Pop!
Togepi puffed its cheeks and pressed the button again.
The spinning roulette slowly came to a stop, the pointer lingering on the smallest red section.
Click—
A red card fell into the outlet tray.
"Red..." The staff's eyes narrowed.
Red signifies first prize, and today there had only been two first prizes drawn.
The machine he was responsible for hadn't produced a first prize yet.
Click—
However, before he could react, another red card popped out of the tray.
"Two... two cards?"
"Chiko-yiyi!"
Togepi clenched its little fists.
With its hands on its hips, it raised its head proudly, a small face full of pride as it gently patted the machine.
Good job.
Simultaneously, it handed the two cards to Natsuhiko.
"Technique, Dragon Type 'Dragon Dance'". (Borrowing, borrowing, hahaha—)
"Item, Unchangeable Stone".
Looking at the two items written on the cards, Natsuhiko fell into deep thought.
You'd think that Togepi drawing two first prizes for him would make him happy.
But for some reason, he just didn't feel all that excited.
He couldn't help but question himself.
'Did I win the first prize? Seems like I did, but at the same time, it feels like I didn't.'
Aside from the second prize 'Play' technique, the remaining 'Dragon Dance' and Unchangeable Stone are valuable, but don't seem to offer him much improvement.
'Forget it, if worse comes to worst, I can sell them. Having something is better than nothing.'
"Chiko-yiyi?"
You don't seem very excited?
Togepi tilted its head, looking at Natsuhiko.
Natsuhiko tugged at the corner of his mouth, then smiled again, "No, I'm really happy."
With that, he handed the three cards to the staff, "Exchange."
The staff, seeing Natsuhiko's calm demeanor, couldn't help but feel he could use a smack.
He took a deep breath and dutifully exchanged the prizes.
"Chiko-yiyi?"
Really happy?
"Happy."
Natsuhiko noticed a trait of Togepi's luck.
Togepi's luck was good, but not exceptionally so, always falling slightly short.
After collecting his rewards, he made a quick trip to the restroom, changed back to his previous attire, and quickly left, covering his face.
The rumors here were terrifying; he couldn't endure them.
Indeed, no matter the world, gossip is always one of humanity's inherent traits.
...
...
The sky was completely dark by the time he left the guild.
He returned to the neighborhood where Kenji's villa was located.
After the invasion by wild Pokémon in Goldenrod City, the originally decent environment here was significantly affected.
Natsuhiko didn't go back immediately; instead, he went to the neighboring villa where Ann Ci lived.
He wanted to know what Ann Ci had mentioned last time about the "abnormal life energy and flames," and whether it was indeed related to Pokémon like Lampent.
And what about the Ghost-type Pokémon he had been dealing with these days, could it also be Lampent?
He knocked on the door gently.
Knock knock—
No response.
He pressed the doorbell, and the crisp sound echoed through the large villa, the faint sound reaching even outside to Natsuhiko.
After a moment of waiting, still no one answered the door.
Natsuhiko frowned.
"Went out? Not home?"
It's not impossible.
But....
He turned back, standing still.
Clenching his teeth, "I hope she's just out."
He threw out a Pokeball to summon Abra, and with Abra's psychic help, climbed over the high walls and security to enter the courtyard.
As soon as they entered, Abra shivered.
"Kixi..." Abra murmured softly.
Not just Abra, even Natsuhiko clearly felt the strangeness in the courtyard.
The temperature in the entire yard was extremely low, entirely different from outside, as if stepping into a different season.
Opening the door, a gust of cold air assaulted him, making Natsuhiko's teeth chatter uncontrollably for a moment.
"How did it become like this?"
Natsuhiko's face turned serious as he surveyed the entire hall, all the furniture and decor seemed perfectly arranged, yet a mysterious energy permeated this villa.
And the Little Monk Ann Ci's figure was nowhere to be found.
"Kixi."
Suddenly, Abra pointed to a wall around the corner of the hallway.
Rows and rows of elegant writing lined up neatly on the wall.
Glancing past the beginning, Natsuhiko realized, "This is a Buddhist scripture?"
Abra, eyes wide open, gazed at the text on the wall, lost in thought.
"This must have been left by Ann Ci." Natsuhiko looked around again, but there wasn't even a trace of Ann Ci's activity here.
But the current state of the villa clearly showed the problem wasn't resolved and leaving wasn't suitable.
Slowly.
A faint scent of liquor drifted in the cold air, reaching his nose.
"Liquor?"
Natsuhiko was startled, then quickly reacted. By following the scent, he might find Ann Ci.
"Abra."
However, Natsuhiko noticed Abra floating in front of the scripture-covered wall for quite some time.
Its half-open eyes glowed with azure psychic power, as glimmers flowed in its eyes, like words gliding across them.
"This..."
Natsuhiko lowered his hand, about to wake Abra, surprise flashing across his gaze.
"Meditation?"
Abra had always shown signs of grasping the technique of meditation but had yet to fully grasp it.
The meditation technique isn't just useful in battles, but also has significant training and cultivation benefits, a tremendous advantage for it.
"Kixi?"
Abra suddenly snapped back to reality, blankly staring at Natsuhiko, unsure of what just happened to itself.
It just felt...
Like the Buddhist scripture Ann Ci wrote was deep and profound, giving it a vague sense of understanding, even though it couldn't read a single word.
But just by looking at the patterns of these characters, it seemed to sense the mood Ann Ci was in when writing the scripture.
"How are you feeling? Are you alright?" Natsuhiko asked once he saw Abra come to.
Abra clenched its fist, sensing its psychic abilities within, then nodded heavily.
Never felt better before.
And then, suddenly feeling something, it floated towards the interior of the villa.
Natsuhiko followed behind, not intervening.
Soon, Abra led Natsuhiko to a room deep inside the villa, and as soon as they opened the door, a rush of cold air almost made Natsuhiko shut the door again.
If the previous space was a refrigerator's fresh-keeping compartment, then this room was definitely a freezer.
Yet his line of sight and focus were drawn to a large hole in the wall.
The hole melded black, gray, and red hues together, entwining like a portal to an unknown place.
And on the other side of that portal, it could likely be a bizarre space.
The bone-chilling air filling the entire room was all emanating from this cave, intensifying continuously.
"Could this be... a portal to the Spirit Realm?" Natsuhiko breathed in slowly and muttered to himself.
The Pokémon Realm also has a Spirit Realm, considered a world of the dead and also a habitat for Ghosts and Ghost-type Pokémon.
Whether it is or not...
Natsuhiko turned his head.
But was held back by Abra.
"Kixi."
Abra pointed to several scribbly words on the ground.
Natsuhiko's mouth twitched.
Do you know why he was about to turn and leave?
It's because he already saw what Ann Ci left behind.
It read...
"Natsuhiko, save me —"
The last stroke of "me" extended across the floor, directly into the twisted portal.