Pokémon Detective Case Files.

Chapter 207 Solution - Dream Interpretation

Momonga is a legendary Pokémon that shares a common ancestor with Baku, a creature that is in a state of semi-consciousness.

Like its unevolved form, Dreameater, it eats the dreams of humans and Pokémon as snacks. The dreams it devours turn into purple smoke that rises from its head; the smoke is pink when it eats a happy dream, and blackish-gray when it eats a nightmare.

Although startled by the sudden appearance of the detective, Kuribayashi, being a professional actor who plays superpowered individuals in the circus, quickly understood the situation.

Looking at the elf that the detective had knocked out and tamed, the father pondered for a moment and then asked naturally, "Are you saying that it's this Dream Eater at school that caused my daughter's strange behavior over the past year?"

So-called dreams are not just mental fluctuations generated in the brain during sleep. Dreams, wishes, fantasies, hallucinations... anything that is so ethereal can be categorized as "dreams" under general conditions.

If Mengmengshi mistakenly takes Sachiko's reality as a dream and consumes it, it's not impossible that Sachiko might end up not being able to see her parents at home.

So, the culprit behind everything was this Pokémon?

"No, this Dream Eater isn't the cause of the little girl's abnormality. I just have some personal grudges with this guy."

As if she could read the man's mind, Azure denied it directly.

She put the twirling glasses into her pocket, then held Mengmeng tightly in front of her with both hands, continuing her explanation like a puppet show—

"This Pokémon only started appearing near the school in the last month, while Sachiko gradually stopped seeing her parents starting in the middle of this year. Although the time overlaps, the starting times are not the same, which is a decisive contradiction. Besides, this Dream Eater is so big and doesn't have any moves related to optical invisibility, so it's impossible for it to just appear in the school and devour your daughter's 'dream'."

Seemingly feeling that this still wasn't enough to clear Mewtwo of the suspicion, Azure thought for a moment and then added, "The children in the preschool should know more about its appearance. Although the staff haven't discovered this Pokémon yet, it's impossible for it to have escaped the sight of so many children."

"Have you ever heard of this pink Pokémon?" Kuribayashi asked his daughter.

"Hmm. Starting this month, it would appear outside the window when we took our afternoon nap, and sometimes we would see it on the playground. It seems like all the students know it, although we all agreed not to tell the teacher." Sachiko said, pressing her index finger against her cheek as she tried hard to remember.

"Me too, I often see them on the playground." The little boy, who had just arrived at the scene and was panting, nodded repeatedly, following behind Bilan.

“Of course.” Azure patted the pink body of the Pokémon in her hand and led everyone towards a secluded spot in the school—

"Although the Dream Eclipse that I captured wasn't the culprit behind the anomaly, it doesn't mean it was completely unrelated to the incident. To be honest, I almost got completely fooled by this guy."

The personal grudge that Azure mentioned earlier with Dream Eclipse refers to everything she saw through the telescope from the clock tower—the heartwarming scene of the whole class having an outdoor activity class together.

Seeing that scene meant that the substitute detective had "witnessed" a scene from her imagination—the "parallel universe" that Sachiko went to when she disappeared from the class.

In fact, the reason we were able to discover the truth behind this was largely thanks to the homework Professor Oak had prepared in advance.

Even when it is unconscious, the Pokémon Momonga will continuously emit mist from its head. When it falls asleep, the mist will continue to flow out, and at this time, what will appear in the mist is Momonga's own dream.

Dreams aren't always bizarre and fantastical. Between pleasant dreams and nightmares, people and Pokémon also dream of the mundane scenes of everyday life. This ordinariness is so natural that it is often simply forgotten, leaving no noteworthy memories in the mind.

It is said that the more comfortable and pleasant the sleep environment, the easier it is for people to fall into such ordinary and quiet dreams.

Everyday places, everyday people, everyday actions. In such dreams, the brain acts like a projector, unconsciously replaying the most insignificant parts of daily life.

