Ron left after the banquet, but not before reminding Luther of one thing.
"A favor is a favor. Work is work. I hope you remember the difference."
He also jokingly added that he hoped Luther wouldn't turn into another Champion like Cynthia, someone who gave the Competition Committee headaches every single day.
The moment Ron was gone, Mira's appetite suddenly returned. She had barely eaten before, but now she happily dug into every dish on the table. Anything she didn't like went straight to the waiting Gengar or to Azumarill, who sat beside her with its mouth wide open, eagerly waiting to be fed.
"So you were just nervous." Luther finally understood why she'd been wearing such a stiff expression all evening.
Ron had also made something else very clear. The League executives Luther had rescued all remembered the favor he had done them, but at the same time, they were subtly asking him not to use that debt to put them in difficult positions.
Still, Ron had shown Luther plenty of respect. His stern warning to Mira wasn't meant to intimidate her; it was to let her know how much Luther and Mai had done behind the scenes, and how precious the opportunity they'd given her really was.
No wonder he'd risen to such a high position. The way he spoke and handled people struck exactly the right balance, making dealing with him surprisingly comfortable.
"I didn't expect Ron to accept you this quickly," Cynthia said. "He's not exactly the flexible type. I thought there'd be at least a little drama."
Of course, Cynthia herself was an exception. The instant Ron left, she started complaining about him.
Then again, it made sense. As Chairman of the Competition Committee, Ron had probably spent years dealing with a Champion who never played by the rules. He was likely just as full of complaints about Cynthia as she was about him.
"I heard you've officially become Luther's family's butler," Cynthia said, looking at Mira. "Is that settled now?"
This time, neither Luther nor Mai had to answer.
"Yes," Mira replied immediately. "I said I'd repay the kindness they showed me, and I meant it."
"Ooooh..." Cynthia deliberately drew out the sound before turning to Mai, who was busy putting more food on Luther's plate. "Mai, when you lived with the Kukui family, they had both maids and butlers, right? What did the butler call Kukui Tetsu?"
Mai blinked, completely missing where the question was going. "Usually 'Master,' I think... though some households use 'Sir' instead."
Luther covered his face. Mai was far too easy to trick. The moment Cynthia asked the question, he knew exactly what she was planning: she was trying to embarrass him.
Cynthia grinned mischievously. "So then, Miss Butler... what should you be calling Luther now?"
Sweat instantly broke out across Mira's forehead, and her neck seemed to lock in place. She didn't even dare turn around to look at Luther or Mai.
"Come on, Mira," Cynthia teased. "You need to get used to your new identity. You're not Mira from the Hodgepodge organization anymore. You're Butler Mira of the Luther household."
Just as Cynthia continued fanning the flames, Luther calmly pulled a small notebook from his backpack.
In a quiet voice, he said, "I found the original research journal the Hodgepodge organization never managed to recover."
Even though she knew he was deliberately changing the subject, Cynthia couldn't stop herself.
Her body stiffened as she stared at the old, yellowed notebook lying on the table. Curiosity drove her to pick it up, but instead of opening it, she simply held it in both hands and looked straight at Luther.
"What are you going to do with it?"
Luther bent down and gently stroked Houndoom, who was happily enjoying its meal. Then he answered with two simple words.
"Burn it."
Holding the notebook, Cynthia looked at Luther's calm expression and smiled softly. "Then burn it. It belonged to your parents. What you do with it is your choice."
Once Luther made the decision, he didn't hesitate. Azumarill fetched a large metal basin. Luther placed the notebook inside it and gently patted Houndoom on the back.
Houndoom let out a tiny ember. The spark landed on the old journal, and the yellowed pages slowly began to burn.
Many people noticed what was happening at Luther's table. No one knew what he had burned, but seeing both Luther and Cynthia quietly watching the basin, the guests immediately began whispering among themselves.
Mira then took the orphanage records Ron had returned to her and tossed them into the flames as well, watching them disappear into the fire.
One of the waiters had a Pidgeotto clear away the smoke. After making sure the notebook had been completely reduced to ashes, Azumarill finished things off with a Water Gun.
That celebration banquet ended up producing quite a few memorable stories. Ash, the runner-up of the Lily of the Valley Conference, spent the entire evening being doted on by both Serena and Dawn.
Meanwhile, rumors spread that Luther, the man who had saved the lives of the Sinnoh League's executives, had suddenly burned a mysterious document halfway through the banquet.
Since Mira had thrown an entire file folder into the fire immediately afterward, people completely misunderstood what had happened, and the gossip quickly took on a life of its own.
With the banquet over, the newly reformed Lily of the Valley Conference officially came to a successful close.
---
Not far from Lily of the Valley Island, in Twilight Sea Town...
Outside Kihara Restaurant, the line of customers stretched all the way to the next intersection.
Once the finals of the Lily of the Valley Conference had ended, the happiest person might not have been Luther or Mai. It was probably Kihara.
No one could have imagined that the four Trainers who had once eaten together in his restaurant would go on to become this tournament's Top 8 finisher, semifinalist, runner-up, and Champion.
Even more incredible, all four had been regular customers, and some had even worked part-time at the restaurant. There was even a group photo to prove it.
The day Kihara hung that photo of the four Trainers and their Pokémon on the wall, the restaurant became packed. His stories sounded almost unbelievable: the most influential competitors of an entire tournament had all once gathered in this humble restaurant.
People started lining up in the middle of the night just to get a seat, some wanting to taste the food that had kept those famous Trainers coming back, and others simply hoping a little of their luck might rub off on them.
The excitement swept through all of Twilight Sea Town. Everyone wanted to see that famous photograph.
Kihara had originally only wanted to leave his daughter Wakaba another possible path for her future. Instead, his restaurant had suddenly become the hottest place in town. It was exhausting... but he couldn't have been happier.
Spoink and the others had now completely taken over the work once done by the three Machamp brothers.
The Huntail in the restaurant's water tank had also been replaced by a Marill, so Kihara no longer frightened himself awake in the middle of the night after catching sight of Huntail's terrifying face.
The three Machamp brothers and Huntail had lost their jobs because they weren't cute enough, but they'd been given an even more important role: they had become the very first Pokémon on Wakaba's own team.
Unlike everyone else, Wakaba didn't care about appearances. She only cared about strength.
In Wakaba's room hung a framed photograph that belonged to her alone. It showed Luther, Dakota, Etorre, Ash, Dawn, Brock, Mao, Mai... and Wakaba herself.
She never hung that picture in the restaurant. It was her memory, and she wanted to keep it all to herself.
Even now, she often dreamed about those nights when the four Trainers gathered in the restaurant. They talked about everything, openly exchanged techniques and experiences without ever treating her like an outsider, and even took the time to teach and encourage her.
A dream had quietly begun to sprout in her heart. And now... she had finally made up her mind to chase it.
(End of Chapter)
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