Chapter 90

"But--"

Gloria glanced at Qiao Ran, her eyes burning with intense desire.

"Don't think you've won just like that, I... I'll be back!!!"

After saying that, she ran out of the room.

Faced with this unwarranted Taunt, Qiao Ran could only roll her eyes again, speechless, and mutter a muttered complaint under her breath.

"Neuropathy..."

Section 171, page 168 [Countermeasures: Plans]

After Marnie and Gloria left the room, Qiao Ran finally got some time to rest alone. With dinner still a while away, Qiao Ran decided to clear his mind.

Qiao Ran first looked for the Charge cable in his backpack, and then took out the unresponsive Rotom. Although he didn't know what was wrong with Rotom, Charge it first was definitely the right thing to do.

However, when he plugged the Charge cable into the Rotom, there didn't seem to be any special reaction.

What happened?

Qiao Ran frowned, unplugged the plug, looked at it for a while, and then plugged it back in, but there was still no response. It wasn't until he went in and out of the hole in Rotom several times that Qiao Ran finally realized that it wasn't a problem on his end, but that there was no power in the socket to begin with.

"The power is out?"

Qiao Ran tried the other sockets in the room, but none of them had power. It was only then that a very absurd idea came to Qiao Ran's mind.

"Could it be... that this place, like the Aether Foundation back then, has also experienced a power outage?"

Following this line of thought, Qiao Ran increasingly felt that this idea was incredibly true. After all, Spikemuth was just a small town with a very small population, and it was basically impossible for it to produce any decent industry. An industry like a power plant would be even more impossible to build here.

With the entire Galar region severely damaged, it's possible that no external power supply will be available.

"Without electricity... what kind of life did they live before?"

Qiao Ran shook his head helplessly. It seemed that the lives of the people here were even more difficult than he had imagined.

With no other option, Qiao Ran could only put away the Rotom and the Charge and put them in his backpack.

"Never mind, I'll ask Marnie for suggestions at dinner."

Marnie is the current leader of Spikemuth, so she might know some special methods. If even she is helpless, then Qiao Ran will have no choice but to take a gamble and have an Electric-type Pokémon give Rotom electrotherapy.

However, to be honest, while this method might be effective, it is more likely to damage the components of Rotom itself, or even cause all sorts of other problems. Therefore, Qiao Ran is unwilling to use this method unless absolutely necessary.

After placing Rotom, Qiao Ran took out another Poké Ball and released Dianxi and Vulpix from it.

Two Pokémon appeared before Qiao Ran in the form of little girls, holding some clothes and other items in their hands.

"Thank you. Rotom can't be opened right now, so I'll have to rely on you to fetch some things for me."

Qiao Ran looked somewhat helpless. Without the system attached to Rotom, he had no way to directly Wild Area; he could only rely on his Pokémon to accomplish these tasks.

Fortunately, they are quite capable.

"Master, if we can't go back for the time being, there's no need to rush."

The purple-haired Dianxi looked at Qiao Ran's left hand with some concern. In her view, Qiao Ran's own condition was...

If things aren't going well, then focusing on other things would be putting the cart before the horse.

"Actually... as Pokémon, everyone can sense the connection. If that girl was once Pokémon, she should know that too. She would definitely know what happened to her owner."

You mean...?

Qiao Ran blinked. What Dianxi said was undoubtedly a possibility. If this theory could hold true, he could feel a little more at ease.

Although he suddenly disappeared into the Ruins, if Lillie could sense this, she could send messages to those around her.

At least... so that Mei and the others won't worry too much about his safety. Besides his own Pokémon, they're the only ones Qiao Ran is worried about.

"That's right, I can definitely feel it... Even in another world, as long as the master is still here... this connection won't be broken."

The Vulpix beside them also gave an affirmative answer; they were definitely the most qualified to speak on this matter.

I hope so.

Qiao Ran's lips curled into a faint smile. He knew perfectly well that they were trying to comfort him. Even if it was possible, he still needed to hurry back.

After all, just as they were worried about him, he was also worried about them.

And then there's... Mei, who's far away at the Aether Foundation. Who knows how she'll react if she and Lillie don't show up on time...

"Our mission this time is definitely related to Gigantamax, but as for the specifics... we'll have to wait for Rotom to recover. For now, we can only take it one step at a time."

Qiao Ran looked at the two Pokémon in front of him and shared his thoughts.

"Master... what do you plan to do?" Dianxi knew this was no time for jokes. Every Singularity was bound to be extremely dangerous. Although there seemed to be a temporary respite, the town and the entire region were actually shrouded in a huge terror.

This terror is even greater than that of the previous Aether Foundation.

The Machamp from before, even as a regular Pokémon, already possessed the strength to give Dianxi and Suicune trouble. What if it were an even more powerful Pokémon, or even Legendary Pokémon?

And... what if dozens or even hundreds of Gigantamax Pokémon attack the city together?

How can humans resist? How Pokémon resist?

Will that be the end of the Pokémon?

"Next, I plan to visit larger towns."

Qiao Ran glanced at the Long Sword in her left hand and pursed her lips.

"Being passive in Singularity is definitely not an option. Even last time... we only won because we took the initiative. If we don't take the initiative, we'll never have any hope of success."

"Furthermore, there's no Gigantamax energy source in Spikemuth, so even if we wanted to Gigantamax, we couldn't—"

Hearing Qiao Ran's words, Vulpix tilted its head in confusion, while Dianxi seemed to have thought of something and widened her eyes.

Despite looking like a little girl, Dianxi is indeed the most intelligent of all of Qiao Ran's Pokémon.

"Master, do you mean to..."

