Pokémon Detective Case Files.

Neil, the assistant, scratched his face awkwardly.

"There's nothing to explain," the big boss said with a bored shrug.

"To prevent the leakage of research secrets, I had the Ice-Treading Doll use a 'light wall' to soundproof this room. Isn't that how normal business negotiations are conducted? Besides, even if others don't know the inside story, A-Ying, you should at least understand what's going on, right?"

As he spoke, Mr. Hayden cast an unfriendly glance at his bodyguard and driver.

"I'm sorry, sir." Steward Aying bowed her head tremblingly and admitted her mistake. "I was distracted by the sound of the two young ladies hitting the wall, and I didn't think in that direction for a moment."

"So," Mei Dan exclaimed in annoyance, "what exactly is that sound of hammering against the wall that you're talking about?"

“I heard the sound of something hitting the wall next door,” his daughter pouted.

"Bumping into a wall?"

Professor Hayden and Mr. Medan looked at each other in bewilderment, then both looked at the wall that separated the owner's room from Venetian's room.

There's no way that could be making the sound of someone pounding on a wall!

Because there are no exposed walls there at all.

The wall between Venetian's and the librarian's room had long been completely covered by a huge bookshelf filled with all sorts of books and documents.

Chapter 276 A Happy Ending

The books were numerous and varied, arranged in a way as stubborn and grotesque as Mei Dan himself. The titles, regardless of size or thickness, were strictly arranged according to their categories, making the whole structure look like the rough spine of a rumbling stone.

Most of them are treatises related to biology, with a few related to information technology. The top row is filled with miscellaneous books, including some old, worn books, as well as a few poetry collections and grammar books, probably used to improve combat effectiveness when participating in debates in the past.

Looking at the enormous bookshelf that even Fighting-type Pokémon would have difficulty moving, Officer Jenny couldn't help but look at Zina and Vinissa with suspicion—

"Are you two sure you heard the knocking sound from behind this wall?"

"Uh...did we hear wrong?"

The maid stared blankly at the bookshelf, clearly wavering.

Obviously, with a bookshelf blocking the wall, no one could pound on it like that. Even if you moved the entire row of books on the shelf and struck the wooden partition behind it, it would only produce a crisper knocking sound, completely different from the dull thud of hitting the wall.

Perhaps I really misheard?

"No, I didn't mishear!"

Seeing Zina hesitate, Venetian stepped forward and defended her father—

“We really heard the sound. If only one person was there, it could be explained as a simple mishearing or a neurotic auditory hallucination. But at that time, both Ms. Zina and I heard the knocking sound at the same time. It's impossible for two people to have hallucinations at the same time, right? This can only mean that the sound we heard was indeed real.”

"But the problem is, even if that strange sound really exists, what's the point?"

Master Medan, his face full of mockery, retorted to his daughter like an arrogant king of the Blues—

"When you heard that sound, Hayden and I were just sitting here chatting. Although the Ice-Treading Doll's 'wall of light' blocked out the sounds in the room, you don't think that two grown men like us couldn't see something amiss with the bookshelf wall right in front of us, do you?"

"You two are over a hundred years old combined. Even if you sometimes lose your hearing and vision, that's normal, isn't it?"

"Heh, I think it's more likely that two immature girls are having a collective auditory hallucination..."

“Neil, could that sound be coming from the other wall?” Ignoring the father and daughter who were starting to argue, Officer Jenny turned to her research assistant and asked, “Did you hear any strange noises in the room?”

"If you're asking about the time before Miss Zina started banging on the door, I didn't hear anything," Neil said, scratching the back of his head, seemingly still confused about what had happened.

“Hmph.” Officer Jenny crossed her arms and pondered. “In that case, we must also rule out the possibility that the sound is coming from directly above the master’s room. This room is located between two guest rooms, so there’s no reason why we can hear strange noises on one side but not on the other.”

"In that case, there's only one explanation left, Officer Jenny?"

Suddenly someone spoke to her, and Officer Jenny looked up to see that Mr. Hayden, who had been sitting on the single sofa, had somehow walked up to her.

