Two Holy Maidens, but Eevee Recognizes Only One

The light within the white device gradually faded.

The outline with long ears became clear as well.

Brown fur, a cream-colored ruff, a fluffy tail, and a pair of eyes that took up nearly half its face. No matter how one looked at it, it resembled a tiny pet meant to be held in one's arms.

"Eevee," Xia Che said its name.

Hu Liena waited a moment. "And then?"

"That's it."

"It excels at seeing through illusions?"

"It didn't say."

"Can it track scents?"

"Its nose is pretty good."

"Does it have psychic abilities?"

"Not at the moment."

Hu Liena turned to Xia Che, suspecting that he had not heard what she had been looking for.

Yue Guan also walked over to the device. "She said she wanted a companion that could see through disguises, and you show her a little beast?"

"The device chose it."

"What if it chose wrong?"

"Meet it first, then we'll see."

After saying that, Xia Che gestured for Hu Liena to leave the sensing area. That image of light only meant Eevee was willing to meet her. Whether they could continue getting along would depend on what both sides thought after truly meeting.

"It gets to choose me too?" Hu Liena asked.

"You can choose it too."

"What if one of us doesn't want to?"

"Then it's over."

Yue Guan frowned deeply at that.

He had originally assumed this was some special kind of soul beast trade, where money and status could solve most problems. Now it seemed that Xia Che was not even selling the Pokémon itself, only offering them a chance to get acquainted.

Whether this business could continue was indeed hard to say.

Indeedee had already opened the meeting room beside them.

The room was covered with soft rugs. There was fresh water and low cushions against the wall, while an unlocked little door had been left in one corner. It led to an enclosed grassy courtyard, and if Eevee did not want to remain inside, it could leave whenever it wished.

Before Hu Liena entered, Xia Che only gave her three instructions.

"Don't block the door. Don't use your Martial Soul. If it backs away, stop."

"Nothing else?"

"That's enough."

The door opened from the other side, and Eevee padded lightly into the room.

Seeing it in person, it was even smaller than the image of light. Its two long ears remained upright. When its front paws stepped onto the rug, it pressed down first to make sure the ground would not sink before continuing forward.

Hu Liena lowered herself and offered a gentle smile.

"Hello, my name is Hu Liena."

She was very good at putting strangers at ease.

The volume of her voice, the height at which she extended her hand, even where she let her gaze rest—those were all skills she had practiced since childhood. Even when facing children with strong wariness, she could find the right distance within a few sentences.

Eevee glanced up at her, walked around her hand, and headed straight for the water bowl.

Hu Liena's smile froze for a moment.

Outside the observation window, Yue Guan folded his arms. "It seems that trick of yours doesn't work on it."

"It's normal to be cautious on a first meeting."

"I was only reminding you."

"Your reminder sounds rather cheerful."

Yue Guan did not deny it.

Eevee took two sips of water, then circled the room along the wall. It sniffed the cushions, the crack beneath the door, and Hu Liena's footprints on the rug, but never took the initiative to approach her.

Hu Liena did not pursue it and merely rested her hands on her knees.

"I'd like to ask you for a favor."

One of Eevee's ears turned toward her.

"That Zorua in the shop can transform into me. I want to know whether you can identify the real one between two of me."

"Eevee?"

Eevee tilted its head, seeming to understand, but it did not agree at once.

Xia Che opened the speaking port. "Ask Zorua first."

Zorua had already been outside the window watching the fun. Hearing that it could transform into Hu Liena again, it clamped the last roasted Berry in its mouth and darted through the side door without hesitation.

An illusion spread over its body.

Before long, two identical Hu Lienas sat at opposite ends of the room. To make the test harder, the real Hu Liena had even let Zorua sniff her outer robe, making the fragrance on their bodies nearly identical.

Eevee stood in the middle, looking left and right.

Yue Guan asked through the window, "What if it picks one at random?"

"Then your question was pointless," Xia Che said.

"What does that have to do with me?"

"You were the one watching most enthusiastically."

Yue Guan was left speechless and could only keep watching.

Eevee walked toward the Hu Liena transformed by Zorua first.

The real Hu Liena's eyes shifted slightly, but she made no sound. Zorua copied her previous pose, holding its hand in midair with an identical smile on its face.

Eevee sniffed that hand, then walked around behind "Hu Liena."

The tail Zorua had hidden within the illusion twitched lightly.

Eevee suddenly raised a front paw and smacked the spot that appeared to hold nothing.

"Zorua!"

The illusion immediately tilted.

