Chapter 510: A Gathering of Familiar Faces

The day of the Mi Ke Li Cup.

The already not-very-wide streets were completely taken over by the crowds coming and going and the stalls selling all sorts of goods; contestants, tourists, and vendors were all mixed together, and everything looked terribly congested.

Even the usually empty waterways were jammed full of boats and rafts of all sizes, and there were even people riding on Wartortle or other large Water-type Pokémon.

"What a lively scene! I just love this kind of atmosphere the most!"

Miss Liuqi and her Altaria poked their heads out from the yacht's cabin, stars sparkling in their eyes, with absolutely no self-awareness that they might be running late.

All Baimu tugged at the corner of his mouth, his gaze suddenly landing on a few figures in the crowd holding Lava Cookie shells, moving along slowly while munching.

Without a doubt, it was the group including Kai and May.

In the original four-person lineup, Ash's spot had been replaced by Kai, and it didn't look all that out of place… As expected of someone once called the female version of Ash.

And as if sensing his gaze, Brock, who was walking at the back, turned his head accordingly.

"Ah! All Baimu!"

"Brother All Baimu? Where, where?" Max's eyes lit up; he held one hand horizontally above his brow to block the sun and scanned back and forth.

Ever since becoming a Trainer, this little brat had grown more and more like that battle-obsessed idiot Ash, even though he used to roast the guy back in the day.

The powerful All Baimu had naturally become the target he both worshipped and wanted to catch up to.

May and Kai looked over as well; the former, upon seeing Brock point at the yacht, let out a soft "huh?"

"Isn't that the…"

"That's right! Mr. Adam, the Gym Leader of Petalburg Gym's personal vessel!" Max said excitedly. Back when Ash was challenging the Hoenn region's Gyms, they had been lucky enough to ride on it.

Max even had Adam's autograph collected in his room.

Kai was full of wonder. "Ohhh… All Baimu really does live in the Gym~"

On the yacht's side.

Miss Liuqi watched May and Kai with a face full of curiosity. She naturally recognized these two girls, who could be called leading figures in the world of Coordinators.

Especially the former — the fame of the "Hoenn Dancing Princess" had already been well known to many before she herself began her activities; in other words, a senior.

"My dear disciple, why didn't you tell me you knew so many outstanding Coordinators?" she turned to ask All Baimu, who was waving toward the shore.

"You never asked."

The latter replied matter-of-factly, then reached out to block the Altaria that was flying at him.

This fellow was like a free-range goose, and also styled himself as Miss Liuqi's knight in shining armor; once they got familiar, he'd come over and peck him with his sharp beak whether there was a reason or not.

He couldn't help wondering whether all energetic Dragon-type Pokémon were like this?

Hydreigon, Dreepy, plus Altaria… Any one with abundant energy seemed to have a tendency toward being a bit neurotic.

Miss Liuqi waved at the few people on the shore, then asked the old butler steering the boat behind her, "Grandpa Sebastian! Can I invite them aboard?"

"Of course, Young Lady. I'll try to pull in right away."

The old butler chuckled.

However, at this moment the yacht was surrounded by boats on all sides, and there was some kind of accident up ahead that they didn't know about; being stuck here unable to move made it rather inconvenient to pull over.

All Baimu pulled out his phone and said, "Let me handle it."

For such a short distance, handing it to Porygon2 would do; of course, what mattered more was whether Kai and the others were willing to come aboard themselves.

—The answer was a definite yes.

The yacht's cabin space was spacious enough; let alone four people plus their Pokémon, doubling that number would still be no problem.

Under these circumstances, how could Kai and the others possibly leave the available transportation unused and squeeze through the crowds with all those strangers?

They weren't out of their minds.

"Saved! Thank you so much, All Baimu!"

May said happily, then turned to look at Kai, who wasn't quite used to the Teleport and the rocking of the boat, and hurriedly reached out to support her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

Kai laughed sheepishly, curiously observing the luxurious yacht together with the Piplup beside her.

Max and Brock, on the other hand, had faces full of nostalgia, reminiscing about the past.

"Yahoo~"

Miss Liuqi suddenly appeared and greeted the four, giggling:

"Sparkling~ twirly~ good morning, everyone! I am the Hoenn region's Contest idol, Dream Miracle ☆ Miss Liuqi!"

"Chururu~"

Altaria squeezed its Trainer, and the human and Pokémon struck a pose together.

How can someone talk with little stars attached?

All Baimu stood behind her, muttering inwardly. This love-of-showing-off business style was really hard to stomach, but Miss Liuqi enjoyed it herself, so there wasn't much to say.

Interestingly, Kai and the others didn't have much reaction to this sudden opening.

Probably because of Team Rocket's trio, who would launch into "Since you've sincerely asked" at the slightest provocation.

May even rushed forward quickly, suddenly grabbing Miss Liuqi's hands and shaking them repeatedly. "You're Miss Liuqi! I'm a fan of your morning drama!"

