Pokémon Detective Case Files.

Only a few leaves, blown by the strong wind, remained, scattered sparsely on the ground.

Therefore, the two girls who came specifically to collect the leaves looked more like street volunteers cleaning up than the crew members cleaning the stage.

But even leaves must not be left on this road, because they could become evidence that the family has noticed something amiss.

In fact, these leaves are completely out of season and are an important prop for creating a sense of realism in the illusion. Their main function is to force the three people to half-close their eyes at the beginning of the performance, so as to deprive them of their ability to observe the outside world.

When people close their eyes, any kind of miracle can happen.

To prevent the leaves from scratching the eyes of the three unsuspecting audience members, the director specially found tender yellow new leaves that had just sprouted. They were light and soft, without any sharp edges. These were quite rare props in Flying Cloud City during winter. Douzi and Serpenti had to work very hard to produce just enough for one performance in a short period of time.

"So, this lady who claims to be an experienced leading lady, from the very first line, you completely abandoned the prepared script and started improvising excessively. Can you explain what happened?"

Douzi wore a stiff, amiable smile, his eyes fixed on Miss Nazi, who had changed back into ordinary clothes.

Besides long-term care, there is actually a simpler way to recover from the cognitive impairment that Sachiko is experiencing—

That is to overturn all common sense in the existing world and create a scenario where any miracle can happen. In this case, please ask Miss Naz to use her super-powerful abilities to focus the girl's attention on her parents. The relatives who were originally considered "disappeared" due to science fiction theories in reality can naturally reappear.

Therefore, in the original storyline that Azur Lane commissioned, Sabrina was supposed to act as a mysterious magician who happened to be passing by, performing a miracle of time travel in front of the family of three.

However, Sabrina, who was supposed to be a mysterious sorceress, went into a berserk state the moment she appeared, completely abandoning her neutral and kind sorceress persona, and chased after the Kuribayashi family like a villain, beating them up...

"Oh well, there's nothing we can do about it."

Sabrina waved her arm, sending a small pile of leaves that had accumulated on the ground flying into the trash can, and said—

“I had met the girl’s father once before. If I had participated according to the original script, my identity would have been exposed. In order to complete the plan to restore the little girl to normalcy, I had no choice but to sacrifice my reputation and play the villain in the performance.”

"Is this really out of necessity? Why do I feel like you're enjoying it? Aren't you getting too emotionally involved?"

Douzi cast a suspicious look at him and launched into a barrage of questions.

"Anyway, the final result is satisfactory, so everything is fine, right?"

The Psychic-type gym leader shrugged easily, skillfully avoiding the topic.

"When those three audience members open their eyes, they'll find themselves sitting in the movie theater, watching the fantasy film 'The Magic Door to the Magic Kingdom,' in which I star. Everything that just happened will become a dream that surfaced while they were dozing off during the movie. Hehe, it was really lucky to wear that costume today; my premonitions always seem to work particularly well at times like this. Wouldn't that make for a perfect, dreamlike performance?"

"Don't talk about the remedies that others have painstakingly come up with as if they were your own superpowers and premonitions! 'The Magic Door' has been showing for more than a month, and it can only be described as a miracle if you can find a movie theater nearby that is showing it."

The girl with the high ponytail complained irritably—

"And it's not all over yet... Those two adults aren't children with distorted memories; they definitely won't treat what happened before as a dream. Besides, the little girl even fell on the ground midway through the performance. If she had any injuries or pain, she would instantly see through the truth we're trying so hard to cover up."

"Don't worry about that," the actress said reassuringly to the director as she removed the last leaf from the prop.

"If those parents are smart enough, they will never tell their daughter the truth right away. Once the girl's cognitive impairment has stabilized and healed, it won't matter if they realize everything. As for the little girl, I used my superpowers to catch her when she fell, so it's impossible for her to have any physical injuries. Therefore, even if the plot changes midway, it won't lead to any regrettable outcome."

"What a diva-like actress. Oh well, since she was so well prepared, even though the process was a bit thrilling, it can definitely be considered a perfect ending."

