"Mom, I'm home!"
Ye Qing climbed off Garchomp, but before he could steady himself, he saw Arcanine dash off toward a corner far away from him.
"What's wrong?"
Arcanine's behavior left Ye Qing rather puzzled. In the past, whenever he came home, Arcanine had always been the first to welcome him.
He hadn't expected Arcanine to avoid him this time as though he had seen a ghost.
"Quack, quack!"
The moment Psyduck came within five meters of Ye Qing, a powerful stench assaulted his nostrils.
The smell nearly knocked him out, but to see Diancie, whom he hadn't seen in days, Psyduck pinched his nose and forced himself to walk up to Ye Qing.
"Do I smell?"
Seeing Psyduck like this, Ye Qing finally realized what the problem was.
He had spent almost all this time in the forest, and there hadn't been any rivers near his special training spot, so he hadn't had many chances to bathe. The smell was bound to be a bit overpowering.
"You're back, son? The World Cup's about to start, and you're finally home! If you hadn't come back, I was going to look for you!"
Ye Dad came out of his room in pajamas and was startled too when he saw Ye Qing looking like a wild man.
"Is it really that bad?"
Seeing everyone making such a fuss, Ye Qing shook his head and simply had Gardevoir teleport him to the bathroom to wash up.
Only after washing for over an hour and changing into a blue-and-white tracksuit did Ye Qing feel alive again.
He had gotten used to being dirty before, so he hadn't really noticed. Only after washing did he realize just how badly he had smelled.
That evening, Ye Qing lay on the living room sofa, scrolling through his