Mondstadt.
On Favonius Square.
In the originally quiet plaza park, a huge display screen was installed in the direction of the Knights of Favonius headquarters. A dense crowd of people stood near the towering statue of Barbatos.
They are the people of this land, the city-state of wind and pastoral song. "Freedom" is engraved in their genes, and their bodies are filled with the bohemian spirit of the Dandelion. Therefore, they are different from the people of Liyue.
The people of Mondstadt watched the promotional video and found their focus: it turned out to be the unknown and the thrill of adventure.
"The Hisui Region?"
"I once wanted to be a great adventurer, just like Stanley or Roald, but I didn't have a Vision (Eye of God)..."
"It is so difficult to be watched and favored by gods! But Pokémon are different. As long as you devote resources and efforts, what you get in return is a Pokémon powerful enough to take you on adventures!"
"With tears in their eyes, ordinary people also have the possibility to become great and legendary!"
"Praise the Pokémon, praise this generation, praise Manager Hiroshi!"
"Without further ado, let's pack up and go to Liyue to see if there is a chance to conquer the first initial Pokémon!"
"Let's go! Embark on the journey of being a Trainer, and from now on, whoever doesn't take risks and travel around the world is a dog!"
Knights of Favonius Headquarters.
Inside a dark room, the executioner Rosaria opened the dark curtain and glanced at the lively Favonius Square. If it were in the past, she, the executioner of the "Shadow" (Anbu), would definitely follow up and investigate such a demagogic propaganda method, then secretly eradicate the careerists trying to disrupt the gods' ruling order.
However, at this moment, Rosaria, the "bad nun" who protects Mondstadt in the dark, was very calm. She withdrew her gaze without saying anything and continued to lower her head, clicking lightly on her Pokédex screen:
Start Matching!
A new game had begun. The eight players were all members of the Knights of Favonius, playing a "pre-made" group match in [Pokémon Auto Chess].
On the chat box:
Lisa: Oops, I accidentally ate chicken (won).
Kaeya: Damn closed beta!
Eula: I don't know who was kicked out two days ago.
Diluc: Are you there? I have something to do, let Klee come and replace me.
Lisa: ...Ahem, if Klee comes, sister, I have something to do and I have to leave.
Seeing the internal dynamics of the Knights, the atmosphere was quite interesting. Rosaria couldn't help typing in the chat box:
"Miss Lisa, please show some face. My 'Winner' count is 2; you just ate a handful and you are so crazy..?"
In the office, Jean heard the sound of the Witch Lisa gnashing her teeth from the library table next door. She couldn't help but put down her quill and spoke in a funny tone:
"Are you stimulated again? Who is it this time? Or Klee?"
Lisa said fiercely: "No, Klee doesn't count! It's time to decide who is the Chess King among the Knights! Whoever loses must pay one month's Angel's Share gift bill!"
Jean shook her head and ignored her. She opened the Pokédex and chatted privately with Hiroshi:
"Manager Hiroshi, how is Eevee doing?"
Hiroshi: (Video.avi)
Clicking on the video, Jean saw the Overlord Lurantis training the Eevee one-on-one. Jean's smile revealed a narrow amusement:
"The Overlord Pokémon's personal trainer costs 30 million Mora a month. There are quite a few people in the group chat who can afford this amount of money. Are you the Manager who regrets it?"
Hiroshi: (Spreading his hands) Don't get me wrong. I'm afraid that your Pokémon can't keep up with the big army and will become a shame among the customers, so I opened this foster care business for you and Ningguang. Do you know this person? (picture), she is my third client in this business.
In a real-time picture of the Research Institute, from the perspective of Hiroshi as the owner, another customer had come to the door.
It was Ganyu, the sister with blue hair and qilin horns. Ganyu serves as a companion and the Liyue Qixing's general secretary. Without her central handling and coordination of the various ministries and agencies on Yujing Terrace, Liyue's government affairs would easily fall into an embarrassing situation of total suspension.
Jean thought to herself: "It's her! Indeed, she is even busier than me. It is said that she has been working overtime for hundreds of years! Terrible!"
Liyue Area, Wangshu Inn.
Here is a natural shoal wetland called Dihua Marsh, with water and swamps everywhere and a criss-crossing river network. Because it is the only route from Mondstadt to Liyue by land, the gathering of caravans and the swarming of adventurers from Mondstadt since the arrival of the Ecological Zone made the business of Wangshu Inn far more prosperous than in previous peak seasons.
At this time, Keqing led the team to place a huge screen near the entrance of Wangshu Inn. The merchants and adventurers who came and went were also "brainwashed" by the promotional videos.
In a guest room on a high floor of the inn, the Traveler (Lumine) who had stayed here for many days was nervously looking at the incubator placed on the bed. Paimon was also flying all over the room anxiously:
"Oops! Why hasn't the little guy pecked through the eggshell yet? Come on, come on!"
Paimon simply ignored the fact that she was also a "little kid," stretched her body in the air, and cheered for the life inside the eggshell.
"Use force!"
"Try harder——"
"From now on, follow me, Paimon, to ensure that you eat well and have a happy journey every day!"
The life in the egg seemed to be very moved, and the movement of the egg breaking became louder. A quarter of an hour passed. Half an hour. One hour...
Finally!
"Click!"
A crack appeared on the surface of the eggshell, and soon the pattern spread to the entire egg. A Pokémon about the same size as Paimon jumped out—whoosh, it was very fast—and flew toward Paimon floating in the air.
"Ah?"
Paimon fell back onto the bed, her eyes filled with stars.
"Pi-pika~~"
The electric rat, whose fur was all yellow, kept rubbing against Paimon with its plump cheeks. This was actually a Pikachu! And what's even weirder... the newly hatched cub Pikachu actually wore a human peaked cap on its head!
Lumine: "What is this?"
She was confused, and it took her a while to realize what she was doing. She quickly took out the Pokédex and scanned it.
"Beep!"
"Pikachu (Cap Form)..."
The Pokédex information buzzed in Lumine's ears. She tried to process the sentence with clear thoughts:
"Special form of Pikachu. Unlike ordinary Pikachu, there is no difference between ordinary and Shiny colors, and it cannot lay eggs, evolve, or Gigantamax."
"But Pikachu (Cap Form) has a dedicated Z-Crystal (Smart Pika), and an exclusive move: 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt..."
Lumine checked the data of her initial Pokémon several times. There were still many question marks floating around her head.
So, what does it mean to be born with a hat? It hasn't been explained clearly yet! Just outrageous! How can a hat be born from the gestation of life?
Lumine took pictures and videos and sent them directly to the group chat interface without starting a private chat with Hiroshi.
Lumine: Manager Hiroshi, Manager Hiroshi! I'm panicking... what the hell is this! An army of hats?