I caught a Pokémon

She is a model, a dojo owner, and an idol to many people; she cannot show a vulnerable side in front of her fans.

Xia You stood to the side watching this scene.

Xiaoju interacted with her fans for a few minutes, then gestured towards the referee's table to indicate that the area was open.

The audience immediately surged down—not towards Xia You, but towards Xiao Ju'er, since they were Xiao Ju'er's fans, not his.

"Little Ju'er! You were amazing today too!"

"That lightning zebra is amazing!"

We will always support you!

The girls chattered amongst themselves, forming a circle around Xiaojuer.

Some people handed over autograph boards, some took out their phones to take photos, and a little girl put her handmade support bracelet on Xiaoju'er's wrist. Xiaoju'er responded to each one, smiling as she signed autographs, took photos, and hugged them, keeping herself very busy.

Several girls also mustered up their courage and walked up to Xia You.

“Um… Mr. Challenger…”

Xia You looked down at the little girl in front of her with a ponytail and rosy cheeks, and nodded.

"Your Greninja is amazing!" the little girl said, mustering her courage. "Can I take a picture with it?"

Xia You paused for a moment, then smiled.

He took out Greninja's Poké Ball, pressed the button, a blue light flashed, and the black Greninja reappeared beside him. His red scarf fluttered gently in the breeze, and his calm eyes swept over the surrounding crowd before looking at Xia You.

"Let's take a picture together," Xia You said.

Greninja nodded.

The little girl was so excited she almost jumped up. She quickly took out her phone, stood next to Greninja, and made a peace sign.

With a click, the photo was captured—the little girl's smiling face and the Greninja's expressionless profile created a wonderful harmony.

"Thank you!" The little girl bowed, took her phone, and ran back to her companions. The group huddled together to look at the photos, chattering away.

Several more girls came over; some wanted to take photos, some wanted to ask about Greninja's training methods, and one whispered that she wanted to know what the relationship was between Xia You and Karuno.

Xia You didn't answer the last question, but just smiled. The smile neither confirmed nor denied it, making the girl who asked the question cover her mouth and laugh non-stop.

"Wow, that's impressive..." someone muttered quietly nearby.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

Some girls left the dojo in groups, saying they were going to the amusement park; some were taking pictures in the center of the field, striking various cute poses for the camera; and a few stayed with Xiaojuer, helping her tidy up her things scattered in the command area.

The staff began cleaning the venue, and the referees packed up their flags and prepared to leave.

Xiao Ju'er finally finished her work, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and walked to Xia You's side.

"Let's go to the lounge." She glanced at her watch. "It's almost noon. I'll treat you to lunch later."

"I have companions outside."

"I know, it's Xiaoguang and Yami, right?" Xiaoju smiled. "Where are they now? It's rare for you to come to Raven City, it would be inexcusable if I didn't show you some hospitality."

Xia You nodded, took out her phone and sent a message to Ya Mi. She replied quickly with just two words: "Okay".

Xiao Ju'er led Xia You through the contestant passage to the rest room deep inside the dojo.

The lounge wasn't large, but it was decorated with care. There were off-white sofas, a light wood coffee table, and several oil paintings of lightning zebras hanging on the wall. A coffee machine was brewing coffee in the corner, and the air was filled with a faint aroma of coffee.

"Please, make yourself at home." Xiao Ju'er walked to the coffee machine, poured two cups of coffee, and handed one to Xia You. "When are they coming?"

"They're coming this way." Xia You took the coffee and sat down on the sofa. "I'm sure Xiao Guang will be very happy when he sees this amusement park."

Xiao Ju nodded, sat down opposite him, holding her coffee cup. Her gaze fell on Xia You's face, and after a few seconds, she suddenly smiled: "You know, in the last match just now, when Thunder Zebra unleashed that Crazy Volt, I thought I could at least take one of yours down."

"Almost." Xia You smiled and shrugged.

“Almost, but not almost.” Little Daisy shook her head, her tone devoid of regret, but rather carrying a sense of relaxed relief. “I used all my Pokémon and all my strategies, and you still had all six of them. To be honest, I knew I couldn’t win after the fifth match, but Zephyr still wanted to fight, so I sent it in.”

“I can tell,” Xia You said, putting down her coffee cup. “It really wants to win.”

“It has always wanted to win.” Xiaoju’er’s voice softened a bit. “It has been like this since it was a zebra. It’s never given up, it’s not afraid to lose, and if it loses, it will try again. Sometimes I feel like it’s not me training it, but it training me.”

The lounge was quiet for a moment, with the coffee machine humming and the clock on the wall ticking.

