Chapter 73

"Qiao Ran, is this really... alright?"

Lillie, who witnessed the whole thing, couldn't help but ask a question. She was genuinely a little scared of Phoebe; she felt that the other woman had some strange ideas.

"It should be fine, no matter what. She's a Trainer too. If I can battle her, I'm sure I'll Harvest a lot."

Fighting Elite Four-level enemy is a rare opportunity, especially for Qiao Ran now. He has finally gotten a chance to "bring his opponent to the same Competition line as himself," and he will not give it up easily.

"Besides, wouldn't it be great if we could Defeat them?"

Qiao Ran had long wanted to beat this guy to a pulp.

Section 137, Page 134 [Problem Children]

Facing the challenge three days later, Qiao Ran was smug and ready to teach Phoebe a lesson. However, when he and Lillie returned to their room and released the Mimikyu, he suddenly realized that things might not be so simple.

"They said they'd bring him back... but I never imagined he'd be this terrified of people..."

Seeing Mimikyu already huddled under the covers, trembling on the other side of the bed, Qiao Ran and Lillie exchanged a glance and couldn't help but show helpless expressions.

Generally speaking, it is people who are afraid of ghosts, but now it is completely the opposite—the ghosts are also cowering and trembling when they see people.

Looking at this Mimikyu, Qiao Ran began to doubt her initial choice. No wonder Phoebe looked at her like she was an idiot after she picked it.

This isn't just a problem child—this is a super problem child!

"Don't be afraid, I just want to talk to you."

Qiao Ran lay on the bed, trying to get closer to her, but as soon as he approached, the Mimikyu quickly moved to the other side, as if it couldn't avoid him.

Qiao Ran refused to believe it and tried several more times, but the result was the same each time.

--This Mimikyu is avoiding him.

"Um... don't be afraid, we won't hurt you."

Finding that Qiao Ran's attempts to communicate with the other party weren't working very well, Lillie stepped forward, intending to get closer to the Mimikyu.

"Mi..."

Perhaps it was Lillie's good looks and approachable personality that made Mimikyu react this time, which made Qiao Ran's eyes widen in surprise.

Could this guy be a sucker for good looks?

Lillie reached out, trying to get closer to Mimikyu, but this time Mimikyu dodged again.

"Ah..."

Lillie withdrew her hand somewhat disappointedly. Had she acted too hastily?

"It's better to take it slow, we still have time," Qiao Ran comforted her, telling her not to worry. Lillie wasn't Pokémon Trainer, so she hadn't had much contact with Pokémon, and there was still room for growth and improvement in many areas.

"Um."

Lillie nodded, perked up again, and together with Qiao Ran, began exploring ways to get closer to the Mimikyu.

Time passed second by second, and the two went from being full of confidence to feeling utterly bewildered. No matter what methods they used, Mimikyu seemed to be on guard against them at all times. Even Qiao Ran was a little confused. How could there be such an antisocial Pokémon in this world?

"Fine, maybe I should just use a more forceful method."

Qiao Ran a deep breath, rolled up the sleeve of his left hand, and took out Suicune's Poké Ball with his other hand.

His idea was simple: have Suicune Bind the opponent, then he would use the Tokiwa Power to calm it down, and then slowly communicate with it. The Tokiwa Power was a magical power that could communicate telepathically with all Pokémon and heal them. Qiao Ran felt that using it in this situation would definitely have a noticeable effect.

That's how he and the Type: Null became such good friends.

"No... no... that... isn't it a little too... too fast for her..."

Hearing Qiao Ran's words, Lillie poked her hands together, her cheeks slightly flushed.

"Should we... go ask Mei? She's a very skilled Trainer... maybe she has some special methods?"

Lillie knows how powerful the Tokiwa Power is; it's an incredibly powerful force, and if one could accept it, it would be the most wonderful thing in the world.

However, she felt that treating a Pokémon was not the right choice, and might even make it more afraid and doubt itself later. Lillie herself was also a somewhat shy person, so seeing Mimikyu like this, she could actually understand some of the other's thoughts.

