Elf: Rewriting the script, starting with Black Stocking Hanako

The next morning.

Sunlight streamed into the room through the gaps in the curtains, casting dappled golden light onto the blankets.

Hanako woke up first.

She didn't move, just lay there on her side, looking at Jiang Chuan who was so close to her.

The man was sleeping soundly, his breathing steady, his arm still draped over her waist, a possessive gesture.

Hanako blushed as she recalled last night.

That scoundrel, when he says "I want it all," he really means he wants it all.

Jiang Chuan was exceptionally strong yesterday.

Hanako vaguely felt that it might be because she wore that purple openwork lace dress last night, which aroused Jiang Chuan's interest and caused her to suffer.

But she really likes it.

I like the way he loses control for me.

I like it when he's close to me.

She loved it when he whispered things in her ear that made her so embarrassed she curled her toes.

Hanako gently reached out and lightly traced Jiangchuan's brow bone, nose bridge, and lips.

This man is hers.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but smile.

My lower back is a little sore and my legs feel a little weak.

But it was worth it.

Next time, I'll wear something even sexier, let's see how fierce he can get.

As Hanako was lost in thought, Jiangchuan's eyelids twitched.

He didn't open his eyes, but tightened his grip on her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"Awake?" The voice was low and hoarse, as if the person had just woken up.

"Hmm..." Hanako responded softly.

Jiang Chuan opened his eyes, met her gentle, watery gaze, and smiled.

"What are you thinking about? Your face is so red."

Hanako buried her face in his chest and mumbled, "I wasn't thinking about anything..."

"Are you thinking about last night?" Jiang Chuan's hand slid down her back. "Which part? The beginning, the middle, or...?"

"Oh dear~ stop talking!" Hanako said shyly, playfully punching his chest.

Jiang Chuan chuckled softly and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"Alright, get up, or Xia will come knocking on the door."

Hanako nodded obediently.

Jiang Chuan followed her gaze and smiled nonchalantly, "Just tidy it up a bit."

Hanako nodded, thinking to herself that she must wash the sheets herself while Officer Jenny wasn't looking.

Otherwise, it would be too embarrassing to ask Officer Jenny to clean this up.

.........................................................

Breakfast was prepared by Officer Jenny.

It's very simple: fried eggs, toast, milk, and some local pickles.

Xiaoxia was already sitting at the table, and she looked to be in good spirits.

Seeing Jiang Chuan and Hua Zi come out of the same room one after the other, her eyes flickered, but she didn't say anything and just buried her head in drinking her milk.

Hanako sat down opposite her and casually picked up a piece of toast.

Officer Jenny came out of the kitchen carrying the last plate of fried eggs, glanced at the table, and said with a smile, "Is everything ready? Come on, let's eat, we'll be busy today."

Jiang Chuan nodded, tore off a piece of toast, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Still handing out flyers today?"

"Yes." Officer Jenny sat down. "The festival has officially begun, and there will be even more tourists, so we can't stop promoting it."

Jiang Chuan thought for a moment: "The flyers will still have those 'danger zone warnings'?"

Officer Jenny nodded: "Yes, it's the same old content."

"I have a suggestion," Jiang Chuan said, putting down his toast. "Instead of just handing out cold, impersonal warning leaflets, why not print a batch of booklets and systematically organize the legends and stories of Maiden Gorge?"

Officer Jenny's eyes brightened slightly.

"The story itself contains a warning," Jiang Chuan continued. "The tragic core of the story—the thousand-year-old maiden waiting for her lover and jumping off a cliff to commit suicide—is memorable. Making the legend more vivid is both cultural promotion and a subtle warning—don't go to remote places at night."

"That's a good idea," Officer Jenny said, intrigued. "How exactly do we do it?"

Jiang Chuan took a sip of milk: "It's simple. Just combine the different versions of the legend and write it into a short story. Add illustrations and print it as a pocket booklet. Tourists who come to the festival can take one as a souvenir. When they get home, they can look it up and naturally know which places in Maiden Gorge have the 'legends,' so they won't wander around at night."

Officer Jenny nodded repeatedly, her gaze towards Jiang Chuan now filled with more appreciation.

Xiaoxia chimed in, "Then we can go print the booklets first today!"

"Yes," Jiang Chuan said. "I roughly outlined the content during my walk last night, and I'll write it down later."

Hanako looked at Jiangchuan tenderly, without saying a word, but her eyes were full of pride.

Officer Jenny immediately made the decision: "That's settled! After breakfast, we'll split up. I'll go contact the printing shop."

....................................

After breakfast, Hanako stayed behind.

"I'll help with the cleaning at home," she said. "I got the guest room sheets dirty yesterday, and I felt really bad about it. I'll wash them today."

Officer Jenny paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Miss Hanako, you're too kind. No need for that..."

"No trouble at all," Hanako waved her hand. "You're so busy with work, it's rare for someone to help you with your tidying up. Don't worry, leave it to me."

Officer Jenny felt a warmth in her heart.

