Elf: Rewriting the script, starting with Black Stocking Hanako

On the way, Xiaoxia pulled Huazi along and chatted enthusiastically with Lijia.

"Manager, how long have you been running this shop?"

"I've been in charge for a few years," Lijia said with a smile. "I've loved perfume since I was a child; it was started by an elder in my family."

"You manage the shop and teach classes all the time, aren't you tired?"

"It's alright," Lijia said gently. "You don't feel tired when you're doing something you enjoy."

Hanako asked from the side, "Manager, you just said you could make perfume using Pokémon ingredients. Is that really possible?"

"Of course you can." Rika nodded. "As long as you know the method, you can make simple perfumes while traveling. And perfumes made with ingredients from your own Pokémon will be even more meaningful."

Hanako's eyes lit up as she listened, and she nodded repeatedly.

The group chatted and laughed as they soon arrived at a building.

This is a three-story building. It looks ordinary and is no different from the surrounding buildings.

The only special thing is the sign above the gate: Rainbow Gym.

Xia looked up and froze.

"Wait." She stopped. "This is... a dojo?"

Rika smiled and nodded: "Yes, the Rainbow Gym."

"Then you, store manager..." Xiaoxia's eyes widened.

"I am Rika, the Gym Leader of the Rainbow Gym," Rika said gently.

Xiaoxia: "!!!"

Hanako also looked surprised.

A young girl next to her explained with a smile, "Our shop manager is Rika, the dojo master. The perfume shop is owned by the dojo master, and we are all apprentices at the dojo. We learn about perfumes while simultaneously learning dojo battles."

Lijia smiled and nodded.

Xiaoxia took a deep breath, then glanced at Jiang Chuan with a look that said, "This is what you'll be challenging tomorrow!"

You'd better watch carefully in a bit!

Jiang Chuan smiled and nodded; he was already taking a good look at—Master Lijia.

As the two exchanged glances, Rika pushed open the dojo door.

"Please come in."

The group went inside.

Instantly, a refreshing scent of herbs and plants wafted over.

The inside of the dojo is a completely different world from the outside.

The spacious hall was filled with green plants.

Tall and short, big and small, some are planted on the ground, some hang in the air, and some climb all over the walls.

Sunlight streamed through the transparent skylight, illuminating the plants and making the entire space lush and vibrant.

The air was filled with a faint fragrance of grass and trees, mixed with a subtle floral scent.

Xiaoxia's mouth dropped open: "Wow...this is so beautiful!"

Hanako was also stunned, and couldn't help but take a few deep breaths: "What a comforting smell."

Lika walked ahead and introduced in a gentle voice, "The Rainbow Gym is a Grass-type Gym, so we try our best to create a natural environment. These plants were all planted by me and my Pokémon, and they usually take care of them."

She pointed to the plants: "There are many kinds of flowers and herbs here. Some are important ingredients in perfumes, and some are just for decoration. My Pokémon love this place and spend a lot of time here every day."

As they were talking, a small head suddenly popped out of the bushes nearby.

It's a walking grass.

With its blue body, green leaves, and round eyes, it looks adorably silly.

It paused for a moment when it saw so many people, then shrank back into the grass.

Hanako's eyes lit up: "So cute!"

Lijia smiled, squatted down, and gently parted the grass: "Don't be afraid, we're all friends."

Oddish poked its head out, looked at everyone, and then slowly walked out.

Then, several more Pokémon emerged from the bushes.

There are stinky flowers, dumbfounded flowers, vine monsters, and eggs.

They looked at the group of strangers with curiosity, but showed no signs of fear, clearly having grown accustomed to visitors.

Hanako stared at the Gloomy, somewhat incredulous: "Is this Gloomy? It...it doesn't smell."

Lijia laughed: "Gloomy flowers only release their odor when they are threatened or nervous. Normally they are very clean and even have a faint fragrance."

As she spoke, she waved.

The stinky flower came over and gently rubbed against her hand.

Rika patted its head and said to Hanako, "Here, you try it."

Hanako cautiously reached out her hand.

Stinky Flower looked at her, then gently rubbed her hand against it.

Hanako blushed with excitement: "It's so well-behaved!"

Lijia smiled and nodded: "It likes you."

Xia watched with envy and went over to touch the walking grass as well.

The walking grass felt comfortable being touched and gently shook the leaves on its head.

"So cute!" Xiaoxia's eyes lit up.

