"Brother Chen Shi, what's the outside world like?"
"More or less the same as here. Except the outside has a sun during the day and a moon at night."
"Ohhh~ Then what does the sun look like? What about the moon?"
"You'll see when we get out."
"Then… is the outside really as dangerous as Grandpa and Grandma said?"
"Mm. Outside is a man-eating place."
"Huh!? The outside… eats people!? Why don't people just eat normal food!?"
Chen Shi rubbed his temples.
From the moment they stepped out of the Ghost Secret Realm, Floss hadn't stopped talking for even one breath.
Walk → questions.
Walk → more questions.
Walk → Brother Chen Shi, why is grass green?
Walk → What's a supermarket?
He was losing sanity at a measurable rate.
"Everyone outside is stronger than me," he answered flatly. "So stay careful."
Floss gasped at once.
"E-everyone outside is stronger than you!? Then are there monsters walking around punching mountains!?"
Chen Shi stared at the sky.
"…Sure. Something like that."
Her next question came immediately.
"And that green–yellow Pokémon earlier—what was it? I think it's Ghost-type, but I've never seen it!"
"That was Dreepy. Dragon/Ghost type."
"Dragon–Ghost!? Wahhh!"
Floss's eyes sparkled like twin flashlights.
She pumped her tiny fist.
"I've decided! Once I go out, I'm going to catch a Dreepy too!"
Chen Shi: …Good luck. You'll die before the Dreepy even considers you.
Then she tugged his sleeve with puppy-dog eyes.
"Brother Chen Shi, can I pleaaase see Dreepy again? Just once?"
Chen Shi sighed deeply.
"Floss… wait until we get home. You'll see him every day."
"But right now, please—be quiet."
"Nooo! I want to see it now!"
She clung to his arm like a Spoink on caffeine.
Chen Shi slowly stopped walking.
A wicked smile crept up his face.
"Floss, today's the first thing you must learn about the outside world."
"Don't trust people too easily."
He snapped his fingers.
"Gengar."
"Heheh~"
Gengar rose like a purple demon out of Chen Shi's shadow—
—Hypnosis.
Floss dropped instantly, caught by her startled Dusclops, who had popped out of her shadow to save her.
Dusclops stared wide-eyed at Chen Shi.
Chen Shi shrugged.
"She's too loud. I'm making her nap. You carry her."
Dusclops hesitated… but remembering the trust Floss's grandparents had placed in him, the Pokémon silently picked the girl up like a sleeping Magikarp.
Peace.
Beautiful, heavenly peace.
Chen Shi nearly melted into bliss.
Returning Home
By the time they reached the Chen villa at dusk, Floss still hadn't woken up.
Hypnosis from Grandma's Gengar was apparently strong enough to knock out a wild Snorlax.
Chen Shi did not mind one bit.
But the moment he stepped inside—
Grandpa Chen frowned.
"Isn't that my old friend's granddaughter? Why is she being carried like a sack? Did something happen?"
Chen Shi's expression stiffened—just a second—then he put on the purest, saintliest look imaginable.
"She said she was tired, so I let her sleep. Didn't expect her to sleep the whole way."
"She sleeps very well."
Dusclops stared at him.
…Liar. You ordered Gengar to nuke her consciousness!
Even a Ghost-type felt offended by the sheer shamelessness.
Grandpa raised an eyebrow.
"Do you take me for a fool? Put her down."
Chen Shi coughed twice and motioned for Dusclops to lay Floss on the sofa.
He even tucked a blanket over her like a model citizen.
He sat down calmly.
Grandpa asked, "Did you meet my old friend?"
Chen Shi nodded.
"Both elders are fine. But this girl…"
He pointed at the sleeping Floss.
"She's lived her whole life in that Secret Realm. Too pure. Her grandparents want her to stay with us awhile."
"You two can teach her basic common sense. When she's ready, she should go out and learn things firsthand—maybe suffer a little."
Grandpa nodded.
"I see. I'll prepare a room upstairs."
Grandma sighed.
"Those two stubborn old folks finally understood. They actually said they want their granddaughter to 'take some losses.'"
Her face softened with nostalgia and pain.
The tragedy of losing their son and daughter-in-law weighed heavy but silent.
Chen Shi immediately changed the subject.
"Grandpa… why is there such a strange world inside Mt. Pyre? What is that place?"
Grandpa's eyes sharpened.
"That is a Secret Realm."
He continued:
"Secret Realms split off from our world long ago. Some look like miniature worlds. No one knows how they form."
"They existed even before the League was created. And new ones still appear occasionally."
"Most are controlled by the League now."
Chen Shi nodded.
Grandpa went on:
"Secret Realms contain powerful energy and rare resources. Many uncommon Pokémon live inside."
"The one you visited is called the Ghost Secret Realm.
Full of Ghost-type energy—a paradise for Ghost Pokémon."
Chen Shi's understanding deepened.
"The Zvolcji family also has one," Grandpa added.
"The Steel Secret Realm. Home to enormous mineral veins—and whole clans of Metagross and Aggron."
Everything clicked.
This world… was far more magical and vast than the games and anime of his past life ever hinted at.
And his place in it had only begun.
Advance Chapters available on P@treon
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