When Celebi heard that Xinhai had changed his mind, she smiled happily, floated to his shoulder, and gently leaned her tiny body against his neck.
The touch was so light, so light, like a feather settling on his skin, carrying a faint warmth.
"I don't know why I came here," Xinhai continued, his gaze passing through the flowing emerald light on the bubble's surface and falling on the blurry figures outside.
"When I woke up, I was already in this world. I had become a baby, with new parents and a new home. Later, I gradually gained them too."
His gaze passed over Celebi and settled on the companions outside the bubble who were watching him worriedly.
Following his gaze, Celebi looked at the Pokémon outside the bubble.
They were still watching this place, their eyes filled with worry and anxiety, but even more than that, they were waiting—waiting with the firm belief that he would come out safely.
Celebi withdrew her gaze. Her pale blue eyes rested on Xinhai as though she were contemplating something.
A moment later, she spoke.
"Actually, you don't need to worry about whether you belong in the Pokémon world." Her voice remained ethereal, though it now carried a trace of seriousness, as if she were announcing an important fact.
"You already have so many companions and have formed eternal bonds with them. Doesn't that mean you're already connected to this world?"
Xinhai froze.
Celebi floated in front of him, tilted her head, and revealed a small, innocent smile.
"So, you're already a person of this world. You don't have to worry so much." Her voice was light yet certain, and her antenna trembled slightly. "No matter where you came from, you belong to this world."
At those words, Xinhai felt his eyes grow hot.