That was what traveling was like—you never knew what would happen at the next stop, who you'd meet, or what kind of Pokémon you'd encounter.
Watching Absol disappear into the distance, a faint smile curved at the corner of Chen Mo's lips.
He turned around, about to leave, when the middle-aged man beside him hurriedly called out to stop him.
"That magical beast just now… was it called Absol?"
"Yes," Chen Mo replied, looking at the man with a smile.
"Bringing warnings to those about to meet misfortune—that is Absol. If you ever encounter it again, be sure to pay close attention to your surroundings."
"I… I understand. I misunderstood it before…"
The middle-aged man looked full of remorse. Then he looked at Chen Mo again, a trace of hope in his eyes.
"Then… can I meet it again? I want to thank it in person."
So you really didn't listen to what I said earlier at all, did you?
Chen Mo sighed inwardly.
"Since Absol was able to appear here, that means it likely lives somewhere within Chuanshu City. If you're a local, then… maybe."
"…Thank you."
The middle-aged man finally seemed to realize something.
Chuanshu City was surrounded by mountains. Wanting to meet again an Absol that roamed the mountains year-round—how difficult would that be?
The man lifted his head once more. The young man who traveled alongside magical beasts had already gone far away, appearing mysteriously and leaving just as mysteriously—much like Absol itself.
...
Thanks to Absol, the tunnel collapse caused no civilian casualties.
But the road Chen Mo had originally planned to take was now completely impassable.
Changing routes, combined with another small traffic jam caused by the collapse, made the journey extremely rough.
They hadn't even caught sight of Evergreen Forest yet, and the sky had already begun to darken.
Chen Mo glanced at the rearview mirror. Pichu was already curled up and resting in the back seat. He silently continued driving.
Ah Hui, sitting in the passenger seat, thought for a moment, then turned to Chen Mo.
"Brother Mo, if this keeps up, even if we reach Evergreen Forest today, it'll be completely dark by then. We'd still have to pitch tents and make dinner…"
"If you have a suggestion, just say it. No need to hesitate—I'm pretty troubled myself right now."
"Alright."
Ah Hui pulled out his phone and opened the navigation map.
"Brother Mo, there's a specialty tourist town around here. When I went camping in Evergreen Forest before, I stopped there once because of something. It's not far from our current location—about half an hour by car. And there's a small road the navigation doesn't show. I only learned about it from locals. It leads straight to the outskirts of Evergreen Forest, and the trip is only about an hour or so."
"So, Brother Mo, how about we rest in that town tonight and set out again after sunrise tomorrow?"
Plans often couldn't keep up with changes—that was something that happened frequently during travel.
Given the situation, Ah Hui's suggestion was indeed the best option available.
And most importantly—
Pidgeotto had been flying for a long time today. A stamina-based Pokémon like it couldn't compare to a gasoline-powered car. It was probably exhausted by now.
It really was time to find a place to rest.
After Chen Mo agreed, Ah Hui's eyes lit up. He immediately began enthusiastically describing the town's features—especially its food.
"Brother Mo, listen to me. Once we get to Lavender Town, forget everything else. Just pick any restaurant in town and order their specialty bamboo-tube rice. The taste—man, I'm telling you—it's the best bamboo-tube rice I've had in my life. The flavor of cured meat mixed with the fresh bamboo aroma, paired with rice… I won't even go on. Brother Mo, drive faster."
"..."
What are you, a food streamer now?
Chen Mo looked at the clearly overeager Ah Hui and shook his head helplessly.
Another foodie.
But…
The name Lavender Town stirred up a childhood memory for Chen Mo—something related to Pokémon.
When he was young, while playing Pokémon games, there was a place along the journey called Lavender Town. The name "Lavender" came from the lavender plant, whose flower language was "Do not forget me," and thus it was often associated with ghosts and memories.
So in the Pokémon games, Lavender Town was designed to be eerie and unsettling—especially its background music, which was completely different from the usually upbeat tone of the game.
Just as Chen Mo was driving while lost in memories, Ah Hui suddenly spoke again, his tone tinged with something strange.
"Brother Mo… I think maybe we shouldn't go to Lavender Town after all."
"Hm?"
Snapping back to reality, Chen Mo frowned. He had already turned onto the road leading to Lavender Town, and now Ah Hui was saying they shouldn't go?
Wasn't that a bit late?
"Why? Don't you want bamboo-tube rice anymore?" Chen Mo asked in confusion.
"It's not about that…"
Ah Hui looked at the livestream chat on his phone, then raised his head and spoke slowly.
"Brother Mo, some of your viewers used highlighted messages to warn you—Lavender Town has been 'haunted' recently. Hardly anyone dares go there now. They say even the police who went to investigate got injured."
The vehicle slowly came to a stop.
Chen Mo glanced at the rearview mirror—Pichu was still sleeping soundly—then looked at Ah Hui, his head full of question marks.
"You sure about this?"
"I don't know. I'm just repeating what your fans said. And it wasn't just one person."
"..."
Chen Mo rubbed his forehead lightly.
Sure enough, the name Lavender really wasn't auspicious.
"Brother Mo, what do we do? Turn around?"
"Let me think…"
After the existence of Arthas, Chen Mo already understood that this world truly contained things beyond common sense.
But ghosts causing trouble?
That was something he absolutely didn't believe in.
After all, even someone as powerful as Arthas needed the Unown and part of Zekrom's power just to maintain a soul-form presence. An ordinary human soul? It was practically impossible.
However, Chen Mo hadn't forgotten that among Pokémon, there existed a very special group—
Ghost-type Pokémon.
"Has anyone died in Lavender Town because of these ghost attacks?" Chen Mo asked.
"Let me check… The chat says only one police officer was injured. No deaths so far."
"I see."
The off-road vehicle started up again, its destination unchanged—the rumored haunted Lavender Town.
And not long after Chen Mo and the others left, deep within the mountains, a white shadow swiftly passed through the forest.
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