The director breathed a sigh of relief. Then she suddenly remembered something and became curious again.

"By the way, Miss Sabrina. I remember you were hit by Daewoo's 'Sealing' attack before, right? How come you were still able to use 'psychic power' to help people up?"

The psychic gym leader looked at Douzi speechlessly, as if the other had made some common-sense mistake—

"I'm not a Pokémon, so how could moves that seal Pokémon's abilities possibly work on me? I was just putting on an act and pretending to be delayed. Besides, after stunning the Great Soft Monster, I was out of the battle. Even if my psychic powers were really sealed, I could easily unseal them at that time."

"Yes, showing weaknesses is also an important part of creating a villain. It also helps to foreshadow their eventual defeat. By laying the groundwork for later plot developments in such insignificant details, we can truly capture the essence of filmmaking."

Douzi nodded earnestly, looking completely at ease.

"Phew, I added even more water than that." When the conversation turned to her area of ​​expertise, the seasoned villain, Ms. Sabrina, continued—

"And the last crimson spear, since it's just an illusion, can actually be cast instantly with a wave of the hand; there's no need to draw any spells in your hands. After all, superpowers aren't born from theory; mages basically operate based on intuition."

Miss Sabrina's superpowers seem to be far more powerful than even the wildest imagination of Touko.

"Whether you're playing a villain or a gym leader, it's the same principle: you have to give your opponent a glimmer of hope during the battle, otherwise it's just bullying them."

"No, you've been bullying people ever since you started using your superpowers."

"Speaking of which, the director also helped a lot with this performance. If it weren't for you bringing in the fog cannon truck and sound equipment, I wouldn't have been able to create such a dazzling visual illusion as before. Being able to coordinate so many on-site installations all by yourself, you truly deserve to be someone who claims to be a great director."

Despite feeling slightly smug, the director crossed her arms and responded firmly: "Even if you flatter me, I won't pretend that you tore up the script today didn't happen."

"Then let's do this."

Naza brushed her dark blue hair back and smiled at Touko.

"When you direct your next movie, I promise I'll make a cameo appearance. Whether it's the lead role, a supporting role, a villain, or a cameo, as long as you tell me the filming schedule in advance, I'll make time to come to the Unova region to participate—it'll be a great movie, I have a feeling it will be."

.

Just as Touko and Sabrina successfully completed the task entrusted to them, Azure, who had just solved a case, was troubled at the Pokémon Center.

The little boy's mother had already come to pick him up, and the idle detective glanced again at the clock hanging on the wall of the Pokémon Center—

"Naza and the others should have finished their performance by now. With Touko's help, there shouldn't be any accidents. In other words, Sachiko will most likely be able to see her parents again by now."

Although her hints were very subtle, the Kuribayashi couple are both very intelligent people, and they should cooperate with Natsumi's performance...

When Azure said goodbye to the Kuribayashi family, she deliberately added the ambiguous phrase, "I have a premonition." This "premonition" was a catchphrase that Sabrina had liked to use since the past.

As long as Sabrina mentions this word, the Kuribayashi couple, realizing this, should be able to guess the connection between the passing magician and the detective, and then fully cooperate with Sabrina's performance—as long as no drastic unexpected changes occur, and as long as they don't fall into a crisis situation where they don't have time to think, things will definitely continue to develop smoothly.

Although the act was faked, which is somewhat unfair to Sachiko who was kept in the dark, the misunderstanding created by the lie should be resolved by the lie, and the distortion that arose in the dream should be corrected by the dream itself.

Sachiko was an innocent party outside the incident, and she shouldn't have to bear the heavy burden of the realities behind the case. True fairness lies in letting the adults resolve the matter cleanly and decisively.

The only remaining problem is those two guys in the Pokémon Center ward.

The two Pokémon, one big and one small, are a runaway Pokémon with a trainer and a carefree personality, while the other is a wild Pokémon suffering from long-term malnutrition and has developed severe psychological trauma due to being confined to a classroom for a long time.

Neither of them could be entrusted to the Pokémon Center for adoption.