However, if the dream is a dream eclipse that can create illusions through smoke, then this metaphor about a projector becomes quite apt.

In fact, when Bilan set up her binoculars, the playground she was facing was completely empty.

What she saw was merely the dream smoke of Dream Eater—a past scene that this Pokémon had witnessed in the same location.

That was a few days earlier, in the morning, before the young client had even made a request to Bilan, a fleeting image of Sachiko and her entire class playing together on the playground.

This morning, while Azure was struggling to climb the hole by clinging tightly to the rope, this wretched Dream Eater was leisurely wandering around, drifting out of the school basement, which it had been using as a temporary resting place, preparing to fly to the warmest spot in the winter sun for a nap.

The spot where Mengmengshi took her afternoon nap was directly below where Bilan had set up her telescope.

Sweet dreams are pink, nightmares are blackish-gray, and ordinary dreams, which come and go day after day, are colorless and tasteless.

Just as Azure was first struck by the deafening roar of the clock tower's bells, a colorless, transparent dream quietly floated up in front of her.

Azure was almost misled by this dream of everyday life.

In Pokémon battles, "Light Screen" cannot completely block sound wave moves, but if the target of the defense is just an ordinary bell, it's really not that easy to block out the school bell so you can take a nap.

Even a bell that is deafening to humans can be easily and completely blocked by a thin "light screen" for a psychic Pokémon.

In comparison, it is much more difficult to hide one's height of over one meter at school.

The clock tower is too noisy and chaotic to allow people to rest, so no one sets foot in it. But it is precisely because no one sets foot in it that the clock tower becomes the ideal place for Mengmeng to rest in the sun.

"That's why I said, no matter how sharp a child's eyes are, or how reflective the lenses are, they can't possibly notice the portable binoculars set up on the clock tower across the playground..." the detective muttered to herself.

"The only correct answer is that the boy's gaze toward the clock tower had a hidden meaning. He was waving at something more conspicuous—like the Misty Eclipse floating in the sky. It's perfectly normal for a little boy born into a family of aerial combat masters to greet a Pokémon floating by in the sky."

"Um. You used to hide in the clock tower and spy on the children at school with binoculars?"

Mr. Kuribayashi's focus seemed to shift subtly as he began to re-examine the detective before him.

"That's completely unimportant." The acting detective waved her hand dismissively, skillfully changing the subject, and continued speaking on her own—

"In short, while the children taking their afternoon nap at school can provide Dreamweaver with sweet dreams, letting it roam freely in the academy for too long is definitely not a good thing. After learning about Dreamweaver from the children, I went to explore the places where it was most likely to live and caught this mischievous fellow deep in the underground parking garage. However, it seems to have a trainer's Pokémon, so I don't know how to deal with it yet." At this point, Azure scratched her cheek in frustration.

However, after listening to Azure's long speech, Mr. Kuribayashi began to get impatient: "In the end, what do all these things you've said, and this spirit, have to do with my daughter?"

"Don't rush me. Didn't I say we're gathering all the people involved in the incident? Besides you and Sachiko, isn't there another very, very important person who hasn't shown up yet?"

You mean, Mom?

Sachiko asked timidly. As far as she could remember, this was the first time she had spoken directly to Azure.

"Of course, I have already informed Mrs. Kuribayashi, and your mother is on her way here."

"Are you trying to test whether Sachiko will ignore us when she's outside the house? We've tried this before. We're parents too, and we've tried everything we know to treat Sachiko's strange illness, but it's all been useless." Mr. Kuribayashi looked at Azure with a serious expression.

“Of course I know, that’s precisely why we need a detective, isn’t it?” As if she had discovered a valuable clue, Azure smiled with even greater confidence.

"Sachiko!"

Just then, a woman's voice came from the school gate.

It was Sachiko's mother. After receiving Bilan's call, she rushed to the school without stopping. The security guard at the gate remembered Mrs. Kuribayashi's face, so he didn't stop her from entering the school.

