I caught a Pokémon

"Ms. Chihaya, Ms. Maya, Ms. Mizuki, and Ms. Shion, thank you for your hospitality. However, it is getting late, and we need to continue our journey, so we will take our leave now."

Although Chihaya, Maya, and the other two were somewhat reluctant to part, they did not try to stop them.

"Mr. Xia You, and ladies, have a safe journey! You must visit our opera troupe again when you have time. We would like to ask you for more advice on combat techniques!"

"Yes, then until we meet again."

Xia You nodded slightly, without saying anything more, and directly led Yami, Makomo, and Xiaoguang away from the luxurious manor, heading towards the west exit of the town.

……

After leaving the town, the group continued westward.

Before they had gone very far, Xiao Guang took out his phone, refreshed a few posts on his WeChat Moments, and sure enough, saw updates from Maya and the other two, whom he had just added as friends.

It was all videos and photos of them, accompanied by things like "thank you Xia You" and "thank you to myself."

Wow, they're so fast!

He showed the phone to Xia You and Ya Mi, which made the two of them shake their heads with amusement.

Before Xia You could say anything, Makomo waved her phone again: "There's more than that."

When the group looked over, Makomo showed them her phone: "I was just wondering if Xia You's news would appear online, and sure enough, just as I guessed, it really made the news."

Xia You, Ya Mi, and Xiao Guang immediately stopped and gathered around, looking at Makomo's phone screen.

On the screen, a trending news item stood out with a striking headline: "Shocking! Pokémon powerhouse Xia You appears in Unova Town, visits the Garden Opera Troupe, and shares a close-up photo with the three lead actors!"

Within just over half an hour of its release, the article had already garnered over 70,000 views.

This left Xia You completely stunned.

After all, in reality, on his travels, he had never felt so much attention. Of course, he did get some, but he was rarely recognized.

How come so many people know me online?

It may also be related to the title.

After all, Xia You's name was previously associated with Karuno, but now she's appearing in a small town, intimately posing with the three main actors. Anyone who knows anything about the previous gossip would probably click to take a look.

When I opened the news, it showed the group photo I had just taken at the opera troupe.

However, unlike the photos Xia You had imagined, which were taken from unusual angles and appeared very intimate, the other photos in the news looked quite normal.

It's not nearly as eye-catching as the title suggests.

More often, the news showcased the charm of the three lead actresses and promoted their opera troupe.

Having read this far, Xia You understood.

This is used for advertising!

Looking at the comments section, sure enough, because there was nothing ambiguous in the photos, although people were surprised to see Xia You in the opera troupe, they were immediately drawn to the three beautiful lead actresses.

It's fair to say that the comments section was full of praise for their beauty.

Those who had seen the performance praised it in the comments section, which inspired many people to come to the town and see their show in person.

"What a brilliant marketing strategy..."

Even Xia You couldn't help but sigh.

Xiao Guang chuckled: "But this is good too. Weren't we always worried that they would take advantage of Xia You? Now it seems that they were just using your name."

Makomo nodded and said, "This is indeed the best outcome. Most importantly, they also considered your feelings, didn't they?"

Indeed, just as Xia You said.

If these people went too far, and I found out, I would inevitably feel disgusted by them, but now...

All I can say is that they struck the perfect balance.

Shaking her head, Xia You looked away, no longer paying attention to the matter.

He always felt that this might not be the last time he would deal with them.

……

At the same time, in Pokémon Hollywood, far away in Liyong City, at the filming location that Xia You had visited before.

The film set was currently in a short break.

As the spotlights were temporarily turned off, staff busily tidied up props and equipment, the air still lingering with the smells of makeup and set materials.

Diantha sat on the white sofa in her rest area, still wearing the elegant dress from the movie. Her long hair was loosely tied up, revealing her slender neck. The light makeup on her face made her skin look even whiter. Her eyes and brows had both the cool aura of an actress and the composure of a Pokémon champion.

She was dozing off with her eyes closed, after all, the filming just now had been quite mentally taxing.

Just then, her assistant pushed open the door and came to Karuno.

Karuno opened her eyes, glanced at her, and was somewhat surprised to see that she was holding a cell phone in her hand with a hesitant expression.

"what happened?"

“Miss Karuno, you might want to take a look at this.” The assistant’s tone was somewhat serious as he handed the phone to Karuno. “It’s a trending news story that just broke online, and it’s related to Xia You.”

