A head of deep purple, wavy long hair cascaded down to her waist and hips, bound only by a thin, light purple ribbon.
Her tall, curvaceous figure was draped in a long, dark purple silk dress. Her full bosom caused the fabric to bulge slightly, yet she didn't look bloated in the slightest; instead, it added a touch of languid opulence. Her cheeks were fair as congealed fat, tinged with a sickly pallor.
In eerie contrast to her crimson-purple eyes, a hint of weariness floated deep within her slightly droopy gaze. Faint dark circles under her eyes suggested she had suffered from insomnia for days.
More than that, the atmosphere surrounding this purple-haired mature lady was unusual.
Chilly, gloomy, and desolate.
—Like a ghost woman who had walked out of a horror novel, so gloomy and cold that even the thin sunlight seemed to fear her. The parasol she held tilted slightly forward, hiding her face and figure in the shadows. If she were to pace slowly and softly up behind someone, she probably wouldn't trigger even the slightest alarm.
"A terrifying urban legend circulates in Veilstone City. One night, while taking a walk on the street, a female Trainer was suddenly hit on the head from behind by a weirdo holding a spoon. Although she chose to run away immediately after being frightened, for years afterward, no matter where or when, that spoon-wielding weirdo would always follow behind her like a shadow..."
"August 3rd, 275th year of the League Calendar. After field investigation, it was discovered that the so-called legend of the 'Spoon Killer' was just fabricated and spread by a female Trainer for fun with her Pokémon, Alakazam. Debunked."
"It is rumored that on 122nd Street in Hearthome City, several office workers encountered a black shadow with red eyes blocking their way when returning home at dusk. It had a terrifying wound stretching from the corner of its mouth to the root of its ear, wielding giant scissors, asking them 'if it looked beautiful'..."
"November 20th, 275th year of the League Calendar. After field investigation, it was found to be inconsistent with the rumors. The so-called 'Slit-Mouthed Woman' was merely a Banette wearing a red cloak. After battling it, it was learned that it felt too inferior about its appearance, so it chose to ask passing office workers in alleyways. It's just that the way it asked was too scary. Debunked."
Ignoring the people around her who automatically scattered half a meter away and looked at her mumbling to herself with strange eyes, the purple-haired lady held her parasol in one hand and gently closed her notebook with the other, sighing.
"Sigh, so empty. are there no genuine supernatural phenomena anymore?"
As an occult enthusiast, she loved the mysterious phenomena in this world that could not be solved by science or the power of Pokémon alone. Because of this, she had always been dedicated to collecting long-circulating occult urban legends from various places and personally verifying their authenticity.
As a result, those terrifying legends that sounded scarier one after another, making her more excited one after another, turned out to be just stories derived from some Pokémon. For example, the "Slit-Mouthed Woman" Banette, the "Spoon Killer" Alakazam, and the "Human-Faced Dog" Poochyena, etc.
The already gloomy and cold atmosphere surrounding her became even more creepy due to her low spirits at this moment. The purple-haired lady put away her parasol expressionlessly, pushed open the door of the Pokémon Center, and walked slowly inside.
Because she had battled the Banette in the alleyway last night, she needed to heal her Haunter.
After sitting for a while, a notification sound indicating the end of treatment came from the broadcast.
The Nurse lady, with a gentle smile always on her face, stood at the counter and handed the Poké Ball to her.
"Sorry for the wait, your Haunter has recovered to full health~"
"Thank you."
Nodding gently and taking the Poké Ball in her hand, the purple-haired lady grinned, trying hard to squeeze out a smile.
When she turned around and walked far enough that her back could no longer be seen, Joy Saori felt the corner of her clothes being tugged.
"Chansey~"
"You're talking about Miss Fantina... hmm... she does give people a gloomy feeling, like a ghost."
Joy Saori nodded, expressing her agreement with her partner Chansey's view.
Even though the surroundings were lively and bustling, that purple-haired lady just now seemed to be outside of the crowd. The gloomy and cold temperament radiating from her body made one feel a few drops of cold sweat on their back just by looking at her.
Maybe... it was because she dealt with Ghost-type Pokémon too much?
After healing Haunter, Fantina, who had been running around for days to catch that "Slit-Mouthed Woman", also planned to rest here for a while. She found an inconspicuous corner to sit down and closed her eyes to rest.
At this moment, among the Trainers coming and going around her, some conversations caught her attention.
"Hey, have you guys heard?"