"That's right."

Qiao Ran raised her head, her eyes revealing a sense of certainty.

"If other Pokémon can Gigantamax, why Gigantamax n't we?"

"Now that we've come all this way to Galar, of course we should use Gigantamax to defeat Gigantamax!"

Section 172, page 169 [Dinner: Family]

Gigantamax...

Qiao Ran's words didn't address the issue, but Dianxi and Vulpix exchanged a glance, both showing some hesitation.

However, in the end, they didn't say these words aloud because they understood that this was indeed the best option at the moment. Rather than focusing on those individuals' sense of shame, they should concentrate on the battle in front of them and fulfill their duties as Pokémon.

"Then it's decided. I'll talk to Marnie and the others about it tonight."

As Qiao Ran spoke, he reached out his right hand and touched the heads of the two girls in front of him, gently stroking their long hair.

The arrival of a person into this world can be quite frightening, but thankfully they are all still by his side.

"Also, I'm sorry... I had planned to give you a surprise after the inspection, but now there's no way to do that."

"It's alright, a little later is fine."

Dianxi took Qiao Ran's hand and placed it on her face, gently stroking it, while she closed her eyes comfortably.

It would be impossible for them not to care. Back in those Ruins, it was precisely the anticipation of that surprise that unleashed their full fighting power. But now, this wasn't the time for them to dwell on such things.

Putting aside the dangers within the Singularity, the sword that Qiao Ran couldn't remove from his hand alone could be a major hidden danger.

"Hmm... It's alright if it's a little late, as long as Master hasn't forgotten."

On the other side, the Vulpix also climbed onto the bed and nestled next to Qiao Ran.

The bag rested on his shoulder, Qiao Ran could even smell a faint, delicate fragrance emanating from her... Was it some kind of special perfume?

"... Um."

Qiao Ran didn't make a sound. He didn't want to disturb the peace. Once he achieved his dream and fulfilled his responsibilities, he would find a place to live in seclusion, just like Phoebe, and live with them... That might not be so bad.

However, this tranquility was eventually shattered by a loud shout.

"Come out now!!! Dinner's ready!!!!"

With that shout, the door to the room opened a few seconds later, Gloria, wearing a green hat, appeared in the doorway.

With the intention of finding Qiao Ran's weakness and catching him in the act of wrongdoing, Gloria did not give Qiao Ran much time to react and quickly opened the door.

However, to Gloria's surprise, Qiao Ran was sitting upright on the bed, but his right hand was in a strange position, and his clothes were somewhat disheveled.

Aside from these, it seems... there's nothing wrong?

"What?"

Seeing Qiao Ran's surprised look, Gloria could only glare back at him.

"Hurry up and get ready to eat. Did you just go rolling around in the mud? Your clothes are all messed up."

After saying that, Gloria turned and left. If it weren't for Marnie's request, she wouldn't have wanted to do this kind of thing. Besides, she hadn't caught Qiao Ran red-handed this time, which made her even more unhappy.

How can we possibly get rid of this guy who's eyeing Marnie's beauty?!

Dinner time.

Because this town has no electricity, dinner time is a little earlier than in other places, so that everyone can finish eating before the Sun completely sets.

However, besides Mary, Yuli, and Qiao Ran, there were two middle-aged couples at the dinner table. Their curious eyes kept wandering over Qiao Ran and Mary—undoubtedly, they were Mary's parents.

Unlike the other Team Yell, Marnie's parents looked like ordinary people, making them stand out in the punk Spikemuth.

"That... is that Qiao Ran, right? This sword... does he even carry it with him while eating?"

Marnie's mother looked at Qiao Ran's left hand and finally couldn't help but ask the question.

The boy seemed fine in every other way, and this was the first time Marnie had brought a man home. As a mother, how could she not see the changes in her daughter?

But what's baffling is that this boy even eats while supporting himself with his sword... It's unsettling to watch. "This..."

This wasn't the first time someone had questioned his sword, yet Qiao Ran didn't know how to best answer the question.

Tell the truth?

No... that's his weakness. He's not worried that Marnie and the others will harm him, but if someone with ulterior motives finds out, he'll most likely be in danger. They can take advantage of his inability to move freely to do a lot of things.

"..."

Looking into Marnie's mother's eyes, which were filled with a sincere thirst for knowledge, Qiao Ran's lips twitched, and he couldn't think of a suitable explanation for the time being.

How exactly should I make up nonsense... to make it sound good?

Are you trying to twist this into some kind of magic wand or Transform device or something???

Fortunately, just as Qiao Ran was at a loss for words, Marnie stepped forward.

"Mom, that's the Sacred Sword. Qiao Ran must have his reasons for taking it, so don't keep asking."

"The Sacred Sword..."

Marnie's mother and father exchanged a glance and nodded, indicating that they understood.

"Indeed... we saw it on the news on TV, and the picture was exactly the same."

In the Galar region, there has always been a long-standing legend that when the world is in peril, the Sword Hero and the Shield Hero will appear on earth to save the world from danger.

And now, without a doubt, is the moment of crisis.

Since he's Sword Hero, then... a little bit of strange behavior is understandable, right?

With Marnie's patient explanation, the doubts on Marnie's parents' faces gradually dissipated. After everything calmed down, Qiao Ran couldn't help but thank her.

"... Thanks."

"It's alright, isn't this just how it is?"

Marnie glanced at Qiao Ran, her long eyelashes fluttering gently, and a faint smile curved her lips.

"Um..."

Qiao Ran responded with a sound, but didn't make any other noise. Just a moment ago, he had actually felt his heart flutter.

Did she just laugh?