Why is my Pokémon acting a little weird?

"Nonsense, she definitely doesn't know."

Meiyue immediately denied Qiao Ran's words, but she might have had an obvious answer in her mind.

After all, it was she who watched Lillie sneak out and pretend to be asleep. If the roles were reversed now... she could probably imagine what kind of scene it would be.

"...Liliae talked to me before she went to bed."

Mitsuki suddenly spoke.

"What did we talk about?"

"She said she wanted to hide our relationship from Zhulan."

Mitsuki lay softly on the bed, speaking her thoughts quietly.

"After all... Zhulan is also the senior of all our trainers. If possible, I don't want her to be disappointed in us."

"Whether as a trainer... or as something else..."

Although she has decided on this path, Mitsuki herself understands that this path may not be recognized by most people - if Zhulan really knew about it, she would definitely be very disappointed in them.

"Yeah. It's better for us not to expose ourselves in front of her."

Like Meiyue and others, Qiao Ran also didn't want Zhulan to be disappointed in him. They were a team and had to go through a series of battles that sounded very difficult. Qiao Ran didn't want to add unnecessary variables because of these.

Their internal problems had already been solved with great difficulty, and new problems should not arise because of Zhulan's joining.

"But speaking of which, we usually hide, right?"

"...That's because of Acerola... And I don't want to be with you in front of other people... Humph."

As Meiyue spoke, she began to feel awkward again. A lot of things had happened before she said this, but when she thought about how she would behave intimately with Qiao Ran in front of other people, she couldn't help but blush.

"...But...if it's not in front of other people..."

"Like this?"

As Qiao Ran spoke, he hugged her from the side, scaring Meiyue into letting out a small cry.

"You...what are you doing? You're clearly..."

"Hehehe." Qiao Ran laughed like a villain.

During the day, he could be left speechless by Miyue and the others, but at night, the situation was uncertain.

"What am I doing? Of course I am..."

Time passes minute by minute.

The night gradually deepened.

Chapter 678 [Arrangement]

Time came to the second day.

Although Mitsuki kept saying that Lillie definitely didn't notice and that she would rush back overnight to pretend nothing had happened, her body still stayed there honestly. However, the next morning, she started thinking about how to deceive Takeran.

"We should go out separately. You check to see if there's anyone outside first, then I'll go out for a while, and then you come out later."

Although they went around in circles, Mitsuki's plan was indeed effective. In order to prevent Zhulan from discovering any clues, they did need to "deal with" it a little.

As for Lillie and Mei, there is no need to worry too much. They will understand when the time comes.

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"You guys should go challenge the gym this morning. I'll go buy some necessary things with Zhulan, Mitsuki, and the others."

Sitting in a private room of a restaurant, Qiao Ran took out a map from the space crack and spread it out on the table. The map showed the terrain and island locations of the Alola region, and there was basically no problem with the proportions.

"...After lunch and a short rest, we'll head to Alola. We don't need to travel too far this time; we just need to get to the middle of Ula'ula and Poni Islands. However, according to the map of Alola, Ula'ula is in the lower right, and Poni Island is in the upper left. This means we might have to cross the entire Alola region."

Qiao Ran drew a straight line between the two islands, and at the midpoint of this line was a facility that they were very familiar with.

"That's probably the location of Ether Paradise... Oh, we left Ether Paradise in a hurry last time. Maybe there's some remaining information there. I'll ask Lu... Lillie's mother then."

Considering that Mei and the others might consume some of their energy in challenging the gym, they would not be able to sustain a very high-intensity battle in the afternoon. Fortunately, the area from Ula'ula Island to Poni Island is almost all sea. There would not be too many Ultra Beasts invading at sea, and the density of battles would be much less than on land.

"...Flying in the air? Hmm... maybe it can be used as a practice run for the Unova region. If we want to cross Unova and Sinnoh, we'll need to fly there as well."

Zhulan nodded thoughtfully. Although Qiao Ran's arrangement was very tight, it was also quite reasonable, using Alola as a springboard for them to get along. Moreover, Zhulan also wanted to know what happened in Alola. If it were best, she could go to Alola and meet Lusamine.

"By the way, Miyue, do you want to stop by Melemele Island and visit your mother?"

Qiao Ran suddenly remembered something, so he turned his head to look at Meiyue next to him and asked.