"Since the strange hammering sound came from between the owner's room and the two ladies' guest rooms, and we in the rooms couldn't visually detect anything unusual about the source of the sound, then the sound could only be coming from somewhere invisible to the naked eye, such as the bookshelves or inside the walls."

Hayden, from Zhuqing City, picked up his wooden cane, which had been leaning against the sofa armrest, and politely bowed to Miss Officer Jenny, continuing—

"The source is either a particularly small Bug or Grass-type Pokémon, or a Psychic or Ghost-type Pokémon that can become invisible or use illusions. Considering the original state of this Forest Mansion, it wouldn't be surprising which type of Pokémon was responsible."

"Hmm, that explanation... does make sense."

The other party's reasoning was indeed reasonable, and the policewoman had to nod in agreement. However, looking at the businessman's calm and smiling face, she felt that there seemed to be some kind of ulterior motive hidden within.

"I've heard that there are specialized personnel within the police force who can direct Psychic or Ghost-type Pokémon to investigate traces left by their own kind. Given this unusual situation, why doesn't Officer Officer Jenny give it a try?"

"I don't have that kind of Pokémon," Officer Jenny said, shaking her head in polite refusal.

People often misunderstand Officer Jenny's family; not every Officer Jenny works in the police force. This particular Officer Jenny, for example, works for the League's investigative agency, where her duties mostly involve security-related paperwork, much like a regular League civil servant. Naturally, she doesn't train special Pokémon for on-site investigations.

However, even if she couldn't investigate the scene most efficiently, she, named Officer Jenny, wasn't entirely helpless—

"Speaking of which, don't you find it strange, Mr. Hayden?"

"Strange? What's strange about it?"

"Master Meidan has been living in this mansion for more than two years. In the past, Venetian and Neil have visited this mansion many times, to the point that they have their own regular rooms to stay in. Why didn't they hear this strange sound of hammering on the wall in the past, but only today?"

Hayden raised his silver-gray eyebrows: "Officer, are you suggesting that something new in this mansion today caused the sound of hammering on the wall?"

"It's the 'light wall' of the ice-walking puppet, right?"

A new sound rang out in the owner's room. It turned out that Zhu Lan, who had been standing in the corridor, stepped into the mansion.

Previously, although most people entered the room together, the Ice-Treading Doll had not removed the "light wall" used for soundproofing. The sound of footsteps was blocked, and the dense crowd completely blocked the door, which made Hayden not notice the other visitor standing outside the corridor.

Zhu Lan, too, hadn't heard the speculations of the others in the room, but she seemed to understand the whole story, clearly and fluently analyzing the cause and effect of the strange noises in the master's room—

"First of all, the culprit behind this strange noise must be some kind of Pokémon that can freely move through the walls and bookshelves. Although we don't know its specific species yet, based on Ms. Zina's experience of living in the mansion for a year, she didn't sense anything unsettling about it. This suggests that it's most likely a Pokémon that is harmless to humans. Perhaps it has been living in the Forest Mansion for a long time and has already established some kind of symbiotic relationship with this ancient mansion."

"God, the Sinnoh champion?"

Mr. Hayden was dumbfounded; clearly, the appearance of the Bamboo Orchid Champion surprised him more than the Bamboo Orchid Champion's reasoning.

"Why would the Pokémon, who were living peacefully in the mansion, act in such an almost haunted manner? The trigger for all of this lies in the secret conversation between Mr. Hayden and Gym Leader Medan. Or more accurately, it lies in the 'Light Screen' move used by the Icewalker."

Zhu Lan reached out and lightly touched the hat of the ice-walking doll holding the ice cane. The doll stared blankly with its round eyes, looking bewildered.

"Just like the resistance Officer Jenny felt the moment she opened the door, the Pokémon that had been weaving through the gaps in the mansion also arrived near this wall and books, and similarly felt the resistance from the 'Light Wall.' Perhaps it was too weak, or perhaps it didn't want to be seen by humans, but in any case, this Pokémon was thus trapped somewhere here by a thin 'Light Wall.'"