She is indeed very busy with police station affairs, patrols, and paperwork. When she gets home, she is often too tired to do anything. Although the house is not messy, she really doesn't have time to clean it thoroughly.

"Thank you, Miss Hanako." Officer Jenny smiled sincerely.

"Just call me Hanako."

The two women smiled at each other.

........................

Jiang Chuan took Xiaoxia and Jun Sha out together.

First, go to the printing shop in town.

Officer Jenny knew the shop owner, and after a brief conversation, the owner said they could expedite the printing and she could pick it up that afternoon.

Jiang Chuan borrowed the store's computer and compiled the story of the girl's legend in twenty minutes.

He used the simplest and most straightforward narrative style:

A thousand years ago, a young girl met her beloved traveler here and they pledged their lives to each other.

The traveler said he would definitely return when he left, so the girl stood on the cliff edge every day to wait.

Spring came and autumn went, flowers bloomed and faded, but the traveler never returned.

The girl waited from youth to old age, and finally, on a full moon night, she jumped into the sea.

Legend has it that her spirit still lingers on the cliff edge, waiting for someone who will never return.

Therefore, after nightfall, the sound of sobbing and crying often comes from Maiden Cliff.

Therefore, under the moonlight, will-o'-the-wisps often flicker in the woods.

That wasn't meant to scare people; it was a young girl searching for her lover whom she had lost for a thousand years.

The story is short, but full of emotion.

Officer Jenny finished reading and remained silent for a few seconds.

"It's so well written..." she said softly, "much more moving than those dry warnings."

Xiaoxia leaned closer to look, blinked, and exclaimed, "Jiang Chuan, you have this talent too?"

Jiang Chuan smiled and said, "I just wrote it casually."

Following Jiang Chuan's suggestion, the shop owner added a few blank pages after the story, marked "You can get a commemorative stamp."

Officer Jenny's eyes lit up: "That's great! Tourists can take the booklet to various stalls at the festival to get stamps, and they can exchange the stamps for small gifts."

Jiang Chuan nodded: "That's exactly what I mean."

The printing shop began typesetting and printing.

Officer Jenny contacted Joey again.

"Miss Joy, I'll have someone send a batch of brochures over to the Pokémon Center so visitors can easily take them."

"Yes, Miss Officer Jenny, no problem!"

After hanging up the phone, Officer Jenny looked at Jiang Chuan with a smile in her eyes.

"How is your brain structured? You even thought of these details."

Jiang Chuan shrugged: "I've seen similar practices when I traveled to other cities before, so I'm just taking a look."

........................

The booklet was printed in the afternoon.

The first batch of 500 copies had dark green covers with a silhouette of Maiden Cliff and a crescent moon printed on them.

The first page contains a story written by Jiang Chuan.

Officer Jenny, along with Jiang Chuan and Xiaoxia, distributed the brochures to the visitor center, several hotels, and the Pokémon Center.

Joey received the booklet and immediately flipped through a few pages.

"This is so well written... I didn't know the legend of Maiden Gorge was like this before."

She carefully placed the booklet in the most prominent position on the information shelf.

...........................

The response to the Girls' Legend booklet was better than expected.

As evening fell, Jiang Chuan and Xiao Xia were handing out flyers at the festival venue when they noticed many tourists holding the dark green booklet.

People were queuing at the stamping station, showing each other their booklets.

Some people sat in the rest area, flipping through booklets and reading stories attentively.

After reading it, a young girl said to her companion, "Let's not go to Maiden Cliff tonight... it feels rather desolate."

His companion nodded repeatedly, "No, no, we'll just stay here and have fun."

Xiaoxia heard this and quietly tugged at Jiang Chuan's sleeve.

"See, it works."

Jiang Chuan nodded and continued handing out flyers.

But in his heart he was thinking that the "terrifying atmosphere" he had created last night was actually more effective.

The Millennium Gastly has indeed stopped causing trouble.

The sounds, the powder, the shadows, and the embellishments of the brochure's story are enough to deter ordinary tourists.

Tonight should pass peacefully as well.

…………

In the evening, there was a fireworks display.

Huge fireworks burst across the sky above the sea, their vibrant colors of red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and purple transforming the night sky into a dazzling canvas.

Tourists gathered on the shore, looking up in awe.

Officer Jenny stood on the outskirts of the crowd, watching the fireworks fill the sky, a smile on her lips.

This was the most peaceful summer festival she had experienced since taking up her post at Girls' Gorge.

There are no missing persons cases.

There was no panic alarm.

The tourists had a great time, and the townspeople made a fortune.

She turned her head to look at Jiang Chuan, who was not far away.

The man was looking up at the fireworks, and Pikachu was perched on his shoulder, waving its little paws and calling "Pika Pika" in rhythm with the fireworks.

Hanako stood to Jiangchuan's left, gently taking his arm.

Xiaoxia stood on the right, pretending to be focused on watching the fireworks, but her body unconsciously leaned towards Jiang Chuan.

Officer Jenny suddenly felt a pang of envy.

It's not that I envy them for having men.

