I caught a Pokémon

What Xiaoyao really wanted to ask was—why are you singing here?

But because she felt it was a bit presumptuous, she changed the question to this one.

"Of course, we're looking for a place to spend the night."

Yami smiled sweetly at the two of them. Even though she had calmed down, two mysterious blushes still appeared on her face, making it clear at a glance that she was a shy person.

"That's quite a coincidence." Xiaoyao nodded. Perhaps seeing that she was alone, and given her personality, she glanced at Xia You, and after seeing him nod as well, she said to Yami, "Would you like to come with us? It's very dangerous to be alone in a forest like this. After all, having more people means more support!"

When faced with an invitation from a stranger, declining is actually the wisest course of action.

But Yami was clearly a bit naive, or perhaps the combination of Xia You and Xiao Yao and their age difference made her lower her guard, and she agreed without even thinking!

"That's great! I was feeling a bit scared too. With you all here with me, I feel much more at ease!"

As she spoke, her face remained flushed, which made Xia You subconsciously stare at her. Noticing his gaze, Ya Mi's face turned even redder!

Seeing this, Xia You really couldn't understand how she could be so shy, so trusting of others, and so comfortable talking to people.

What an amazing person.

But in any case, the three of them were temporarily companions.

As they walked and talked, they got to know each other better. Before they knew it, the night had grown darker. Just when the three of them thought they were destined to stay in the forest that night, after passing a few large trees blocking their way, a huge manor suddenly appeared before them!

Xia You glanced past the wooden fence and plaza of the manor and looked directly at the huge three-story building in the center of the manor.

Its main structure is made of wood, and its style is somewhat like an old medieval building. The walls are covered with pillars and windows, and at this moment all the windows are lit up, making it look brightly lit. Under the night, it makes the surroundings seem to be covered with a layer of gold.

"Huh!? There are houses here!?"

Xiao Yao was extremely surprised when she saw the manor. She never imagined that there would be such a manor in such a dense and dark forest!

Compared to her, Yami's thoughts were much simpler; she simply said with relief, "Great... I finally have a place to stay tonight."

Hearing the voices of the two women beside her, Xia You smiled silently.

Having a warm house to live in is a great blessing, especially in a forest like this, but obviously these two people don't know what's so special about this house built in the Hundred Generations Forest!

This is the famous 'Forest Mansion'!

Countless trainers have gotten lost in Ephemeral Forest, accidentally wandered into this place, and encountered ghost attacks. As a result, the story of "a haunted mansion in Ephemeral Forest" gradually spread in the vicinity.

It's not surprising that Haruka didn't know about this, since neither she nor I are from Sinnoh. But I didn't expect that Amy hadn't heard of this place either. It seems that she must not be from western Sinnoh, or at least not from this area, and she has only just arrived here.

In fact, Xia You had already thought of these things before entering the forest, but he did not tell Xiao Yao about them.

There was no other way; Xiaoyao was terrified of this kind of thing, so it was better to keep her in the dark than to make her worry in advance.

Anyway, with me around, no matter how powerful the ghost is, it can't hurt her.

Xia You smiled at the two of them and said, "Alright, it looks like there are people living here. Let's go visit the owners and ask them to let us stay for the night."

Xiaoyao and Yami nodded in unison, perhaps thinking of the warm and comfortable bed, or perhaps the hot bath they would be able to take soon, which prompted them to start walking towards the mansion.

Xia You was left behind by the two.

Just then, a dark shadow flashed beneath his feet, and Gengar emerged from the shadow.

Looking up at the Western-style mansion, Gengar clicked its tongue in amazement.

"Wow, what powerful soul energy! I never imagined there would be a place like this in this forest!"

Chapter 938 The Ghost Butler

Xia You asked softly, "What can you sense?"

“I can sense a strong spiritual energy in the house. It must be the souls of two people. This power has not only affected this place, but even the surrounding forest has been affected.” Gengar explained to Xia You while looking around. “Moreover, the house you see now is also affected by that energy and does not show its true form.”

"It's been hidden, is it?" Xia You stroked her chin. "Then can you handle it?"

"Of course." Gengar chuckled and shrugged easily. "They're just mere human souls. Even if they have great abilities, they're still too weak in front of me! I can destroy them in a minute! What? You want me to make a move right now?"

"No rush." ​​Xia You shook her head, looked at the mansion again, and sighed, "Isn't the fun of haunted houses all about immersing yourself in the experience? And now that we know there are ghosts causing trouble, let's go inside and see what tricks they'll pull!"

“That makes sense.” Gengar, being a fearless individual, actually wanted to go in and take a look, and since Xia You had said so, he nodded and said, “Then let’s just wait and see.”

