Ask Slowking When Lost

"..."

Xingye had an inexplicably bad feeling, but was there any turning back now? No. He didn't have time to look for a new place to stay today.

"Did you just sense some kind of strange gaze or something?" he asked, looking down.

"Cyclizar?"

Cyclizar suddenly snapped back to its senses. Its eyes had returned to normal, and after looking dazed for a moment, it resumed its previous cheerful expression.

Seeing it like this, Xingye recalled how it had one-shotted Crabrawler last night and wasn't too worried anymore. He let out a sigh of relief. "Looks like it's something you can handle. Then let's keep going!"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

They ran down the middle of the road toward the depths of the Drifter District. This should have been a place where wandering Pokémon lived.

Yet strangely, there were no other Pokémon in sight, let alone humans who had also chosen to stay here for free.

The streets, however, were exceptionally clean, as though someone came to sweep them every day.

There were even quite a few shops and billboards along the roadside, though all of them were closed. Still, judging by the traces left behind, they didn't seem like they had been shut for years.

"What kind of street is this? I'd believe it if you told me everyone here had taken the day off and gone home. It doesn't look abandoned at all. It feels more like a night market that stays closed during the day..."

Xingye had been watching the map the entire time. He knew there were scattered points of light inside some nearby houses, but no small landmarks appeared on it.

Just as he was puzzling over it, Cyclizar suddenly stopped and looked toward a building nearby that lacked any excessive flashy decorations.

It was only two stories tall, but it occupied quite a large area. A staircase along the side led directly to the second-floor balcony, where there was also a door leading inside.

The roof had a tiled triangular design, giving it an Eastern architectural style that didn't quite fit somewhere as tropical as the Alola Region. Yet on this street, it somehow didn't feel out of place at all.

Xingye stared at the little two-story building in silence for a long while before slowly speaking. "Have I seen this shape and layout in some anime before...?"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar!"

Cyclizar called toward the building. Xingye couldn't understand what it was saying, so he climbed off its back and headed over with it.

The map didn't show any points of light in front of them, and he had no idea whether there were Pokémon inside. But as they approached, he could smell the faint aroma of fruit wine drifting through the air.

"Is someone brewing alcohol?"

He was somewhat surprised. It looked like this wasn't a Pokémon's residence after all, but a human's. Cyclizar must have caught the scent and been drawn over.

He then looked up at the tiled awning structure between the first and second floors, where a wooden signboard had been fixed in place.

The writing on it had gradually faded, perhaps from age or rain, and could only barely be made out up close.

"Slowking... Izakaya?"

Xingye quietly read it aloud. Sure enough, there was a business open here. So what was up with this phone map? Had it suddenly become worse than even a shady map app?

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar!"

"Alright, alright, I know you're hungry. Don't try to ram the door down. You need to be polite and knock first!"

He stopped Cyclizar, then lightly knocked twice on the izakaya's door. It probably wasn't open for business yet, so the door was shut.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

After the three knocks, Xingye waited patiently. Then slow footsteps came from behind the door—plop, plop. They didn't sound like something a human could make.

"Hm?"

Just as he was wondering about it, the izakaya door slowly opened, and a pink head that looked full of wisdom suddenly poked out. It stared at him blankly.

The orange-and-white umbrella-like Decorate around its neck and the crown-like hat set with a red gemstone on its head already revealed its identity. It was a Slowking.

"Slow?"

"Sorry to bother you..."

Xingye immediately dragged Cyclizar away. He hadn't expected a Slowking to be living here. No wonder it was called the Slowking Izakaya.

But after taking just one step, he suddenly realized that Slowking wasn't actually a particularly dangerous Pokémon.

On the contrary, Slowking was extremely intelligent and especially good at helping others solve difficult problems. There was even a saying in some regions: "Ask Slowking when you're lost."

So he immediately went back, put on a nervous expression, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Um... sorry to disturb you for a moment."

"Slow?"

Seeing that Slowking still wore that blank expression, Xingye decided not to beat around the bush. He pointed upward, leaned closer, and asked familiarly, "Boss Slowking, does anyone live upstairs?"

"Slow~"

Slowking clasped its hands behind its back and shook its head. The meaning was clear. Xingye immediately brightened and asked, "Then it should be fine if we move in upstairs, right?"

