Chapter Ninety-Four: Mist Chills, the Moon is Shrouded, Loneliness Breeds Resentment. (The title has no connection to the content.) Two chapters released in succession!

Chen Ou recognized Bai Ci’s face immediately. Mei, or rather, Mingyi, was his favorite heroine from one generation of the game. Back then, Chen Ou was among those shouting on the forums, “Mei is eternal!” and “Monarch Serpent is supreme!” But soon enough, many people switched to chanting those praises for Olivia instead. Clearly, everyone was steadfast in their convictions. They simply liked that style—what’s not to love about long legs in black stockings!

To say Mingyi was Chen Ou’s favorite female character would be no exaggeration. Yet, after transmigrating, all Chen Ou could think about was returning home; he had no mind for pursuing women. When he finally resigned himself to not seeking a way back, Shirona occupied all his thoughts. Shirona was the one who stayed by his side during his internal transformation, comforting him and striving to help him find acceptance and belonging. Chen Ou found himself utterly defenseless against such a woman.

Now, there was no room in Chen Ou’s heart for any other woman—even Mingyi. Besides, though this world was a blend of game, anime, and manga, some people had simply been erased by the parallel nature. Like those from the Unova region, and N—none of them made even a ripple; the three dragons of Truth handled the entire Plasma Team decisively and quietly.

Even though Chen Ou had a good memory, his temperament was rather lazy. He had little interest in the affairs of the Kanto region; back in Cerulean City, he hadn’t cared about missing the water show. Such trivial details had never been his obsession. He was a highly goal-oriented person; once his objective was set, only a handful of important life events could make him care about anything else.

Moreover, he had never heard of any genius girl rising to fame in Unova. But Chen Ou forgot one thing… Most TV heroines had counterparts in the manga. Just as Ash was in fact a modified version of Red… And the changes were far from minor.

The young girl before him, Bai Ci, was Mingyi’s counterpart; her title, if he remembered correctly, was “the Liberator.”

Of course, Chen Ou only felt something odd; he couldn’t bring himself to act like he was meeting his goddess upon first encounter. Not even if this girl had been his desktop wallpaper for a long time. Nowadays, of course, his wallpaper was Shirona.

“Ou, you probably know why I’m here. What do you think?” Professor Oak cut straight to the point. There was nothing to hide here—either he agreed or he didn’t. Professor Oak wouldn’t make Chen Ou uncomfortable over something so trivial. Besides, if Chen Ou was truly averse to this, Bai Ci could end up in danger.

After all these years, Professor Oak knew Chen Ou’s nature well: a good person, but not in the absolute sense. Bai Ci would not come to harm, but a scare was always possible.

He didn’t want to trouble his own child, nor let Bai Ci face any risk, so he wouldn’t force the issue.

Across the coffee table, Professor Juniper and Bai Ci also looked at Chen Ou. Juniper’s face was expressionless, clearly sharing Oak’s mindset: better for things not to work out than to make anyone uncomfortable. Bai Ci, meanwhile, watched Chen Ou nervously, puzzled by the oddly nostalgic way he’d looked at her moments ago.

Still, her impression of Chen Ou was quite favorable. It couldn’t be helped; just seeing his face, most women’s impression would naturally start above the passing mark. Coupled with his achievements and reputation, their goodwill would hover around seventy out of a hundred.

For Bai Ci, she seemed to sense a natural harmony in Chen Ou, much like N. It was as if the person before her was not a human, but a Pokémon.

(Chen Ou: You’re the Pokémon! Your whole family are Pokémon!)

Of course, Chen Ou couldn’t know what Bai Ci was thinking; otherwise, he’d surely change his tone.

“I have no problem with it, but Professor, you know I’m not alone anymore. I need to discuss it with Shirona,” Chen Ou shrugged.

In essence, he was agreeing. Before arriving, Professor Oak had sent Chen Ou Bai Ci’s profile. He had a rough idea of her thoughts and the issues in her thinking.

It was simple: she’d spent time with N and been indoctrinated by his philosophy. The key was, this world lacked the later version of N, so Bai Ci had absorbed only his early, radical ideas.

Well, that was something…

Chen Ou knew it wasn’t a big deal, because Bai Ci clearly lacked strong leadership charisma. Without talent and strength, such people posed little threat. But it was not trivial either; Bai Ci’s talent was genuinely impressive. If not on par with Red, Green, or Chen Ou himself, she was certainly comparable to the other Pokédex holders from Johto and beyond.

They were all exceptional.

If someone like her went astray in her thinking, it could spell trouble—a potential seed for a new villainous organization.

The options before Chen Ou, Oak, and Juniper were few: straighten the sapling, snap it off, or let it grow wild and take a gamble.

Of course, straightening was the preferred choice.

So Chen Ou had no real objections. His earlier words were directed at Professor Oak.

He knew Oak was gratified by his relationship with Shirona, but there remained a nagging concern. Chen Ou would never touch that concern—doing so would be a major problem.

As for himself, Chen Ou had nothing more to say. Shirona was his choice. Even if Bai Ci, Serena, and Olivia were all tied up and delivered to him, Chen Ou could swear he’d do nothing.

He would never betray someone before they betrayed him—a bottom line of his… among others.

Chen Ou’s principles were upright, though he sometimes acted unconventionally.

After he finished speaking, a fleeting look of disappointment passed through Professor Oak’s eyes, but it vanished quickly. He smiled, saying, “Then go talk to Shirona.”

“Alright, I’ll do that now.” Chen Ou waved his phone apologetically at Oak, Juniper, and Bai Ci, then rose and headed for the door.