Although in this detective activity, Azure solved two cases from different clients in one go, which can be described as killing two birds with one stone.

But if we include the cleanup work for the lost Dream Eaters, wouldn't I have to handle two additional tasks: finding the trainers who lost the Dream Eaters and choosing suitable adopters for the smaller Dream Eaters—both of which are time-consuming, laborious, and yield meager rewards?

How can this be considered killing two birds with one stone?

It's killing two birds with one stone.

Hit rate 66.6%.

However, they couldn't just abandon the two Dreame—if the staff didn't understand the actual situation, it would be difficult to take good care of the smaller Dreame, who was suffering from emotional and physical trauma. After the larger Dreame awoke, it stayed inseparable from the former, seemingly wanting to protect its fellow creature in its tragic situation. Forcibly separating the two Pokémon would also cause considerable trouble.

Speaking of which, the reason this other Dream Eater drifted to the preschool a month ago might be because it received a distress message from its companion conveyed through dream smoke. However, it never expected that its companion would be hiding inside the normally locked classrooms, drifting around the school for over a month without finding the smaller Dream Eater's location.

If Hugo were in this situation, how would he resolve it? Azure couldn't help but wonder.

The detective in the white coat is probably the one who has the least control over Pokémon. If two Mewtwo, one big and one small, fell into his hands, he would be at a loss for what to do.

As if in response to Azure's thoughts, the girl's phone vibrated, seemingly displaying a text message from a social media app.

Shouldn't Natsume and Touko have completed their mission?

With such a preconceived notion, Azure turned on the screen, then stared wide-eyed in surprise.

The message was sent by Detective Hugo, who was attending a solemn ceremony.

The flashing social media profile picture is the agency's logo; the minimalist icons and font are simple and elegant. Apart from being mistaken for an advertisement, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. What a pragmatic guy...

Upon opening the message, Azure quickly skimmed through it, only to be met with even greater astonishment.

The message wasn't a report on Hugo's current situation, nor was it a routine greeting for Azur Lane; instead, it was a work request to be forwarded—

"I received a request from Professor Makomo. I should have handled this myself, but I have some personal matters to deal with here, so I can only ask you, who is staying in Flying Cloud City, to help me. The task is to find a lost Pokémon. With your abilities, Azure, you should be able to solve it in less than half a day."

"Here are the details of the incident: A month ago, Professor Makomo moved her Dream Lab from Sanyo City to Suicune City. During the move, her partner Pokémon, Mosquito, went missing. Since Mosquito is usually carefree and often returns home after being away for several days without a care in the world, and since Mosquito can live normally in densely populated cities even without eating or drinking, Professor Makomo wasn't initially very worried. However, as a month passed, the professor became anxious and, after receiving my communication, made a request to me."

"In short, if you find the Dream Eater or obtain credible eyewitness testimony, please contact Dr. Makomo's phone number in the attachment, which also includes her research institute address."

"P.S. The Pokémon Dreameat feeds on dreams, so I suggest starting your investigation by checking hospitals, kindergartens, and nursing homes near the New Dream Lab. Of course, the progress of the investigation is constantly changing, so please make your own judgment, Azur Lane. — Hugo"

Okay, now all the problems are solved.

Is that detective some kind of all-knowing monster?