"By the way, they won't find you, will they?"

Gengar thumped its chest loudly: "Don't worry, as long as I hide, no one will be able to detect my presence!"

As they were talking, Xiao Yao, who had already reached the gate of the mansion, noticed that Xia You hadn't followed, so she turned around and waved to him.

Even Yami stopped and looked back at him in confusion.

Seeing this, Xia You and Gengar said nothing more. As Gengar's body sank back into its shadow, Xia You walked towards Xiaoyao and Yami.

Once the three of them were standing together again, Xia You looked at the tightly closed door of the mansion and knocked on the door knocker.

The door was opened shortly afterward.

Behind the warm, bright door, an elderly man in his seventies with a full head of silver hair, dressed like a butler, stood on the steps, scrutinizing them with a critical gaze.

Without Xia You and Xiao Yao needing to speak, Ya Mi had already explained the purpose of their visit.

"Um... I'm really sorry, we are trainers passing through. It's so late and we couldn't find a place to stay. Could you please let us stay here for the night?"

"I see." The butler, who looked somewhat serious, revealed a meaningful smile. However, because he was facing away from the light, Xiaoyao and Yami, apart from Xia You, did not notice it. "You must be tired after traveling for so long. Why don't you rest at my humble abode tonight?"

"That's great! Thank you so much!"

Yami and Xiaoyao quickly bowed to express their gratitude, while Xia You, standing at the back, stood like an outsider, hands in her pockets, squinting at the butler.

Well, judging from his appearance alone, this butler's demeanor and behavior fit people's stereotypes. Coupled with his age, silver hair and short beard, you can tell at a glance that he is definitely the kind of serious and responsible professional butler who has been in the business for decades.

This should be everyone's first impression, and even if Xia You hadn't known the situation beforehand, she probably would have thought so too.

Now, whether it was foreseen in the anime and games or reminded by Gengar just now, Xia You knows that the butler in front of her is not a human at all, but a ghost in disguise!

Even though she already knew all this and was on guard, Xia You still couldn't see anything unusual with the naked eye. Even the Pokémon that accompanied them to the mansion couldn't detect any flaws. It could only be said that compared to ordinary humans, non-psychic Pokémon, and Ghost-type Pokémon, these ghosts were indeed very powerful!

No wonder so many trainers who accidentally wandered into this place got caught in the trap; it's definitely something special!

However, even ghosts cannot know what the humans in front of them are thinking.

The ghost butler didn't notice anything in Xia You's gaze. Instead, just as he had done dozens or even hundreds of times before, he stepped aside and said to the lost trainers who needed shelter in the darkness, "Then, please follow me."

With that, he turned and walked into the mansion.

Without any hesitation, Yami chose to follow, and seeing her take a step, Xiaoyao also chose to follow.

At that moment, Xia You finally sensed something was wrong with the butler through her senses.

That is, in this seemingly brightly lit but actually quite empty and quiet mansion, you could not hear his footsteps at all!

While some people do walk very lightly, almost imperceptibly, especially professional butlers, he was wearing leather shoes! And walking on clean, tidy floor tiles without making a sound was quite unusual!

It's important to understand that compared to him, both Yami and Xiaoyao are women, who are naturally lighter and walk more lightly, and they are even wearing travel shoes. Yet, even so, their footsteps can still be heard clearly in such an open space. This comparison highlights the butler's weakness.

For some astute trainers, this alone is enough to arouse their suspicions. Even if they don't know anything about the Forest Mansion beforehand, they will be on guard and may even escape danger because of it.

However, it was clear that neither Yami nor Xiaoyao noticed this flaw at this time.

Of course, it wasn't that they were careless; it's also possible that the fact that the three of them were together made them lower their guard.

Moreover, this distance is actually very short. As they walked through the front hall and arrived at the main hall, the path under their feet turned into a long red carpet, which absorbed the sound of everyone's footsteps. It can be said that the opportunity to discover the flaw was almost fleeting. If they hadn't noticed it at the beginning of entering the mansion, the flaw would have been quickly covered up!

Regardless, Xia You followed the two of them and stepped into the Western-style mansion.

The bright and warm interior of the mansion contrasted sharply with the cold and gloomy forest outside, protecting one from the night wind and cold air.

No wonder trainers prefer to stay in such warm accommodations when traveling; it's definitely different from the wild.

Therefore, even though she knew that this place was just a fake, a trap deliberately set for them by the ghosts, Xia You still felt fortunate to have shelter from the wind and rain.

At least we no longer have to travel at night to find a place to set up camp.