The fake Hu Liena's upper body remained unchanged, but a dark gray fox tail popped out behind it. Zorua hurriedly turned to hide it, but Eevee had already circled halfway around it, pressing its nose against the tail to sniff it again.

Outside the observation window, the warehouse steward from earlier could not help laughing aloud.

Yue Guan turned to look at him.

The laughter instantly stopped.

Knowing it had been recognized, Zorua simply dismissed the illusion and lay on the rug, shielding its tail. Eevee did not bully it, only nudging the remaining half of the Berry in its arms with its nose.

Zorua hurriedly hid the Berry behind its back and shuffled a step sideways.

It forgot that a movable low mirror stood behind it.

The moment its tail touched the mirror stand, the entire mirror toppled toward the rug. Zorua looked up and saw the shadow above it. Its four paws scrambled, and it instead stepped on the tail it had just pulled back.

"Careful!" Hu Liena immediately rose.

Eevee was faster than her.

The brown figure flashed across the rug, its shoulder striking the lower edge of the mirror stand with perfect accuracy. The low mirror had been falling straight toward Zorua, but the blow knocked it half a foot aside. It brushed past the little fox's ear and landed on a thick cushion.

With a muffled bang, the mirror did not shatter.

Eevee stopped in front of Zorua, lowering its body on all fours as the fur around its neck stood on end. Only after making sure the mirror would not fall again did it turn back and touch the little fox's front paw.

Still shaken, Zorua forgot even to hide its Berry and pushed it straight toward Eevee.

"Zorua."

"Eevee."

The two little ones immediately split the last half of the roasted Berry.

Yue Guan looked at the mirror stand, then at Eevee. "What was that just now called?"

"Quick Attack," Xia Che said.

"Pretty fast."

"It saved Zorua first."

Xia Che pushed open the door, went inside, and crouched down to inspect the side of Eevee's shoulder that had struck the mirror stand. There was no swelling beneath its fur, and its steps remained steady. Only a little wood dust clung to it.

He wiped away the gray mark with his thumb. "Don't use your shoulder to take a hit like that next time."

Eevee turned its face away, but its ears turned toward him.

Standing nearby, the doubts Hu Liena had held about its size and abilities had mostly faded. Eevee looked fragile, but when something happened, it could make its own judgment. It had neither waited for orders nor chased after the mirror wildly to prove its strength. It stopped as soon as it had done what needed to be done.

It came before the real Hu Liena, yet it did not immediately grow close just because it had found the right one. The little creature sniffed her sleeve first, then looked up into her eyes, and finally sat two steps away.

"How did you recognize me?" Hu Liena asked.

Of course, Eevee could not explain in human language.

It turned and walked to Zorua's side, raised a paw to touch that tail, then returned to Hu Liena and pointed at the hand resting on her knee.

Zorua had copied her face and voice, but it had failed to hide its tail. More importantly, though Hu Liena appeared relaxed, her fingers had remained pressed against the hem of her clothes. That was the unconscious little habit she had whenever she waited for an answer.

"You noticed even that?"

"Eevee."

Hu Liena lowered her gaze to her hand.

She had originally wanted a Pokémon capable of seeing through disguises, one she could use for patrols and missions. Eevee had not seen through the illusion at a glance, nor had it displayed astonishing psychic power. It had merely been willing to come closer, sniff, and look a little longer.

Yet that was precisely what the guards at the three gates had failed to do earlier.

Yue Guan realized that as well.

"This match wasn't entirely wrong after all," he said.

Xia Che leaned against the window. "It hasn't finished choosing yet."

Hu Liena extended her hand toward Eevee again.

This time, she did not wear the smile she had practiced countless times, nor did she say, "Don't be afraid."

"I was testing you just now," she admitted. "Now it's your turn. How do you want to test me?"

Eevee looked at her hand but still did not touch it.

It rose and walked toward the little door to the grassy courtyard, pushing it open with a front paw before turning back and calling out.

"Eevee."

With that, the little creature walked out alone.

There were no prepared questions in the grassy courtyard, only several wooden posts, a patch of shallow sand, and a light ball slowly rolling in the wind.

Yue Guan asked through the observation window, "What is it testing this time?"

"I don't know either," Xia Che said.

"You're the shop owner."

"It's the one setting the question."

Hu Liena had just started forward when Eevee looked back once more. It did not urge her or run far away. It simply stood outside the door, waiting for her to decide on her own.

Hu Liena froze for a moment, then finally understood.

Eevee wanted her to follow.