Gastly, Get☆Daze!

"Calm down, Miss Zhulan."

Bai Zhou gently pressed his hand on her wrist, his voice steady.

It seems that Cynthia has only been the Sinnoh champion for a short time.

My experience is still... too little.

Looking at the Gastly in front of him, which was laughing so hard it was shaking and almost passed out, Shirashu sighed helplessly.

He completely ignored the powerful ghosts around him, radiating a thousand years of malevolent aura and glaring menacingly.

He walked straight through the terrifying encirclement and stood in front of Gastly.

pause.

Then, under Zhulan's incredulous gaze, he unceremoniously pinched its plump cheek and scolded it harshly:

"Have you had enough fun? Apologize to Miss Zhulan right now! There's a limit to pranks!"

"Gah! Gah! (I know I was wrong! Let go!)"

Gastly's mischievous grin vanished instantly, replaced by a resentful expression, its large eyes glaring accusingly at Bai Zhou.

Just as Bai Zhou loosened his grip, it suddenly shook its head, and with a "smack," a wet, large tongue accurately smeared Bai Zhou's face.

Plans are in place!

╭(･ㅂ･)و

Bai Zhou wiped the sticky saliva off his face expressionlessly, with a faint blue vein throbbing on his forehead.

Gastly then floated triumphantly to Cynthia, who was still somewhat dazed.

Under Garchomp's wary and confused gaze, Gastly strained to open its large, watery eyes and bowed respectfully to Cyndaquil.

"Gah~ (Sorry~)"

"...It's okay."

Cynthia finally snapped out of her daze after the dramatic turn of events. Looking at Gastly's adorable antics, she couldn't help but reach out and gently rub Gastly's gas-based head.

As she touched them, the ghost-type Pokémon emanating a terrifying aura around her gradually faded away and disappeared without a trace.

It turns out that all the terrifying sights, from the giant ghost face to the horde of ghosts surrounding them, were just a realistic illusion created by this mischievous Gastly.

Curiosity is growing.

She turned to Bai Zhou, who was walking back while wiping his face, her starry eyes fixed on him:

"How...how did you see through it?"

"This is one of Gastly's usual pranks..."

Before Bai Zhou could finish speaking, Gastly, who had just apologized, suddenly jumped into his arms and began frantically licking his handsome face.

"Stop! Stop! It's all saliva! It's filthy!"

Shirafuchi frantically tried to push Gastly away.

"You're the one who led us in, aren't you? Get us out of here!"

"Crunch! Crunch~ (I know! I was just bored~)"

Zhu Lan was pushed aside by the interaction between the human and the ghost.

A prank... Oh, I see.

What?!

How did you know it was a prank?

Why are you able to see through that illusion that even Garchomp instinctively becomes wary of?

Why are you able to communicate with this Gastly without any problems?

You better explain this to me clearly!

Although I had long suspected that Bai Zhou had a secret, there were just too many secrets!

Damn it, I really want to know!

Zhu Lan puffed out her cheeks in frustration.

However, seeing Shirazu's comical state as she was licked so badly by Gastly and finally managed to escape from its overly enthusiastic tongue, she couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Having licked its fill, the Gastly was now being held by Bai Zhou like a briefcase around his waist.

Far from being annoyed, it adopted an arrogant expression of "I am magnanimous," and, with a lisp, shamelessly declared:

"Gah! (I pardon your disrespect! I will now send you away!)"

……

It was already late at night when we left the First Emperor's Mausoleum.

Zhu Lan needs to go back and submit the relevant documents and give a performance review.

She leaped gracefully onto the broad back of the Garchomp, her golden hair fluttering in the night breeze, and waved goodbye to the white boat:

"Well, Mr. Bai Zhou, goodbye."

"Okay, goodbye."

Bai Zhou nodded, watching the shooting star disappear into the distance.

"Little Assistant reminds you: The mission to help the new trainer overcome difficulties has been completed! Rewards of 100 BP points and 1 Moon Ball have been sent to your storage space."

A system pop-up window appears at the appropriate time.

With a slight thought, Bai Zhou conjured a moon-shaped ball radiating a soft silver luster in his palm.

The moonlight flowed across the sphere, adding to its mystique.

Looking at the ball, he remained silent for a moment, then a meaningful smile suddenly appeared on his lips.

Suddenly, he spoke to the empty street corner, illuminated only by the dim yellow streetlights:

"Tell me, how long are you planning to hide?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a chill crept up his spine.

The dim streetlights twisted and stretched eerily, and a huge, translucent purple ghost head seemed to seep out of the shadows and slowly emerge.

It grinned, revealing its sharp fangs, and let out a low growl:

"Gah—hiss! (I—am the Mandate of Heaven!)"

(＞д＜)

Looking at the Gastly in front of him, which was trying hard to act fierce but couldn't hide its mischievousness, Shirafusa chuckled.

Reaching out, it rubbed its large head, which was somewhere between gas and solid, with a touch of novelty.

Ok……

It's cool and refreshing, with a strange elasticity, and feels surprisingly good to the touch.

"You and those Ghost-type Pokémon sleeping in that other dimension, you must all be guardians of the First Emperor's Mausoleum, right?"

Bai Zhou spoke gently, offering guidance.

"Is it really okay for you to sneak out with me?"

"Garshi? (Guardian?)"

Gastly tilted its big head, looking bewildered, and then shook its head vigorously.

"Gahhh~ (I don't know~)"

"What about the jade coffin?"

Bai Zhou deliberately put on a stern face, adopting an expression that said, "I've seen through everything."

"You opened it, didn't you?"

"Gah, gah~ (No, no~)"

Gastly seemed to have its secret thoughts exposed, its big mouth slightly pouting, and its eyes drifting away guiltily.

"Gah! (It really isn't me!)"

The smile in Bai Zhou's eyes deepened.

It was obviously impossible for it to open that jade coffin; Gastly couldn't have done it in its current state.

He had already realized that this Gastly was newly born, and compared to the "old monsters" in the other dimension that were thousands of years old, it was still too immature and weak.

But it is precisely this naiveté, coupled with that mysterious confidence and... well, unique "qualities," that makes it so interesting.

What a confident and well-mannered Gastly!

So cute, simply perfect.

The white boat held up the moon ball to it.

"How about it? Interested in becoming my family? Room and board included!"

"Gashi? (Family?)"

Gastly paused, seemingly trying to process the concept.

A moment later, it squinted its eyes, stretched its mouth into an exaggerated arc, and excitedly floated up and down and spun around in the air.

"Gah! Gah! Gah! (You want to be my father, don't you? I grant your wish! I hereby appoint you as my father!)"

"Then, from now on, we are family."

Bai Zhou couldn't help but chuckle as he looked at the inexplicably smug Gastly.

Suddenly, his expression turned serious, and with a burst of strength, he hurled the Moon Ball at Gastly, shouting:

"Hurry, hurry, by the law! You fiend, surrender at once!"

Gastly was startled by the sudden attack and froze for a moment before being hit by the Moon Ball, turning into a streak of light and disappearing into it.

The moon sphere swayed in the air, and with a "ding," a few stars appeared before falling back into Bai Zhou's hand.

A critical hit!

Gastly, Get☆Daze!

Zhou unconsciously shouted out a classic line.

Noticing the strange looks from a few passersby, he immediately fell silent, quickly clipped the moon ball to his waist, and left the scene of the crime.