Why is my Pokémon acting a little weird?

Following the navigation on their mobile phones, they quickly arrived at their destination.

However, when they came to the front desk to inquire, the nurse looked very apologetic.

"I'm sorry... All the rooms here are booked, and the rooms at the nearby Pokémon Centers are also overloaded."

"If possible, I can help you contact a nearby hotel. The Alliance can help you get a discounted price."

"Ah this..."

Qiao Ran looked a little speechless. After traveling for so long, this was the first time he encountered such a problem. Was it so difficult to get a place at the Elf Center near the Magic City?

"Sorry." The nurse apologized again, still with a faint smile on her face.

"Although our Pokémon Center is usually quite crowded, recently it has been crowded due to the

It's probably because of the preliminaries for the exhibition match. The preliminaries for Shanghai will be held in some surrounding areas, and then the competition will be held at the main venue in the city."

"Many trainers have already arrived here in advance and have reserved a number of rooms. The number of trainers has exceeded the usual number by several times. So even if the Pokémon Center is operating at full capacity, it can't accommodate so many trainers. We'll have to trouble those who arrive later to stay outside."

"..."

Qiao Ran looked at Lillie and Mei beside him. They were quite concerned about the Pokémon battles, but had no interest in exhibition matches or the like.

This incident caught them off guard.

"Ok."

Qiao Ran shrugged.

"...If we can't find a place to live outside, we'll have to sleep on the streets."

Chapter 324 [Only You]

Although they were prepared to sleep on the streets, Qiao Ran and the others successfully found a hotel where they could stay thanks to the mediation of the nurse at the Elf Center.

While checking in, Qiao Ran called his mother and reported on his recent situation.

"Trapped in the forest? No wonder. I even messaged your cousin a while ago, and she said you stood her up."

"Forehead."

Qiao Ran said that this was not his fault. In order to vent his anger, he would catch Little Xingyun and use him as a pillow tonight.

"Alright, I'm glad you arrived safely. If you have time, please contact her. She happens to be attending cram school at the Magic City Gym as well, and she recently mentioned participating in a competition..."

"I will."

Qiao Ran agreed immediately. As for when to contact him, that depended on his schedule.

Besides, he was also thinking, if he wanted to meet his cousin, would he have to get some gifts?

...Are there any souvenirs from the Pokémon world that I can use?

Forget it... If I have time, I'll go to Spike Town and ask Mary.

After briefly speaking to his mother, Qiao Ran hung up the phone and went to the hotel room with Liliae and the others.

"I didn't expect... we'd have to live in the same room again."

According to common sense, Qiao Ran, Liliae and the others should need at least two rooms, but there are not enough rooms now. Even if they can find one, they will be successful. Qiao Ran and the others don't dare to ask for anything more.

Besides... they have been living like this for some time and have adapted to it.

Maybe, if one day you suddenly stop living together, you will feel quite uncomfortable, as if something is missing.

"After we rest today, how about we go challenge the gym in the city tomorrow?"

Qiao Ran took a sip of the hot water in the cup and suggested.

He already wanted to challenge the gym. Making money was secondary. The key was to improve the strength of his Pokémon.

His Pokémon needed to go through battles to become stronger. Although they would fight each other in the frontier, the experience gained from such battles was still not as much as that gained from formal gym battles.

Moreover, according to Qiao Ran's understanding, the Magic City Gym is known as one of the strongest gyms in the south, and it is currently holding an election for a new gym leader. If he goes too late and the old gym leader retires, he will miss a great opportunity to train.

——Although this may sound a bit harsh, Qiao Ran really thought so.

Only by fighting with stronger people can he become stronger.

This is also the meaning of the existence of the gym.

"No, I don't think we should go so early."

Mei also picked up her water cup and took a sip.

She expressed a different opinion from Qiao Ran's. Hearing this, Lilia couldn't help but put her hand on her chest and breathed a sigh of relief.

That’s…that’s great, Mei!

——Lillie didn't want to challenge the gym so early.

Before, when she was at the Hangzhou Gym, she had said that she would also participate in the next gym challenge, but... she never thought that this day would come so soon.

Who knew the distance between Hangzhou and Shanghai would be so short!

If a trainer is more efficient, he can challenge two gyms in one day!

In addition, she had read about the reputation of many Magic City gyms on the Internet, and Lillie became increasingly nervous. The gym she was challenging for the first time... was it actually of this difficulty?

Now hearing Mei's counter-argument, Lillie was really relieved. She clenched her hands and looked at Mei with an expectant expression. Although she didn't know what Mei's reason was, she would definitely support Mei.

Come on!

Mei did not disappoint her expectations. In the confused eyes of Qiao Ran, she reached out and took out a poster from somewhere.

The poster reads "The national exhibition competition champion has arrived in Shanghai, and the Shanghai exhibition competition warm-up has begun."

In addition to the text, the poster also features a middle-aged woman who appears to be in her forties. Although her face shows signs of aging, she is still very pretty and full of mature charm.

"I asked the nurse at the Pokémon Center for this promotional poster for the exhibition."

