Chapter 353

This was evident when they went out together with Ninetales), and it seems that Nihilego could achieve a similar effect.

"Master, to the airport."

Qiao Ran called a car on his phone and prepared to pick someone up from the airport. Although Cynthia had told him not to be so polite and that she could come by herself, Qiao Ran felt that he should take the initiative.

"... After Cynthia arrives, we'll probably have to think about what to do next..."

"But..."

But will that Cynthia... actually decide to join their team?

Leaning back in the car seat, Qiao Ran felt a bit dazed. Even Mei and Mei could only be considered "future Champion" at best, and Acerola could only be considered a "future Elite Four," while Cynthia was a true Max-Level Expert.

Yes.

If she joins, I'm afraid Mei and Mei will have to train with her every day, right?

Recalling his battle with Cynthia, the difference in their strength was quite obvious. Although his strength had improved to some extent, Qiao Ran still didn't believe that he was now strong enough to Defeat her or even contend with her.

Most importantly, Qiao Ran still hasn't fully grasped the gap between Elite Four and Champion, let alone broken through it.

"Even greater power...?"

Qiao Ran clenched his fist silently. One day, he would reach that level too, and then he would have a six-on-six battle with Cynthia.

Finding Cynthia in the crowd after locating her in advance wasn't difficult. Although she wasn't famous in this world, her unique temperament and appearance were enough to draw attention.

However, seeing Qiao Ran suddenly appear in front of her, she couldn't help but say something.

"I've told you several times already, you don't need to come this time."

"I didn't have anything else to do, so I came here early to see you."

Qiao Ran looked at Cynthia. She hadn't changed much from before, but perhaps because she had been traveling a lot recently, she still looked a little tired.

"I'll take you to our Inn first. Mei and the others are there... Oh, and there's someone else there too."

"There's one more person?"

"Yes, it's Anabel, the one I told you about before. We showed her that document today, and now she..."

As they walked, they chatted about recent events. Although Cynthia hadn't been traveling with Qiao Ran and the others, she and Qiao Ran kept in touch frequently, so she was quite familiar with their movements.

"Unconscious? I don't know much about these things... If Caitlin were here, maybe she would have some ideas."

Cynthia had no idea about awakening or memories. Her best friend, the Unova Region's Psychic Elite Four, might have a solution. Unfortunately, he was still missing, and who knew where to find him...

"As for Psychic, Latias and Mew are helping, and I also asked Sabrina, but she said she doesn't understand."

"Ah..." Cynthia paused for a moment, then gave a somewhat apologetic smile.

"Then maybe I'm wrong... maybe humanity really doesn't have a solution."

"Fine."

Qiao Ran shook her head to indicate that she didn't care about these things. Sometimes, when she talked to Cynthia, she could tell that perhaps it was a side effect of being a scholar, but she was too strict with herself when it came to her words.

The two walked and talked, and Qiao Ran even tried to help her pull her suitcase, but he gave up the idea in the face of Cynthia's "smile".

Besides this, Qiao Ran seemed to have noticed something else.

"... It feels like a lot of people are watching this side... I think you should disguise yourself a little when you go out in the future, like wearing a hat and sunglasses like I do."

In order not to attract attention after going out, Qiao Ran had already put on considerable disguise before running away, but Cynthia was completely naked and running around outside.

Although she doesn't have the Pokémon World right now, her appearance alone is enough to attract attention!

If he attracts any more attention, his disguise will be ruined on the spot.

"I'm the same way in the Pokémon World. I'm not a movie star like Sabrina."

Cynthia seemed completely oblivious, but that was just how she always was.

"But you, you should be more careful about those things that were circulating online before, shouldn't you? You're public figures now, if any strange rumors about you surface, that account will be affected too."

"This... I'm already paying attention." Qiao Ran was speechless. He hadn't realized the rumors were so powerful. If this continued, it wouldn't be other people pairing him up, but rumors of him cheating on multiple people would start circulating.

While that may be true to some extent, it still feels a bit out of place in this world.

