Chapter 349

If he really had no way to deal with her... Qiao Ran would definitely have humiliated her.

This is so infuriating!

Mei's matter needs to be dealt with sooner or later, but now is clearly not a good time.

After chatting about important matters with Cynthia and the others all morning, Qiao Ran and the others were given a day to rest.

Anabel and the Lillie will continue to try to arrange a meeting with her. She'll be staying in Rongcheng for a while, so it shouldn't be too difficult. Cynthia has already set off, and as for Brock... he seems to need to rest a bit more before heading to Hangcheng to see the amnesiac "Nurse Joy."

For Qiao Ran and her friends, recognizing which Nurse Joy was Nurse Joy was practically an impossible task. But Brock was different; he was born with this ability. If he could recognize the area where Miss Qiao Ran worked, then he could probably specifically try to awaken her memories.

In the afternoon, besides wandering around outside, Qiao Ran and the others also tried to buy some new clothes for Ninetales. Mei and the others also helped out enthusiastically. As part of the evolution, Ninetales' previous children's clothes were obviously no longer suitable for her. Now, she needed more and more appropriate accessories.

Dianxi, Yveltal, and the others could only watch silently from the sidelines.

They probably can't understand what "evolution" really feels like.

However, when the Ninetales with its distinctive hair color appears in the human world and is presented to others, it still attracts attention even if it does nothing. Coupled with its slightly cold aura, it is simply a deadly weapon.

"No, this can't go on."

Along the way, Qiao Ran and his companions were stopped countless times by passersby, and their identities were recognized countless times.

This can no longer be called playing around; it's completely turned into a fan meeting.

Especially the Ninetales —that long, snow-blue hair is just too eye-catching!

"Everyone wore hats, and their faces were completely covered."

Qiao Ran had no choice but to resort to his last resort: having everyone change into thief-like Outfit. Although the feeling of wearing these things was not pleasant, at least... it was much better than being constantly recognized and interrupted.

"I think we should ask Sabrina to do our makeup when we get back." Mei also looked frustrated. As her fame grew, she felt increasingly restricted in her freedom of movement.

Although she didn't dislike having rumors with Qiao Ran, she wasn't the only one who would have such rumors.

"Mmm." Lillie and the others agreed. While gaining fame had indeed brought some benefits, the impact had been far too great.

"If only humans could have abilities like those in Mew, such as transforming into other forms."

Acerola couldn't help but say that Mew's abilities were indeed quite attractive to them at the moment, but if she had to say, Mew could only become Pokémon.

As for whether we can become human, that depends on Latias.

Although changing clothes is a bit of a hassle, everyone accepted the trouble in order to have a smooth trip outside and to buy some new clothes for Ninetales. As for the future, it will probably become a daily routine. For example, if you want to go out, you will have to change clothes.

Taking advantage of the opportunity to stroll around, Qiao Ran also brought up the matter of Ninetales being suggested to form a group with Altaria in the Wild Area yesterday. Surprisingly, the girls present all agreed with this idea.

"Ninetales's voice and other qualities are both excellent... If you have these qualities, becoming an idol star wouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Yeah, that was right just now too. Everyone else was staring at Ninetales. If it were me, I'd want to look at it a few more times too."

"If it were a human, they certainly wouldn't have this kind of temperament and feeling."

"Really... really?"

Ninetales- Tailed Fox was a little shy from the continuous praise, but under this barrage of compliments, Qiao Ran could clearly sense that she seemed to be genuinely interested.

Although her appearance has changed, Ninetales's every move is still as easy to predict as before. Qiao Ran doesn't even need to sense her thoughts; just by looking at her expression, he already knows what she's thinking.

That night, Qiao Ran and the others gathered together to play some games from this world. They were all young people with a strong desire to explore, and they were open to all kinds of games, including mobile games, PC games, console games, and even board games and tabletop role-playing games.

"It's about time we rested."

After spending the night with them, Qiao Ran felt it was time to go back to Rest. However, even so, Qiao Ran did not let his guard down. For him, the night was the most dangerous time, and those who were active at this time were all top predators.

Sure enough, after Qiao Ran returned to his room and had just finished showering and resting for a while, there was a knock on his door. Standing outside was Mei, with her long Mei down, cautiously peering out as usual.

... Will Lillie come too?

Or have they already discussed something in private?

Qiao Ran didn't know what they had discussed in private, but judging from the current situation, they had most likely reached a reconciliation.

"Qiao Ran, could you... um... come out for a moment?"

"...?"

Although it felt strange, Qiao Ran listened to Mei and went to the door with her.

"It's just that... I have something I want to talk to you about. Could we go for a walk together and clear our heads a bit?"

Mei placed her hands on her chest, her expression carrying a hint of melancholy that was completely out of character, as if she had encountered some unresolved knot in her heart, her face full of a look of wanting to say something but not daring to.

Could it be... because of what happened in the Pokémon World before?

Furthermore, since Cynthia will be coming here to go to the Unova Region with them later, Mei will probably be a little worried about what will happen then.

"Good."

Since it was Mei's invitation, Qiao Ran naturally wouldn't refuse. He wasn't some Corgi that was always jumping around; sometimes, chatting privately was naturally a good thing.

After all, not everything is suitable to be said in front of others.

Following behind Mei, the two arrived at the small lake near the Inn and walked along the path bathed in moonlight.

"Mei, you..."

As Qiao Ran walked, he talked to Mei, and gradually, he too became immersed in this peaceful moment.

