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Riko, with her small stature, also mingled with the crowd and walked outwards. Under the protection of Ms. Kobayashi's Thousand Faces Escape, she did not stray too far from the main group.

The summer camp friends around them were discussing the competition that had just taken place in small groups.

"That match was absolutely amazing!"

"Yeah, yeah! Although the Pokémon's strength is somewhat lacking, it just feels smoother to fight against them than those Pokémon in the regional tournaments!"

"Am I the only one watching Master Xia Chen the whole time? So many years have passed, but he hasn't changed much since he was young. It feels like he'll never age!"

"It's a bit of a shame that I didn't see Sylveon and Milotic."

"..."

Riko walked alone, clutching her New Leaf Cat doll. Not being very good at socializing, she hadn't yet found any familiar friends at summer camp.

However, because of the little incident on the boat earlier, a few young men from the local community started talking to her.

"Rico, where did you buy your necklace? It's so pretty!"

Rico turned to look at the girl who had spoken to her. She had short, neat chestnut-brown hair, a cheerful smile, and a pair of adorable, impressive fangs.

Is he talking to himself?

She couldn't remember the girl's name, so she replied somewhat shyly, "Um... thank you for the compliment, this was a gift from my grandmother."

Noticing her shyness, the girl stuck out her tongue and extended her hand to introduce herself: "Sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm An from the Kanto region. Nice to meet you!"

Although Rico was a bit unsociable, she didn't dislike people with that kind of personality. She smiled and replied, "Yes, it's nice to meet you too. I'm Rico from the Padia region."

"Hehe, nice to meet you for the next month, my roommate Rico~"

Rico looked at the girl with the prominent canine teeth in front of her with some surprise. Her roommate?

Oh...it seems so. I stayed in a double room at summer camp this time, but I didn't pay attention to my roommate's name at the time. It turns out it was her.

That's not bad.

Rico was still reminiscing when Annie, that chatterbox, started talking again.

"By the way, you seemed to know a lot about Master Pigeon on the boat. Are you a fan of his?"

Rico's eyes lit up. "Master Pigeon"—this affectionate nickname known only to longtime fans was enough to explain Xiao An's identity.

"You're a cooing pigeon too!"

Although the account [I am not a pigeon] has not been updated on Pixiv for a long time, the spirit of the pigeon has not disappeared with the passage of time, but has been passed down from generation to generation.

The two pigeons chattered away on their way back to the hotel, as if they were old friends who had met too late.

…………

"Hey, Riko, your necklace seems to be glowing!"

Xiao An's somewhat surprised tone made Li Ke subconsciously look down at her chest, only to see that the necklace, which usually seemed unremarkable, was now faintly shimmering with iridescent light, as if it were breathing.

"It seems to be... glowing."

"Somewhat confused, Rico muttered to herself."

She always regarded the necklace that her grandmother had given her as just an ordinary ornament, and in fact, it was indeed quite ordinary.

"I've never seen it glow before..."

Xiao An suddenly leaned closer and said mysteriously, "Do you think it might be related to some legendary elf?"

Lico was startled and instinctively retorted, "How could that be? Grandma didn't say anything to me when she gave it to me, not even telling me to cherish it."

Xiao An became even more enthusiastic in her guesses, "It really looks like it! You remember Master Pigeon's Deoxys, right? For a time, it existed in the form of an energy crystal."

That actually makes some sense...

Rico looked somewhat hesitant, but believed her to some extent.

Unexpectedly, Xiao An burst into laughter and patted Rico on the shoulder, "Just kidding, there's no such coincidence. Maybe it's some little elf's prank!"

Xiao An's startled reactions left Rico speechless but also relieved. Indeed, there weren't that many things related to legendary elves.

Besides, although she admired Xia Chen's colorful and eventful life, she didn't want to experience it herself.

Her biggest dream right now is to have a few Pokémon that she likes and that like her grow up with her.

The group returned to the hotel close to dusk.

Since it was the first day of summer camp, besides watching a dojo challenge match at the Yuanling Dojo, there was also the much-anticipated bonfire party.

Rico was quite looking forward to it.

It wasn't because she could make new friends, but because the bonfire party was right next to the Gracidia flower field, which she had always wanted to visit.

After taking a shower and changing into a pretty new dress that would make taking photos easier, Riko slung her favorite Gigantamax Eevee bag over her shoulder and set off with Ann.

Although they've only known each other for a few hours, Rico is already used to having a chattering voice around her all the time.

She didn't dislike it; in fact, she thought it was nice to be friends with a chatterbox, since at least one of them could easily start the conversation and create topics.

The two girls walked side by side toward the setting sun and soon arrived at the place where the bonfire party was.

Ms. Kobayashi was already busy setting up with her Pokémon. When she saw Riko and An arrive, she gave them the task of collecting some Gracidia flowers from the flower field.

Actually, it's not that we're really short of these two young laborers; the main thing is to motivate these kids to participate in the activities.

The two girls readily agreed.

Flower fields, and the renowned Gracidia Flower Fields at that—what little girl could resist such a place?

Gracidia flowers don't bloom for long, and coincidentally, early July is when they are in full bloom.

