Pokémon, you're not allowed to expel me from human form!

"Sticky rice and banana..."

Previously, when discussing tactics for elf battles, it was mostly Alice who was talking.

Given the league's rules prohibiting the retention and dissemination of recordings, and the fact that trainers' actions can only be seen through live streams at specific times, Alice's ability to articulate a large number of tactical ideas in one go is truly impressive and difficult to achieve.

That's the magic of interest.

But when it comes to food—Luo Ke is just like Alice from before!

Having only been in Baping City for a few days, he could already speak fluently about the various local delicacies of Baping City, leaving Alice, a local of Baping City, dumbfounded.

Um...

Interests are truly a terrifying thing!

And Luo Ke wasn't just making things up.

After Alice and Pikachu ate the various foods served, they remembered Rocco's previous introduction and agreed that everything Rocco said was correct!

And by following the key points Rocco mentioned when tasting these delicacies, they will be able to better experience their beauty.

Alice thought that Roque could easily become a gourmet scholar.

With his passion for food, becoming a culinary expert would be a piece of cake for him in the future.

This made her decide something in her heart while enjoying the delicious food—from now on, when she goes out to eat with Luo Ke, she'll go to whichever restaurant he recommends; he's a professional!

...

While Alice and Rocco were having dinner, outside the shop, inside the black limousine, the driver, dressed in a suit, was alone, holding his phone and talking quietly to someone on the other side.

"I understand... I'm all ready."

"I noticed last time when I went out to catch Pokémon with the young lady from the Lorraine family, she didn't like to bring too many guards. So this time when we went to the Ghost Ship, her only guards were me and a new trainer."

"A newcomer who can be favored by the young lady of the Lorraine family must be extraordinary? Yes, he is extraordinary. His Ditto is abnormally strong."

"Don't worry, that Ditto only has Normal-type moves and uses punches and kicks. I'll let you command half of my Pokémon. My trump card is Ghost-type, so holding off that Ditto shouldn't be a problem."

What if that Ditto forcibly runs away with everyone?

"That's why I'm here! I left half of the elves to hold off that young lady and that newcomer... Rabbit Apple!"

"Then we both ran out of Pokémon, so I just started battling him in Trainer Battles!"

"You know me, before I became a trainer I was a well-known strongman and fighter in the surrounding area. With that kid's physique, I could easily take on ten of him!"

"You don't understand this. Fighting elves is different. There's no room for magic or miracles in combat!"

"Okay, that's it."

“I’ll contact you once we get to the ghost ship—if we can capture this young lady to threaten the Lorraine family, with those big shots covering for us, we can get a large ransom after we escape, and then we’ll call it a day after we’ve done this job.”

"Um... one last time."

"Don't worry, just like those 'ghost ship tales' before, we will succeed!"

......

38. He scared the ghost away.

"This is a true story."

The scenery outside the car window flashed by, and Alice squinted, trying hard to create a sinister and terrifying atmosphere. Unfortunately, she was too exquisitely beautiful; no matter how hard she tried, her face, which seemed like the most perfect work of art by the gods, could not frighten anyone, it could only enhance the feeling of beauty.

“A long, long time ago, the area north of Baping City was not an endless wilderness, but part of the North Sea. Baping City was not a mining city in those days, but a port and a pirate city.”

"It belongs to the most famous pirate of that era—Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Legend has it that as long as Mr. Jack’s pirate flag is hung in a certain place, other pirates will not dare to attack that place. At that time, in Baping, Mr. Jack’s pirate ship 'Black Pearl' was always docked in the port, with his pirate flag always flying high to deter other pirates."

"Pirates who come to Baping City must obtain Mr. Jack's permission and must abide by the pirate code established by Mr. Jack."

"The kingdoms on land all call this Mr. Jack the Pirate King."