"Slow~"

This time, Slowking neither shook its head nor nodded. Instead, it tilted its head and simply stared blankly into Xingye's eyes. No one knew what it meant. They remained locked in a stalemate for several minutes, neither willing to lose.

"Are you trying to assimilate me and make me slow too...?"

Xingye narrowed his eyes as he spoke. Behind him, Cyclizar finally couldn't take it anymore and tried to enter the izakaya. Only then did Slowking shift its gaze to it, and the two began communicating.

"Slow?"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

"Slow, hmm~"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar?"

"Slow, slow~"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

"Slow... can't move anymore~"

Xingye had no idea what the two Pokémon were talking about. He couldn't understand a single word.

If there was some talent that allowed someone to understand Pokémon language, he absolutely had to get one.

But after their conversation, Slowking suddenly turned around and led Cyclizar back into the izakaya.

Xingye wanted to enter as well, but Slowking stretched out a hand to stop him. Since he had no idea what was going on, he could only wait at the door for the moment.

A little later, Cyclizar carried out a pile of snacks and fruit juice he didn't recognize, probably Alolan specialties, along with a ring of keys.

He accepted all of it with a baffled expression. Then, looking at the keys and then at Slowking, who had come back out with Cyclizar, he asked curiously, "Are these the keys to the second-floor door?"

"Slow~"

Still wearing that wise expression, Slowking nodded before returning to the izakaya and closing the door again.

Xingye still didn't understand what had happened, but seeing Cyclizar's delighted expression, he guessed it had said something to Slowking earlier...

"Forget it. I can't figure it out, so let's go check out the room first. Dinner's taken care of too!"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

He and Cyclizar went up the side stairs one after the other. When they reached the second floor, they found the hallway fairly clean. It must have been cleaned often as well.

"The key..."

As the key turned, there was a click, and the lock opened successfully.

The second-floor door was the same kind of wooden sliding door as the first-floor izakaya. He didn't know what kind of tree the wood came from, but it looked quite sturdy.

It was somewhat dim inside, and a faint scent of air freshener lingered in the air.

When he turned on the lights and looked around, both the imitation wooden floor and the ceiling were incredibly clean. Xingye almost hesitated to step inside.

After entering and checking the place over, he found that there was plenty of space. The bathroom, kitchen, living room, bedroom, and everything else were all there. It was just rather empty, with no furniture—not even a bed. They would have to prepare those themselves.

"You can tell no one's lived here for a long time, but it's still cleaned regularly. The owner is pretty diligent. Still, I should clean it again later."

Overall, Xingye was extremely satisfied. He hadn't expected to move into a place like this so easily, and the key point was that it was free!

Sure enough, his luck had finally turned around. His mood had been like a roller coaster all day, but once the bad luck ran out, good luck naturally came.

Standing in the living room, he pulled up the blinds. A dazzling flash of light swept in. It was already close to dusk, and the setting sun shone directly through the window, spilling across the floor.

The entrance faced east, so every morning, he could open the door and see the sun. In the evening, he could sit in the living room, raise the blinds, and enjoy the sunset.

"Now this is living!"

"Cyclizar, Cyclizar~"

"Alright, time to eat... Hey! Don't eat the wrapper too! That's not how you drink juice either! The straw! Use the straw!"

Xingye hurried over and taught Cyclizar how to eat everything step by step. He was hungry too, but fortunately, Slowking had given them plenty of snacks. It was more than enough for a filling dinner.

After eating, Cyclizar wanted to lie down on the bedroom floor and Rest, but Xingye still dragged it off for a bath.

After that, Xingye cleaned the floor again after they had dirtied it. He really was exhausted today, but once everything was done, he could finally get some proper sleep. Any problems could wait until tomorrow.

Since there was neither a bed nor bedding, he could only make do and sleep on Cyclizar's back again.

"Good night~"

"Cyclizar~"

The sky gradually darkened. After an unknown amount of time had passed, the noisy clamor coming from the street outside woke Xingye from his sleep.

He blinked listlessly. After looking at Cyclizar, which was still asleep, he climbed down from its back, left the bedroom, and passed through the living room.

From here, the sounds became increasingly clear. They weren't just coming from outside—even downstairs was noisy.

Irritably, he pulled open the door and stepped outside. Just as he was about to ask what was happening, the sight of the street below made him freeze in place.

"Did I get isekai'd again?"