Pokémon: I picked up a reborn Eevee at the start of the game.

So he didn't turn around and casually replied, "Yeah, it's cute, but you can't touch it even if it's cute."

"Ralts~" Ralts, sitting on Xia Chen's shoulder, nodded.

That's right, I belong to Xia Chen alone, and Xia Chen is also mine.

Ralts looked down at the Eevee in Xia Chen's arms and snorted inwardly.

"Sana~"

The person who had just struck up a conversation didn't reply, but a voice from an elf came over; it sounded like Gardevoir.

"Oh, we share the same hobby," Xia Chen thought curiously, turning around to say hello.

But when he saw Gardevoir's trainer behind him, he suddenly froze.

Her delicate face and her white attire, almost matching the white of the Gardevoir beside her, were striking.

"Karuni?"

…………

When Xia Chen first arrived in this world, he searched online for the famous champions from his previous life.

He discovered that the timeline of this world was very chaotic, and some superstars and champions were still on their way to becoming legends.

For example, Cynthia, who has just become the champion, and Devon's son, Zvoich Daigo, who is obsessed with digging for stones.

And in front of me is this rising star in the entertainment industry, Karuni.

If I remember correctly, Karni in this world is only twenty-four years old, even a year younger than Cynthia.

At such a young age, Karuni has naturally not yet become a champion.

However, Xia Chen estimated that Karune had already reached the level of a gym leader during this period, even though she was not a gym leader.

The Gym Leader level is simply a classification of skill, indicating that the trainer's skill level is sufficient to serve as a Gym Leader.

Moreover, even among the gym leaders, there are differences in strength. For example, the Galar people love to boast that Chibana has the ability to become a champion in other regions.

But speaking of which, how did Karuni end up here?

Karni wasn't surprised to be recognized; her fame in the film industry far surpassed her fame as a trainer.

Last year, she starred in "Xernias," a phenomenal global hit, so it's perfectly normal for fans to recognize her.

She raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, surprised, aren't you? Do you need my autograph? Or a photo?"

Karuni's first half of her statement was exactly the same as what Xia Chen had just said, while the second half indicated that she was not as stingy as him.

Xia Chen gave an awkward laugh; this future champion seemed to hold a grudge.

In the awkward moment, Eevee once again stepped forward and used its charm on Karune, which worked wonders.

No girl can resist Eevee's cuteness, and Karune is no exception.

She scratched Eevee's chin and snorted at Xia Chen, "Your Pokémon are much cuter than you."

…………

With Eevee mediating, the atmosphere finally returned to normal, and Karune sat down next to Xia Chen with Gardevoir.

“You don’t look like a Carlos, do you?” Karuni asked.

The people of Donghuang and Carlos are quite easy to distinguish by their facial features. Xia Chen nodded, "I came from Donghuang and plan to travel here for a while."

Karuni asked, "Travel...Are you also going to challenge the Lumière Tournament next year?"

Xia Chen shook his head, but seemed quite surprised by a certain word from Karuni. "I'm just here for tourism. But Miss Karuni, are you going to challenge the Alliance Tournament?"

Karuni frowned slightly and asked, "What? Doesn't it look like it?"

Xia Chen clearly sensed that something was wrong with the other person's mood; it seemed that she felt that Xia Chen looked down on her.

"It's not that you don't resemble him. I know you're also an excellent trainer, but with your current popularity, do you still have time to participate in competitions?"

Karuni replied calmly, "You may not see me on the big screen anymore."

"You're retiring from acting?" Xia Chen's voice rose in surprise.

What's going on? Xia Chen remembers that even after becoming a champion, Karuni didn't give up her film career. What went wrong?

Seeing Xia Chen's surprised expression, Karuni smiled, never expecting to meet her loyal fan here.

However, she didn't know that Xia Chen was surprised by the possible deviation in the world line.

He tentatively asked, "Miss Karune, won't you reconsider? Being a trainer and an actor aren't mutually exclusive, are they? Like Cynthia, who also works as a mythologist, and she even won the Masters Tournament a few days ago."

Before Xia Chen could even utter the word "champion," he noticed that Karuni's face, which had just brightened, had turned cloudy again.

Xia Chen seemed to have discovered something extraordinary: was Karuni competing with Cynthia?

…………

It's Cynthia again. It's Cynthia again!

Karuni suddenly felt a little tired. She'd come all this way to this godforsaken place, and she hadn't mentioned that woman once.