Upon hearing the name "Xia You," Karuno's gaze sharpened, but she calmly took the phone.

At the same time as he handed over the phone, the assistant was also carefully observing Karuno's expression.

After all, since the rumors about Xia You and Karuno spread online, although the two have not responded directly, the outside world has always assumed that they are in a romantic relationship.

Now that Xia You has suddenly appeared in the town and appeared in the same frame as the three opera stars, she has become a hot topic. As her "rumored girlfriend", Karuno's reaction will undoubtedly attract a lot of attention from the outside world, and may even cause new topics.

Karuno naturally had no idea what her assistant was thinking.

She took the phone and gently swiped the screen. The first thing that caught her eye was the eye-catching news headline: "Shocking! Pokémon powerhouse Xia You appears in Unova Town, visits the Garden Opera Troupe, and is seen in close proximity with the three lead actors."

She raised her eyebrows almost imperceptibly, but said nothing, and simply continued browsing the news.

Photos flashed across the screen one by one, including individual photos of Xia You, Ma Ya, and the other two, as well as photos of everyone together, and several snapshots of Xia You coaching in battle.

She first read the news, then glanced at the photos, a faint, knowing smile playing on her lips.

Having spent years navigating the entertainment industry, she'd seen far too many of these tactics of using celebrity popularity for publicity.

She understood what it was almost immediately.

The title is very catchy, but the content inside is a promotion of the opera company and the three lead actors. Even if it is not explicitly stated, you can tell at a glance what it is.

She had a deep understanding of Xia You's personality. She seemed gentle, but in reality, she was always too lazy to deal with unimportant people and things. If she hadn't agreed to a sparring match beforehand, she would never easily get involved with strangers, let alone have any "intimate moments together".

She quickly skimmed through the news content and then glanced at the comments section.

As expected, most of the comments praised the beauty of the three lead actresses and expressed curiosity about the opera troupe. Occasionally, a few comments mentioned her and Xia You's rumored relationship, but these were quickly drowned out by the rest of the comments.

From this perspective, the three stage performers and their manager handled the situation very well. They capitalized on Xia You's popularity without over-exploiting it or deliberately creating conflict between her and Xia You, which was a smart move.

but……

Karuno's gaze lingered on Maya, Mizuki, and Shion in the photo for a few seconds, a faint hint of approval flashing in her eyes.

The three have distinct styles: Maya's sweetness, Mizuki's elegance, and Shion's heroic spirit. Each has their own charm, and coupled with their remarkable temperament, they certainly have the qualities to catch the eye.

She silently memorized these three names, and also remembered the name "Garden Opera Troupe".

Karuno shook her head slightly, handed the phone back to her assistant, and said in a calm tone, "I know, don't worry about it."

She wasn't angry, nor was she confused, nor did she have any extra emotions; it was as if she had just seen an insignificant, ordinary news report.

Chapter 1394 Legend and Bo City, Qinghai

They spent the night in the wilderness and arrived in Kagome Town the next morning.

Kagome Town is the town that will host the Pokémon World Championship Junior Cup in a while.

Of course, since there is still some time before the start of the competition, there are not many trainers gathered here, nor is there any related atmosphere. Everything seems quite normal.

Even Orchid and Cattleya are not here now.

But as the competition date approaches and advertisements are being released, it won't be long before this place truly becomes lively.

Xia You might catch such a grand event, or he might not, but even if he did, it would only be a spectacle for him. As for him participating in the competition, that was absolutely impossible.

Even if he wanted to participate, the people on the organizing committee would probably beg him not to.

After all, with his abilities, coming here would be like being fried fish.

If he participates, other players will naturally have no chance to stand out, and holding such a youth cup would lose its meaning.

Xia You was aware of this, so she had made it clear beforehand that she would not participate in the competition.

Therefore, even if he came here now, he would have no intention of doing so.

Just before entering the town, they also saw a thick city wall.

Compared to other towns, this city wall is truly remarkable. After all, in this day and age, such things are no longer needed to protect cities. It is rare to see a city wall as well-preserved and still in use as this town.

Seeing Hikaru looking around curiously, Makomo pushed up her glasses and began her encyclopedic introduction again, her tone calm yet somewhat serious.

"Xiao Guang, aren't you curious why this town has such a thick city wall?"