Jiang Chuan stood aside, watching this scene and silently making a mental note of it.

The habitat of Grass-type Pokémon, the types of plants they grow, and their habits...

These are all important references for tomorrow's gym challenge.

Although he didn't think he would lose, it's always good to be prepared.

At this moment, Lijia stood up and clapped her hands: "Alright, let's start the lesson. Everyone, follow me."

The group followed her through the hall and into a room further inside.

This room is like a small plant museum, with transparent glass walls on all four sides, allowing you to see all sorts of unusual plants inside.

Several tables were placed in the middle of the room, with various tools and materials on them.

There are distillers, beakers, test tubes, and all sorts of bottles and jars.

The air was filled with various fragrances, which blended together without appearing chaotic.

"Please make yourselves at home." Rika walked to the front. "Tonight we'll talk about some basics of perfumery, and then we'll give a simple demonstration of how to make perfume using Pokémon ingredients."

Everyone sat down on the lawn.

Xiaoxia and Huazi sat at the front, looking on with anticipation.

Jiang Chuan sat in the back, looking quite relaxed.

Pikachu lay on his lap, sniffed, and then yawned.

Lijia stood in front and began to explain.

"The main ingredients of perfume are alcohol and fragrance. Fragrances come from many sources, including flowers, fruits, and even substances secreted by Pokémon..."

Her voice was gentle and pleasant, and her explanation was clear and organized.

Xiaoxia and Huazi listened attentively, nodding from time to time.

As Jiang Chuan listened, he began to drift off into thought.

It's not that I spoke badly.

He's genuinely not very interested in these things.

However, Rika is quite an interesting person.

During her explanations, she would occasionally walk among the trainees to show them materials up close.

The hem of the dress swayed gently, and the slender waist twisted with an elegant charm.

The cleavage that was faintly visible beneath her V-neckline would occasionally become more pronounced with her movements.

Jiang Chuan glanced at him and thought to himself that this curator was indeed a remarkable person.

She is beautiful, has a great figure, is talented, and has ability.

What a perfect character design!

Just then, Lijia finished explaining the basics and began the second part.

"Next, I'd like to talk about perfume and my Pokémon."

She walked to the cabinet next to her and took out a small bottle.

The bottle contained a pale yellow liquid that looked somewhat viscous.

"This is a fragrance I made using the secretions of the gnome flower." She opened the bottle and shook it gently. "You can smell it."

She handed the bottle to the student in the front row.

After smelling it, the trainees exclaimed in amazement.

"It smells so good!"

"This flavor is so unique!"

"It smells better than all the perfumes in the store!"

Lijia smiled and took the bottle, continuing, "Many people think that the Gloom Flower only smells bad, but that's actually a defense mechanism it uses when dealing with attackers. Normally, it secretes a very fragrant substance, which is an excellent ingredient for making perfume."

Hanako raised her hand and asked, "Director Rika, I have a question."

"Please speak."

"I have an Oddish," Hanako said somewhat embarrassedly. "I always thought that after it evolved into Gloom, it would become very smelly. But after hearing what you're saying, is that really not the case?"

Lijia smiled and nodded: "Yes. The Gloom Flower only releases its odor when it is threatened. If it is properly cared for, it will not only not smell bad, but it can even secrete a very fragrant substance, making it a great helper in making perfume."

Hanako's eyes lit up: "Then how do we train it?"

Lijia thought for a moment and said gently, "That's a good question. If you're interested, I can talk to you privately after class and teach you some methods for cultivating walking grass. As long as you use the right methods, you can use your own walking grass to make simple perfumes while you're traveling."

Hanako blushed with excitement: "Really?! Thank you so much!"

Lika smiled and waved her hand: "It's nothing. I'm happy to meet a trainer who likes perfume and also has Oddish."

She paused, then added, "And your Oddish seems to be being taken good care of; it should evolve soon. Then you can create your own perfume."

Hanako nodded repeatedly, her eyes full of anticipation.

………………

The students who were interested in perfume, such as Hanako and Kasumi, interacted a lot with Rika.

Jiang Chuan, who knows nothing about perfume, only has one thing to say right now.

Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?

Lijia's gentle voice floated in his ears, as soft as a spring breeze, but to Jiang Chuan, it sounded like a monk chanting sutras.

"The top notes of a perfume typically last from fifteen minutes to two hours, the middle notes are the soul of the perfume, lasting three to five hours, and then the base notes..."

