Shadow Pokémon and Pokémon with evil intentions weren't the same thing, were they...
That was what Baimu wanted to say.
But seeing how certain Ryuto looked, Baimu gave him an encouraging thumbs-up, then had the Porygon Phone send a Clone to follow Boro and Ogerpon.
"While you're at it, let them know they're being watched."
After some thought, Baimu decided not to keep it from Boro.
Otherwise, the so-called Loyal Three might ambush him and Ogerpon, causing an accident that could have been avoided.
"Okay."
The Porygon Phone agreed and split off a Clone that quietly approached Boro through the crowd surrounding him.
By then, his spirited prayer dance and Ogerpon's dazzling Terastallization had drawn the attention of most of the festival.
The crowd cheered, and people kept asking where the two had come from.
"Ponio~"
Ogerpon laughed happily. Her personality suited her appearance: she was like a lively, adorable, innocent little girl.
She longed to be treated kindly and hated being ignored or rejected.
It was hard to imagine such an adorable Pokémon being branded an "ogre."
It was absurd.
Baimu drew his gaze back and took the spatula from a flustered Cha Biao. "I didn't ask you to sell any! What are you panicking for?"
"I was worried I'd ruin your reputation..."
Cha Biao muttered under his breath.
Thanks to what had happened earlier that day, a line had already formed in front of the fried-noodle stall—
And that was despite Cha Biao taking over the griddle and turning out several disastrous trial batches.
Now that Baimu, the man they had been waiting for, was back, the people in line immediately perked up.
The wait hadn't been for nothing!
They called out to him.
"Get cooking, boss! I haven't eaten since noon. I've been saving my appetite for