Mr. Kuribayashi, the acting detective, and the young client who was following Azure all looked in the direction of the approaching person.

Only the little girl, Sachiko, remained stunned, not turning her head.

It was as if they hadn't heard the call at all.

Chapter 208 Resolution - A Sweet Nightmare Like Sugar

A woman dressed in a plain-colored robe, who seemed to have just been performing a spirit communication ritual, appeared at the school gate, called out Sachiko's name, and quickly walked towards the crowd.

"Are you the detective from yesterday?"

She glanced uneasily at Sachiko, who seemed to ignore her, then walked straight up to Aoi, clearly recognizing the voice from the phone call the previous night—

"You called me to the school and had my husband, Sachiko, and me get together. Does that mean the investigation has made progress?"

“That’s right, I’m the detective you hired over the phone, Azure from the Hugo Detective Agency.”

Holding the unconscious Mengmengshi, Bilan looked directly into Madam Kuribayashi's eyes and nodded generously in response: "The investigation is about to enter the reporting phase. Being able to resolve the case within twelve hours of accepting the commission is an unprecedented opening bonus."

“But…” the woman opened her mouth, then turned her head to Sachiko, who had a blank expression, “My daughter is still like this…”

"Yes, this phenomenon is indeed a difficult problem. Although I've heard about it many times, seeing it with my own eyes still makes me feel heavy-hearted..."

The female detective sighed and said regretfully—

“The human brain is easily deceived by external phenomena, and it takes a hundred times more effort to correct such errors. I can immediately unravel and deal with the source of this misfortune, but as for how to correct the illusions in Sachiko’s mind, in addition to my part, we will need the cooperation of your whole family.”

"Could it be that Sachiko still has hope of recovery?"

The woman's tone became somewhat excited, and even Mr. Kuribayashi, who was standing next to her, looked at Azure expectantly.

However, the detective shrugged and said, "I'm not a doctor, and your daughter isn't a patient. But if the mystery is solved properly, the strange phenomena Sachiko is experiencing will surely subside naturally."

“Miss Detective, although it may seem a bit unreasonable to ask, could you please address the root of your problem immediately? I believe it’s best to act quickly in these matters, even if it’s just for a second. We don’t want our daughter to continue to be affected by things that distort her mind and perception.”

Mr. Kuribayashi, who was standing to the side, spoke up, while looking for his wife's opinion with his eyes. She nodded in agreement.

"Well." Azure glanced at the class that Sachiko had originally been in.

Through the security bars on the windowsill, it was clear that the kindergarten classroom was completely dark. All the children had left, and the teacher had checked the attendance sheet to make sure that every child in the class had been picked up by their parents before closing the door and leaving get off work.

This is the perfect opportunity to use "Rapid Rewind" to return to the classroom and start the investigation again.

"Well, that's good, it's about time."

After saying that, Bilan led the four people involved—two adults and two children—to the classroom.

"To be fair, and also to avoid any oversights, I would like to ask everyone here a few more questions. I hope you will answer them freely and without reservation."

On the way, Azure said to the people behind her—

“First, there’s the original client, the little boy from the Air Combat Family,” Azure said, addressing him as if calling out a name.

"I'm here," the boy answered timidly.

"In your initial account, Sachiko's mysterious disappearance occurred inside the classroom while the children were playing together. She suddenly vanished. Similarly, her later disappearance during an assembly also happened indoors, with 'several teachers guarding the perimeter of the classroom'—that's what you said at the time. Since the teachers were surrounding the classroom, the students being guarded must have been inside. Is that right?"

The boy thought about it for a while, glanced at Sachiko again, and finally nodded in agreement: "It seems so."

"That's natural, and it matches my speculation."