Amber-colored exercise: The Detective's Initial Spirit

少年，你被「十万伏特」电击过吗？这么干脆地摇头啊，那还真是幸运，我曾经在守卫蜂巢的时候被馋嘴的勒克猫电过咧。明明是个野生精灵，还真亏那只大猫能记下不同属性之间的克制关系。最开始，我还以为它打算用那锋利的牙齿对我使用「咬碎」，结果那家伙爪子一抬，空气里就出现了好几道形状不定的明黄色折线，来不及思考的瞬间，身上已经出现了酥酥麻麻的感觉，感觉在下一秒变成剧痛，几乎让呼吸立刻停止，在彻底失去意识之前，甚至还可以闻到自己身上飘来的难闻焦臭味，真是不愿意回忆起的记忆啊——虽然是我自己自顾自说出来的……嗯，的确，理解成“说”是有点不太恰当，毕竟在刚才的交流里，我的嘴巴从头到尾都没有张开过。事先声明，虽然我们这种宝可梦总是给人默默无闻的印象，我自己在同族里也算是比较沉默寡言的异常个体，但我可不是个哑巴，发出叫声这种事还是能做到的。不过，能像这样和别人畅快交流，对我来说还是自出生以来的第一次，是相当新鲜的体验呢。真没想到谈话对象竟然会是个人类小孩。提到异常，你才是更加出格的那个吧。我承认自己是个脸上藏不住心事的精灵，毕竟面部表情是别人的三倍嘛，但你可是在瞬间就能把那些表情全部翻译成语言，就像掌握读心术一样理解了我的想法，可以做到这种事的，也只有怪物一样的天才了吧，还是说是天才一样的怪物呢。你是天才吗？像独角虫一样了不起的天才？独角虫当然是天才啦，明明种族寿命和我们差不多，但进化速度超快的咧，我甚至见过在出生后第十天就进化成大针蜂的独角虫。它们虽然不会搭建蜂巢，样子也吓人了一点，但进化再进化后变成的大针蜂却非常强大，每一只个体都能这样进化呢。都优秀到这份上了，它们甚至还懂得团队行动，这样的宝可梦只能用天才来形容了吧？你也是那样头角峥嵘的超级天才吗？不过也对啊，天才这种评价只能由别人来说出口，就算经验丰富如我，也没见过哪只独角虫自称天才的。不管是人类还是宝可梦们，大家都意外地谦虚谨慎呢，真是个温柔过度的世界，明明有才能就应该大胆地展示出来啊，不然那些真正平庸的家伙就太可怜了。嗯，我决定了——少年，从今天的这一时这一刻开始，你就是我眼中的天才了！少年天才，才能怪物，了不起的人类，不接受任何反驳！啊，怎么又这么干脆地摇头啊，我不是说不允许反驳了吗？难道这就是人类所谓的叛逆期？哦哦我想起来了，原来如此原来如此，是指之前在露天训练场上发生的那件事吧？别在意那种事啊，谁都会有一两个缺点，就算是我们搭建的蜂巢网格，有时候也不能保证是完美的六边形咧。你只是没办法指挥宝可梦对战而已，我觉得这连缺点也算不上。我当然知道你现在的困扰啦，从你躲开那个很关心你的金发姐姐，自己一个人跑来野外的这里开始，我就一直跟在你后面了。喂，你也应该早就发现了我才对吧，要不然也不会在我不小心撞上树枝的时候突然回头接住我，今天不知道为什么，运气特别不好呢。喂喂！别摆出一副哭丧脸啊！就算我不是阅读表情的大师，看到救命恩人的这种模样，心里也会觉得难受的，像天才一样游刃有余起来吧。难道是我误会了什么？总不可能撞上树枝这件事是你引起的吧？啊，竟然点头了！原来是这么回事吗，无法指挥宝可梦的特殊体质，让精灵们笨手笨脚的奇妙光环……哈哈哈哈哈，世界还真是无奇不有，增长见闻了呢，百无聊赖地活到今天果然是有好处的。