"However, pirates on the high seas are not law-abiding citizens. They fear Mr. Jack, the Pirate King, but at the same time, they are secretly joining forces to defeat him, seize his treasure, and declare to the whole world—pirates don't need a king!"

"No records of that battle have been left, but according to many ancient books, after that battle, as if by miracle, the area north of Baping City was no longer the North Sea, but for some unknown reason, a huge plain was filled in."

“Even further out on the plains lies the world’s largest volcano, and the Alliance headquarters was built around this volcano, which is named ‘Roton’.”

"This cannot be a normal geographical change at all; it feels as if the gods of the earth have redesigned this land."

"Therefore, some people suspect that after Mr. Jack was angered by those pirates, he used some kind of ocean treasure or a particularly powerful spirit, which triggered this series of changes."

"However, Mr. Jack also paid a huge price. As a pirate, he was imprisoned on the earth forever, and his soul could not rest in peace even after death."

"And outside Baping City, there is a gathering place for elves known as the Ghost Ship, which is said to be the Black Pearl that was trapped on land!"

"Mr. Jack's vengeful spirit is up there. If he touches it, he will control your mind and make you attack your companions. Even more terrifyingly, you might be captured by him!"

'Pikachu!'

'Tinnitini...'

As Alice suddenly raised her voice, Pikachu popped out of her arms, squeezed into Rocco's embrace, and hugged Victini.

The little guy was so frightened that he trembled, and the fine hairs on his body stood on end.

Victini, meanwhile, was gently patting Pikachu's head with its little paws, seemingly trying to soothe it.

As for Luo Ke... he looked at Alice, who was silently turning on the car's interior lights and trembling as if she was trying to suppress a laugh, with a somewhat subtle gaze, and shook his head slightly.

Elves generally have very simple thoughts, which is why Pikachu was frightened by Alice.

But Rocco simply couldn't understand what aspects of the story contained any elements of horror.

The evaluation is inferior—Do you want my treasure? If you want it, you can have it all. Go find it! I've left all my treasure there.

The last words spoken by the Pirate King before his death ushered in the Great Pirate Era. This is the most terrifying story related to pirates!

If you don't understand, then wait until pirates come to your town to burn, kill, and plunder, and you'll know what terror is.

Compared to vengeful spirits and mind manipulation, that's just a fairy tale!

Not to mention...

"Those things must have been done by the elves living on the ghost ship, right?"

"That should be it."

Alice recovered, a smile still lingering on her face, as she took Pikachu from Victini's arms and answered Rocco's question.

"After all, for those Ghost-type Pokémon, the Ghost Ship is their home. If they are suddenly disturbed or provoked, they will do something."

"However, no one has ever died because of these 'ghost ship tales' in the Alliance's records."

"Those that are being controlled will leave the ghost ship on their own after driving away the others, and then they will return to normal."

"Those who go missing will return home on their own after disappearing for a while."

This really feels like a fairy tale...

Or rather, it's not even as scary as a fairy tale; it's just a prank.

It was a prank with a reason.

That's true. If it were really dangerous, the staff at the alliance branch wouldn't have just given me a brief reminder when I contacted them.

"In short—since we're going to capture Pokémon, then Roco, these Ghost-type Pokémon will definitely show us these 'ghost ship tales'."

Alice said this, but the smile on her face did not disappear, and she looked confident.

"Luo Ke, you don't need to worry. Before I came to find you, I read through all the strange tales circulating online. If I really encounter one, I won't be caught off guard."

"Don't be shy then, just rely on me."

During dinner earlier, Alice told Rocco her name and didn't stop him from calling her Orange. Rocco also told her to just call him by his name and stop calling him Mr. Rocco.

So their relationship has obviously become closer at this point.

Alice became much more casual in her speech.

Rocco didn't actually read those ghost stories. Although he didn't think those ghost-type spirits could cause any trouble that would make him back down, he still agreed with Alice's words at this moment.

"Then please."

The two of them were talking like this, while the driver, who was also the professional trainer that Alice had invited to help besides Rocco, had a slight smile on his face.

