Haunted House Adventure

"It really was delicious. This was my first time eating Pokémon steak!" Shen Yue said, lounging back in her chair without a shred of decorum.

"The steak was well prepared, and it can improve your constitution, too. If you can get it, you should eat more. It might even increase your chances of awakening. Just try not to eat wild Pokémon. Stick to domesticated breeds approved by the Alliance for consumption. Nobody knows what diseases wild ones might carry. If you get infected, it could be a disaster," Xiao Ran said with a nod.

"Oh, I know about that! Wasn't there an outbreak in South Africa a while ago? Apparently someone got so hungry they ate a Golbat, and that caused it. Quite a few people died. Good thing it never spread here." When it came to gossip, Shen Yue knew her stuff. She immediately sat upright and launched into the story with excitement.

"Tsk, there really are all kinds of people in this world! How could anyone bring themselves to eat a Golbat?" Jiang Cheng exclaimed.

"By the way, what did you come here to buy?" After they had chatted for a while, Jiang Cheng turned to Xiao Ran.

"Ummm... a Berry blender, a small oven for home use, an induction cooker, pots, bowls, ladles, that sort of thing..." Xiao Ran listed them off.

"Whoa! An oven, an induction cooker, and pots and pans? Xiao Ran, are you planning to cook for us in the dorm?" Shen Yue asked in surprise. They were here to attend school. Why would they need all that?

"Cooking is secondary. They're mainly for making Pokémon Food. I can't run home to make more every time we run out, can I? Besides, we have quite a few Pokémon now. Different Pokémon need different kinds of food, so I need more equipment," Xiao Ran said helplessly.

Even without counting Jiang Cheng and Shen Yue, he and Ye Ling already had Sneasel, Popplio, Froakie, Feebas, and two Eevee to raise. Since the two Eevee were being trained in different directions, their diets differed as well. Then there were Jiang Cheng's Magnemite and Onix, along with Shen Yue's Charmander and her recently hatched Larvesta. The food each Pokémon needed to grow could be worlds apart.

"Thank you for all your hard work, Campus Belle Xiao!" Jiang Cheng said with a solemn expression as he looked at Xiao Ran. The words only made Xiao Ran want to punch him.

"Hehehe!" Shen Yue dissolved into laughter beside them, and even the corners of Ye Ling's lips curved slightly...

With their appetites satisfied, the four began a shopping spree through the department store. There was no way they could carry everything they bought, but fortunately, the store offered home delivery. All they had to do was book a time.

Of everything they bought, the Berry blender was by far the largest. It was roughly the size of a double-door refrigerator and would take up plenty of space in the dorm, but it was essential for making Pokémon Food. Whether they were making Pokéblocks, Pokémon Cookies, or other kinds of Pokémon Food, any recipe involving Berries required a Berry blender to process them.

Of course, Berry blenders were also extremely expensive. Even the most basic household model cost at least six figures. Fortunately, none of them were short on money, so they simply bought one for the dorm for convenience.

"Thank you for your purchase. Here are four haunted house tickets. You can enjoy one free visit to the haunted house on the seventh floor. Feel free to take a look upstairs. It's especially fun for couples." After they paid, the cashier handed them four tickets. This was a standard department store tactic: steer customers somewhere else in the hope that they would spend more money. Still, if they really went for one visit and left afterward, it was a genuine bargain.

"It's still early. Shall we go have some fun? A haunted house!" Holding the four tickets, Shen Yue practically had her eagerness written across her face. A Fire-type specialist, she was as fiery as the flames themselves and had no idea what fear was.

"Are you sure? Don't end up crying from fright," Jiang Cheng said irritably.

"Tch, don't underestimate me. I bet you'll be the one crying! Who was it screaming their head off on the roller coaster last time?"

"What? I'm afraid of heights, okay?"

"You were just scared!"

Bickering all the way, they eventually reached the seventh floor and the Haunted House Challenge. Like movie theaters, haunted houses were a common entertainment facility in major department stores. In this world, however, real Ghost-type Pokémon waited inside to scare visitors.

Different Pokémon had different dietary needs. Fire-type Pokémon ate completely different food from Water-type Pokémon, and even Pokémon of the same type could have vastly different diets. Ghost-type Pokémon were an even more extreme example. Most of them actually fed on life force.

Of course, besides life force, they could also feed on special forms of energy such as fear and dreams. Haunted houses therefore served as feeding grounds for those who raised Ghost-type Pokémon.

By frightening people and feeding on the fear they produced, the Pokémon could avoid draining human life force. That was why haunted houses in this world were genuinely terrifying. Competing for food, the Pokémon put real effort into scaring people.