这样一来，刚才发生的那件事就很好懂了呢——你一定是在担心自己和那只圆陆鲨相性不合吧。那个刚出生的小家伙一副年轻气盛的样子，肯定满脑子想着打架和胜利，绝对不希望自己落到你这样必输无疑的训练家手里。所以，虽然你是一个超级厉害的天才，却完全不愿意把宝可梦收服到自己手下，或者说正是因为你是天才，所以才预见到了今后可能会发生的不愉快，在问题发生之前就提前逃了出来，毕竟你的精灵球是个会让宝可梦再也无法继续成长的囚牢嘛……啊，对不起，我的表情好像说了过分的话，非常抱歉。嗯，能像这样交流也是一种缘分，其实我也不是不能理解这种心情，想要听听第三者的意见吗？虽然我只能做表情回应，无法以语言回答就是了，毕竟人类听不懂宝可梦的语言嘛，不过听我这种无知无能的精灵的看法，真的有助于解决困扰吗？还是说，就是因为知道我会作出荒谬绝伦的发言，所以你才把这么期待的目光投向我？应该是后者吧，天才们的癖好果然很古怪。算了，既然你在纠结应不应该领养宝可梦，正在犹豫要不要冒着先天的困难去成为一个饲养圆陆鲨的训练家，那么我就说回最开始的正题吧——在你眼里，宝可梦之间的对战是什么样子？你被「十万伏特」击中过吗？被「喷射火焰」灼烧过吗？感受过「冰冻光束」的寒冷、「飞叶快刀」的锋利吗？那么「猛撞」呢？「翅膀攻击」怎么样？至少「虫鸣」也该听一听啊……什么？至今为止连「麻痹粉」都没体验过，那还真是一帆风顺的人生。讲真的我很羡慕。虽然上面说的那些招式我也没有全部领教过，但光是一个「十万伏特」就那么恐怖了，如果继续参与更多精灵对战的话，一定会体验到更多的各种各样的恐怖经历吧。我是一个又胆小又怯懦的精灵，所以很害怕遭遇这种事，在草丛里看到捕虫小子都会躲得远远的，就算这样，也挨过不少招式的攻击呢。不过，大部分人类也都和你一样吧，你们没有精灵们这样天生的防御力，真要是被招式命中了，肯定会受到比我们宝可梦多得多的伤害，甚至有可能无法恢复如初。这样无法对宝可梦遭受的切肤之痛感同身受的你们人类，会产生这种“我们真的有指挥宝可梦们战斗的权力吗？”这种想法也是顺理成章，不过据我所知，还从来没有见过有宝可梦会对此产生意见的。虽然我会害怕那些气势汹汹的攻击技能，但要是自己真的能打倒和自己对峙的敌人，一定会高兴得到处飞舞的，要是能一直百战百胜，说不定就连我，也会喜欢上对战的感觉呢。说起来啊，之前不是聊到「十万伏特」吗？「十万伏特」里的“伏特”到底是什么意思？听上去好像是一个人类的名字，伏特先生在你们的世界里是个很了不起的人吗？算了，就算你解释给我听我也理解不了，人类的语言环境充满了暧昧，即便这样还能听懂训练家指挥的那些精灵真的是非常努力呢。不不不，我并不是说精灵选择了训练家之后只有苦恼，事实上相比于烦恼，被收养的好处还要更多一些——不必继续在野外风餐露宿，也不用再害怕天敌的袭击，据说每天还会有可口的食物作为一日三餐，虽然这样一来，就必须要为主人投身对战，但它们身在野外的话，不也是会遭遇到严酷的战斗吗，总体来看只有好处没有坏处啦。什么？会失去自由？喂喂，你是在讽刺我这种集团性宝可梦的存在吗？才不是所有生物都是为了自由而生活的咧。对我而言，拥有自由自在的权利什么的只意味着困扰。但尽管如此，如果一个人类，尤其是像你这样的少年来问我如何摆脱困境、如何成为一个了不起的训练家的话，我还是会这么回答他——不要去当。