As the sun set, its pale golden light spilled across the boundless pink cherry blossom field, creating a breathtaking scene that left the two little girls, seeing it for the first time, mesmerized.

The butterflies and butterfly flies among the flowers weren't shy at all; they enthusiastically surrounded the flowers and danced a joyful dance.

After playing around for a while, the two girls remembered their business and started picking the flowers that Ms. Lin wanted.

What they didn't notice was that at this moment, the light from the necklace on Rico's chest was flashing more rapidly and brightly.

On a distant mountaintop, a bright orange-red figure flashed by.

…………

"Oh my, you've finally decided to come back after all this time, haven't you?"

Inside the Yuanling Island Manor, Chrissy looked at Xia Chen, who had suddenly returned, and said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "This year, you can't just give me a Best Employee award and call it a day."

Looking at the man in front of her, she seemed somewhat dazed.

Having known each other for over ten years, although both his temperament and personality have changed a lot towards maturity, Xia Chen's appearance seems to have been frozen at the age of eighteen.

"How could that be? You're already the official curator, why would I need to give you an award for best employee?"

Covered in dust, Xia Chen joked with Christina as he released his companions from the Poké Ball.

Six white lights flashed, and Sylveon, Gardevoir, Dragapult, Cyclops, Volcarona, and Zeraora appeared from them.

Chrissy, who had just been complaining, suddenly brightened up and immediately opened her arms to rush towards Sylvanas, "Sylvanas, long time no see~ Come here, let me hug you!"

Unfortunately, Senbu wasn't in a good mood today, so she easily dodged the touch and quickly jumped to her room on the second floor to sleep.

Xia Chen smiled slightly: "She hasn't been in a good mood lately, please be understanding."

Chrissy hadn't paid it any mind, and after stretching, she asked with some curiosity, "Where did you go again? With Xanbu's strength, what could possibly upset her? Did you run into Arceus?"

Xia Chen shook his head. "It has nothing to do with this. I don't know either. Let's find an opportunity to ask."

Chrissy shrugged. "But you've been going out much more often these past two years. Things are different when the kids are older."

Xia Chen smiled and didn't refute, changing the subject: "By the way, speaking of this, their mothers all said that they've been busy lately and need to send them to Yuanling Island for two months. Can you help them prepare?"

Chrissy's expression brightened. "Really? Little Nuoyi is here too?"

Xia Chen was somewhat speechless. "...Here you come, but be careful this time. Don't pinch her face again. If you get lifted to the ceiling by her psychic powers again, I can't help you. You know Gardevoir is very protective of her."

Chrissy nodded hurriedly, but Xia Chen didn't believe she had really listened.

But it doesn't matter, anyway, Nuoyi is much more sensible than her mother, and she won't cause any major trouble.

Xia Chen added, "I'm going to take a shower and rest for a bit. You can make do with Rotom's cooking for dinner."

The electronic ghost, which had jumped from the phone to the robot, protested, "What do you mean by 'accepting it but Roto'! That's too much, Roto!"

Dorombalut flew over, feigning comfort, "Ruto—(It's okay, I really like your food~)"

Unfortunately, Rotom immediately saw through his lie: "You're talking nonsense, Rotom! You ghost don't eat normal food, Rotom!"

A burst of laughter filled the hall. Xia Chen smiled, shook his head, and went upstairs alone.

…………

Despite possessing superpowers, the hot bath after returning home still helped Xia Chen relax his tired body a lot.

After making a video call to the family members to let them know, Xia Chen thought for a moment and then ran to Xianbu's room.

After more than ten years of companionship, he always felt that Xianbu had something on his mind lately.

Pushing open the door, I saw Xianbu in her favorite little window seat, gazing at the setting sun on the horizon. Her expression wasn't exactly solemn, but rather thoughtful.

What are you thinking about?

Xia Chen sat cross-legged on the ground next to Xianbu and pulled her into his arms. "If there's nothing else, help me blow-dry my hair."

Sylveon turned its head away haughtily, indicating it wasn't in the mood. "Sylveon—(No time, I'm thinking about something. Gardevoir or Volcarona can help you.)"

Xia Chen chuckled and said, "No, it has to be you. You have the blackest hair."

Xianbu rolled her eyes, not exposing Xia Chen's flimsy excuse, but helplessly used a small amount of flight-type energy to blow-dry Xia Chen's hair.

"So what are you thinking about?"

Enjoying the gentle warmth of the breeze, Xia Chen asked.

Xianbu hesitated for a while before finally saying, "Buyi—(Well... Xia Chen, do you ever think that there are actually many worlds, many versions of us?)"

Xia Chen replied without hesitation, "Yes, we've been to the Ultimate World. A few years ago, we even encountered Dialga and Celebi, and we've traveled through time. Why wouldn't we believe in the existence of parallel worlds?"

The affirmative reply surprised Senbu, and she pressed on, "Buyi—(Then...then, if there are many worlds, and many versions of us, which version of us is the real us)?"

This question made Xia Chen think for a long time.

He pondered for a long time before slowly saying, "Do you remember when we met Arceus two years ago?"