Led by the ghost butler, the group went up the stairs in the lobby to the second floor.

At first glance, the hall was not decorated much. The most prominent features were the strange and wonderful statues on both sides of the red carpet. On the wall at the intersection of the two different paths leading to the second floor on the first and a half floor, there was also a huge portrait painting.

The portrait depicts an elderly man with a full head of silver hair, dressed in a well-tailored suit. He appears very dignified and unapproachable, so even without asking, one can guess that he must be the owner of this mansion.

The old butler didn't talk much and seemed rather taciturn. He simply led the way silently, without offering any explanation of the place.

Yami and Xiaoyao didn't feel anything was wrong with this, they just thought that the other person didn't like to talk, and they followed behind him while curiously looking around.

A few steps behind the others, Xia You walked at the very back, following them up the stairs and past the wall with the portrait paintings.

Just as Xia You passed by, the old man in the portrait, who was originally looking ahead, began to slowly turn his gaze toward Xia You's back!

And at that moment, those azure eyes flashed with an eerie red light!

Xia You and the others were completely unaware of this, but in other words, even if Xia You had seen it, he would have just snorted inwardly and continued to observe the situation.

After all, the other party has not yet revealed their methods and intentions, so it would be too early to expose them now.

Once they reached the second floor, the group arrived at the restaurant under the guidance of the old butler.

At that very moment, the ghost's second weakness was finally revealed.

The restaurant table was already laden with a sumptuous spread of food, stretching from one end to the other, filling the entire table and looking incredibly tempting. Even the wine glasses and plates were arranged neatly, giving the impression that... they had known in advance that guests would be arriving!

Did they have foresight?

Or are they like spiders that have spread their giant webs, waiting for their prey to come and walk right into their trap?

But that's not the most important thing. The important thing is that, despite being in the position of a butler, this ghost butler actually sat in the main seat!

This is a very inappropriate behavior.

It should be noted that stewards are not allowed to sit at the same table as guests, even if they are just a few people staying overnight. Rules are rules and cannot be broken. But now, he not only sat at the table, but also took the seat of honor as if it were his right. This is somewhat 'out of line' and an act of disrespect.

"Please have a seat."

However, perhaps because they had no knowledge of this matter, Xiaoyao and Yami did not find anything wrong with his actions. Now that the butler had spoken, the two of them sat down at the end of the table.

Xia You sat down next to Xiao Yao at that moment.

Seeing that the three of them had all taken their seats, the butler said meaningfully, "Well then, please help yourselves while the food is still warm."

Looking at the abundant food in front of them, Xiaoyao and Yami couldn't help but feel their mouths water. As their taste buds were awakened, they didn't realize that things were going a little too smoothly.

What a coincidence! We just arrived and the food was already ready.

Moreover, even though a large table of food was prepared, with plates piled high and chairs filled, why were only a few of them eating?

Where is the host?

Faced with so many questions, it's unclear whether the two of them genuinely hadn't thought about it that much, or whether they had become numb due to the influence of the ghostly power here.

Xia You guessed that it was probably both.

"It looks delicious!"

"I'm starting!"

Yami and Xiaoyao had already picked up their knives and forks and started enjoying the food in front of them.

At this point, Xia You didn't stop them.

After all, in his understanding, although this haunted house was 'famous' and many trainers had witnessed its eeriness and terror, it had never caused any deaths. In fact, they all eventually fled from here. Therefore, it could be determined that although the ghosts here must have some intentions, at least they would not pose a danger to life.

This is why Xia You dared to let Xiao Yao and Ya Mi eat.

and……

After all, we need guinea pigs to see what these two ghosts are up to!

As for Xia You himself, since he needed to remain absolutely clear-headed and observe what would happen next, he naturally dared not touch anything here.

At that very moment, beneath the table unseen by the ghost, in Xia You's shadow, Gengar reached out a hand, gently grasped Xia You's ankle, then released it again and disappeared back into the shadows.

Gengar's movements were quick and fleeting, so that the ghosts didn't notice.

It was during this brief contact that Xia You's vision flashed, as if a veil had been lifted from her eyes. She saw that there was no food left on the table or in the plates; everything was completely empty!

Looking at Xiaoyao and Yami, their plates were also empty, but they were holding knives and forks as if they were eating some delicacies, and they were eating with happy expressions on their faces!

It was just an illusion...

No wonder I saw a table full of food as soon as I walked in.

Although he had discovered the truth, Xia You remained calm and composed. He simply smiled slightly as he hesitated to use his knife and fork, even as the ghost butler swept his gaze over him.

"Sorry, my stomach is a little upset, so I can't eat anything."