Outside the train station, Xin Mu carried a backpack and pulled a small suitcase behind him.
It was summer, so he did not need many changes of clothes. The suitcase also held some Pokéblocks and daily necessities.
Meownei sat on the suitcase as Xin Mu pulled it along.
She had originally just been following him, but after seeing a young couple do this, she immediately copied them and settled onto the suitcase with a little coaxing.
With a build close to a human's but far less weight, Meowscarada could more easily do certain things humans wanted to do but could not manage well.
For instance, the young couple Meownei had copied was now in trouble. Their weight had unfortunately snapped off one of the suitcase's wheels, and they were on the verge of an argument.
"Teacher Liu isn't here yet. Let's wait a bit before going into the station. Are you thirsty?"
"Meow~ (Not really. That place looks pretty interesting.)"
Meownei swung her legs as she sat on the suitcase, then suddenly spotted a shop with tropical decor. Its sign featured a Tsareena on a tropical vacation.
Judging by the sign, it was probably another milk tea shop. Although it was not as famous as a chain like Snow King, Meownei was interested, so Xin Mu took her over.
"Looks like they aren't open..."
"Meow. (Then never mind. We still have water in the bag.)"
"It's fine. They should be about ready by now... Excuse me, are you open?"
Seeing staff still busy inside, Xin Mu opened the door and asked, only to receive an enthusiastic welcome from the owner.
The deeply tanned owner, whose skin bore obvious dark and yellowish patches, darted out from behind the counter as though afraid Xin Mu would run away.
The excitement on his face even made Meownei wonder whether they had wandered into some shady establishment. If they had not been beside the train station, with other employees in the shop, she would have given him an over-the-shoulder throw too.
"Welcome! Our specialty is Bounsweet and Flaaffy Shaved Ice, completely natural with no additives. Here's our menu. See anything you'd like?"
The most eye-catching thing in the shop was probably a miniature water park shaped like a yin-yang symbol. One side was a steaming hot spring, while the other held ordinary-temperature water and fixtures resembling water slides.
Lots of pink mangosteens floated on the water, but they were not actually mangosteens. They were fruit Pokémon-Bounsweet.
Bounsweet were Pokémon native to the Alola Region. They resembled mangosteens with some of their flesh exposed, and their bodies gave off a sweet fragrance that soothed people's moods. Their sweat was like concentrated fruit juice.
Diluting that sweat with water produced perfectly proportioned fruit juice. Apparently, the flavor could change depending on the environment the Bounsweet lived in.
Thinking of Old Liu, who had yet to arrive, Xin Mu ordered a portion for him too.
After Xin Mu placed his order, the owner put on a fresh pair of gloves and got to work. His movements were quite practiced, and he soon finished preparing everything Xin Mu wanted.
"Meow~ (Yummy~)"
As she spoke, Meownei picked up another spoon and handed it to Xin Mu, inviting him to try some too.
"It really is good..."
"Pretty good, right? I spent ages learning how to make it in Alola, and all the fruit is freshly bought. I just don't know why business has been so bad these past few days.
"Ever since that new shop next door opened a couple of days ago, my sales have plummeted.
"My prices are a little higher than theirs, but I use proper ingredients..."
Seeing how close Xin Mu and his Pokémon were, and with few customers in the shop, the disgruntled owner came over to complain to him.
"Business has been bad these past few days?"
"Yeah, it used to be pretty good. Rent around here isn't cheap, either. I've been losing money these past two days."
"Do you know what matters most when running a business?"
"A conscience."
Hearing the owner's answer, Xin Mu was momentarily at a loss. There was nothing wrong with that answer, after all, but he still had to disagree with him on this one.
"You're right, but I think being 'open' is pretty important when you're running a business too."
"Open?"
"The sign outside your door has said 'closed' this whole time. If my Pokémon hadn't been interested, I wouldn't even have come in to ask."
Xin Mu pointed at the reversible sign outside the door. From what the owner had said, it had probably been like that for days.
The owner's sorrowful face first lit up with delight, but then he began swearing under his breath. Afterward, he returned to the counter and packed two puddings for Xin Mu as a gift.
"Come again~"
Once Xin Mu left, the owner's expression darkened.
"It must've been that bastard next door. I distinctly remember flipping that sign over!"
"Boss, what are you doing...? Calm down..."
Seeing the owner suddenly pick up a fruit knife, an employee nearby grew a little frightened.
"Working. What did you think I was going to do?
"You can all leave early tonight. Once it gets dark, I'm going to pour boiling water on his Money Tree. Hmph, trying to pull a fast one on me..."
Before long, Old Liu arrived at the train station too, and he and Xin Mu boarded the high-speed train to Tianfu.
Xin Mu and Meownei, however, were in business class. According to Li Han, Xin Mu could book whatever made him comfortable. Even going all out on travel and accommodation was fine; anything that was not too excessive could be reimbursed.
Meals, however, had a set allowance, so he could not go overboard.
Old Liu was in second class. It was not that he did not want a business-class seat-the journey would take eleven hours-but finance would not reimburse him for it. A business-class ticket for this trip cost far more than a plane ticket.
Meanwhile, in Levincia, Paldea, a girl with long, two-toned hair, Magnemite-shaped hair accessories, and a mouthful of sharklike teeth was adjusting her equipment.
"Everyone~! Good morning, afternoon, and evening! Hello! It's ti~me for the Iono's Odd Tales livestream~!"
She was Iono, the Levincia Gym Leader, a famous streamer, and an idol.
"What should we stream today, hmm? You want to see Iono challenge that Meowscarada who plays video games? I'm really good at games, you know!"
"Why would a Pokémon from Paldea be in Donghuang...? How am I supposed to know that?! Iono already sent him a private message yesterday, but he didn't reply. Maybe he really did go to a tournament."
After Iono shared that gameplay clip, quite a few of her viewers became interested. Seeing how much attention it was getting, she had originally planned to contact the uploader for a collaboration.
That was Iono's usual approach. She collaborated with all sorts of attention-grabbing people to boost her popularity. If she thought a stream was not generating enough buzz, she would even change the script on the spot and do something her viewers liked more.
In Meowscarada's native region, these Pokémon were already more popular. With the discussion continuing to grow, Iono changed her script on the fly once again.
"Okay, it's decided! Our new stream topic is: find this uploader who went off to a tournament!"
Before you continue