Elf: Re-employment of retired champion of Padiya

Chapter 792 Pearl Village: Must We Catch Pokémon?

Luo Mu's thinking was very simple.

There's no need to guess whose will Wusi represents.

Since that's the case, I'll borrow the other party's name to make things easier in the Xicui area. I don't think the other party will mind.

Moreover, the "Divine Lord" worshipped by the Pearl Team led by Pearl Shell is entirely a product of their misunderstanding of history.

Sinnoh Daisuke ≠ Palkia.

If things were to come to light, they would have no choice but to swallow their anger rather than confront Luo Mu and demand an explanation.

—Not to mention, it's hard to say whether he was even still in the Xicui area at that time.

After all, Luo Mu wasn't sure if the game's protagonist, the legitimate "Envoy of Sinnoh," had actually traveled over.

He was still somewhat cautious.

But what Luo Mu didn't expect was that Zhu Bei wouldn't fall for his tricks at all.

The girl rolled her eyes dramatically, and her gaze toward Luo Mu held a strange hint of pity.

—It was as if she thought Luo Mu was someone who wasn't quite right in the head.

She didn't even respond to Luo Mu's comment, but instead changed the subject abruptly.

"Never mind, judging from your clothes, you don't seem to be a local, so you probably can't be someone sent by the Kongo Team either."

"The danger in this weather isn't just the low temperature, but also the hunters lurking in the snow and wind."

"In any case, since you don't know anything, I, Zhubei, the leader of the Pearl Team, will reluctantly take you back to the settlement to shelter from the wind and snow."

"Remember to be grateful!"

Zhu Bei put her hands on her hips and glanced in a certain direction out of the corner of her eye.

In that vast expanse of white, several nimble black shadows could be vaguely seen flitting by.

She knew that those were cunning hunters lurking in the snowstorm, dangerous Pokémon that often hunted in groups—Sneasel and Weavile.

Ice Eevee paced back and forth at the feet of the Shellder, watching the direction it was facing, clearly wary of an attack from that side.

Actually, there was another reason for Zhu Bei's change in attitude towards Luo Mu, but she didn't say it out loud.

After all, Luo Mu's clothes were somewhat similar to those of the person who had come to the Pearl Team before and was now the team leader.

Zhu Bei took Luo Mu's words as nonsense due to a confused memory.

Otherwise, she would definitely be angry at this disrespectful person who casually impersonated the Grand Master of Sinnoh.

Through a series of coincidences, the Pearl Village, which should have been somewhat exclusive, took the initiative to accept Luo Mu, a man in distress.

Pure white frozen soil, pearl clusters.

The entire campsite was built on a gentle slope with a wide view, and dozens of "buildings" similar to the tents where Wusi lived were scattered in this wilderness campsite.

To be honest, the primitiveness of this settlement is even more impressive than Luo Mu had expected.

Looking around, there wasn't even a decent wooden building in sight.

No wonder the pearl team led by Zhu Bei had to consider its relationship with Zhu Qing Village.

Of course, it's also possible that this is simply a traditional way of living in the Pearl Village.

"Luo Mu?"

Standing in front of a tent, Zhubei looked at him.

Luo Mu had mentioned his name on the way, but it might be a little difficult for Zhu Bei to pronounce.

"This is Pearl Settlement, our Pearl Team's living camp, but now it's only where ordinary members gather."

"Well, apart from Zhuqing Village, which is made up of many outsiders, we are one of the largest settlements in Xicui!"

She walked along without seeming to feel the cold at all, her hands on her hips, her voice brimming with pride.

"Besides, we have several strongholds on this land. As a reliable figure like the captain of our Pearl Team, and the king there... cough cough, I accidentally got too excited and said too much."

"In short, the wind and snow are very heavy right now, and based on past experience at the same time, it will probably continue for several more days. No matter where you want to go, you should stay here for the next few days."

"And your Pokémon," Zhubei paused, her voice landing on Calyrex, which she seemed not to have seen her taking a step, "It shouldn't suddenly cause trouble in the house, right?"

Crowned Queen: "."

What do you take me for?

Luo Mu hadn't expected that Zhu Bei would not only accept him, but also explain the current situation to him in such detail.