"I..." Mitsuki paused and turned her gaze slightly to the side.

"If possible, of course..."

Some time ago, after Qiao Ran and his team rescued Ma Ruiyin and the others from the mountain, they and Lusamine restored communication capabilities on part of the island and successfully established a brief contact with a Pokémon professor on Melemele Island. The professor also confirmed the safety of Mitsuki's mother.

——And Mitsuki’s home in Alola is on Melemele Island. The location of this island is just a little north of their route. However, if they want to go to Melemele Island, their itinerary will inevitably deviate from the route, and deviating from the route means that they will definitely have to spend more time.

What Miyue was worried about was that Zhulan had already said that they were very pressed for time, and they really had something very important to do. If her problem dragged down the entire team, that was definitely not what she wanted.

Besides… given her current relationship with Qiao Ran… if she met her mother, how would she explain this? She hadn't even won the championship yet, so why was she suddenly… No, no, they were clearly here to save the Pokémon world, why were they even considering this kind of thing?

Zhulan looked at the troubled Meiyue, then looked at the map that Qiao Ran spread out on the table and pondered for a while.

Finally, she raised her head.

"...It's okay. We can take a detour a bit. I looked at the terrain of Alola. If we're quick, we should be able to cover all the other islands within three days."

"Wait... do you want to visit the other islands as well?"

Hearing Zhulan's words, Qiao Ran looked at her in surprise.

Visit all the other islands?

Although Qiao Ran did have this idea before, in order to save time, he deliberately compressed the journey into a straight line to Poni Island.

"Well, just go through all the other islands and go directly to the altar of the island god on the island."

Zhu Lan looked at Qiao Ran.

"...Didn't you tell me before that Tapu Moo asked you to help rescue the other island gods?"

"Also, the altars in Alola do have similar conditions to those in other regions. Judging from the last time you, Qiao Ran, entered that dimension, those altars do have the ability to travel to the reversed world."

“So, I also have an idea.”

"What...ideas?"

Facing Zhulan's direct gaze, Qiao Ran couldn't help swallowing his saliva. This confident, beautiful, and irresistible look was exactly the unique aura of this Sinnoh champion.

Zhu Lan looked directly at Qiao Ran and spoke out all her thoughts word by word.

"...Have you ever thought about whether you can reach the Sinnoh region directly through that strange space?"

"...!"

In an instant, Qiao Ran’s eyes widened.

"Wait, are you thinking..."

Qiao Ran covered his head and started talking to himself.

"Indeed, why can't I go to Sinnoh through that space... Obviously, the records of all the returns to the broken world and the reversed world are near the Sending Spring in the Sinnoh region... If we follow the idea, there should be

There should be a fixed exit..."

"Yes, all the records of people who were able to return from that world were left near Songquan. As for other places, there are no records at all."

Zhulan's eyes were dim. She had mentioned these things to Qiao Ran before, and this was the basis for her guess.

"Or should I put it this way. Qiao Ran, you who were able to enter that space and then return from where you came from, might be the most special one."

Chapter 679 [Grouping]

Zhulan's idea was a little inexplicably "crazy", but it was indeed a possibility worth trying. Qiao Ran nodded and expressed his opinion.

"If that's the case, then we might have to change our afternoon schedule."

Qiao Ran stretched out his hand, pointed at the location of Ula Ula Island, then moved his hand upwards, pointing to an island that had been ignored by everyone before.

"First, we head north to Akala Island. On this island, there is Capu-Chech, the island god with supernatural powers and fairy attributes."

"Then, we'll head west. To the west of Akala Island is Melemele Island. The island god here is Kapukokoko, who has both electric and fairy attributes. Mitsuki can also use this opportunity to meet up with her mother. If time is insufficient, we can split up."

"Finally, we'll start from Melemele Island and head a little southwest. We'll reach Poni Island. However, before we head to the Moon Altar, we have to get something from a small island at the very edge of Poni Island. This will probably take some time."

Qiao Ran's fingers shifted constantly as he explained. This was actually his original plan. If Zhulan hadn't joined him, and if there wasn't an urgent need to "rush," he would probably have completed this section of the journey according to his normal schedule. After all, they didn't just have matters in Alola to deal with. Besides Alola, there was also the real world, and even Galar...