"This competition is just our chance."

Mei's eyes are incomparable

sharp.

"What... chance?" Feeling a little guilty under Meiyi's murderous gaze, Qiao Ran couldn't help but look away.

"...Of course, it's the chance to become famous online and become a well-known up-and-comer."

Meiyi had never forgotten their previous discussion. She was naturally deeply concerned about finding other trainers who might be scattered across the world. Meiyi also believed that Qiao Ran's idea was more feasible than using the Alliance to search for them.

Alliance, this power, after all, Mei always has some reservations. She cannot completely trust an organization. She can't even judge what actions the Alliance of this world will take if it learns the truth about the Pokémon world.

What if... this alliance makes the Pokémon world worse in order to gain greater benefits, then the result will be more trouble than gain.

So, you have to rely on yourself.

Along the way, she also thought about many ways to become famous and how to get attention, but... when she saw this poster, she finally had an idea.

"You see, the national champions will also be participating in this competition. This means that even though it's a regional competition, we can still receive the same level of attention as a national competition."

"And... as long as we can compete with the champion, or even defeat him... No, defeating him might be a little difficult, but as long as we can compete... we can achieve the effect we want!"

Mei seemed to have seen their success, and her eyes were full of light.

"So, you want to participate in the competition?"

Qiao Ran was completely shocked. He originally thought that Mei was just a trainer, but now it seems that he underestimated her. Could it be that she also had in-depth research in exhibition matches?

As soon as he raised his hand, he was going to fight the national champion head-on.

Although Qiao Ran had participated in an exhibition match and won a certain place, he was not so arrogant as to think that he could evenly compete with the national champion. And since Mei Yi could say such a thing, then her strength...

However, what Mei said next directly shattered Qiao Ran's imagination.

"No, I'm not going to participate."

Mei looked at Qiao Ran and spoke word by word.

"This... is something only you can do."

Chapter 325 [Protection]

"I?"

Qiao Ran pointed at himself, looking a little surprised.

After going around in circles, how did it end up with him again?

He is not a master of exhibition matches. His victory in the previous match was thanks to Diancie. It was her natural beauty that conquered all the audience.

As a trainer, his lack of preparation actually lowered the tone of Diancie's performance. If Diancie's performance had not been good enough, it is possible that she would have received negative points.

From beginning to end, Qiao Ran never attributed the victory to himself.

"Yes, only you can."

Meiyi is full of confidence in Qiao Ran.

"This world doesn't know about those legendary Pokémon. Simply using them to participate in the competition and showing their true forms is enough to win a place. Whether it's Diancie, Suicune, or Reshiram..."

The beauty of legendary Pokémon is innate, and their unique appearance is the starting point for the humans who witness them to compose legends.

However, after hearing Mei's words, Qiao Ran shook his head decisively.

"Do not."

He put away his somewhat casual expression and became serious.

In the room, both Mei and Lillie felt as if the air seemed to freeze for a second.

"...If we let them participate in the competition, what if they are targeted by someone with ulterior motives?"

Qiao Ran doesn't want his Pokémon to take risks, and this is what he has always insisted on.

Every Pokémon is a family member he cares about. If a Pokémon is put in danger just because of his own selfish desires or for some other reason... Qiao Ran will never forgive or allow such behavior.

The more you cherish something, the more afraid you are of losing it.

Qiao Ran couldn't imagine what life would be like if they were not around.

This is one of the reasons why Qiao Ran has never sold or trafficked Diancie's diamonds from the beginning until now. Not only because Diancie's Eternal Diamonds have a very special meaning to him, but also because such behavior would bring huge risks.

"...They're targeting us, but there's probably nothing we can do about it. If we appear in public, it's just an inevitable consequence."

Looking at Qiao Ran's serious eyes, Meiyi lowered her eyelids slightly.

She could feel Qiao Ran's feelings for her Pokémon, but Qiao Ran seemed to have misunderstood one thing all along.

She raised her eyes again.

"But this shouldn't be a reason for us to be afraid."

"Are we really that weak when we put all of us together?"

"Could it be that if we just don't do things like this, we won't encounter other dangers?"

"Even if we keep challenging gyms, someone will always notice us, right?"

"...!"

……

Qiao Ran's expression froze.

Because he was too focused on his Pokémon, Qiao Ran had always been thinking about trying his best to protect them, but... he seemed to have really forgotten something.

"Also, do you remember our previous battle?"

Meiyi held Qiao Ran's hand. In this situation, both of them could feel each other's true intentions.

"We defeated the gym leader of an entire city, and it was a complete victory."

Qiao Ran was silent.

In his memory, although he had experienced many things, he had also seen many more powerful beings.

Moreover, since the actual travel time was not very long, he seemed to have always misjudged certain things.

He... really didn't have the sense that he had become very strong.

But before he knew it, his Pokémon could solve many, many problems.

"When I first started traveling, I also wondered if Pokémon wouldn't get hurt if I didn't fight. Every time I saw Serpentis lying on a hospital bed in the Pokémon Center, its face full of pain, I would think so."

Mei continued.