请仔细回想一下吧，你所有的烦恼都是因为“怎么才能当好一个训练家”这个问题而产生的吧，受困于不幸体质的你想要达成这个目标，就好像明明是草属性宝可梦，却想要打败九尾和风速狗一样。想要避免落败，就只剩下唯一的方法，实际上也非常简单——不要去挑战那些惹不起的家伙们就可以了。听上去非常懦弱，你现在也应该非常看不起我吧？尽管如此，我还是要做出发自内心的表情演讲——如果成为一个训练家让你觉得难办的话，不要去当就可以了。把那只圆陆鲨留给它原来的主人吧，鼓起承认失败的勇气，吞咽下苦涩的败北就可以了。怎么露出这么惊讶的表情？不愿意接受失败吗？想要克服自己的弱点？哎呀，真是了不起的骨气，你难道是至今从未遭遇过失败的传说级天才吗？那么就换一种说法来表述吧——我说少年啊，请不要只从对方的角度来考虑问题，多替自己想一想吧，做人温柔也要有个限度。得到精灵对人类来说难道就只有好处吗？人类得到了宝可梦之后，难道就不会变得懒惰而脆弱，失去自己独立解决问题的能力吗？告诉你一个秘密哦，许多精灵只有在弱小的未进化阶段，才有机会学到一些特殊招式。比如独角虫，如果它只花了十天就变成了大针蜂，在铁壳蛹的阶段没能学会「变硬」技能，那么等它变成大针蜂的时候，便再也学不会那一个招式了，当然，我自己是没经历过这样的事啦，但要是知道自己有一个再也无法学会的技能，想想一定会后悔的吧？特别是对于你这样胸怀大志的人类来说。想想看，世界上有没有只有单纯的人类才能做到的事情呢？有没有派出宝可梦参与却只会碍手碍脚的特殊事件呢？有没有唯独只有度过孤立无援的人生，才能掌握的特殊技能呢？我不是天才，无法想到这样的事具体会是什么样子，但如果真有这样条件苛刻的工作某一天突然冒出来的话，能有专业负责这种事情的人类挺身而出，情况一定会变得有趣至极吧。而且，还有最关键的一点哦——就算你在现在放弃当一个训练家，在未来的某一天，也是随时可以反悔的。当然可以反悔咧，谁能保证自己的想法过了十几年也不会改变，又有谁能保证过去的信念经过十几年也不会动摇呢？如果有一天，你忽然改变了想法，或者遇见了让你觉得依赖对方也没有关系的精灵，或者干脆仅仅是让人哭笑不得的情势所迫，那么重新开始领养宝可梦，这时候再去成为一个训练家也没有问题啊。人类的生命可是很漫长的，去经历不同的生活方式吧。我并不是出色的精灵，也不了解人类的社会，但我可是逃避问题的专家，只有落荒而逃的觉悟可以传授给你。今天是你本打算领取初始宝可梦的日子吧，既然在此时此刻遭遇了挫折，陷入了苦恼，那就让我们把这一天无限期延后，让漫长的未来代替我们解决这件事吧。这可不算是失败哦，只不过是把有待处理的问题打包邮寄，交送给明天的自己，是合情合理的拖延罢了。你喜欢拖延吗？我可是非常喜欢哦——这大概是因为过去在蜂巢里工作得太过努力造成的反作用影响，虽然我不喜欢自由，但是我非常喜欢偷懒。我现在正身处于绝赞的退休生活之中咧，除了无所事事之外，一切顺心如意，快乐得就算立刻死去也没有关系。怎么样，少年，要不要加入我这场无比漫长的退休假期呢？如果你放弃成为训练家的话，应该会变得十分有空吧？闲暇时来到这片树林，像这样和我聊天怎么样？不是十分有趣吗？现在加入的话，还有美味可口的香甜蜂蜜可以分给你哦。所以说别哭了啊，这样不就看不清楚我的表情了吗……

