Elf: Rewriting the script, starting with Black Stocking Hanako

Professor Oak cleared his throat, unable to contain his smile, and walked a few steps between the two, first gesturing towards Nanami.

"Come on, Jiang Chuan, let me introduce you."

He patted Nanami on the shoulder, his tone brimming with barely concealed smugness.

"This is my granddaughter, Nanami. She's currently a senior researcher at our institute and is pursuing her doctorate. Her main research area is Pokémon gene sequences, especially the gene sequences of ancient Pokémon, which is also within her research scope."

Professor Oak paused, then winked at Jiang Chuan.

"She read your and Zheng Hui's paper and was very interested in it. Recently, she's been working with an archaeological team at a quarry near Zhenxin Town, conducting fossil-related research."

Jiang Chuan nodded slightly, his gaze naturally falling on Nanami.

Nanami also stood up from the sofa, her movements unhurried. The hem of her pencil skirt swayed gently as she stood up, then clung to her side. She raised a hand to tuck her hair behind her ear, revealing her fair neck, and smiled politely at Jiang Chuan.

"Hello there."

Her voice was softer than I had imagined, with a touch of intellectual warmth, neither cold nor overly enthusiastic, perfectly measured.

"Jiangchuan."

He replied, his voice calm and unhurried, with a natural smile on his lips.

After the two greeted each other, Professor Oak turned around and stretched out his hand towards Nanami, palm facing Jiang Chuan.

"Nanami, this is Jiang Chuan, the outstanding trainer I told you about before who went abroad this year."

He waved his hand, his tone implying, "I don't need to say anything more, do I?"

I've told you a lot about him on the phone, and I've brought it up quite a bit since you came back. I won't repeat myself today.

Nanami nodded slightly, indicating that she remembered.

Professor Oak suddenly changed the subject, his tone becoming more forceful, as if he wanted to emphasize something.

"But, Nanami, there's one thing I didn't tell you in detail before."

He raised a finger and pointed in the direction of Jiangchuan.

"Jiang Chuan caught the ancient fossil Pokémon—Omanyte and Kabuto. They're the same kinds mentioned in this paper, the ones that are rumored to be extinct."

Nanami was slightly taken aback.

Then, her expression changed.

Those eyes, which had previously held a hint of scrutiny and distance, suddenly lit up, as if something had been ignited. Her gaze towards Jiang Chuan shifted from a polite assessment to genuine "attention."

Ancient fossil Pokémon.

Live.

I've been won over by this person in front of me.

Nanami, who works in gene sequencing, understands the weight of those words better than anyone. The thought of a living fossil Pokémon instantly flashed through her mind—what it meant for her current research.

She subconsciously took half a step forward, her lips slightly parted as if she wanted to ask something, but then held back.

But her eyes could no longer hide it.

If her initial interest in Jiang Chuan was based on his physical appearance, face, and temperament, coupled with the recognition he received from Professor Oki's academic background, then now, it's as if someone has added fuel to the fire.

The external attraction, combined with the direct connection to their careers, created a surge in popularity.

Her gaze slid from Jiang Chuan's face to his shoulder, and then to his hands hanging at his sides.

Those hands once captured living fossil Pokémon.

Nanami's inner turmoil about age was shattered by this information.

Professor Oak took in Nanami's changing expression, and the corners of his mouth curled up almost imperceptibly, clearly very satisfied with the effect of his introduction.

He glanced at his watch and suddenly exclaimed, "Oh dear!"

"You two chat first, I'll go make you a pot of black tea. Young people should exchange ideas and have in-depth conversations."

He emphasized the word "in-depth" and then, without waiting for their reaction, turned and walked out. At the door, he turned back and waved to Jiang Chuan.

"Jiang Chuan, come, come, sit over there, don't stand."

He rushed back, nudged Jiang Chuan from behind, and led him directly to the sofa next to Nanami.

Jiang Chuan was pushed forward two steps by him, and stood right in front of Nanami, which immediately brought the distance between the two closer.

Nanami tilted her head slightly to look at him, without flinching.

Professor Oak clapped his hands in satisfaction, then quickly slipped out, the door closing softly behind him with a "click".

Only two people remained in the living room.

Warm yellow light streamed down from above, casting a soft glow on the sofa and floor. Outside, the sky was already dark, and the glass reflected a blurry image of the interior.

