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"Sorry! Sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't know your identity earlier! Please forgive our offense!"
Once Officer Jenny confirmed the Champion's badge was authentic, she and the four other guards quickly lined up, all wearing terrified expressions as they bowed repeatedly to Liam in apology.
"Liam! Look, Officer Jenny and her team have already apologized! Please don't be mad anymore."
Delia tugged gently on Liam's arm, pleading on their behalf.
Liam looked back at Delia, utterly drained. He wasn't angry, per se—just a little wounded.
He'd thought that after becoming a Champion, his name would have spread far and wide. That's why he'd taken the detour through Tohjo Falls and even wore a cap in disguise, hoping to avoid being recognized. But in the end… no one even knew who he was.
All those precautions were meaningless. The feeling of being betrayed by the world in a single moment… who could possibly understand that?
"Sigh… Forget it. There's no need to apologize—I wasn't mad at you. Now that you know my identity, I hope you realize I'm not some suspicious person. So with that cleared up, goodbye. We still have other places to travel."
Liam sighed as he looked at the row of bowed officers and gently dismissed their concerns before turning to leave.
"Oh, right…"
Suddenly, Liam turned back, as if remembering something.
Officer Jenny, who had just stood up, instantly bowed again the moment he turned, shouting, "Yes! Please speak!"
"…I'm only out here this time to accompany my fiancée on a trip. So when you file your report on this case, it's best if you don't mention me at all. If that's unavoidable, then please keep it confidential. I really don't want any unnecessary trouble… Okay, that's all for real now. Goodbye."
Having said what he needed to say, Liam took Delia's hand—she was beaming sweetly—and the two of them quickly left the area…
.....
As Liam had said earlier, this trip was meant for leisure. And no journey is complete without some fun.
Liam later found out that the forest they had passed through was actually a Heracross and Pinsir Forest. The group of poachers they encountered had been illegally hunting Heracross and Pinsir, but were intercepted by the police acting on a tip. Thanks to Liam's help, not a single poacher managed to escape.
The whole incident ended well.
Their real travels began afterward. The next place they visited was Donphan Valley, known for its Donphan population and beautiful agates. Since the Donphan there were raised by humans and couldn't be captured, Liam and Delia instead bought a pair of finely-crafted agate necklaces.
Each wore one around their neck. The pendants were two halves of a heart—only when joined did they form a complete symbol of love.
Then they passed through Bewildering Forest, a place permanently shrouded in mist. At night, it was nearly impossible to navigate without a Hoothoot guide. But Liam had a GPS map, so he was unfazed.
The real issue? The Ghost-type Pokémon inside the forest…
It wasn't that they were strong. The problem was… Delia was terrified of ghosts!
In the dead of night, when a group of mischievous Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar suddenly appeared, Delia shrieked so loudly that her voice pierced the skies.
The ghost Pokémon, who had been hoping to spook her, were so startled by her scream that they fled in terror.
As for Liam, standing right beside her… well, he couldn't hear anything else for quite a while afterward.
After finally making it out of the forest, they arrived at Phantom Forest, a natural habitat for Stantler. Witnessing the entire herd galloping in unison was a breathtaking visual experience.
Their next stop was a town where a Festival was underway. Poliwrath marched through the streets, borrowing circular ornaments from the people and later blasting them into the sky with Water Gun beneath a spectacular waterfall.
The ornaments would fall back into the water, drift downstream, and eventually return to their original owners—carrying with them a mysterious sense of luck.
Finally, Liam and Delia arrived at their true destination: Violet City—the location of the first gym in Johto. The Flying-type Gym, the Violet Gym, stood proudly in the city. Delia, already too excited to wait, tugged Liam along eagerly as they rushed into town.
...…
Meanwhile, on the edge of Mt. Silver in Johto—the location of the Johto League—a communication line rang inside one of the buildings.
An elderly, yet powerful-looking man at the desk reached out with a steady hand, picked up the receiver, and held it to his ear.
"Hello? What's the situation?"
"…Mm. So the new Kanto League Champion, Liam, has entered Johto? And he helped the police capture an entire poaching squad? He claims he's just here on vacation?"
"…Understood. Don't worry about him, and don't assign anyone to follow him. Keep your focus on the poachers instead. They've been making some big moves recently—tighten surveillance. That's all."
After a few more brief instructions, the call ended.
In front of the desk, a shady-looking man in a black trench coat raised his brow and asked, "Sir? The Liam you mentioned—is that the same naive kid from back then?"
"Heh. Don't ask too many questions. Liam's business isn't yours to worry about. Focus on investigating the Masked Man. That one's been unusually active. Keep a close watch."
"Yes, understood…"
—
Elsewhere, in a building in Mahogany Town, on the top floor, a woman in a black Hunter Group uniform knocked on a door and entered.
She looked like a secretary, carrying a bundle of documents in her arms. Approaching the figure seated in a swivel chair, back turned, she gulped hard and spoke with a faint tremble.
"L-Leader, we just received intel… Officer Jenny's unit captured Commander Nishiyama and his entire team while they were executing the Heracross and Pinsir capture mission. Another Commander is requesting permission to organize a rescue…"
As soon as she finished speaking, the secretary fell silent, standing rigidly with her head lowered.
"…Hah, what a useless fool. Can't even complete such a simple task. Looks like another order will have to be scrapped. Seriously, how many canceled contracts is that now? Nishiyama's arrogance caught up to him. Let him cool off in jail for a while. Once we wrap up what we're working on, we'll decide what to do with him."
The voice came from the chair—a woman's voice, magnetic, commanding, and paradoxically seductive. A voice that compelled obedience.
"Y-Yes! On to the second matter. The Masked Man placed a new order with us, but… we're not sure if we should accept it…"
The secretary hurriedly continued.
"Hm? When did the Hunter Group get so timid? What kind of order would we not dare to take? We accepted that Mew contract last time, didn't we? What is it this time? Raikou? Entei?"
The voice sounded clearly annoyed.
"N-No! It's not a Pokémon this time… It's… he wants us to find a few young orphans… The pay is… extremely generous…"
Sensing the leader's displeasure, the secretary scrambled to explain.
"Generous pay? Hmph. Then there's no issue. As long as the money is right, there's nothing we won't do. It's settled. Anything else?"
With a soft scoff, the voice returned to calm.
"A-Actually… there's one more thing. Our team sent to Kanto to capture Mew has lost contact again. It's likely tied to Team Rocket, who seem to be actively seeking Mew themselves. Leader, what should we do?"
She hesitated but finally reported the last bit of troubling news. After saying it, she closed her eyes, bracing for her boss's wrath.
But…
"Heh… Hahaha!! Who would've thought that brat would grow up so well! Team Rocket's been quite impressive lately. Guess it really is in his blood. He's giving me a headache now…"
The secretary was baffled. Though the words implied frustration, the voice sounded… pleased? Even proud? Her confusion deepened.
"…I understand. We can't let up on the Mew situation. Send another team to Kanto—but avoid direct conflict with Team Rocket. Anything else? If not, you may go."
"N-No, Leader…"
She bowed slightly, turned to leave, gently closed the door behind her, then exhaled a long, relieved breath.
Looking out the window at the sunny weather, she silently thanked the heavens for letting her live another day…