However, he soon realized something was wrong. Not far ahead, a very familiar figure appeared, but when he turned around to look at Mei beside him, the person had already vanished from the spot.

This...

An overly relaxed state, and for

Mei's trust left Qiao Ran completely unaware of what was happening, but in fact—it still happened right before his eyes.

At this very moment, the girl standing in front of him, leaning against the lakeside railing, with the same sullen expression on her face as he was, was none other than Mei, the girl Qiao Ran had hated with a passion during the day.

"... Why is it you?"

"I was just about to ask you that, what are you doing here?"

The other party didn't seem to have anticipated Qiao Ran's appearance either, and she seemed to have been searching for something beforehand.

"... I came here with Lillie. She called me out and said she wanted to talk to me, but when I looked at the water, she was completely gone."

"And then I saw you..."

Mei still had that sullen expression on her face, but when she looked at Qiao Ran, there was a clear hint of scrutiny in her eyes.

"You guys wouldn't happen to be...?"

"What do you mean 'you guys'? I was tricked into coming here too, okay?"

Upon hearing Mei's account, Qiao Ran roughly understood what had happened. This method was exactly the same as Mei's before, and most importantly, he Mei had actually fallen for it!

Qiao Ran reached out and explained to Mei, who became increasingly speechless as she listened. Most importantly, she also heard something strange in his words.

"Wait, she even went into your room?"

"... Ah... um."

Realizing that she might have been somewhat imprecise, but having already said it, Qiao Ran could only nod in acknowledgment.

"And then you opened the door and let her in?"

As Mei spoke, she gave a cold snort.

"You must all already..."

"Hmph, why bother talking to you so much? Since there's nothing else, I'll head back now."

As Mei spoke, she realized the situation was somewhat complicated. After discovering it was just a prank, she no longer felt like chatting with Qiao Ran. The two liars had already run away, leaving the two of them, the victims, here. What were their intentions?

"Ah... um."

Qiao Ran roughly knew what Lillie and Mei were up to, just like when they led him to Mei's room last time. But what they completely failed to understand was that Mei's personality was such that she wouldn't listen to force.

The more you ask her to do something, the less likely she is to do it.

"Ding-dong."

Suddenly, Qiao Ran's phone rang. Qiao Ran picked it up and saw a message appear on the screen.

"What are you doing! Be more proactive!" -- Mei

Soon, another notification popped up with a ding-dong sound.

"Hurry up!" -- Lillie

A bead of sweat rolled down Qiao Ran's forehead. Wait, are those two still nearby? Are you still watching from the sidelines???

Qiao Ran closed his eyes and sensed for a moment. Sure enough, he could feel the presence of the two people next to a large tree nearby. It was obvious that they had already conspired together.

Ah, this.

Qiao Ran's body and even his expression froze on the spot. It seemed that these two guys were really not afraid of being betrayed by him. Even though they had lied to people, they had no intention of running away. Instead, they were watching the live performance from the sidelines!

"... What's wrong?"

Hearing Qiao Ran's phone ringing incessantly behind her, Mei stopped in front of her and looked at him with some confusion.

"Could something have happened?"

Although there were still some awkward things between her and Qiao Ran in private, she could quickly adjust when serious matters came up.

In fact, Qiao Ran didn't think there was any real "conflict" between her and him. Perhaps she just needed a "trigger".

"No... no, it's nothing."

Qiao Ran quickly put his phone away. Mei and Lillie hadn't been discovered yet, so they could still get away with it. But if they were discovered, he himself would probably be implicated.

"... Let's just go back like this."

"Hmm..." Mei's gaze swept across Qiao Ran's face. Although she didn't say anything, her keen senses allowed her to catch something that Qiao Ran hadn't noticed.

"All right."

The disappearance of Lillie and Mei did not cause Qiao Ran any concern; most likely... he already knew something.

Walking back along the lakeside path, this stretch of road is actually quite long, and it would take a considerable amount of time to walk. When they came here before, Qiao Ran and Mei chatted as they walked, talking about many interesting things that happened between them, and before they knew it, they had arrived here.

But when they returned this time, Qiao Ran Mei remained silent, as if whoever spoke first would lose.

"That..."

However, Qiao Ran couldn't resist and started talking to Mei first.

Most importantly—even though he turned off his phone's ringer, the phone in his pocket was still Earthquake wildly. The two guys still watching clearly had no intention of letting them go.

You guys aren't planning to hide in the woods and follow me the whole way, are you...?

"Can we chat for a bit... just about anything?"

"For example what?"

After walking for a while, Mei's spirits relaxed a little.

Lakeside at night

The scenery is beautiful. There is no more daytime hustle and bustle, and no more messy lights. The only thing reflected on the lake is the moonlight.

"For example... some things that happened during your adventures in Alola?"

"Didn't you challenge many Alola Captain and participate in many trials? A lot must have happened along the way, right?"

Qiao Ran was indeed interested in these things. After all, they rarely talked about their past, and even when they did, it was only in passing. If they could tell the whole story from beginning to end, it would probably be a good experience.

"What's the point of talking about that? It's all in the past."

"Just consider it a memory, you can just talk about it casually. If you become the Alola Champion in the future, you'll definitely have to sort these things out, right?"

"This..."

Mei blinked; what this guy said did seem to make sense.

What if she becomes Champion and can't remember her past adventures?

"Puff."

Seeing Mei seemingly deep in thought, Qiao Ran couldn't help but laugh. He didn't know if Mei was overconfident or genuinely believed it, but she seemed to be seriously considering what would happen after becoming the Champion.