"Mei?"

Upon hearing Lillie's suggestion, Qiao Ran stroked his chin and thought about it for a moment.

"Hmm... you're right, asking Mei first is an option, and I'll need to talk to her if I want special training later..."

Qiao Ran had already planned that after getting along well with Mimikyu, he would ask Mei to give it special training, and have Mei's Pokémon as its Mimikyu partners.

Qiao Ran had previously checked Mimikyu's level, which was around level 22, perfect for training with Mei's Pokémon, which was in its 30s. Besides, Mei, who had been staying alone for ages, never refused a battle that came her way. Qiao Ran had fought her countless times.

"Let's go over there now. Maybe Mei misses us too."

Lillie was talking from the side, and even shook Qiao Ran's arm. Unconsciously, she and Qiao Ran would also do many very intimate things, sometimes without even realizing it herself.

"Alright, let's go take a look first."

Qiao Ran summoned Rotom, preparing to open the gate to the Aether Foundation, but Qiao Ran still felt somewhat uncertain.

Is there really no way for Mei to do anything?

On the other side, the terrace of the Western-style Mansion.

Phoebe leaned back comfortably in her chaise lounge, holding a piece of paper in one hand and swirling a glass of red liquid in the other.

"... Even Iron Maiden praised his fighting skills... Just how good will that guy be in three days?"

Her hand

What he was holding was the letter that Qiao Ran had sent back then, and it contained recommendations written by Dr. Lilia and Iron Maiden for Qiao Ran.

Dr. Lilia's section mainly recounts Qiao Ran's interest in archaeology and specifically mentions Qiao Ran special Psychic. This part wasn't particularly interesting to Phoebe; Phoebe didn't understand Psychic and didn't care much for them. What she was interested in was the part written by Iron Maiden—

This child possesses exceptional combat talent and is worthy of focused development.

"Yes, talent."

Phoebe understood that Iron Maiden was a rather proud and arrogant person, and simply Defeat her wouldn't be enough to get her to say such things—in other words, this man must have done something else that made Iron Maiden feel subdued.

"If he could do it, perhaps... no... it's too early to think about that now..."

As she spoke, Phoebe couldn't help but shake her head, banishing the distracting thoughts from her mind.

She lay on a comfortable recliner, and under the moonlight, her white hair gradually turned blood red, making her look alluring and captivating.

However—suddenly, as she looked at the letter, she noticed something strange.

"Wait, what does the last sentence of this letter mean?"

Phoebe blinked.

"What do you mean... don't touch this man's arm... huh?"

She thought to herself, that guy's arm... doesn't seem like anything special, does it?

Section 138, page 135 [The Meaning of the Mei]

Asking Mei for help was a last resort, but based on his trust in the game's female protagonist, Qiao Ran felt that they might actually have some special methods.

After all, these girls, no matter what, all have the potential to be above the level of Elite Four. Although they are not strong now, given time, they will definitely grow stronger.

However.

When Qiao Ran and Lillie finally arrived at the Aether Foundation and returned to the room they knew so well, they were greeted by a scream.

"... You! You! You! You! You! How come you're back so soon???"

Qiao Ran and Lillie were both startled by the sound. They looked in the direction from which the Growl came and saw that it was none other than Mei, whom they were looking for.

However—at this moment, Mei was frozen in place, a dress that had been half-undone, revealing a large expanse of fair skin...

"Cough..."

Faced with this situation, Qiao Ran could only cough lightly to show respect. He never expected that someone as seemingly carefree as Mei would choose such a girlish pink lace style. This cute choice wouldn't look out of place on Lillie, but on Mei, it just felt a little off.

If I had to use an analogy, it would be as strange as if the Vulpix woke up one day and suddenly turned into an older sister.

However, Qiao Ran's focus right now wasn't just on those things, but on the white dress Mei was wearing, which looked strangely familiar no matter how he looked at it.

"Wait, isn't that dress Lillie's? Why are you wearing Lillie's clothes?"

"Hmm... it seems so..."

Not only Qiao Ran noticed this, but Lillie, who was standing next to him, also seemed to have noticed it.