This boy I just met is comparing himself to her again!

As trainers who debuted around the same time as Cynthia and made their mark in the World Youth Championships, the two are often compared.

Strength, appearance, and achievements in side businesses. The two are very similar in many ways, and some even call Cynthia and Karune the twin beauties of the elf world.

But after the movie "Miare Holiday" became a hit, her fame in the entertainment industry soared, and Karen found that she was spending less and less time on training.

Even so, thanks to her extraordinary talent, her strength has continued to improve by leaps and bounds. Last year, she passed the league's gym-level assessment.

But that woman, during the time she was lax, became the new champion of the Sinnoh region!

At first, Karuni could comfort herself by thinking that Karuni was a year older than her and it was normal for her to become the champion earlier.

But the Masters Tournament that opened a few days ago made her realize one thing: she had fallen too far behind that woman on the path of becoming a trainer.

So she naturally began to think about a question: should she give up and try to catch up?

When Karune saw Cynthia defeat Leon from the Galar region and stand atop the world on television yesterday, she realized her truest feelings—

They continued their journey on that long road with Gardevoir and the others.

For this, even the performing arts career that one loves is worth giving up.

Having made her decision, Karuni immediately decided to train in the Albil Mountains, the largest wilderness area in the Carlos region.

Next year's Luna Tournament, she will overcome all obstacles, achieve victory, and then challenge the Four Heavenly Kings to become champion and reach the pinnacle of Carlos.

Then I will challenge that woman again in the next Masters Tournament.

She had already prepared herself to abandon all external trivialities and focus wholeheartedly on the training and experience.

But who would have thought that before her heart could fully settle down, she would be pulled up by this stranger she had just met.

…………

Karuni stared at the handsome young man with a dark expression. No wonder he was so good-looking; he must have traded his emotional intelligence for it.

She was inwardly complaining and was about to find an opportunity to say goodbye when she heard the young man in front of her sigh softly.

"I understand."

He said so.

What do you understand?

Karuni thought to herself, "With your emotional intelligence, please don't even think about comforting others!"

"Miss Karuni must also have this problem, right? Being endlessly compared to a complete stranger by those around her."

Karuni paused, and the words she was about to say goodbye remained on her lips.

It seems like he really understands himself?

“I also have a similar comparison in Donghuang. Her name is Mingyi. We are about the same age, have similar strength, and even our appearances are equally outstanding.”

Xia Chen's face gradually became filled with sorrow. "From childhood to adulthood, I have never been able to compare with her. Although she never said anything, the strange looks from the people around me have always made me live in pain. So I left Donghuang and came here."

Eevee squinted at its dramatic trainer.

I learned most of my acting skills from him in my past life, and sure enough, I've recently started to awaken to them.

Ibu understands Xia Chen, but Karini doesn't. She looks at the melancholy boy with a sense of shared suffering, as if she sees another version of herself in the world.

Xia Chen abruptly changed the subject, saying, "But I came to Carlos not to escape, but to grow!"

He looked at Ibrahimovic with unwavering determination. "Although we are temporarily behind, our spirits have never been broken. Even in the face of difficulties, we will persevere and strive forward! Don't you agree, Ibrahimovic?"

"Bubu-ee!"

Ibrahimovic twitched his lips and reluctantly cooperated with Xia Chen to finish the act.

…………

Karuni, however, did not notice Eevee's unusual behavior; she muttered to herself, repeating Xia Chen's words.

"Even in the face of hardship and difficulty, we must persevere and strive forward. That's so true, Gardevoir, can you hear me?"

"Sana!"

Gardevoir responded to its trainer with sparkling eyes and nodded firmly.

Karuni turned to look at Xia Chen and said sincerely, "Thank you."

"My name is Xia Chen."

The name "Tauro" almost slipped out, but thankfully Xia Chen stopped himself in time, preventing the legend of the Ultra Prince from being left in this world.

"Thank you, Xia Chen!" Karuni said again, expressing her gratitude sincerely.

After thinking for a moment, she handed over her phone. "Add Piplup, I'll send you my tips on raising Gardevoir when I get back."

Xia Chen was overjoyed and handed over the phone without any hesitation.

Who is Karuni?

The future champion of the Kalos region, and the world's most famous Gardevoir trainer.

Just like Garchomp is to Cynthia and Metagross is to Steven, when Gardevoir is mentioned, the first thing that comes to mind is Diantha.

This level of training experience for Pokémon is invaluable.