Jiang Chuan glanced down at Nanami, then at the sofa next to her, and sat down gracefully.

The sofa was very soft. When he sat down, his body sank slightly, his shoulders relaxed naturally, and he leaned against the backrest.

Nanami sat down again, her skirt lifting slightly with the movement. She subtly smoothed it down, then turned to face Jiang Chuan.

The two were about a fist's width apart.

"So, what have you been busy with lately?"

Nanami spoke first, her tone much more natural than before, with a casual, conversational feel.

Jiang Chuan turned his head to look at her.

"Special training. In preparation for the Quartz Conference."

His answer was simple and direct, but his tone carried a sense of certainty.

Nanami raised an eyebrow.

"The Quartz Conference? You can't just play casually and expect to get good results there."

"I know."

Jiang Chuan smiled, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly, revealing a row of neat teeth.

"So I'm doing special training. I run around in the wild with my Pokémon every day, getting up at six in the morning and not coming back until dark. Professor Oak had to call me here today."

When Nanami heard him say that, she pictured him running in the wild. Looking at his tanned skin and strong shoulders, her feelings of affection for him rose again.

"And you?"

Jiang Chuan countered with a question.

"Professor Oak said you're doing genetic sequencing research on ancient Pokémon?"

Nanami nodded, and as she spoke about her field, her tone unconsciously became more fluent.

"Yes. What I'm doing now is mainly reconstructing the genetic maps of ancient Pokémon using gene fragments found in fossils. Omanyte and Kabuto are on my target list. But I've been lacking good samples."

As she said this, her gaze lingered on Jiang Chuan's face for a moment, her meaning quite clear.

Jiang Chuan understood.

"If there's a chance, I can let you see it."

He didn't rule out the possibility entirely, but he also didn't deny it.

Nanami smiled slightly, but didn't press the matter further. Instead, she changed the subject.

"Besides training, what else do you do in your spare time?"

"Eating, sleeping, and occasionally writing something."

Jiang Chuan shrugged, his tone casual.

"Write what?"

"Training notes, Pokémon observation records, and sometimes I write down random thoughts. Bill says my insights are pretty good, so we occasionally exchange information with him."

Nanami smiled gently, a smile much more relaxed than before, her eyes curving slightly, revealing a gentle warmth unique to mature women.

"Zhenghui is a picky eater. If he says it's alright, then it's pretty good."

Jiang Chuan waved his hand.

"Don't listen to his nonsense. I just assisted him and organized the data. He did all the really core stuff."

Seeing his unassuming manner, Nanami's initial goodwill deepened, turning into a more solid sense of recognition.

She picked up the magazine from the sofa armrest, flipped through a couple of pages, closed it, and her gaze returned to Jiang Chuan.

"I have read your and Zhenghui's paper carefully."

Her tone became serious.

"The part about the ancient Pokémon is very innovative. In particular, the deduction of the relationship between fossil activity and gene sequence is a direction I have been exploring in my own research."

She paused, looking into Jiang Chuan's eyes.

"At your age, you've already co-authored a paper of that caliber with Zheng Hui. To be honest, in our research field, many scholars struggle for ten years or even longer and still don't reach that level."

Jiang Chuan scratched the back of his head and smiled a little embarrassedly.

"It's not that exaggerated. I just provided him with some basic auxiliary work, helping him organize data and keep observation records, just to get a title."

Nanami shook her head, her eyes filled with certainty.

"Zhenghui isn't someone who easily approves of others. The fact that he was willing to add your name shows that what you provided was definitely not just simple assistance. What you did must have been crucial to his paper."

When she said this, she leaned forward slightly, and her tone was anything but polite; it was a genuine judgment.

Jiang Chuan looked at her serious expression, paused for a moment, and then smiled.

"Then I'll shamelessly admit it."

Nanami was amused by his reaction and pursed her lips, feeling a further reduction in the distance between them.

She leaned back, relaxed her shoulders, and her tone became much more casual.

"Recently, I joined an archaeological team and discovered clues about ancient Pokémon in a quarry near Pallet Town."

As she spoke, her eyes lit up again, filled with the excitement characteristic of a researcher.

"I really hope that this research will also discover something new and important, just like yours. The kind that will cause a sensation in the academic world."