There are actually a lot of troubles in Galar, but Mary can stay in peace in a corner, so Qiao Ran did not give priority to dealing with things there.

But if there is a chance, Qiao Ran still hopes that he can return to Galar and completely solve the remaining problems. After all, his current strength is no longer the same as before. In addition, he has so many partners, so maybe he can really help Galar make significant changes.

Moreover, Mary's brother is still missing. Lillie's brother is now hunting Ultra Beasts, but God knows where Mary's brother is.

But for now, it is better to concentrate on dealing with the problems in front of us.

"Well, this route should be the safest."

Zhulan also approved of Qiao Ran's route choice. Visiting the altars in the Alola region more often could also increase their understanding of those mysterious substances. Moreover, Zhulan had always heard descriptions of this thing from Qiao Ran before. If possible, she also hoped to go and "experience" it herself.

The few of them discussed this issue for a long time, but soon it was almost time to go to the gym and prepare to participate in the gym battle.

Since Mei, Lillie, and Acerola all have to participate in the challenge, their time in the morning will be relatively tight. It may take until after noon for all the battles to be over.

"...I think we can discuss the itinerary in detail while we're out shopping for supplies."

Zhulan looked at Qiao Ran and blinked with a smile.

Mei and the others are going to challenge the gym, but those who are purchasing supplies still have plenty of time. It’s not too late to discuss these details later.

————————————————————————————————————————————

After saying goodbye to Mei and the others, Qiao Ran, Miyue and Zhulan also prepared to go to the nearby mall for shopping.

This operation would probably take quite a while, so it was necessary to stock up on supplies in the frontier. They couldn't just go shopping whenever they wanted, so they had to be well prepared before any major operation.

But speaking of it, this seemed to be the first time - Qiao Ran, Meiyue and Zhulan came out together. Normally, everyone was used to acting together, but at this time, they felt a little uncomfortable.

Miyue, who used to like to talk, has remained silent for a long time. She must be still struggling in her heart about how to find the balance of "not being discovered by Zhulan, but not making herself uncomfortable". How can she be "the same as usual"?

Suddenly, Mitsuki even had the idea that she shouldn't be here at all. Maybe she should just follow Lillie and the others to the gym. Even if she couldn't continue to participate in the competition, just watching from the side would be much better than being embarrassed here now.

I can't act too close to Qiao Ran, nor can I act strangely. How could she possibly understand such a difficult thing?

She is not a famous actress like Nazi.

So, this shopping trip was also in this kind of atmosphere that seemed a little strange, but not completely strange.

As the conversation went on, Zhulan seemed to have sensed something "weird", but she didn't think too much about it. She just thought that Mitsuki might be a little too nervous.

Is it because of my status as Sinnoh Champion?

...It seems that I will have to talk to them all in private in the future.

As an older "older..." person, Zhulan is also trying to integrate into the circle of these younger girls. In her opinion, this kind of thing is not something that Qiao Ran can solve, and only if she takes the initiative can there be improvement.

"I want to buy these, these, and these..."

This was not the first time that Qiao Ran had done something like purchasing supplies. He was well aware of the needs of most Pokémon in the frontier, so when he handled everything with ease, it actually didn't take him too much time.

"Since we still have some free time, let's find a place to rest and then chat slowly."

As Zhulan spoke, her eyes kept glancing in a certain direction. Although most of the time, she gave people the impression of being an otherworldly Sinnoh champion, as an ordinary person, she still had her own preferences.

——Following her gaze, Qiao Ran discovered that it was a dessert shop on the roadside of the shopping mall.

"You really like this kind of thing?"

"Cough." Facing Qiao Ran's teasing, Zhu Lan just coughed lightly and did not deny it.

"It's just that this place would be more suitable, considering rationality and comfort."

She wouldn't say that it was because the action was going to start this afternoon and she just wanted to take this opportunity to have one last meal.

Chapter 680 [Akala Island]

Zhulan thought she was hiding something, but everyone actually knew what she was thinking, they just didn't say it directly.

Qiao Ran and Meiyue were not opposed to relaxing a little. Since they were about to start the battle, it would be nice to give themselves a little "reward", right?

However, after entering the dessert shop, Zhulan started her traditional skills again. After Qiao Ran and Meiyue had made their choices, she was still standing there thinking about something.