Xiao Ju suddenly looked up: "What are your plans next? The Youth Cup?"

"How could that be?" Xia You laughed. "If I go to the Youth Cup, there will be no suspense. Next, before the tournament starts, I will focus on getting points in the Eight Masters Tournament."

"The Eighth Master?" Xiao Ju'er's eyes lit up. "You want to aim for the world rankings?"

Chapter 1423

"Of course." In response to Xiao Ju'er's question, Xia You nodded matter-of-factly. "Regional tournaments like this are no longer enough for me. My goal is, of course, to be the strongest in the world!"

“I’ve heard of this tournament too.” Xiaoju nodded. “This is its first tournament since its inception, right? Although it’s not widely known yet, I believe it must have gathered many top trainers.”

At this point, she looked at Xia You with a complicated expression: "You have already gained so many titles in these regional tournaments. I really don't know if you continue to win the first Eight Masters competition and stand at the highest point in the world. Your achievements will not only be unprecedented, but probably no one will be able to match you in the next few decades or centuries."

"Who knows?" Xia You shook her head indifferently. "Actually, I'm not interested in fame or fortune at all, nor am I interested in being number one. It's just that I've been surrounded by my Pokémon and have gotten to where I am today. So I can only try my best to do better so as not to disappoint them. Only in this way can I be worthy of being their trainer."

Hearing Xia You say this, Xiao Ju'er felt the confidence and radiance in his tone, and looking at the man in front of her, her heart was also surging with excitement.

Putting aside Xia You's handsome appearance, he was truly radiant at this moment.

Xiao Ju'er knew very well that she was witnessing the birth of a new era.

Despite his numerous victories in regional tournaments, which have already garnered worldwide attention, Xia You's stature would be unparalleled if he were to defeat the world's other "strongest" trainers.

Anyone in the Pokémon community knows his name.

The children will idolize him.

Girls will use him as their standard for choosing a partner.

Even proud adults genuinely admire him when they talk about him.

His name is even widely known in novels, television, movies, and games.

In short, he will create a miracle and a milestone.

However, she was, after all, the owner of Raven Dojo, an international supermodel, and someone who had seen it all. She wouldn't lose her composure because of a few words from a man.

After shifting her gaze away from Xia You's face, Xiao Ju'er adjusted herself several times, took a deep breath, and finally managed to suppress the fluttering in her heart.

There's nothing we can do about it.

It wasn't like those fans who fell in love at first sight, nor was she a bit infatuated; it was this man who genuinely won her over with his talent and ability.

Such men naturally attract girls' attention, and even celebrities like Xiao Ju'er are no exception.

"Anyway," she said, glancing at the coffee table in front of Xia You, her voice softening, "I'm glad I fought you today and saw what a truly powerful trainer is like."

Xia You looked at her, raised her eyebrows, and then smiled.

He didn't delve deeper into the topic, but naturally moved on to other things.

But mostly, it's about Xiaoju'er running the dojo and walking the runway.

Xiaoju picked out some interesting things to tell him, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the lounge was quite light and cheerful, which brought the two of them closer together.

Just as Xia You was about to ask why she had fought Zhu Lan twice, she received a message from Ya Mi before she could even speak.

They had already arrived outside the dojo.

Xia You glanced at the time and realized that the two of them had been chatting for quite a while without realizing it.

"Let's go, let's go meet them."

Xiao Ju'er got up first and led Xia You to the passage that had greeted him before.

Not long after, a railcar glided along the high-altitude track, and Yami, Makomo, and Hikaru arrived in this underground space.

Before they even got close, Xia You could already hear the three women's shouts at different decibel levels.

What was not exciting for Xia You was quite thrilling for the three women.

When the group got off the railcar, their legs were weak.

Hikaru's face was pale, and he barely managed to stand by grabbing onto Pigasman's wings as a handrail. Makomo's glasses were askew on one side of her nose, and her hair was a mess from the wind. She looked like she had just been pulled out of a washing machine. Even the usually composed Yami stood holding onto the railing for several seconds before slowly letting go.

Bogarman, on the other hand, was extremely excited, flapping its wings on Xiaoguang's shoulder and chirping incessantly, wanting to sit on it again.

Xiao Guang quickly covered its mouth: "No, no, let me catch my breath."

Xia You stood to the side watching them, unable to suppress the smile on her lips.

He only felt relaxed when he was with his companions.

"We meet again," Xiaoju waved to them with a smile.

Xiao Guang was the first to react. He quickly let go of the Pogaman's wings, stood up straight, and although the paleness on his face had not yet faded, his eyes had already lit up.

