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

No elves emerged; instead, black mist appeared outside the windows and doors, preventing them from leaving. Then—the phone, which had clearly been disconnected, suddenly rang!

Jingle Bell--

The shrill ring of the telephone shattered the silence, and then even the table beneath it began to shake!

It's as if the person on the other end of the phone is angry at you for not answering!

Seeing this, Alice pursed her lips and was about to speak when Xianze, who was walking in front, took the microphone first.

then...

A gigantic monster made of shadow burst out of the microphone!

It stared with its bloodshot eyes, its gaping maw, and raised its pair of sharp claws in a menacing manner!

Not only was it incredibly frightening in appearance, but it also seemed to be planning to grab Xianze and drag him into the microphone!

Xianze had anticipated this scene.

He led Rocco and Alice on a twenty-minute search, deliberately looking for such 'ghost stories'.

He wanted to use this Ghost-type Pokémon to separate himself from Rocco and Alice, then give half of the Pokémon to his companions, and then disguise himself and return!

They'll knock Rocco unconscious and throw him out, then detain Alice and, with the help of their companions, pretend to be the victim.

This is his plan!

but...

The giant shadow monster created by Haunter or Gengar saw Roko behind Saki the moment it pounced out!

'Ah, ah—!'

Psychic and Ghost-type Pokémon often have outstanding sensory abilities, with exceptions only for certain species or individuals.

So the Pokémon, whether it was Haunter or Gengar, let out a terrified cry at that moment, as if it had seen a ghost, and with a speed faster than it could have crawled out, it immediately retreated back into the microphone, even closing the microphone before leaving!

Seeing this, not only Alice and Xianze, but even Luo Ke couldn't figure out what had happened.

So he looked at Alice, who claimed to have read all the ghost stories.

Alice, noticing his gaze, frowned and quickly shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either.

And Xianze, who knows this place best, is also the most confused!

"What happened?"

It wasn't a pretense, nor was it a plan; Xianze was genuinely puzzled!

This criminal, who used the environment of the ghost ship to create the 'Ghost Ship Tales', perhaps because he had done too many bad things, came up with a strange idea.

That is...

Could it really be haunted?!

......

39. Ghost-type Pokémon: My house is in an uproar!

Xianze was genuinely a little scared.

But he was unwilling to give up so easily—and this mission was not simple.

He and his companions usually pretend to be ghosts to scare people on the ghost ship, or they simply use elves to control someone in a party, create some scary effects, and then pick up the things that the people leave behind while they are fleeing in panic. The person who is controlled will be completely looted.

If they really took something very important from someone and the other person was determined to come back for it, they would put the item in a certain place and then guide the other person there to avoid causing trouble later.

However, there are also some abnormal situations.

After the 'Ghost Ship Tales' spread and gained fame, some important figures in Hachihei City would occasionally contact Senze and his companions, commissioning them to use the tales to kidnap people at certain times.

Their task was simple: once the target arrived, they would use the environment to detain him, and then simply release him when the time was up.

Then those big shots would give them a sum of money.

As for why these big shots did this, and what they did during the time their target was detained... they had no idea about the darkness of Baping City.

It has nothing to do with them.

And this time it's a similar situation.

It was still a big shot's commission, and they were asked to temporarily detain the target. However, this time the target wouldn't come to the ghost ship on her own; instead, they needed to guide Alice there, and the commission fee was dozens of times higher!

That's why Xianze personally approached Alice, investigated the reputation of the Lorraine family, and prepared a follow-up plan to use this reputation to clear his name...

Furthermore—this time, the attitude of that important figure was completely different from that of the important figures who had entrusted them with tasks in the past. With a combination of threats and temptations, they had no right to refuse.

So...

"Perhaps those Ghost-type Pokémon, after learning about the 'Ghost Ship Tales,' have simply changed their methods of scaring people."

Suppressing his surprise and doubt, Xian Ze forced a pale smile and turned to Luo Ke and Alice, saying this.

Alice pondered for a moment, then shook her head seriously.

"No, Mr. Xianze, although that elf only screamed and didn't express anything, I could hear the genuine fear in its scream."

"It's like..."

Alice frowned even more as she said this.

"...It was like seeing a ghost."

"Perhaps it sensed something that we didn't."

Upon hearing her say that, Luo Ke's gaze fell on Xian Ze's ace Pokémon, Gastly.

"If that's the case, did Gastly sense anything just now?"

'Well--'

Gastly shook its head repeatedly, and Xianze explained to Rocco.

"It won't work... Years ago, when it was still Gastly, we encountered a dangerous situation. Although we were miraculously saved after we passed out, after that incident, both Gastly and my other Pokémon suffered from a decline in their sensory abilities, much like their minds were damaged. So even if that Pokémon did sense something just now, Gastly, Koffing, and Zubat wouldn't have been able to sense it."

"I see, I'm sorry."

'Tini...'