"Fan?"

Startled, Miss Liuqi heard this and instinctively put on her show-business manner. "Thank you for your love~ Please continue to support Miss Liuqi's works from now on…"

"I will! I definitely will!"

As a die-hard fan of TV dramas, May was incredibly excited, but mid-sentence she came back to her senses. "Wait, didn't you announce that you were stopping your acting career? Does that mean you're coming back!?"

She covered her mouth in disbelief, her eyes brimming with tears of excitement.

"Coming back? Huh? No way—"

Miss Liuqi was thrown into a momentary fluster.

Are meetings between fans and idols always this entertaining?

"Hahaha..."

All Baimu snickered wickedly to himself, beckoned the others into the cabin, and left Xiao Yao and Miss Liuqi outside to continue chatting.

This little misunderstanding would be cleared up in no time, and it was a good chance to clear their heads.

You could tell they'd just gotten up early in the morning and their brains hadn't fully woken up yet.

"Poka-ma?"

Pochama, who had run into the cabin, looked left and right, and upon not finding Mawile, dejectedly hopped onto the sofa and struck a penguin-collapse pose.

With the surging crowds, it wasn't very friendly for a Pokémon of its small stature — easy to get its claws stepped on and the like — and it was utterly exhausted.

Luckily, the first audition's performance didn't include its part.

"As expected of Baimu-bro, being able to borrow a yacht from Mr. Adam." Xiaosheng set down the Magmaar senbei in his arms and greeted Sebastian, who was steering the boat behind them.

Xiaogang and Xiaoguang did the same.

But to the two boys' surprise, the old butler still remembered them, and they couldn't help feeling a little happy about it.

"It doesn't really have much to do with me either — I'm just hitching a ride." All Baimu tilted his chin toward Liu Liu Qiya, who had just walked in. "This Young Lady here is Adam's grand-disciple."

"Grand-disciple?"

"Ah, that's right — Miss Liuqi's uncle is Master Mi Ke Li, and Master Mi Ke Li's teacher is Mr. Adam, isn't he?" Xiaogang's knowledge, as always, was reliable.

Miss Liuqi nodded along upon hearing this. "That's right~"

She herself had no self-awareness whatsoever as a third-generation coordinator or a relative of the host — after all, with real strength in hand, background and the like were completely unimportant.

"Miss Liuqi is participating in the Mi Ke Li Cup too!" Xiaoguang said, looking astonished.

Having won before, she wouldn't think the Mi Ke Li Cup would pull any inside tricks, but something like "Master Mi Ke Li's disciple" sounded terrifying.

Felt like she'd be a formidable rival no less than Xiaowang!

Xiaosheng sighed, "There really are a lot of strong trainers in this Mi Ke Li Cup~"

"More strong trainers make it more interesting — it's precisely because the Mi Ke Li Cup is so famous that many people feel they can encounter powerful coordinators here, which is why they come to compete."

All Baimu said casually, then noticed Xiaogang pull out a small booklet. Without drawing attention, he leaned over and glanced at it. "Mm... Xiaogang's intel work isn't bad, just a bit narrow in variety."

Without exception, every entry recorded in that booklet was a renowned coordinator — restricted to adult women.

The milf-fetishist was beyond saving.

"Ahahahaha." Xiaogang laughed it off. Although everyone present except Miss Liuqi knew his preferences, having it exposed in public was still a bit embarrassing.

Xiaosheng shot him a sideways glare, his right hand suddenly itching a little.

The group continued chatting.

The previously congested waterway finally cleared up, and soon it carried them to the venue of the Mi Ke Li Cup.

"There are way too many spectators." Xiaosheng looked around — the crowd was so packed he couldn't even see the venue's main gate. "They won't all fit, will they?"

"It can hold up to fifty thousand spectators at maximum, so not necessarily." All Baimu shook his head. The infrastructure level in the Pokémon world was terrifyingly impressive too — a venue like this had only taken a single week to build.

Upon hearing "fifty thousand," everyone present was somewhat astonished.

In fact.

Xiaoguang, Miss Liuqi, and the others had all seen even bigger scenes — only All Baimu, who came from "the countryside," had only ever participated in small-town competitions like the Iron Island Conference.

But judging purely by appearances, All Baimu was undoubtedly the calmest one.

Taking advantage of his height, he glanced left and right, successfully spotted the specially arranged contestant entrance, and led the group over.

"Sorry you had to squeeze in with us." All Baimu said softly to Miss Liuqi beside him.

The latter, as a Contest Idol, had always been chauffeured straight to the venue in a dedicated car — when had she ever needed to squeeze through crowds like this?

This time, to travel together with him, she had refused her agency's car service.

"How could I possibly abandon my beloved disciple?" Miss Liuqi laughed and gave him a wink. To avoid drawing attention, she had recalled her Altaria.