After their tickets were checked, the group followed a staff member's directions through a pitch-black doorway. As the door shut behind them, Shen Yue, who had insisted she wasn't afraid, couldn't help grabbing Jiang Cheng's arm.

To prevent startled Pokémon from attacking wildly and damaging the premises, everyone had to return their Pokémon to their Poké Balls before entering the haunted house.

"Cheng! Do you think a Pokémon might suddenly lose control and drain our life force?" Shen Yue asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"Probably~~~ not~~~" Jiang Cheng answered uncertainly, beginning to tremble himself.

The haunted house was very well soundproofed. Once the entrance door closed, the room fell completely silent. Yet now they seemed to hear mournful sobbing, a plaintive weeping that made their hair stand on end. Then a chilly draft suddenly swept through, sending shivers down their spines.

"It's fine. All the Ghost-type Pokémon here were raised by humans. They wouldn't drain anyone's life force. Golden Summit Department Store would go bankrupt paying compensation if they did," Xiao Ran reassured them, holding Ye Ling's hand.

Haunted houses were booming in this world, but the accompanying safety concerns were a constant headache. Without strict supervision, many Ghost-type Pokémon couldn't resist draining life force. Fortunately, stores like Golden Summit Department Store had never experienced such an incident. Their supervision and screening of Pokémon were still very strict.

Sure enough, as the fear in their hearts deepened, a jumble of laughter echoed through the room, as though many Ghost-type Pokémon were happily feeding. As the laughter reached them, Xiao Ran and the others felt considerably less afraid, though waves of agitation and weakness washed through their minds. Fear was a form of mental energy, after all, even if it could be replenished.

"Hahaha~~~" A shrill laugh suddenly rang out right beside their ears, making them all jump.

"Aah!!!!" Jiang Cheng and Shen Yue clung to each other, screaming nonstop. Holding Ye Ling tightly, Xiao Ran looked up. A Gastly was eagerly drawing the fear out of them.

"Hiss~~~" Xiao Ran's gaze shifted higher, and he couldn't help sucking in a sharp breath. With that Gastly's success, the other Ghost-type Pokémon in the room could no longer hold back and began rushing toward them. A quick glance revealed seven or eight of them. Anyone would be frightened with nearly ten ghosts circling around them.

"Aah!!! I want to leave! Is this really only the first stage?" Shen Yue screamed. As its name suggested, the Haunted House Challenge involved clearing one stage after another. Visitors had to stay in each stage for ten minutes, and after successfully clearing it, they could choose whether to proceed to the next.

"Why do I feel like we won't even make it through the first stage?" Jiang Cheng said miserably. Though he hadn't seen the Ghost-type Pokémon closing in, he could already feel numerous gazes fixed on him.

"Honestly, I feel the same way." If Xiao Ran had been outside, he would have been able to see how pale his own face was. Never mind Jiang Cheng and Shen Yue—the terror of this Haunted House Challenge had far exceeded his expectations, too.

It wasn't as though they had never visited haunted houses before. Challenges like these usually started with one Ghost-type Pokémon and gradually added more. What kind of place threw ten Ghost-type Pokémon at visitors in the very first stage? Wouldn't that mean hundreds of them by the later stages?

At that moment, Xiao Ran felt like a piece of meat on a chopping board, with these Ghost-type Pokémon staring him down as they decided where to take their first bite.

Something's wrong. This feeling... they aren't just trying to scare us. They really want to eat us? Xiao Ran suddenly jolted. His fear had muddled his senses, making him think he was merely frightened. But as the nearly ten Pokémon in the room lunged at them, he suddenly sensed that something was wrong.

"Watch out!" He had no time to think further. Ye Ling abruptly broke free of his embrace and pulled him behind her with all her strength. A flash of red light followed as she summoned Sneasel.

"Sneasel, Leer!" Ye Ling shouted. All the Ghost-type Pokémon recoiled in fright under Sneasel's Leer. They couldn't understand why food that had been behaving perfectly well moments ago had suddenly started fighting back!

"Popplio, Sing!" Ye Ling's reaction immediately confirmed to Xiao Ran that his instincts had been right. Something must have gone wrong in this room.

Without the slightest hesitation, he summoned Popplio and had the Pokémon begin to Sing. This was an area-wide control move: as the song spread, every enemy would be overcome by drowsiness. It was currently Popplio's best move for fighting groups.

"To think we'd be the ones to run into an incident that's never happened at Golden Summit Department Store before!" Xiao Ran said bitterly.

"This isn't an accident. I sensed killing intent directed at us," Ye Ling said gravely. Xiao Ran's gaze sharpened. That killing intent had actually been aimed specifically at them.