she can become Gym Leader no matter what world she is in.

"We'll definitely have to go and support them then."