But perhaps it was because there were too many people.

Or perhaps because there were too many famous coordinators.

All Baimu and the others, who hadn't really done much to conceal themselves, made it all the way to the contestant entrance safely — which made him let out a sigh of relief.

If they'd been blocked like last time—

"Ah!

It's All Baimu! All Baimu's here!"

Screams suddenly flooded his ears, making his whole body jolt, followed by an unbroken stream of shouts — "The Hoenn Dance Princess Xiao Yao is here too!"

"Xiaoguang! I'm rooting for you!"

"Liuqi! My Liuqi! Sparkle sparkle~ twirl twirl~"

All Baimu and the others looked around in astonishment, only to suddenly realize they were walking like they were on a red carpet, with camera flashes going off all around them.

Miss Liuqi reacted the fastest, responding to her fans' calls right away.

Xiaoguang and Xiao Yao also waved stiffly in every direction, greeting their supporters.

All Baimu directly sent out Mawile, making her the target to draw firepower, thinking to himself that no wonder nothing had happened earlier — they were all waiting here.

The fans who wanted to see their idols had almost all stopped here at the contestant entrance to lie in wait.

Of course.

Affected by the barriers, they didn't rush over, but the overwhelming tide of sound was still utterly terrifying.

All Baimu placed Mawile, who was waving her arms, on his shoulder and kept walking. Xiaogang and Xiaosheng, the two family members, hurried to follow, then came Xiaoguang and Xiao Yao, whose faces had gone stiff from smiling. Miss Liuqi remained outside interacting with her fans.

On one hand, it was a work obligation; on the other, she simply enjoyed doing it.

They entered the venue.

The tsunami-like clamor outside was instantly cut off as if sealed away, becoming much quieter. The coordinators gathered here and there in small groups each revealed different looks in their eyes.

Then a portion of them came over.

"Hehehe, I knew you'd come, Xiaozhi." The leader was a purple-haired man who looked like he was cosplaying a Dream Song cactus, but the puzzling part was that he used a feminine self-reference.

Seeing this person, Xiaozhi was very happy. "Hale!"

Right after, she also spotted the green-haired boy behind Hale, and grew even happier. "Shuan! Long time no see!"

"Long time no see. Looks like you've been doing well."

Shuan crossed his arms, radiating a cool, aloof air.

All Baimu naturally knew these two — they were Xiaozhi's rivals in the Advanced Generation.

Especially the latter, Shuan, who, as the suspected target of a certain screenwriter's behind-the-scenes shipping, was deliberately given a solo episode — criticized by many, yet loved by many.

"Brother All Baimu…"

Xiaosheng, thinking he was curious, quietly introduced who these two were to him.

All Baimu nodded while moving over to Xiaoguang's side, and the person who appeared before her was none other than Ulala, with whom he had crossed paths twice before.

Just as he had thought, compared to her performance in the Diamond & Pearl, Ulala had matured considerably now, able to face Xiaoguang's strength head-on and be a worthy rival.

"What a lively scene, truly too lively."

All Baimu smiled at Ulala, deeply moved.

Xiaosheng nodded, then caught sight of Xiaogang not far away on one knee, saying something to a dazed woman, and instantly zipped over as if by teleportation.

Ten seconds later.

He was twisting Xiaogang's ear, dragging the teary-eyed fellow back.

All Baimu saw the familiar scene and burst into hearty laughter, which left the Munchlax on his shoulder baffled; it hopped down to go chat with Pochama.

The little penguin's flattery still sounded quite nice, and it was very pleased.

After a bit of small talk.

When Miss Liuqi came in from outside, everyone headed off to the dressing room to change into their competition outfits.

As usual, All Baimu wore an ink-black lava suit, which, paired with his tall, well-proportioned build and slightly cool, composed air, made him especially eye-catching.

Xiaosheng offered quite a bit of praise for this, and Xiaogang also nodded in approval.

On the other side.

The girls had also finished changing. Leading the way, Miss Liuqi wore a deep blue midriff-baring short dress, with cotton-like decorations on her arms and legs, and a single long sock that looked bursting with energy.

Xiaozhi's outfit had also switched to the Gem-Recreated version — a pink jacket over a white lining, with a gradient pink short skirt.

At first glance it looked very similar to Miss Liuqi's, but on closer inspection the differences were still quite significant.

Xiaoguang, meanwhile, had changed into a sky-blue short dress, her earrings now water-drop shaped, her hair combed into long, straight black locks, and a crown-like ornament on her brow.

All three girls were so cute it was enough to make one scream.

"Clothes make the man, gold makes the Buddha."

All Baimu clicked his tongue.

He actually preferred Xiaozhi's dancer outfit and was curious why she'd changed it, but the two of them weren't that close yet — that kind of question wasn't something you could casually ask a teenage girl.

If it were Xiaoguang or Miss Liuqi, whom he was so familiar with, he would have asked outright.