Jiang Chuan's eyelids started to droop.

He tried to open his eyes wide, pretending to listen attentively, and nodded from time to time to show that he understood.

But in reality, all he could think about was—what to eat tonight?

Pikachu, sitting on his lap, was quite energetic, its little eyes darting around as it stared at its trainer's head.

Jiang Chuan nodded, and it nodded in return.

Jiang Chuan shook his head, and it shook its head too.

Pikachu's eyes followed Jiang Chuan's head as it swayed back and forth...

As it spun around, Pikachu felt dizzy and its little head tilted to the side. Then, it fell onto Jiang Chuan's lap with a thud, completely disoriented.

Jiang Chuan glanced down and his lips twitched.

Xiaoxia and Huazi were listening intently ahead.

Hanako would raise her hand to ask questions from time to time, and Rika would always answer them patiently, as gentle as a caring older sister.

Xiaoxia nodded repeatedly beside her, looking as if she had benefited greatly from the discussion.

The other female apprentices were also focused, some even taking notes in their notebooks.

Jiang Chuan sat at the very back, listening as if he were hearing a foreign language.

He felt like he was back in a math classroom, with the teacher explaining trigonometric functions and him feeling like his soul was leaving his body.

The key issue is that I still can't sleep.

What if Rika finds him dozing off and thinks he's disrespecting her, and kicks him out of the dojo?

There's another challenge tomorrow.

Jiang Chuan continued to shake his head and nod vigorously.

They were putting on a very serious act.

Pikachu finally recovered from its dizziness, got up, looked at Jiang Chuan, then at Rika who was giving the lecture, and scratched its head with its little paws.

I don't understand.

Humans are strange.

Just when Jiang Chuan was about to lose his composure...

boom!!!

A loud bang suddenly came from deep within the dojo.

The entire ground shook.

"ah!!!"

The female apprentices in the front row screamed in fright, and Hanako also exclaimed and instinctively hugged Kasumi.

Xiaoxia's eyes widened: "What's going on?!"

Jiang Chuan instantly perked up!

I was wide awake and my eyes were shining.

Here it comes, finally something to do!

Lijia frowned slightly and turned to look in the direction from which the sound came.

That's over there...

Her heart sank.

Core Botanical Garden.

"Master!" A female apprentice with a ponytail exclaimed, her face pale. "The voice sounds like it's coming from the core botanical garden! Gloomy and the others are all there!"

Lijia's expression changed slightly.

The core botanical garden is where she cultivates rare plants and perfume ingredients, and it's also where the stinky flowers usually rest.

If something goes wrong there...

Jiang Chuan jumped to his feet: "Let's go, let's go take a look!"

Lijia glanced at him and said gently, "No need, you wait here, I'll go check it out. It might be an accident, it's safer for you to stay here."

Jiang Chuan said seriously, "I'm a trainer too. If I run into any trouble, I can help."

Pikachu jumped up, patted its chest with its little paws, and swung its tail rapidly.

It indicates that one's combat power is extremely high.

Seeing the serious expressions on the faces of the person and their pet, Lijia paused for a moment, then smiled and nodded, "Okay, thank you for your help."

The two walked quickly outside.

Before leaving, Lijia turned back and instructed the ponytail apprentice, "You stay here with everyone and don't wander off. If things get dangerous, organize everyone to evacuate immediately."

"Yes, Master!" The ponytail apprentice nodded repeatedly.

Jiang Chuan followed Li Jia through the hall and ran towards the core botanical garden.

Along the way, he noticed that the surrounding plants were becoming more numerous and denser, and the fragrance in the air was becoming stronger.

After passing through a glass door, there is a corridor in front of you.

At the end of the corridor lies the core botanical garden.

As Jiang Chuan ran, he pulled a Poké Ball from his waist.

Gastly, come out.

A flash of white light, and Gastly floated in the air.

"Go check out the situation up ahead." Jiang Chuan pointed to the end of the corridor. "Go through the wall and see what's happening inside."

Gastly nodded, chuckled, twisted its body, and passed right through the wall next to it, disappearing from sight.

Lika glanced at Jiang Chuan, somewhat surprised: "Gastly? A Ghost-type Pokémon, it's indeed very convenient for it to pass through walls."

Jiang Chuan nodded: "It can ascertain the situation much faster..."

The two made some arrangements and continued running forward...