So far, everything has gone smoothly.

...

The mining area is a mountainous region.

Many scholars, even PhDs, have investigated the terrain and geology here, and they all feel that, based on their knowledge, the terrain here does not look like it was formed naturally.

However, since there are no traces of human intervention, it can only be classified as—the masterpiece of nature!

They even suggested to the officials of Baping City that they change the somewhat awkward name "Xian Deng Mining Area" to "Qi Di Mining Area".

But the "Xian Deng" in "Xian Deng Mining Area" is a person's name!

This surname, like Lorraine, is a prestigious surname from the ancient kingdom period.

Unlike Lorraine, the surname Xian does not have a fixed family, but 30% of the population of Baping City has the surname Xian, and Xian Deng is a "mining hero" during the establishment of Baping City.

Naming the mining area after him was a decision that everyone agreed upon at the time.

Even now, no one would agree to rename the Xiandeng mining area.

It's not just the district name; even some roads, mountains, canyons, and mine tunnels in the Xiandi mining area are all named with "Xian" in their names.

There is an open space at the intersection of Xianfeng Mountain and Xiandeng Mountain.

Old and dilapidated, with obvious signs of damage, but a ghost ship dozens of times larger than modern ships, is forever moored here.

When Roc heard that a wrecked ship could become a gathering place for Ghost-type Pokémon, he had no idea. But when he stood under the ship and couldn't even see its top when he looked up, he could imagine what a steel fortress this giant ship must have been when it sailed the seas!

Given the degree of integration between humanity and nature in this world, such a thing would probably not have been so easy to create, even in ancient times without the alliance.

Moreover, after a cursory glance, Luo Ke discovered that there were no weapons on the ship. On the contrary, the armor used for defense was perfectly sealed, leaving no flaws whatsoever!

Why would people back then build such a giant ship that resembles Noah's Ark?

Luo Ke recalled the story of Alice where land suddenly appeared north of Baping City, and having some knowledge of those legendary elves, he thought of something.

However, that was all a long time ago, so Luo Ke only made a connection and said nothing.

When she came to her senses, she exchanged a glance with Alice, who was also looking over.

Then, with Victini and Pikachu by their side, they were ready.

Xianze parked the car, then came to them, took out a Poké Ball, and released three Pokémon in one go.

First up is his ace, Gastly!

Next up are the Gas Bomb and the Superbat!

Although Rocco thought his evolution level wasn't great, compared to the employees at the Los Angeles branch, Xianze was already much stronger. Otherwise, Rudolph wouldn't have agreed to let Alice bring a professional trainer like him to the Ghost Ship.

“Miss Alice, Mr. Rocco, Ghost-type Pokémon are elusive and specialize in sneak attacks. They can appear at any time, so you must stay close to me.”

"I see."

Alice and Rocco agreed in unison, and Xianze nodded slightly, walking in front to lead Rocco and Alice through a breach beneath the ghost ship into the gathering place of elves.

This wasn't the first time Roco had entered the elven settlement.

But unlike last time, all the knowledge that Eureka had taught him about entering the elven settlement was useless on this ghost ship.

Ghost-type Pokémon are different from other Pokémon. They rarely gather in one place and consider it their territory. They roam freely throughout this ghost ship and can appear anywhere, anywhere.

Even Xianfeng Mountain and Xiandeng Mountain have been rumored to be haunted.

This demonstrates their freedom.

So the only knowledge one can rely on in such a place is perhaps the ghost stories Alice has read.

And that's exactly what happened.

After walking for about twenty minutes on the ghost ship, they arrived at a dilapidated, messy room with various plants growing on the ground.

Everything else in the room was in disarray, except for a spotless table in the very center, on which sat a telephone that stood alone, unconnected to anything.

Unlike in games and anime, where ghost-type spirits scare you by suddenly appearing from behind, this is different.