Lillie's clothes are usually very distinctive, mostly white, and mostly Dress, while Mei's Outfit is always loose short-sleeved shirts and shorts. When the two are placed side by side, almost anyone can see the difference at a glance.

"I... I'm just trying it out! I'm not really going to wear it, I... I just want to see how it looks!"

Caught red-handed, Mei seemed to have forgotten that she was exposing herself. Her face flushed red, and she was eager to prove her innocence.

Honestly, she's been sitting here all alone, practically playing with anything she finds. Now that she sees some pretty dresses in Lillie's closet, how could she resist?

Besides... she did feel a little envious of Lillie, even though it was a bit different from her usual tastes. But Mei really wanted to see what it would feel like to wear these dresses herself.

"Um... it's alright, I don't mind... if you like it Mei."

Seeing Mei's expression, Lillie quickly waved her hand, indicating that she didn't care about such things, and even stepped forward to block Mei's body.

She already felt a vague sense of guilt towards Mei, after all, it was her choice that left Mei alone here. Besides, Mei was a friend she had always cherished, and even if she touched her clothes, Lillie wouldn't be angry about it, especially since the other person was just trying it out.

Even if you gave it to her directly, Lillie would probably agree.

"Ahem... You two get back to work, I'll go out and see if there are any lone jellyfish."

Seeing the two girls who were now united in their hatred and focused their gaze on her, Qiao Ran could only awkwardly avert her gaze and walk to the door of the room.

As the only male present, he had no choice but to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

It was quite a while before Qiao Ran was allowed to re-enter the room.

"Speak... speak, what brings you here to see me?"

Mei had changed back into her usual clothes, but her face was still flushed slightly. Although Lillie had said she wouldn't mind, she was actually quite embarrassed to be caught doing something like this.

"Um... actually, it's like this."

Qiao Ran paused for a moment, then summarized what he wanted to say and told Mei.

"Hmm... a shy Pokémon?"

Mei showed a relaxed expression.

"That's simple, just face what you're afraid of, right? The best way to eliminate fear is, of course, to face it head-on..."

Upon hearing Mei's words, Qiao Ran couldn't help but roll his eyes and even blurted out a quick answer.

"Your next sentence will be about facing your fear, right?"

God the hell! Faced with fear, that Mimikyu just runs away at the sight of them!

"I haven't finished speaking yet, don't interrupt me. Do you think I'm lying to you?"

Noticing that Qiao Ran seemed to distrust her a little, Mei couldn't help but defend herself. As a seasoned Trainer, she naturally had her own experience. What to do when Pokémon misbehaves? -- She also had her own unique secrets.

"To get closer to Pokémon and get her to obey you, you should first cater to her interests and find out what she likes and Covet most, and then—help her overcome her obstacles."

As Mei spoke, she couldn't help but recall her adventures with Pokémon in Alola. At first, some of her Pokémon were quite disobedient, since most Poison-type Pokémon are not exactly friendly. However, with her sincere heart, Mei gradually built up her own team.

"Finding what the other person likes... hmm... that makes sense."

Qiao Ran looked thoughtful. Mei's method was indeed applicable in many situations. Whether you wanted to attract someone's attention or build a relationship with someone, you had to start by catering to their preferences. Even when giving gifts, you had to give the recipient something they liked.

"So that means I have to observe what she likes or Covet? But wouldn't that be a bit too slow?"

"Hmm... you're right, this is indeed a bit slow. You only have three days now, if you search slowly like this, it definitely won't be enough time."

Hearing Qiao Ran's words, Mei also fell into thought. She had never considered the time limit when she was with Pokémon, but with Qiao Ran, there was definitely no way he could take his time like she did.

"What should we do? What kind of things would she like?"

"Don't look at me, I didn't know either, that's why I came to ask you."

Noticing that Mei was staring at him, Qiao Ran couldn't help but roll her eyes at her. "Why is she looking at me like that?"

Finally, it was Lillie who spoke up.

"Well... actually, after hearing what you've said, I think I might have a solution."