"So you'd better keep your distance from them. At least..."

Cynthia started to say something, but then shook her head and swallowed the rest of her words.

"Let's not talk about that now, let's get down to business."

She didn't come to Rongcheng this time to talk to Qiao Ran about these things. The situation in the Pokémon World was urgent, and every day that was delayed could increase the danger. That was why she was so anxious this time.

"Um... could you explain the transformation process, which is the condition for going to the Pokémon World, in more detail now?"

"Just consider it an introduction."

The transformation of Nihilego was at most an accidental discovery by Qiao Ran, but unexpectedly, it has now shown signs of becoming more and more widespread.

If

Cynthia really makes up her mind... then she'll probably have to ask Nihilego for help again...

Thinking about what happened last night, Qiao Ran's body trembled. Although he couldn't remember the specifics of some things, some feelings still lingered in his body. The most terrifying thing was that he could feel his connection with the other Nihilego was deepening. Unlike other Pokémon, as Ultra Beast, Nihilego seemed to easily develop a so-called "affection."

Qiao Ran already had a premonition that if the Queen continued to allow the other Nihilego to act this way, it would only be a matter of time before the other Nihilego Humanoid Transformation.

Then it won't just be one Super White-Haired One, but countless Super White-Haired One. Will he really be able to walk out of that cave alive?

They arrived at the Inn together around 10 p. m., which was probably not enough time to talk about anything. However, along the way, Cynthia Qiao Ran had come to fully understand Cynthia's will and thoughts.

She was truly determined to do it.

Currently, only Qiao Ran possesses the ability to travel to the Pokémon World, and she is willing to trust Qiao Ran's character. After observing and spending so much time with him, she still trusts this boy.

Qiao Ran has basically completed his task of picking up the people. Next, he just needs to let Cynthia meet with the others and have a brief chat. Meanwhile, on the other side, things seem to have taken a turn for the better.

The purple-haired woman, who had been lying in bed with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them and sat up, supporting herself on the bed.

"..."

She looked around at everything unfamiliar, yet seemed oblivious. Instead, she looked at her own hands and muttered something to herself.

"My name is Anabel..."

She has gradually come to remember everything.

"I am the Frontier Brain of the Battle Frontier... against Grand Duchess Anabel of the Battle Tower Tycoon..."

There were some things that even Qiao Ran himself couldn't have predicted, and when he and Cynthia returned to their familiar Inn room, they were indeed startled by the scene before them.

Anabel, who had been lying on the bed, sat up and rushed in front of the mirror, muttering incoherently things like, "Is this me?" and "How can this be me?"

The other girls watched with worried expressions, ready to step in and comfort the other girl at any moment.

"This..."

Cynthia blinked, clearly shocked. "Are you all usually... this special?"

"Master, we have done our best to treat her, but... it seems there's something wrong somewhere."

The red-haired Maid and Mew hung their heads in dejection. Although they did seem to remind Anabel of something, there was a subtle discrepancy at the most crucial point.

"She seems... to have no recollection of what happened in Alola."

"Can't remember anything about Alola?"

Qiao Ran blinked, indicating that she was deeply shocked.

Anabel lived in Alola for at least ten years. If she forgot those memories, what would be the difference between her and her past self suddenly transmigrating into the current body?

"Wait a minute... but it does seem pretty normal, doesn't it? Alola's memories were built up after Anabel lost her memory, so it makes sense that if she remembered her true memories, she would overwrite Alola's memories?"

But honestly, who would experience amnesia twice in a row, and then have different memories each time?

"... That sounds complicated." Cynthia, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but nod.

"But could you introduce me... who is this? She just called you 'master'?"

Cynthia pointed to the Red-Haired Woman standing in front of Qiao Ran. She recognized the flesh-colored cat-shaped Pokémon Levitate over there, but this person... she had never seen before.

Could it be that Qiao Ran's identity is similar to Caitlin's —the kind of person who, if they can't become Trainer, has to go home and inherit a fortune?