A little girl wearing a dress looked around and said mysteriously.
"Something very terrifying happened at the Pokémon Center last night... Around ten o'clock at night, a creepy song that made people's scalps numb came from the broadcast, scaring everyone's Pokémon into huddled, trembling balls in the corners. Until finally, a few bold Trainers summoned up their courage to push open the door. Guess... what they saw?"
Pausing for a moment, seeing her friends around her holding their breath, the little girl smiled with satisfaction, then raised her hands to both sides of her cheeks, baring her teeth and claws, and whispered.
"It's ghosts~ Under the full moon, whenever the singing falls into a low tide, they stand still in place. But when the pitch of the singing rises to the highest point, shaking the windows, they start to move, strolling in the corridor, knocking on the doors of the Trainers' accommodation rooms one by one."
"Eek!!!" The children present all showed terrified expressions.
"Tch, it sounds a bit creepy, but I guess there's a high probability it's just some Ghost-type Pokémon playing tricks again."
Wiping the fine sweat from his forehead, a Bug Catcher boy snorted lightly and said.
"After all, how could there really be ghosts in the world~"
"I guess so too. Ghost-type Pokémon love to scare people the most... The reason my refrigerator jumped around by itself at night last time was because a Rotom was playing tricks. It was finally scared away thanks to the Mightyena from the uncle's house next door."
A little boy wearing shorts nodded his head and echoed from the side.
After all, they were just children. After deciding that this urban legend was likely just some mischievous Ghost-type Pokémon playing tricks and scaring those timid people out of their wits—rumors spread by people echoing what others said—their interest waned significantly. They ended this topic and ran off together to play somewhere else.
Left behind their figures, Fantina pondered alone on the spot.
"A terrifying lullaby under the moonlit night, and ghosts strolling in the corridor... I smell an occult scent~"
Unlike these children, although she had debunked countless urban legends circulating in the streets and alleys, Fantina still believed that there must be unknown supernatural phenomena in the world.
At this moment, stopping in a dim corner of the Pokémon Center, Fantina pursed her lips. A trace of excitement suddenly flashed in her eyes. As she murmured, short laughter spilled from her throat.
"Hehehehe... will this occult event... be real..."
"Geng~"
The black shadow reflected on the wall danced wildly with the laughter.
...
"Ah~choo!!!"
Sitting on Articuno's back, Hakuya couldn't help but sneeze.
"Eh? Brother Hakuya, did you catch a cold?"
Lisia, who had been chirping in his ear and asking Hakuya how he caught so many Legendary Pokémon all the way, was stunned for a moment. Then, she reached out her small hand to place it on Hakuya's forehead while asking with concern.
"I'm fine, maybe just some dust got into my nose and it was a bit itchy."
Facing the care of this Idol girl, Hakuya rubbed his nose, feeling warm in his heart.
However, besides being moved, his keen sixth sense also made him feel his eyelid twitching violently.
Something's wrong. Why do I feel like I'm being targeted by some indescribable thing?!
After thinking for a long time and not figuring out who was secretly talking about him behind his back, Hakuya simply ignored it. After flying on Articuno for a while longer, he saw the lush, vibrant scene below.
That was the farm he had been away from for over a week.
"That's it below. I'll show you around later~"
"Yay!!!"
The girls all cheered.
At dusk in autumn, the western sky burned with large patches of orange-red clouds. Several Starly returning late shook their wings, drawing a few brilliant red lines across the sky. The last rays of the setting sun spilled and shattered into the vast golden wheat fields, emitting the fragrance of sun-baked grain and the sweet smell of soil.
"Eh, Piplup, why did you sneak out of the Poké Ball again?"
Jumping down to the ground, just as Dawn was immersed in this beautiful pastoral scenery, she suddenly felt her backpack tremble slightly. Looking closely, she found that her Piplup had broken free from the Poké Ball's restraints at some point, unzipped the zipper, and sneaked out.
"This child really is..."
Dawn looked at the little guy running around like he had never seen the world before, shaking her head both helplessly and amusingly.
It seemed that not only them, but even the Pokémon were very curious about and fond of this farm run by Brother Hakuya!
At this time, since Cogita had to go out to milk the Miltank in the pasture, and Irida and Akari had to go to the mountain berry orchard to tend the fruit trees and feed the Spinarak swarm to collect silk on the way, when Hakuya brought these pure and beautiful girls along the field path to the villa, they didn't see their figures immediately.