I envy this kind of unspoken understanding and trust.

The fireworks display lasted for half an hour.

After it ended, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Officer Jenny breathed a sigh of relief and said to Jiang Chuan, "This year's festival has been a complete success."

"Mm." Jiang Chuan nodded. "Thank you for your hard work."

Officer Jenny smiled but didn't say anything.

But in my heart I was thinking, you're the one who's actually suffering the most.

She didn't know exactly what Jiang Chuan had done.

But she knew that the "paranormal events" that used to cause trouble every summer festival did not happen this year.

This is no coincidence.

Jiang Chuan just never said it.

...............................

That night, everyone went back to their rooms to rest.

Silent all night.

…………

The next morning.

Jiang Chuan opened his eyes, and a system notification sounded in his mind.

[The mission to protect the peace of the Maiden's Gorge Summer Festival is complete.]

[Amulet x1 - One-time consumable. After use, the user is immune to all superpowers, mental effects, and magical effects for 24 hours. Already added to system inventory.]

[Spell Talisman x1 - A Pokémon held item that increases the power of Ghost-type moves by 20%. Already added to your inventory.]

Jiang Chuan's eyes flickered slightly.

Amulet, another trump card to deal with Nazja.

Spell Talisman, Ghost-type damage-boosting item...

His eyes flickered.

The desire to capture that thousand-year-old Gastly grew even stronger.

…………

After breakfast, Jiang Chuan said to Hua Zi and Xiao Xia, "I'm going out to take care of something."

Xiaoxia looked up, puzzled: "Running errands again? You seem to be getting more and more like a local now?"

Hanako said gently, "Come back soon."

Jiang Chuan smiled and nodded, then took Pikachu out of the house. Once outside the courtyard, he headed straight for the hillside where the thousand-year-old Gastly lived.

...............

Jiang Chuan, with Pikachu in tow, followed the mountain path he remembered to the halfway point.

The air in the early morning at Jungjung Gorge is fresh, and the sea breeze blowing through the trees carries a faint salty smell.

After walking for about half an hour, the dilapidated little wooden house came into view.

Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, hopped to the door first, and turned back to call out "Pika Pika" twice.

Jiang Chuan raised his hand and knocked on the door.

"Hey, are you there, Old Ghost?"

A cloud of purple mist emerged from the crack in the door.

The Millennium Gastly floated in mid-air, grinning, its eyes curving into crescents.

"Hey kid, so early? I thought you'd be sleeping until noon."

Jiang Chuan didn't bother to respond and simply pulled an envelope out of his waist bag.

"Fifty thousand, final payment."

Gastly's eyes widened instantly, the mist contracted sharply, and the next second the entire cloud of mist rushed onto the envelopes, using its telekinesis to hold them up and float them in mid-air, counting them one by one.

"One, two, three, four..."

It counted with utmost care, and with each page it turned, its smile deepened.

"Fifty thousand! Hahahaha!" Gastly stuffed the envelope into the mist and spun around. "I'm rich! I can eat delicious food! I can go to the haunted house! This is awesome!"

Pikachu tilted its head and looked at it, thinking that the old guy was a bit silly.

Jiang Chuan wasn't in a hurry; he leaned against the doorframe and waited for it to finish its madness.

Gastly spun around for a while before stopping, then happily approached Jiang Chuan: "Kid, you're a really good guy, you keep your word and pay up quickly."

"That's right." Jiang Chuan shrugged. "I never go back on my promises."

Gastly nodded, preparing to float back into the house.

"Old Ghost," Jiang Chuan called out to it.

"Um?"

"Would you like to cultivate with me?"

Gastly floated in mid-air, and the mist froze for a moment.

"Cultivation? What's the point of cultivation?"

Jiang Chuan looked at it: "Fight the gym, fight in the league tournament."

The air was silent for three seconds.

Gastly chuckled.

"Hahaha! Kid, what did you say? You want me to go play in the competition with you?"

Jiang Chuan didn't laugh; his expression was serious.

Gastly, having finished laughing, floated in front of him and poked his forehead with its psychic powers.

"Kid, I know you humans are really good at training Pokémon these days, all that move combinations, type advantages, tactical teamwork..."

It paused.

"But that outfit doesn't suit me."

Jiang Chuan didn't speak, waiting for it to continue.

"I don't like being trained," Gastly said, its tone unusually serious. "And I don't like fighting either."

"Besides," it floated back to the doorway, its back to the river, "I still have to keep my promise."

"The girl who jumped off the cliff?"

"Hmm." Gastly's mist rippled gently. "I watched her jump, watched her soul become trapped on this shore."

"She's been waiting for that person to come back."

"I promised her I would help her find news of her lover."

Gastly turned around and grinned, but the cunning in its smile was gone.

"Even though we've been searching for a thousand years and haven't found it, we can't just give up halfway."

"Besides, it was something I promised her, and she's always been very good to me."

Jiang Chuan was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Understood."

"Actually, I'm not very good at fighting..." Gastly then brought up another aspect.