Jiang Chuan was about to reply.

suddenly………

A clear and familiar system notification sounded in his ear.

[Ding! Quest triggered: Mediate the ancient Pokémon conflict and protect Pallet Town!]

[Mission Reward: Famous Blade Physique - Complete immunity to fatal damage, cooldown: 100 days!]

The sudden triggering of the mission startled Jiang Chuan.

Resolve the great conflict among the ancient Pokémon and protect Pallet Town.

These words swirled in his mind.

His face remained calm, but memories surged within him.

The three behemoths in the original script were all incredibly exaggerated. An ancient Jigglypuff, an ancient Alakazam, and an ancient Gengar. Their size was like a building; just standing there, they could darken half the sky. Their attacks were like massive bombs, with a deafening roar that seemed to lift the ground.

The scene was so devastating that it could be described as earth-shattering.

Jiang Chuan remembered clearly that when those three fought in the original story, the entire area around Pallet Town was affected. Ordinary people couldn't get involved at all; in a battle of that level, a trainer's Pokémon was as fragile as paper.

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

Could the archaeological team that Nanami mentioned, this research on ancient fossils, be the location where those three revived animals were found?

Quarry.

Near Pallet Town.

Clues to the original ancient Pokémon.

With these keywords put together, Jiang Chuan already had a 70-80% chance of success.

His gaze shifted slightly as he looked back at Nanami. She was still waiting for his reply, a faint smile playing on her lips, her eyes reflecting both academic anticipation and personal interest.

The combination of the two elements made her appear exceptionally vibrant.

Jiang Chuan was secretly laughing to himself.

This mission came at just the right time.

He had just been chatting with Nanami about ancient Pokémon when the system pulled this stunt. What was this? A plot connection? Or was the system always waiting for him to go in this direction?

He looked away and focused his attention on the mission reward.

Famous sword physique.

Completely immune to fatal injuries.

Cooldown time: 100 days.

Jiang Chuan's lips twitched almost imperceptibly.

This is great.

He now possesses superpowers and the ability to guide, which significantly reduces his chances of encountering deadly dangers in this world. However, this doesn't mean he won't be ambushed, betrayed, or find himself in dire straits in certain extreme situations.

No matter how strong your superpowers or how powerful your wave manipulation, you can't withstand someone stabbing you in the back.

Having the Famous Sword Physique is like having an extra life.

And it's not a one-time use item.

It refreshes every 100 days.

One hundred days, a little over three months.

This cooldown time is incredibly generous for this level of survivability.

Jiang Chuan's mind raced.

He also has the superpower of teleportation. If he encounters a truly dangerous situation, he can activate his legendary sword to save his life, then teleport away to create distance and escape. This combination of abilities maximizes his margin for error.

Save your life first, then run away.

Unless he's instantly killed so badly that he doesn't even have time to activate his signature move, he can generally survive.

Jiang Chuan felt a surge of eagerness rising within him.

But he quickly regained his composure.

Because there's another problem.

Shouldn't I have been given this "Famous Sword Physique" in advance, and then asked to resolve this conflict?

Those three ancient Pokémon were as big as buildings, and each of their moves was like a super-powerful bomb. The combat power shown in the original script certainly wasn't their full strength. Wouldn't it be too dangerous to send him to mediate a conflict of that magnitude?

Jiang Chuan made a mental calculation.

Although I possess superpowers and aura, communication and transportation are not issues. Theoretically, I should be able to mediate. At the very least, I can summon an ancient Dragonite.

He knew the strength of that Dragonite.

If it really comes to the worst, bringing out the ancient Dragonite can at least stabilize the situation.

Therefore, the probability of perfectly solving this task is not zero.

After careful consideration, Jiang Chuan decided to accept the task.

The allure of the "Famous Sword Physique" is too strong.

Furthermore, Nanami is already conducting research on ancient Pokémon, and the archaeological team behind her is likely the key to the resurrection of those three Pokémon. If he wants to get involved, the best way is to follow Nanami's lead and join in legitimately.

At that time, I will be able to complete the task, receive the reward, and continue to have in-depth exchanges with Nanami.

Three birds with one stone.

A hint of a smile resurfaced in Jiang Chuan's heart, but his expression remained perfectly composed.