Like an ivory pig squeezed into a crevice in a glacier, Officer Jenny thought to herself.

"In desperation, the Pokémon used a move like 'Tackle' against the wall, trying to create some noise and alert the gym's inhabitants without revealing its true form, thus dispelling 'Light Screen.' However, the gym leader's room was completely soundproofed at the time, so the sound was only heard by Ms. Vinissa and Ms. Zinnia next door."

This is the general outline of the whole incident. The Sinnoh champion finished his explanation, and for a moment, the room fell silent.

"So, if we can get this Pokémon that looks like a Mr. Mime to cancel its move, we'll be able to find out the Pokémon's true identity?" Vinissa looked at Cynthia expectantly.

The Sinnoh champion shook his head: "It will probably continue to hide and quietly run away. After all, this incident has already scared it enough."

"Oh dear, what on earth is this all about?"

Hayden shook his head with a wry smile, took out a deluxe ball different from the one he had used with Corviknight, put the Icewalker back into the ball, and then released it again.

“Klorololo…”

The ice-walking mascot stomped its feet joyfully, its ice crystal cane flying and spinning like an acrobat's stick, sometimes rolling over its body, sometimes being tossed into the air, dazzling the eyes of the onlookers.

Unbeknownst to them, the last trace of cold resistance lingering in the surrounding air finally disappeared completely.

The residual effect of the "Light Wall" has been completely removed.

This is the characteristic of the Icewalker – "obstacle removal". The moment it appears, it clears away all obstacles in the arena with a high-spirited dance.

The bookshelves and walls remained silent, as if nothing had happened. The Pokémon that had coexisted with the mansion inside had probably already escaped.

"The case was solved perfectly! No wonder you're a detective's sister. Congratulations!"

Officer Jenny turned around happily and praised Cynthia, only to find that the Sinnoh champion's demeanor had completely changed. He looked like a Staraptor eyeing its prey, his gray eyes sharply fixed on something at the end of his line of sight.

The item the champion was looking at was on the very top shelf. In a dusty corner, an old book, its condition clearly visible from the side, stood out starkly among a pile of miscellaneous documents.

Chapter 277 Poetry is the Words of God

"Mr. Mei Dan, what is the name of this ancient book on the top shelf?"

Zhu Lan looked up, staring at the particularly conspicuous damaged book on the bookshelf, her attention completely drawn to the object before her.

Any researcher with even a slight understanding of ancient books and scrolls would be able to see the extraordinary nature of this material.

It was a small, thin booklet with a bare spine. The two hardwood panels serving as the cover were damaged, but there were clear signs of waxing. The binding thread, though as old as the cover panels, was resilient and unbroken, seemingly made from Bug-type Pokémon thread using some special method. Because of the bare spine, the pages inside were visible from the outside of the bookshelf. The sides had oxidized and yellowed to almost black, but compared to the ancient books Cynthia had seen before, each page was unusually thick, suggesting it might have been laminated. All of this indicated that the person who bound this book must have valued its contents very much…

"You mean that booklet on the bookshelf with the wooden cover?" Meidan's voice interrupted the Sinnoh champion's thoughts. "It's a strange collection of poems, apparently found in the attic when the mansion was being renovated."

"Does this mansion also have an attic?" Officer Jenny asked curiously.

“It’s the spot below the black spire,” A-Ying answered the policewoman on behalf of Mei-Dan.

"The loft space was originally part of the design of this Forest Mansion, and it was originally a bedroom. However, with the current interior design concept, it is difficult to create a comfortable resting space in such a small area. So when we were rebuilding, we simply turned that place into a storage room, and the passage was changed from a spiral staircase to the only entrance that comes in horizontally from the back of the roof."

“Yes, we usually store the ingredients we need for cooking there,” Zina added.

"May I take a look at this book?"

Zhu Lan turned around, her gaze sweeping between Hayden and Mei Dan, unsure whether to make the request to the mansion owner or the investor who acquired the mansion.

"Please feel free to look around, Cynthia Champion of the Sinnoh region."