When Luo Ke heard Xian Ze say that, and saw Gastly with its claws drooping and looking dejected, he quickly apologized.

Bictini, floating beside him, also bowed its head.

As for Sakizawa and Gastly, they simply waved their hands, indicating that they didn't care.

Yes, compared to what they were supposed to do, Luo Ke only asked one question when he was unaware of the situation, and there was really nothing to care about.

So Xianze even took the initiative to change the subject.

"If it really was that Pokémon that was scared, then it must be that some stronger Ghost-type Pokémon just happened to be passing by. After all, although Ghost-type Pokémon don't have a concept of territory, most of them like to play pranks, so when they encounter other Pokémon, they will often do something to scare them."

"The reason they didn't target us is probably because they chased after the Pokémon that just ran away."

"Let's get out of here quickly."

Luo Ke and Alice nodded slightly at Xian Ze's explanation, and then followed him out of the house to continue deeper into the ghost ship.

Still not giving up on his plan, Xianze resorted to his old tricks again, leading Luo Ke and Alice into another room.

This room is different from the other rooms on the ghost ship. Most of them have been repaired, and even the lights on the ceiling are on, making it look like someone lives here.

For a ghost ship whose electrical system could no longer function, this situation means that there are spirits present here!

Alice realized it immediately this time.

“I’ve seen this in ghost ship tales. The tales say that the lights will suddenly go out, and then in the darkness, a spirit will suddenly jump out and scare you.”

As she spoke, Alice placed her hand on the light switch.

"So we don't need to look for it. As long as we turn off the lights, the fairy should come out."

click!

After she reminded her, she immediately turned off the light.

but...

click!

The darkness did not draw the elf out; instead, another switch on the chandelier was pressed, and the elf hiding in the room turned on the light himself!

Such obvious resistance left Xianze, who had planned to escape under the cover of darkness, in an awkward position.

Alice tried turning the lights off again, but this time the lights didn't turn back on, and no elf popped out—well, the elf had run away while they were in an awkward silence!

The other party turned on the light not to show resistance, but to buy time for their escape!

"Could it be that the powerful Ghost-type Pokémon is following us, and this is also part of their prank?"

do not know.

But if their goal is to capture Pokémon, then there's no need for them to stay here.

The third place Xianze found was a location associated with the ghost story of being trapped in a maze.

Instead of creating false walls to trap them in a maze, the elves simply cleared away all the false walls and used the same method to create brightly colored guide arrows on the paths they could advance through!

After doing all this, the other party also secretly ran away.

After three such instances, Xianze finally figured it out.

These Ghost-type Pokémon run away as if they've seen a ghost!

Furthermore, if they really had a powerful Ghost-type Pokémon with them, their prank would have been so successful that the other party would have jumped out and laughed at them long ago, but... no one did!

Xianze's gaze lingered on Alice and Rocco for a moment, then fell on Pikachu and Victini.

Two humans and two adorable-looking elves—it didn't seem like they were the ones who scared the elves away.

That...

Is there really a ghost?!

Upon realizing this, Xianze could no longer suppress his thoughts. At that moment, he felt his whole body tense up and his back turned cold.

This time, he finally stopped making excuses and just stood there blankly, while his mind was in turmoil, wondering whether he should risk offending the important figure and abandon the mission.

Or... after we get out of here, should we take action and forcibly detain them?

As he pondered this, Alice, who had been observing the directional marks, glanced at the direction, took out a ghost ship map given to her by the Alliance from her backpack, compared it, and finally spoke.

"These markings don't seem to point to the exit, but rather to a location inside the ghost ship—shall we go check it out?"

......

40. Come to my house for a treasure hunt!

Where will this guidance lead?

Luo Ke and Alice were both curious, while Xian Ze was still in shock at the possibility that it might really be haunted, and he also had something on his mind, making him the least concerned about the matter.

He also did not participate in the discussion between Rocco and Alice.

“Roco, I read about the Pirate King’s treasure in ‘Ghost Ship Tales’, but many who came to the Ghost Ship to search for treasure failed to find it and were instead tricked by the spirits here, losing a lot of their valuables.”

"If there really is a Pirate King's treasure, then the most likely person to know its location must be one of the elves living here!"

"Do you think the spirit guiding us might actually know the location of the treasure and be leading us to a place no one else has ever found?"

Alice clasped her hands together in front of her chest, her beautiful eyes sparkling.

As the eldest daughter of the Lorraine family, she was not short of money; money was just a number to her. What she enjoyed was the process of adventure and reaping rewards, just like the protagonist in the novel.

"maybe..."

While Rocco verbally complimented Alice, he secretly rejected the young lady's fantasy.

Will a Ghost-type Pokémon guide you to find treasure?

Think beautiful!

Especially those Ghost-type Pokémon were obviously scared away. To have such a fantasy under such circumstances, it's hard to believe that those Ghost-type Pokémon are paying protection money.

That's too naive...