After exchanging the contents of each other's dreams, the two of them stood silently in the faint light of the sky before dawn, without saying a word for a long time.

After half a minute of frozen, the two of them took something out of their pockets in unison.

Cards and stamps, two items lying quietly in the palm of the hand, are lined up next to each other. The two crying and laughing masks, one large and one small, seemed to be staring at each other, making Kiripa shiver for no reason.

"That's right, this is the mask that appeared in my dream. Kiriba looked like he was holding something hot, and he looked like he wanted to throw a high-speed straight ball away from him, "But why...... Is there some curse on this?"

"Wait a minute. "Saya suddenly thought of something, "Speaking of masked monsters and subway stations......"

"Kiriba, have you heard the urban legend that has spread all over Mihara City recently?"

The sky is getting brighter. As the soothing music of the Pokémon Center played, the young trainers woke up hungry and poured into the cafeteria.

Today, Xinghai and Xiaotian did not eat with everyone, but left early, and it was said that they were going to meet Xinghai's junior brother. The golden retriever brother and sister, who felt that the three-person dinner was not lively enough, saw Kiriba who was talking to Xiaoye, and immediately pulled him over without saying anything.

- Obviously, this is just the first time we have met, so it can be said that it is a very free trainer invitation.

Kiriba used to spend a week with Xiao Ye and Xiao Tian in the same bow dojo, and he was Xiao Yun's travel partner, so he and the golden retriever brothers and sisters had no topics to talk about. Even if there is really nothing to say, those two noisy guys will probably be able to conjure up eight hundred ways to start the conversation out of thin air.

It just so happened that Saya also had something she wanted to ask them.

"You mean, you two had the same dream, and both of you were devoured by a monster with a mask in your dream?" Xiao Jie and Xiao Ling looked at each other in surprise.

"Yes. Sayo put the card and stamp with the mask of Crying and Laughing back on the table, "The scene in the dream seems to be an abandoned subway station, so I thought of the urban legend you mentioned yesterday. Can you tell us more about that?"

Xiao Ye thought that Xiao Ling, who loved the strange and eccentric, would feel very excited, but the blonde girl's expression didn't look happy, and even faintly worried. She nodded and began her story.

"Although there are many different versions of the urban legends I have heard, the main content is basically the same. Xiaoling said, "It is said that if someone takes the subway at half past six at dusk and gets off after arriving at the terminal, they may encounter a strange train that they have never seen before." When a rider walks in with a moment's curiosity, they will be taken to an abandoned subway station that does not exist on the map, where there are masked monsters that will eat uninvited guests. There are two theories about the subway line, the Hibiya Line or the Asakusa Line, but I haven't had time to explore it myself, so I don't know which one is correct. ”

Kiripa pondered for a moment and turned his head to look at Xiao Ye, "Xiao Ye, I remember that I seemed to have seen the stop number of the subway station in my dream, can you remember the content on it?"

Being reminded by Kiriha, Xiao Ye also vaguely recalled the vague scene in the dream, "I did see it." It seems to be ...... H19？”

Xiaojie opened the subway line map that had been prepared long ago, and pointed to the annotated legend in the lower right corner, "There are a total of eleven subway lines in Mihara City, among which this one can be abbreviated as H, the Hibiya Line." ”

"Ah, that's the kind of urban legend that corresponds!"

Xiao Ling's words fell, and the eyes of the four people looked for the gray Hibiya line in the picture. Xiaojie, who had the best eyes, was the first to find the end of the line, but hesitated for a few seconds without speaking.

Then, others realized something as well.

- The terminus of the Hibiya Line is H18 Minami-Senju Station, and there is no H19.

The air fell into a brief silence until Xiao Ling fell headlong on the table and slammed the table twice.

"Ahh......h

Xiao Ye and Kiriha suddenly looked at each other. And the golden retriever brothers and sisters did not mean to sell Guanzi, and when Xiaoling was beating the table with grief and indignation, Xiaojie picked up the cards and stamps printed with the mask pattern.

"Your dreams are definitely not a coincidence. Xiao Jie frowned, making Xiao Ye feel as if he wanted to make a mental effort to the Crying and Laughing Mask pattern, "We've heard similar incidents from our families before, and I think there may be something attached to these two pieces of paper. Psychic powers, emotions, memories, and maybe even resentment - although I can't perceive the anomaly, you will see similar nightmares at the same time, presumably under the influence of mental forces from the outside world. ”

"Just like a Pokémon's nightmare move?" Kiriba immediately accepted the unfamiliar statement.

"That's right, I don't know if it's humans or Pokémon, or what they're trying to do. Xiao Ling sighed, "This slimy thing is the most troublesome, I hope you don't get entangled in ......"

Xiao Jie and Xiao Ling's expressions undoubtedly reflected some problems. They are not timid children, and to be able to make them so difficult shows that this kind of invisible enemy is indeed difficult to deal with.

On the contrary, the two parties are a little out of the state. After all, it was just a strange dream, and it was not substantially harmed.

“…… Well, it's not that serious. Kiritha was the first to break the dull atmosphere, and the corners of his mouth were easily raised, "If it's just for us to have a weird dream once in a while, I'd rather welcome 'it' to come to the door." Ah, what if you throw them away?" he gestured to two pieces of paper, one large and one small, on the table.

