After confirming that Caitlin was safe, Chen Shi didn't linger and left immediately.
After hearing what had happened to her, he couldn't help worrying about Cynthia and Phoebe. He wanted to find them as soon as possible.
This secret realm was simply too dangerous. Only by keeping them by his side could Chen Shi feel at ease.
Watching him pack up the tent and leave without hesitation, Caitlin couldn't help but reach out, wanting to stop him—but in the end, her hand slowly fell.
The words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat and never came out.
"…What is this even supposed to be…"
Caitlin huffed angrily, picking up a small stone and tossing it away.
In all her life, no one had ever treated her like this.
Everyone else had always tried their best to get close to her, to curry favor, to please her.
But Chen Shi seemed completely uninterested in having anything to do with her. Even after receiving her promise, he acted utterly indifferent.
And now, he had just left her behind—injured—without a second thought.
…
"I'm so hungry, Gengar… can you find me something to eat…?"
Phoebe lay weakly in the arms of Dusknoir, her voice lacking strength.
Ever since her backpack had been stolen, she hadn't eaten or drunk anything for nearly a whole day.
Dusknoir and Gengar had been wandering around with her, trying to find food—but to no avail.
Aside from the forest where there were berries she could eat, everything outside was barren—no grass, no life.
Her stomach was already growling loudly.
Gengar looked troubled. But seeing his trainer starving like this, he gritted his teeth, shoved his chubby little hand into his mouth, and started rummaging around for something.
Phoebe's eyes lit up with anticipation when she saw that.
Gengar was a special kind of Pokémon—his belly contained a unique subspace that could store items.
You could say Gengar was basically a walking storage backpack.
And her Gengar, being a bit greedy, loved hiding snacks inside his stomach. Whenever he was in a good mood, he'd take some out to eat.
Judging by his actions now, he was clearly digging into his secret stash.
Phoebe waited… and waited…
Finally, after rummaging for quite a while, Gengar pulled out a purple-black cube. With his eyes shut tight and a face full of reluctance, he handed it over.
"Ke-heh~"
(Take it…)
Phoebe stared at the drool-covered premium energy cube in silence.
"…Isn't this the energy cube Grandma Chen made for you?"
"Ke-heh~"
(It is.)
"…Do you realize you're a Ghost- and Poison-type Pokémon?"
"…Ke—heh! Ke-heh!"
(Of course I know! But what does that have to do with anything? This is my favorite kind! If you weren't starving, I wouldn't even take it out!)
Phoebe took a deep breath.
Then she exploded.
"You DO know you're a Ghost- and Poison-type Pokémon!?"
"You think I can eat your energy cube? You think I dare to eat it!?"
"Are you trying to poison me to death so you can get a new trainer!?"
"Waaah… I'm so hungry… sob sob sob…"
As she scolded him, Phoebe burst into loud sobbing.
"I don't want to train anymore! I want to go home! I'm telling Grandpa and Grandma that everyone outside is bullying me—both people and Pokémon!!"
"Waaaah…"
Gengar scratched his head awkwardly, then hurriedly started making silly faces and gestures, trying to cheer her up.
But Phoebe didn't even look at him—she just kept crying, tears streaming endlessly.
Dusknoir sighed, then reached out and covered her mouth—forcefully stopping the crying.
"Mmm—mmph—let me go—!"
Just then, a voice drifted down from above.
"Oh wow, who's this? I could hear your embarrassing wailing from miles away."
"So pathetic."
Phoebe, Gengar, and Dusknoir froze, then looked up.
In the sky, Metagross hovered high above. Standing on its back was Chen Shi. In his arms, Jirachi and the Victini on his shoulder were both covering their mouths, snickering.
Chen Shi hadn't expected this either.
He had just been wandering around when he happened to run into Phoebe. Curious, he had his Metagross follow her from above for a while.
Who would've thought he'd witness her completely breaking down?
What a pity he didn't bring a camera.
Otherwise, he would've snapped a hundred photos of her just now, printed them all out, and handed one to everyone he met in the future.
"Waaah—Chen Shi gege, you finally came to find me…!"
"You have no idea—so many Pokémon bullied me! They beat me up, stole my stuff—even my Poké Balls!"
"Chen Shi gege, you have to avenge me…!"
The moment she snapped out of it, Phoebe launched into another dramatic wail.
Chen Shi couldn't help but laugh, signaling Metagross to descend.
"Alright, stop howling. Aren't you embarrassed?"
"And you call yourself the successor of Mt. Pyre, one of the World Championships Top 32? Don't ever say you know me when you go out."
Phoebe: "...…."
"Chen Shi gege… I haven't eaten all day… can you give me something first…"
She spoke pitifully, no longer in the mood to argue—she just wanted to eat.
Chen Shi chuckled and took out a packed meal along with some snacks from his bag, handing them to her.
"Just look at you. How did you end up like this?"
Phoebe didn't reply. She grabbed the food and started devouring it, completely disregarding her image.
Her Gengar floated over to Chen Shi as well, patting his round belly pitifully.
All of Gengar's energy cubes had been stored in Phoebe's backpack—but those had already been stolen by Pokémon in the forest.
What remained in his belly was just his private stash, which he had been too reluctant to eat.
Now, he was starving too.
Chen Shi rubbed his forehead and took out some energy cubes.
"These are what Dragapult usually eats. Take them for now—I'll make some for you later."
As a breeder, he always carried an energy cube machine with him. While they couldn't compare to the ones Grandma Chen made for Gengar, they were still better than eating Dragapult's leftovers.
"Dusknoir, you should eat some too."
Seeing Dusknoir hesitate, Chen Shi smiled and said.
Dusknoir nodded and floated over to take some energy cubes.
Then—
From Phoebe's shadow, Aegislash, Cofagrigus, Banette, and Sableye all popped out at once—
staring at Chen Shi with eager eyes.
Chen Shi: "..."
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