Mr. Hayden, leaning on his cane, was the first to nod in agreement, while Professor Medan crossed his arms indifferently and sneered sarcastically—

"That was an extremely boring pamphlet, one that was exceptionally pale and uninteresting even among the clichés of religious superstitionists. The content was fragmented, unremarkable, and utterly devoid of any literary merit."

Zhu Lan ignored this. Eagerly approaching the bookshelf, she tiptoed and carefully took down this relic forgotten in the corner of time.

Opening the hard wooden cover, the smell of degraded fibers fills the air. Some book lovers might call it the scent of books or vanilla, but Zhu Lan thinks it's closer to a musty smell with wood chips.

As she had expected, the book contained a hidden compartment—or rather, a special binding to protect the internal documents.

The person who made this book first used a layer of hollowed-out paper to extend the original length and width of the tattered pages, making it a neat rectangle that could be bound into a book. Then, they completely covered it front and back with a completely transparent veil. This not only prevented the bookbinding from damaging the paper, but also greatly reduced the oxidation of the original documents inside.

Amidst the yellow pages, pale pink paper of unknown material is embedded, resembling a piece of amber containing knowledge.

The moment Zhu Lan saw the words on the pink note, her gray eyes widened involuntarily—

"In ancient times, two statues coexisted."

"Firstly, one observes the passage of time,"

"Firstly, the land is vast and the sky is wide."

"In order to seek the future after the future,

"To explore the ends of the earth and the heavens."

"The two masters each went their own way."

"Always accompanied by the Divine Lord."

This is not some unprecedented mythological material; on the contrary, this short, poetic ballad has long been widely circulated in the mythological research community of the Sinnoh region.

Although the author is unknown, this nameless ballad was already widely circulated long before the Pokémon League was established. At least dozens of similar ancient documents can be found in the Waterloo City Museum alone.

This short essay, from the perspective of Sinnoh mythology, concisely and profoundly elucidates the birth and origin of time and space in the eyes of ancient people, and unequivocally predicts the existence of Dialga, Palkia, and Arceus, the legendary creator of the world. It contains extremely important archaeological value for the Sinnoh research community today.

Of course, in the eyes of the museum owner, this short article with its strange handwriting contained only well-known religious content, and was therefore utterly devoid of any originality.

However, as a professional mythologist, Zhu Lan saw great value in it.

The evidence at present is not sufficient. This ancient book sealed in the attic of the Mori Mansion may just be a fake meticulously crafted by a busybody.

However, however...

Judging from the ancient book's weathered cover, its tattered wooden frame, the interlayered pages, the yellowing of its spine, the ink smudges on the pink paper, and the text on the first page—the concise narrative between the lines—Zhu Lan, a scholar of mythology, was now compelled to construct an even more horrifying possibility in her mind.

What if?

This damaged collection of poems before us may well be the original text of all the same mythological ballads.

A dark gray teardrop-shaped pendant swayed gently on the Sinnoh champion's chest, as if hinting at her wavering and shock.

At this moment, the most convincing evidence for Zhu Lan's conjecture is the text used by the author of this note on the first page of the poetry collection.

The rounded, full handwritten characters, arranged in blocks of black lines, form poems of varying lengths. The style of the characters immediately evokes the image of the super-powered Pokémon—Unknown Totems—attached to the murals of the grottoes.

In reality, this is not the symbolic script used when humans first created writing, but rather the script used about two thousand years ago, when humans had just invented paper and pen. A closer look reveals that this script, based on unknown totemistic symbols, underwent numerous changes, simultaneously showing both the simplification of pictographic strokes and the evolution into alphabetic words.

Given how ancient these characters are, could the curator of the Meidan Museum truly decipher their meaning? No, if it were merely a matter of identifying ancient scripts, one could simply consult the comparison tables in publicly available archaeological papers to gain a general understanding of the text's content... In any case, Meidan, this atheist, is not as dismissive of metaphysical existence as he appears; he also has considerable expertise in the field of mythology.

Just as Zhu Lan was about to continue turning the pages to confirm or refute her own conjecture—

"Alright, it's about time now. What's the point of everyone gathering in my cramped master's room?"