"Hmm...... Maybe nothing will happen, or maybe it will provoke the things attached to it?" Although it still looked serious, the smile in the corner of his eyes revealed that Xiao Jie was actually guessing randomly, "Maybe no matter how many times you lose them, you will find them at the head of the bed, and then the masked monster in the dream will increase every day!"

Sayo: "......"

With the size of a monster in a dream...... If it really grows like this, it won't take a few days to get a hole in the top of the subway station and turn the nightmare into a funny show.

"All in all, now we've found some clues. Xiao Jie's eyes swept intently over every part of the subway map, "Let's try it tonight, and arrive at the terminal of the Hibiya Line at half past six, maybe we can find something." ”

Perhaps every freelance trainer has an explorer's heart, and while waiting for the arrival of half past six in the evening, his apprehension has long since turned to curiosity and eagerness. Although Xiao Jie and Xiao Ling had learned about similar incidents from the family side, they still couldn't guess what would happen next.

And "can't guess" itself is the biggest motivation for people to want to find out.

The four of them got on the Hibiya Line subway with enthusiasm, calculated the time, and arrived at the terminal Minamisenju on time at half past six.

Then he stood there for more than an hour, and looked around sneakily, almost thinking that the patrol police were plotters who had come to step on the spot in advance.

The subway station is always the most crowded in the evening, and there are still many people walking around even at the remote terminals. In this case, if there is really a strange and strange train that is driving by...... Presumably, the police station will receive dozens of calls at the same time.

You can figure it out with your knees, and it's an absolutely impossible picture.

Xiao Ling, who reluctantly left the subway station, felt like a frosted eggplant, feeling that the adventure should not be so boring. Xiaojie looked relaxed and relaxed-"It's better than actually encountering a masked monster and being eaten." ”

It just so happened that Xinghai and Xiaotian also said in advance that they would not come back for dinner, and after there was no constraint on meeting at a fixed time, Xiaoling even wanted to try to stay in the subway station until midnight. Of course, this amazing plan was abandoned when her stomach growled.

When the Urban Legend Expedition Team returns to the Pokémon Center, it's nearly nine o'clock. missed the time for dinner, but he was able to catch up with the supper, and Xiaotian was dragged out by the raw drag, and he was caught off guard and was stuffed with a mouthful of snacks.

He didn't even bother to ask when Kiripa arrived in Sanyuan City, and how he met the two annoying golden retrievers.

It wasn't until they said goodbye and said goodnight that everyone thought that the adventure in urban legends would end peacefully and fruitlessly, and that they would be forgotten after a few days.

— and then, when they looked at each other in the wee hours of the morning with a splitting headache and dark circles, the urge to cover their faces arose.

June 13.

"......" Xiao Tian has always said very little when eating, and even if he feels at a loss now, he just glances at his father in confusion.

The always lively golden retriever brothers and sisters both looked distracted and absent-minded, and Xiaoling almost poked a spoon into her nostrils. Kiritha also seems to be always distracted, and only Sayo seems to be normal...... No, it's not normal to be calm in the face of such a situation.

"What's the matter, didn't you sleep well yesterday?" Xinghai asked with concern.

Before Xiao Jie could say anything, Xiao Ling had already spoken with a serious face, "Mr. Xinghai, that urban legend is really true, I decided to continue the unfinished business of yesterday today and continue to explore, and strive to catch monsters alive and sell them for a high price." ”

Xiaotian: "......"

Xinghai: "Oh......"

Xiao Tian's stomach was full of doubts, and he became speechless, ignoring Xiao Ling's shining eyes of "Do you want to join us", and went to train with his father after eating.

When the backs of Xiao Tian and Xinghai had completely disappeared, the remaining four people exchanged a "plan" look.

"At least from the current situation, it can be surmised—" Xiaojie's fingers nimbly played with the card, "Anyone who has come into contact with cards and stamps with crying and laughing masks, or delved into urban legends, may dream of masked monsters in abandoned subway stations." ”

"It's okay if it's just a dream...... Xiao Ling hugged her head aggrievedly, "Now I have a headache like staying up all night and playing games all night." ”

After waking up from a nightmare, they tacitly meet in the lobby of the Pokémon Center and describe the details of their dreams. There is no doubt that the content of their dreams is exactly the same, even the realistic pain and fear when they are bitten by monsters.

Perhaps this ominous content suggests that some kind of being that causes their nightmares is most likely malicious.

And the next moment, they realized at the same time that if Xiao Jie and Xiao Ling were included in the scope of the nightmare because they intervened in this matter, once they said this, the listener might also be affected - this invisible existence has never had any strict logic for the enemy's judgment.

After a brief discussion, they decided not to tell Xiao Tian and Xinghai the truth for the time being, to prevent the "nightmare infection", and tried to find clues on their own first. I have to say that Xiao Ling's nonsense skill points are very useful, obviously telling the truth, but it still makes Xiao Tian speechless and doesn't want to delve into it at all.

The priority now is to find out what the symbolism of the Crying and Laughing Masks is and why they are printed on cards and stamps. The best place to conduct this investigation is undoubtedly where they were found.

National Library of the Union.

====================

Small Theatre:

System Prompt: The progress of the side quest [Mihara City: The Kamen Monster Who Sneaked into the Dream World] has reached 10%.

Objective: Investigate the enemy's true identity.

Sayo: Hmm, since it can give us nightmares, maybe the enemy is a dream demon?

System Prompt: No, the enemy may be a Nightmasked Element.

Night: ...... Have you been infected with the virus?