On the train heading to Fukiyoshi, Hugo awoke from a light sleep.

It felt like I was having a dream filled with memories, both incredibly quiet and strangely noisy.

Chapter 212 Beyond Heaven

Mr. Shilan is the pioneering leader of the Battle Citadel in the Sinnoh region. His preferred Pokémon are Houndoom, Staraptor, Empoleon, and Gallade.

His fighting style is known for its steady, reactive approach, with meticulous attention to detail mirroring his personality. However, describing it merely as "steady" is somewhat inaccurate; every decision he makes in battle is ultimately the best strategy derived from a deep analysis of the situation. If his calculated strategy tells him, "Okay, it's time to go all in," then Shi Lan will not hesitate to employ bold tactics.

In short, anyone who has ever tried to conquer the Sinnoh Battle Frontier Battle Castle will understand how difficult this man is to deal with.

Besides being the leader of the pioneering region, Shilan has another well-known and proud identity: the butler of Cattleya, one of the Unova Elite Four.

"I serve noble people." This is how Shi Lan introduced himself when Hugo first met this steward.

Since her parents' generation, Shi Lan's family had worked in the Cattleya family mansion. It was for this reason that Shi Lan learned various butler skills from a young age, and after her father retired, she naturally served Cattleya as her butler, harboring unwavering loyalty to the young lady.

Therefore, Hugo was somewhat surprised, but not at all, to see this familiar castle butler in Fukichi City in the Unova region at this time.

After all, as the Psychic-type Elite Four member of Unova, Cattleya would definitely come here to witness Volcarona's final farewell. And on such an important occasion, it's quite reasonable for Mr. Shilan, as the young lady's butler, to suspend his business dealings with his counterparts in the Battle Frontier and come here.

What truly surprised Detective Hugo was Mr. Shi Lan's state at that moment—

The pioneering leader of the battle castle is now lying unconscious by the roadside, sprawled on his back in front of the road in the grass like a defeated wild elf.

Rather than saying he had lost all his composure, it would be more accurate to say that Shi Lan looked utterly miserable—his eyes were closed, his hair was disheveled, his delicate thin-rimmed glasses were cracked, his white gloves were stained black, and his servant's uniform, which represented the dignity of a butler, was covered in dust and tatters…

Could this be an illusion deliberately created by Cattleya using her superpowers?

In a moment of hesitation, Hugo subconsciously began to doubt.

His relationship with that superhero wasn't bad; thanks to his older sister, their relationship could even be described as harmonious.

However, before leaving Sinnoh, the detective unintentionally did something that indirectly affected the duel between the Psychic-type Elite Four members of Sinnoh and Unova, resulting in Cattleya suffering a crushing defeat... Could it be that Gosho let slip that the matter was exposed?

However, the detective immediately dismissed his own idea.

As his gaze shifted from Mr. Shi Lan's slumped body, more information flooded into Hugo's field of vision.

This could not possibly be a performance of Cattleya's illusion—because further away from Mr. Stone, among the overgrown tall grass, one could vaguely see more unconscious people, all of them in a pitiful state, covered in wounds.

Even with a rough estimate based on the naked eye, the number of people in a coma is at least fifty.

If everything in front of us is just a prank or joke, then it's really not funny.

.

Hugo was standing on Route 7 in the northeast of Fuki City. If he looked up, he could see the Tower of Paradise standing at the end of the tall grass.

There is no direct road leading to the white ancient building, so this stretch of tall grass is the only way to see Champion Ardek and his Volcanoes.

These tall grasses are nearly two meters high, and generally speaking, many powerful wild Pokémon hide within them. Of course, this "powerful" only applies to an ordinary person with nothing to do; no matter how strong the wild Pokémon in the grass are, they couldn't possibly have driven the battle-experienced castle steward to such a miserable state.

The detective intended to cross the grass via the walkway built above it, but before he could step onto the walkway, he discovered the butler lying unconscious at the entrance to the grass below.

Since he arrived here by taxi directly from the train station, Hugo was unaware of the situation in Fukichi City at this time, and this unexpected discovery made the detective feel a little uneasy.

However, since the train station and taxi network were operating normally when I arrived, I suppose the incident has not yet affected ordinary citizens.

Although Mr. Shi Lan's body was covered in wounds, the assailant seemed to have exercised some restraint, leaving no fatal injuries. His chest was now rising and falling slowly with his breathing, and he was not in mortal danger. Presumably, the other victims in the tall grass were in the same situation.

Who is the culprit? At this point, there's no need for further deduction.

Because that's too obvious.

Too blatant, too careless, too negligent. So much so that the detective immediately shifted his focus, began considering other possibilities, and even began to suspect the possibility of a prank by someone with superpowers.

It would have been easy to discern the prisoner's stance with just a glance—simply by noticing that one crucial anomaly.

Among the unconscious trainers, whether it was Shi Lan or the others, there was nothing that should have been present beside them—

Pokémon Poké Ball.

Given the current situation in the Unova region, there is only one organization with both the motive and the capability to do such a thing...

.

As Hugo pondered, a rustling sound came from the tall grass in front of him—which alerted the detective once again.