Knowing that she was about to start explaining again, Xiao Guang naturally cooperated.

"why?"

“Of course, it’s because it’s related to some legends in Kagome Town,” Makomo said with a smile. “In the northeast of Kagome Town, there is a place called Giant’s Cave. According to geological research, it is not actually a naturally formed cave, but a huge meteorite crater. Legend has it that another Pokémon from the Dragon Legend lives in that meteorite crater—Kyurem!”

"Kyurem?" Xiao Guang was somewhat surprised. "Right here?"

Makomo nodded: "That's right, it's that one. And because of this legend, a taboo has always been passed down in Kagome Town—anyone who gets close to the Giant's Cave will suffer disaster. The old people in the town all say that when that meteorite fell, it hid terrible monsters inside. These monsters would come out of the cave every night, blowing a biting cold wind, and sneak into the town to prey on the townspeople and Pokémon. So, in order to protect the people here and to prevent residents and curious people from getting close to the cave, such a tall wall was built. Over time, the people in the town have also developed the habit of not going out at night, and even on the streets at night, you can rarely see any people!"

Yami pondered for a moment: "They're called monsters, but they're really just Pokémon, right?"

“That should be the case.” Makomo nodded in agreement. “However, we can’t rule out the possibility of alien species. After all, it appeared after the meteorite, so it’s very likely that it was some kind of extraterrestrial creature that was brought here by the meteorite.”

"Like Xia You's Deoxys?"

“That’s right, just like Deoxys.”

Xiao Guang suddenly realized, turned to look at the city wall behind him, and said with a sigh, "So that's how it is. I was wondering why we encountered such a high and thick wall when we first entered the town. I was puzzled before, but now I finally understand."

The group walked along the streets of the town and, before they knew it, arrived at a platform on the edge of the town.

Standing on the platform and looking northeast, you can clearly see a huge iceberg in the distance, across a canyon.

Inside the iceberg, there is the outline of a huge meteorite crater, but because it is covered by ice and snow and shrouded in snow fog, it is only an outline and no details can be seen.

"Is that the Giant's Cave? It doesn't look like a cave at all."

Makomo hesitated for a moment, but then confirmed, "Judging from the location, it should be there. As for the cave... it might be in some unseen corner, or in an ice crevice."

Xiao Guang didn't dwell on these things; she simply stood on tiptoe, gazing into the distance.

"It looks so close, like I can get there in just a few steps."

“Actually, that’s not the case.” Makomo explained with a smile, “It does look very close from this platform, but in reality, because of the canyon in front of us, it takes quite a long detour to reach the Giant’s Cave, and there are many rugged mountain paths along the way, especially those with ice and snow, so it’s not as easy to walk as it looks.”

Xiao Guang turned to look at Xia You.

"Xia You, do you think there really is a Kyurem there?"

“Who knows?” Xia You shook her head. “It could be a rumor spread by someone, or it could really be related to Kyurem. Who can say for sure?”

Xiao Guang was taken aback, but then he thought about it and realized it made sense.

Perhaps people did see Kyurem here many years ago, which attracted people to search for it, but after all, it is a legendary Pokémon, so how could it be encountered so easily?

And it's likely that it left this place long ago.

As they were talking, they saw many trainers carrying backpacks, heading northeast in groups. Each of them had an expression of excitement, anticipation, and a touch of trepidation on their face.

"Are they going to the Giant's Cave?" Yami asked softly.

“Definitely.” Makomo nodded, her tone certain. “What else could we do besides looking for Kyurem? After all, it’s a legendary Pokémon. There must be many trainers who want to see it in person, or even catch it.”

Xiao Guang was a little worried: "With so many people, what if someone actually finds them in the end?"

"How could it be so easy?" Xia You chuckled upon hearing her words. "That's Kyurem. How easy is it for an ordinary person to even see it? And even if they did see it, who would have the strength to subdue it?"

“Xia You is right,” Zhen Gu also said. “If it were really that easy to subdue, there wouldn’t be people still going there every day to search for it.”

Xiao Guang looked at Xia You again: "Brother Xia You, will you go find Kyurem? I believe others can't find it, but you definitely can!"

"Me?" Xia You patted her head, shook his head and laughed, "There's no need for that. My luck is a bit special. If these legendary Pokémon are destined to be with me, they will appear in front of me on their own one day without me having to look for them."