"Oh, she's Latias. Her ability to transform into human form is actually her special ability."

Unlike Qiao Ran's other Pokémon's "humanoid" Humanoid Transformation, Latias actually possessed this ability from the moment it appeared. In principle, it seems that light is refracted through some kind of feathers on its body, thus changing the image it appears to have.

However... the power of Pokémon cannot be judged by common sense. Logically, the illusion created by this light should not be able to change its shape or even produce a real sense of touch. But Latias is different. After activating this ability, not only did its size change, but it also produced a similar sense of touch. Is this really just an illusion?

In this world, perhaps only magic can explain magic.

"Latias? That Legendary Pokémon from the Hoenn Region? Indeed... I've heard that this Pokémon does have the ability to disguise itself with light, but in human form..."

Cynthia's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but glance at the Red-Haired Woman in front of her a few more times. However, the most important thing right now was clearly not that— Anabel was still muttering to herself while looking in the mirror.

"I..."

Is the person in the mirror really me?

I...

A person's life is constantly changing, and the body's natural metabolism will gradually eliminate things from the past. When this span reaches ten years, anyone would probably have doubts. For Anabel at this time, having regained her memories from ten years ago, it is probably not much different from directly traveling through "ten years".

"Why."

Faced with this situation, Qiao Ran didn't know how to comfort the other person, and could only place her hopes on Lillie and Mei, who were closer to her. As for Cynthia... she and Anabel weren't very close to begin with, and now she didn't know what to do.

Fortunately, Lillie and the others were very helpful. Perhaps because she still retained some memories of the "present," Anabel gradually calmed down after being comforted and persuaded by the others.

"... So... in other words... I didn't suddenly travel through ten years; I actually had amnesia, so I forgot all these things?"

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Anabel looked at the documents in front of her, her hands trembling involuntarily.

"Ten years... I actually spent ten years as International Police in Alola?"

"Yes, it's clearly written in the information, and we even met your senior in Alola, so he can testify."

Qiao Ran gave a serious answer, and perhaps because she had regained her original memories, Anabel's behavior and way of speaking were noticeably less "composed" than before.

It feels like I've come back to the past.

"..."

Cynthia stood silently watching from the sidelines. She really wanted to chime in and talk about her situation, but Anabel seemed to be in a tight spot, so she ended up stuck there, neither here nor there.

However, Anabel was clearly not in good physical condition after waking up. Before long, her eyelids started to droop. Latias and Mew seized the opportunity and Hypnosis her, ensuring her sleep quality.

"At times like this, it's best to let her rest more."

Latias used his Confusion to help the person to bed and carefully covered them with a blanket.

"Sorry... there must have been some problems with my and Mew's actions. If you were here too... the results would probably be better."

Latias did seem very remorseful. Although her actions had some effect, it clearly hadn't met her expectations. At least, the perfection she desired was definitely not like this.

"You've done a great job. If it were any of us, we wouldn't have been able to do it."

"Being able to regain past memories... even if it's only from ten years ago, Anabel would probably be willing... At least if it were me, I definitely wouldn't give up."

Qiao Ran didn't know what Anabel was thinking, but putting himself in her shoes, he would definitely do everything he could to help her remember.

The past, in turn, pieces together a person's present, and the present determines one's future. If any link in the chain is missing, there will be an incomplete and regrettable outcome.

"Alright, let Anabel rest here... Let's move to another room and talk about other things."

Qiao Ran shook his head and turned his gaze to Cynthia.

"It must have been a while since you two last saw each other."

Despite their various online exchanges, it had been a long time since they had met in person. Not to mention the long adventures they had gone through together. The atmosphere in Alola was completely different from the atmosphere in the Real World. Switching between the two felt like stepping into another world.

"Haven't seen you for a long time."

Cynthia took the initiative to greet them, which set the stage for the conversation. After all, she could tell that everyone else seemed a bit too "restrained" because of her arrival.

"You should all know why Cynthia came this time, right?"