It seems that this girl is just like her character in the game—straightforward, earnest, and a little bit warm-hearted.

Since Zhu Bei had already come up with a reason for himself, Luo Mu didn't bring up the matter of him pretending to be a charlatan again.

After assuring the King of Lacecrown that he wouldn't do anything inappropriate in the house, he stared at Pearl's exposed skin and finally couldn't help but ask a question.

"Um...aren't you cold dressed like that in this weather?"

"cold?"

Zhu Bei, who didn't understand Luo Mu's meaning for a moment, paused for a second, and then gave him a "Are you kidding me?" look.

"What's so cold about this? It's actually quite warm and cozy, perfect for a nap. But if the wind and snow get a bit heavier, it will feel quite hot."

Zhu Bei made a fanning motion with her right hand and lifted the tent flap with her left, urging Luo Mu, "Come in quickly."

After saying that, she stopped caring whether Luo Mu followed or not and went straight into the large tent.

".Well."

Luo Mu remained silent for a long time, only letting out a soft "uh" to express his speechlessness and shock.

This is no longer within the scope of a super jadeite washer, is it?
What exactly is the structure of this girl's sensory nerves?
Seeing that the Crested King had also gone inside, Luo Mu, who was only able to stand in the freezing cold outdoors with the help of Bictini, stopped dawdling.

But before entering the tent, he subconsciously looked up at the sky filled with white snow.

It's unclear whether the snow or the snow simply concealed it, or if such a thing never existed at all.

In the game "Legend of Arceus," the thing called "Time Rift," which runs through the entire game from beginning to end, did not appear in Luo Mu's field of vision.

"It seems we can only wait for the snow to stop."

After muttering something to himself, Luo Mu entered the tent.

Even with the power of the Crowned King, it could forcibly stop the blizzard by pulling on the reins of the Snowstorm Horse.

But being a newcomer, and with the waters of Xicui being quite deep, Luo Mu ultimately didn't choose to do anything too outrageous.

Before we understand the current situation, let's hold back for now.

Through the thick, tightly designed curtains, the blizzard was completely kept out of the house.

Upon entering the room, Luo Mu immediately sensed the change in environment. Listening to the soft crackling of the firewood, Luo Mu's gaze fell upon the fireplace not far away, where flames roared and radiated light and heat without restraint.

In front of the fireplace, a Pokémon that looked very familiar to the Luo Mu was lying there.

—Templace.

The flame that ignites the firewood probably comes from its mouth.

Luo Mu only remembered it when he saw Flareon.

Now, Zhubei, sitting on the cushion and fanning herself to cool down, with a thin layer of sweat on her skin, seems to be a fan of Eevee, just like Botan.

All the Pokémon in her team were different evolutions of Eevee.

Shaymi, who had been brought in by the Brilliant King, was now lying on her back in front of the fireplace, enjoying herself immensely.

It's probably because it's been too cold outside, and now it doesn't even care about the fact that it's not only weak to ice, but also weak to fire.

Upon seeing Luo Mu enter, Zhu Bei, who was not afraid of the freezing cold but was almost unbearably hot from the perfectly warm environment, waved to him, indicating that he should sit opposite her.

After Luo Mu sat down, she almost couldn't wait to say, "I don't know why you all feel the temperature is so cold, but anyway, I had Flareon prepare a fireplace for you."

"Look, there are some spares over there. We can just add them in if the firewood runs out. Surely they can do that, right?"

"This is where I live by myself, but I don't really like the temperature right now, so I'll be staying with the other members later. You can stay here for the next few days."

Zhubei spoke very quickly. Almost the next second after explaining everything, she stood up and said, "It's almost dinner time. I'll have someone bring you your food later." Then she fled from the perfectly warm space as if she were escaping.

In an instant, only Luo Mu, Raiguan Wang, Bictini, and the contented Shemi remained in the room, staring at each other wide-eyed.

The Queen of the Lace Crown no longer needs to pretend she can't speak.

It gazed in the direction where Shellder had left with Glaceon and Flareon, a smile playing on its lips.

"This girl is good; she's a person who is genuine inside and out."

Because of her good first impression of the pearl shell, the Queen of the Crown followed her previous experience and never used "telepathy" from beginning to end.

After all, it knows the historical context of the past best.

