Pokémon: Hard work pays off, moves can be upgraded infinitely.

"A short-term task?"

Hearing the system notification in his mind, Mu Yun raised an eyebrow, seemingly somewhat surprised.

Can participating in a baby cup trigger a task?

No, if it were a baby cup, it would have been triggered long ago. So, it's related to that round face?

Thinking about it, Mu Yun opened the short-term task section, and sure enough, a new task had been added under the end-of-month assessment.

.............................

[Short-term task 3: An eye for an eye: Mediocrity is the absence of envy. As a genius in the eyes of ordinary people, you are bound to be envied by petty people. When facing petty people, you should strike hard and beat them until they never dare to look you in the eye again.]

[Mission Requirements: Defeat the attackers (0/7).]

[Time Limit: 24 hours]

[Mission Rewards: During this mission, defeating an attacker will grant bonus points equal to 5 times their Pokémon level. Defeating all attackers will double the mission points (no penalty for failure)]

.............................

"Is 'an eye for an eye' a sign of mediocrity that doesn't attract envy?"

These words sound so familiar; I feel like I've seen them somewhere before.

After thinking for a while without finding an answer, Mu Yun continued looking down.

The task is simple: defeat the attackers. It seems that Big Face will be bringing seven people to cause trouble.

After recalling the rune marks on the round-faced woman's body, Mu Yun felt that the people she could probably shake were just some small-time thugs of similar caliber.

So, what are the triggering criteria for short-term tasks?

The malice others showed him?

Mu Yun couldn't figure it out, so he stopped worrying about it and instead looked forward to seeing what Big Face would do.

After all, the extra points reward of level * 5, plus the doubled reward after defeating all enemies, is a considerable amount of points.

Even if they are all about the same strength as Big Face, that's still one or two thousand points, more than the points given in the end-of-month assessment!

As for whether they can win?

Let's learn about the overlord-level Sun Elf and the overlord-level peak Nut Dumbbell.

If he can't beat them, there are still foreign aids, right? At worst, he'll just get fewer points.

Since it was all an unexpected gain, Mu Yun could accept it whether it was a little more or a little less.

.............................

After figuring it out, Mu Yun quickly returned to his seat next to Song Xiaomeng.

Then, Mu Yun noticed that Song Xiaomeng was looking at him with a strange look that he couldn't quite put his finger on. She tried to open her mouth several times, but then closed it again.

"Just say what you have to say, why hold it in?"

Mu Yun reached out and gently patted Song Xiaomeng's head, chuckling softly.

Song Xiaomeng didn't mind being patted on the head. Instead, she leaned closer, hugged his shoulders, and whispered in his ear, "Xiaoyun, did you really get this Beedrill from school? Or was it just a kind-hearted guy passing by who gave it to you?"

Warm breath brushed against my earlobe, softly enveloping my arm; the sensation was exceptionally clear even through the thin fabric of my summer clothes.

Mu Yun tried to pull his arm away until he felt a slight hardness. Song Xiaomeng pinched his waist in embarrassment and anger, which made him obediently stop and reply casually.

"Didn't you ask me that already?"

"I did ask, but your Beedrill is too strange!" Song Xiaomeng's face was flushed, and her eyes were a little watery as she looked up at Mu Yun.

Even though they were talking seriously, Mu Yun felt that something was off.

"What's strange about it?"

"Everything about it is strange. For example, it flies very fast, its moves are powerful, and its ordinary-level strength can overwhelm that of a veteran-level Pokémon. It's also very lucky; it can keep triggering critical hits with a single charge attack..."

"Most importantly, I saw observation records about the Beedrill family at Yao Yao's place. The Beedrill family does not have inherited moves, and X-Scissor is not in their family's naturally upgraded move pool. Of course, it is also possible that Yao Yao and the others collected too little data, and many cases cannot be generalized."

Song Xiaomeng first listed Xiao Du's peculiarities one by one, and then explained them with the experimental information she had seen, but in the end, she ended up trying to comfort Mu Yun.

After hearing that, Mu Yun was completely bewildered.

"Xiaoyun, do you know?"

Song Xiaomeng's tone suddenly turned serious, and she tightened her arms, her petite body almost entirely leaning against Mu Yun, as if afraid of being thrown off.

"What?"

Mu Yun looked down at Song Xiaomeng beside him, and he vaguely sensed that Song Xiaomeng seemed to be worried about something.

Last year, my senior used her connections to get us involved in a mission. The mission was simple: to destroy an underground base of a criminal organization.

"That base is huge and spacious. It doesn't look like a hideout for wanted criminals. It's more like a large laboratory. Inside are all sorts of disassembled elf limbs, and even elves that have undergone special experiments and have become incredibly powerful, but whose genes quickly collapse."

Song Xiaomeng's voice was very soft, but Mu Yun could still hear a slight tremor in it.

Mu Yun didn't say anything, but simply reached out his other hand to lift her up and gently hold her in his arms.

At this moment, Song Xiaomeng was like a helpless kitten, clinging tightly to her owner's arms, trying to find a sense of security.

"Xiaoyun, if, I mean if..."

"If you ever have to leave, please take me with you, okay? I'm very strong, and I'll definitely be able to help you, no matter what you're doing!"

Song Xiaomeng raised her head, bit her lower lip, her eyes filled with determination and resolve.

It's hard to imagine what kind of decision Song Xiaomeng made when she said those words.

However, at this point, Mu Yun finally understood what Song Xiaomeng was worried and afraid of.

After all that, it turns out they were using Xiao Du as an experimental subject for an evil organization.

That makes sense. Such organizations are likely to recruit marginalized individuals, such as orphans with no one to rely on, or people who have been persecuted to the point of losing their wives and children, and whose hearts are filled with the rage of revenge.

Regardless, Song Xiaomeng's words truly touched Mu Yun's heart.

Unlike him, Song Xiaomeng had family and friends, but she was willing to give up everything for him.

This intense emotion made Mu Yun's gaze towards the lovely woman in his arms grow even more tender.

What merit or ability does he possess to inspire such deep concern in people...?

He raised his hand and gently stroked Song Xiaomeng's face, saying earnestly and solemnly, "Don't worry, Xiao Du isn't some kind of experiment, and I won't suddenly leave. No matter what, I'll always be here!"

"Um."

Whether Song Xiaomeng believed it or not, after receiving Mu Yun's sincere assurance, she softly hummed in agreement, then buried her head in Mu Yun's chest and gently rubbed it.

"Sister Xiaomeng."

"Hmm?" Song Xiaomeng's voice was very soft, as soft as a dream.

"You look like a cute little kitten right now," Mu Yun joked with a smile.

Unexpectedly, Song Xiaomeng not only did not refute, but also raised her head and responded softly.

Meow~~

"!!!"

Something's wrong, my Xiaomeng is acting strangely, extremely strangely.

Seeing Mu Yun's dumbfounded expression, Song Xiaomeng revealed a sly smile of triumph.

She released her grip, straddled Mu Yun's lap, and slowly brought her rosy lips to his ear. Her warm breath made the hairs on Mu Yun's cheeks stand on end. Her gentle and affectionate words, like sacred music, echoed endlessly in Mu Yun's heart...

"Cats can't live without their owners!"

Mu Yun: WTF!!

My bro's about to break down!!