Ahead lay a flat, empty corridor, so Azure turned gracefully, walking backward as she spoke—

"If Sachiko frequently disappeared while playing on the playground, even the most oblivious teacher wouldn't treat a student's disappearance as a prank; they would at least notify the parents. However, this didn't happen. The only explanation is that whenever Sachiko disappeared, she was always inside the enclosed classroom. Therefore, setting aside the students who witnessed her disappearance, the teacher at the podium didn't see anything pass through the door and naturally wouldn't be alarmed by the number of students missing from the class."

"Similarly, in the initial game, the reason why the students were able to immediately conclude that Sachiko had disappeared rather than hiding somewhere unseen was because everyone was in an enclosed space at the time, so they could easily count all the people—just like this morning's indoor activity class. Am I right?"

The little boy fell silent and did not object. This indicated that, from his perspective, Sachiko had indeed never disappeared outside the classroom.

"So that's how it is."

Mr. Kuribayashi nodded softly, seemingly acknowledging Azure's abilities to some extent, and the deep-seated doubts that had been ingrained since their first meeting dissipated somewhat.

"Then, the second question, Mr. Kuribayashi, I remember you just said that in order to treat Sachiko's strange illness, you 'tried everything you knew,' right?"

“That’s right.” Seeing the topic suddenly turn to her, Kuribayashi, holding her daughter’s hand, nodded calmly.

"Although the two parents are just actors playing superpowered individuals, they must have accumulated a lot of relevant knowledge as preparation for the performance. When faced with their daughter's illness, they naturally couldn't ignore amulets and other talismans that are well-known in the field of mysticism."

The detective, who was walking backwards, moved in front of Kuribayashi, who was holding his daughter's hand.

"Most of these magical items only work on Pokémon and have a slight effect on humans, but some of them do have the effect of calming the mind and repelling Ghost-type Pokémon. The protective items you gave Sachiko are similar to these, right?"

Before the parents could reply, Bilan knelt down in front of Xingzi.

"Sachiko, may I see the amulet you're wearing around your neck?"

"it is good."

Although she didn't know the specifics, the little girl obediently and carefully took out the ornament hidden in her white coat.

It was a pale green stone carved with intricate patterns, with fluorescence flowing between the patterns, and the whole stone exuded a soft and smooth luster like jade.

"So the raw material really is that one..."

The moment Sachiko took out the amulet, Mengmeng Shi in Bilan's arms stirred, her long eyelashes trembling slightly—startling the amulet's owner, who took two steps back.

"Don't wake up on your own." The detective girl added an impatient chop, causing Mengmengshi to fall into an even deeper sleep.

At this moment, Mr. Kuribayashi explained, "Detective, this is a talisman carved from moonstone. It was recommended to us by the psychiatrist who was treating Sachiko when she first started showing symptoms of hallucination. As you said, this talisman is said to have a calming effect. We also found a real psychic to carve inscriptions on it to ward off evil spirits."

"Just as I expected. Good, now we have all the final clues."

The detective sprang back to her feet like a spring, turning gracefully around behind her.

At this moment, everyone had arrived at the door of Sachiko's classroom.

This is the place where the little girl mysteriously disappears day after day.

"There's clearly nothing valuable inside, yet it's locked. But that's to be expected; the school is the place children are most familiar with besides their homes, and it would be terrible if a runaway child hid inside. This school must have encountered such situations in the past, which is why they pay so much attention to managing student access."

While muttering to herself, Bilan tugged at the padlock hanging on the classroom door, but the sturdy metal lock didn't budge.

That's when you'd have to show off your unique skills as a private investigator... just kidding.

"Eevee, Iron Tail!"

The reliable Pokémon partner leaps out of the ball, swinging its metallic tail, and lands simultaneously with the severed iron lock.

She's not like Hugo; she can easily rely on Pokémon, so she doesn't need to go through the trouble of helping herself.

The door, now unlocked, was pushed open by Azure without hesitation.

As expected, the classroom was empty.

"Miss Azure, what exactly is the answer to the mystery you mentioned?" Mrs. Kuribayashi, who followed Azure into the room, asked the detective eagerly, "Is it something in this classroom that caused Sachiko to become so strange?"