Even though the term "monster" in this settlement has long since evolved into "Pokémon," and Pokémon have clearly formed partnerships with humans.

However, long-held beliefs cannot be changed so easily, just like how Pearl Shell was worried that King Regent might cause trouble.

"Yes, we were very lucky to meet her. It saved us a lot of trouble and allowed us to better integrate into this era."

Luo Mu stood up and went to the bookshelf in the corner of the room.

The bookshelves were filled with various books written in ancient Shinigami script. Judging from their worn condition, they seemed to have been read many times by their owner.

Having obtained Zhu Bei's consent beforehand, Luo Mu casually picked up a book and opened it to the first page.

To be honest, Luo Mu knew absolutely nothing about what was written on it. Only archaeologists like Zhu Lan or experts in ancient writing could probably understand it.

But all of this became meaningless the moment the words appeared in his eyes.

Luo Mu looked at the first line of the first page of this book, "Wild Pokémon Observation Notes," whose author was unknown, and read it aloud softly.

"Pokémon are very scary creatures."

"Leaving aside the era of Warcraft, even in today's past, or even in your own time, this statement actually makes some sense."

Upon hearing this, King Rai-King was not angry at all; instead, he showed an expression of agreement.

"But you, you actually can read the characters of this era?"

The Queen of the Brilliant Crown looked Luo Mu up and down, as if she were meeting him for the first time today.

"Basically, don't do it six times."

Speaking in a language that the Queen of the Crowns couldn't quite understand, Luo Mu rubbed his hands together and began browsing through the Pearl Shell bookshelf.

Since she agreed to let me browse through these books to pass the time, I suppose there shouldn't be any diaries filled with a young girl's secrets among them.

Following Calyrex's advice, Luo Mu did not take out the Poké Balls to release Xeno'jiiva and the others.

After all, they were not yet aware of the prevalence of Poké Balls in this era.

Although Luo Mu knew that since Pearl Shell was there, Dr. Laben was most likely in Zhuqing Village, and might have even figured out how to make the ancient Poké Ball.

But they are, after all, visitors from the future.

Even if Wu Si frankly stated that all their actions would be part of the correct history, both Luo Mu and Lei Guan Wang wanted to minimize their additional impact on this era.

Time always flies when you're reading.

Victini and Shaymi were fast asleep nearby, while the Crane King stared blankly outside, seemingly missing Cosmog.

The wind and snow outside showed no signs of stopping. Just as Zhu Bei had said, Luo Mu only received food from an ordinary member of the Pearl Team.

When the other party finished delivering the food and left, Luo Mu keenly heard the other party muttering to themselves, forgetting to lower their voice.

"...She really looks like Director Kitashō, dressed so strangely. Is it a style from somewhere else?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Mu paused in his action of picking up the spoon, and narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

北尚
Luo Mu remembered that this person was—

Shortly after dinner, another member of the Pearl Team came and took away the plates.

Just like the previous person, the other person was also secretly observing Luo Mu, muttering something under their breath.

On Luo Mu's first night in the Xicui area, Zhu Bei did not show up again, except after settling them in.

The only sound from the outside world is the unchanging howling of the wind and snow, effectively blocking out all sounds from living things except for the roar of nature.

Only at a certain moment did the Crowned Queen's gaze seem to pierce through all the barriers, noticing a tent filled with the scent of pearl shells, where a rather heated argument seemed to be taking place.

the next day.

The person who brought breakfast was Zhu Bei, whose eyes seemed to show signs of fatigue and who appeared to have faint dark circles.

She placed a porridge made from some kind of grain in front of Luo Mu, still looking as energetic as she had yesterday.

"Eat up, this is a rare item we traded with the Ginkgo Merchant Guild. The people in the settlement rave about the taste of this unique food."

"Thanks."

Luo Mu nodded his thanks, but noticed that Pearl Shell did not leave the food like the other two members of the Pearl Team.

Instead, he stood there, his expression seemingly conflicted.

After a moment, she finally seemed to have mentally prepared herself, put her hands together, and showed an apologetic expression on her face.

"Sorry, plans have changed."

"I originally wanted you to stay here peacefully for a few days, but now it might be... no, it's necessary for you to catch some Pokémon."

(End of this chapter)