"Miss Xiaoju! That track car was so exciting!" she said, her legs suddenly felt weak again, and she quickly grabbed the railing beside her. "It's just that my legs were a little weak when I got off..."

Bogarman fluttered its wings on her shoulder and chirped even more merrily, its expression clearly saying—it's you who's a coward.

Yami walked over from behind and nodded gently to Xiaojuer: "Miss Xiaojuer, hello, thank you for inviting us here."

Makomo pushed up her glasses, which were crooked on her nose, and finally straightened them. Her hair was a mess, like a bird's nest, with a few strands sticking to her cheeks. She looked extremely disheveled, but her tone remained calm: "I never expected there to be such a large space underground. Although I had anticipated that it would be a roller coaster before I got on the train, to be honest, as expected of an Electric-type gym, its scale is truly astonishing."

"Welcome to the underground playground of Raven Gym," Xiaoju said with a smile. "Although it's officially a facility of the gym, it's actually more fun than the playground above. The roller coaster is just one of them; there's also a carousel, bumper cars, a drop tower, and even a haunted house."

"A haunted house?" Xiao Guang's eyes lit up, his legs stopped going weak, and he let go of Bogarman's wings and stood up straight.

“Yes, a real haunted house.” Little Kikko blinked. “It’s not one of those that uses projections and sound effects to fool people. It’s a holographic image created by the electricity of Electric-type Pokémon. Once you’re inside, you can’t tell the difference between reality and illusion.”

Makomo pushed up her glasses, which she had finally straightened, and said with a hint of seriousness in her voice, "Creating holographic images with electricity? That requires a very high degree of precision in the electricity, which is not something that ordinary Electric-type Pokémon can do."

"So I'm using my own Pokémon," said Xiaozhi. "Zebra is responsible for power supply, Ampharos is responsible for imaging, and Lapras is responsible for the sensing system. They've been working together for a long time to achieve this level of performance."

Yami smiled gently: "That sounds really impressive."

"Let's go, I'll show you around." Xiaoju turned and walked ahead, her golden curls swaying in the light. "Anyway, it's still early before dinner, a little tour is perfect!"

Chapter 1424

The amusement park lights gradually came on in the twilight, and the music from the carousel continued its tireless loop, but the group had already slowed their pace.

Xiao Guang was the last to get off the bumper car, her face flushed, and her bangs were stuck together with sweat. Bogaman was perched on her shoulder, its little wings drooping, clearly tired from playing too.

"Is it about time?" Xiaoju looked down at her phone. "The restaurant reservation is for seven o'clock. It's perfect to go now."

Xiao Guang glanced reluctantly at the amusement park behind him, but still nodded obediently.

The group walked out along the main road of the amusement park, where the neon lights on both sides looked particularly bright in the twilight.

After returning to the ground, Xiaoju put her mask and hat back on, tucked her golden curly hair into her baseball cap, leaving only a few strands sticking out, trying her best not to attract anyone's attention.

"What are we going to eat later?" Xiao Guang asked, his stomach growling at just the right moment.

“Seafood,” Xiaoju said with a smile. “It’s a restaurant I frequent. The ingredients are very fresh, and the environment is quiet.”

The restaurant is not far from the dojo, and you can already tell how classy it is from the outside.

The entire facade is made of floor-to-ceiling glass, the reception desk at the entrance is made of black marble, the floor is covered with a dark gray carpet, and there is a beautifully trimmed pine tree on each side. There is no exaggerated sign above the entrance, only a small bronze badge embedded in the wall with the store name engraved on it.

This is clearly one of the most upscale restaurants in Raven City.

Xiao Ju'er's choice to host them here shows how much she values ​​Xia You.

Xiao Guang stood at the door, his steps visibly hesitant: "This store... looks so expensive."

Xiaoju smiled, pushed open the door and walked in: "Don't worry about the price, it's on me today."

The doorman clearly recognized her, gave a slight bow, and led the group through the lobby and inside.

The lobby is decorated in a cool-toned modern style, with metal and stone interwoven. The lighting is cleverly designed, with each table enveloped in a soft halo that is neither too bright and insecure nor too dark and oppressive.

Several tables of guests were dining, dressed appropriately, speaking in hushed tones, making the entire space as quiet as an art gallery.

The doorman led them into a private room.

The private room was large, with a long table in the middle covered with a snow-white tablecloth, on which exquisite tableware was already set. The seats by the window offered a view of the street scene outside, as night fell and neon lights began to illuminate the night.

Xiao Guang was the first to walk in, excitedly looking around: "This store is so beautiful!"

Yami and Makomo also took their seats, with Xiaoju sitting in the main seat and Xia You sitting next to her. The group was looking through the menu, and the atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant.