"Look under its skirt?"
Lucas frowned. This wild Mimikyu was really bold. With his own Mimikyu on his shoulder, it was making such a request in front of it.
But Lucas noticed the wild Mimikyu looked a bit pitiful, so he sighed, hoping his own Mimikyu wouldn't get too jealous. He bent down and picked up the wild Mimikyu, peeking under its disguise—
Legend has it that a scholar who saw under Mimikyu's disguise was so terrified that they died. Some trainers who accidentally glimpsed it also died in agony that night.
But for Lucas, he knew very well what Mimikyu's real body looked like, and had seen it many times.
With the wild Mimikyu's real body shocked, Lucas calmly poked it and commented, "Doesn't feel as good as my Mimikyu. Its body feels better."
Maybe it was malnourished—the wild Mimikyu felt hollow and not great to the touch.
The wild Mimikyu's real body looked humiliated, or something, and a hard object dropped from under its disguise, hitting Lucas' nose painfully.
That almost broke his nose!
Once he recovered and opened his eyes, he was surprised to find the wild Mimikyu gone.
He saw the door (which he'd closed when entering) was now open, and understood. "It left in a huff? Guess I hurt its pride. I'll apologize if I see it again."
Sighing, Lucas looked at his palm, where the object that hit his nose now lay.
A crystal stone, the same color as Mimikyu, with black patterns similar to Mimikyu's.
"This is… Mimikium Z!?"
Lucas' shout drew the attention of Growlithe and Mimikyu, who looked at him oddly.
Why had he been talking and moving as if to thin air just now?
….
"So it was Ghost-type Pokémon causing trouble?" Kukui, now feeling much better as he huddled by the campfire, mused with his arms crossed. "Come to think of it, I did see a few Ghost-type Pokémon like Gastly and Misdreavus float out of the old supermarket just now."
"But did you see a wild Mimikyu? I ran into one in the warehouse at the back, and after that, it left." Lucas took out the Mimikium Z and showed it to Kukui. "It even left this behind for me."
Kukui leaned in under the firelight to look carefully, then cried out in surprise, "That's… Mimikium Z?!"
Lucas nodded affirmatively.
Kukui rubbed his chin and thought for a moment before saying, "I really don't recall ever seeing a wild Mimikyu around here."
Lucas' hand paused as he petted Growlithe, but he could only accept Kukui's answer.
"But…" Kukui suddenly spoke up, his expression turning serious as he looked at Lucas. "You said you met the wild Mimikyu in the warehouse at the back of the supermarket?"
"Yeah, is there something wrong with that?"
"Well, the warehouse for the Supermarket Megacheap is usually built on the side of the building. Look over there." Kukui pointed to the left, where a half-collapsed building with 'warehouse' written on it stood.
The two exchanged a glance, each seeing the heaviness in the other's eyes.
A moment later, Lucas and Kukui re-entered the old supermarket and stared at a wall with no door at all.
Lucas said in disbelief, "But there was a door here when I came in just now!"
Kukui gasped, his voice low and tense, "This place isn't safe. Let's get out of here!"
…
Early the next morning.
Lucas and Kukui dragged a drowsy Nanu from a warm dreamland, made sure he washed up under their supervision, and then took turns recounting everything that had happened the previous night.
Nanu crossed his legs, and as he listened, his expression grew more and more serious until he finally concluded, "You must have run into a ghost. You're lucky to have come back alive!"
Kukui grabbed Nanu by the collar and shook him furiously. "How can you say that without feeling guilty at all?!"
Compared to the still shaken Kukui, Lucas, who already knew ghosts were real in the Pokémon world, was much calmer after a night's rest. The fog in his mind was gradually clearing.
Nanu raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay, my bad! Can you let me go now?"
After Lucas patted Kukui on the shoulder, Kukui finally released his grip on Nanu.
Nanu straightened his collar and took a slotted bracelet out of his pocket, saying helplessly, "I wasn't planning to give this away, but since I nearly got you two into trouble, this Z-Ring will be my apology to you, Lucas. That good enough for you, Kukui?"
Kukui lowered his head and mumbled, "What about Tapu Bulu?"
nanu waved his hand dismissively. "Go, go, go—go find it yourselves!"
Lucas took the Z-Ring with a strange look on his face. With the addition of the Mimikium Z, he hadn't expected to collect a second special item so easily.
Playing with the Z-Ring, Lucas asked curiously, "Mr. Nanu, what were you planning to give me originally?"
At this, Nanu perked up, grinning mischievously, "Of course, it would've been an autographed photo of Ula'ula Island's star policeman—me! Or you could pick any Alolan Meowth from the station to take home!"
Lucas & Kukui: "..."
They silently swore never to take another job from Nanu for the rest of their lives.
…
To reach the Ruins of Abundance on Ula'ula Island, they had to pass through Tapu Village, cross the maze-like Haina Desert, and only then would they arrive at the ruins where Tapu Bulu, the island guardian deity, resided.
"If I can finish my training early, I want to go see Mount Lanakila. Alolan Vulpix must be great to pet..."
Passing by Tapu Village, Lucas glanced up at the towering snowy peak in the distance—the tallest mountain in Alola and the future site of Kukui's Pokémon League.
Kukui nodded and smiled. "I'll get you the best mountain guide there is. Alolan Vulpix and Ninetales are quite special, you know—their types are different from those in Kanto. They're Ice and Fairy types now!"
Left to themselves, they might have spent several times as long navigating, but with Kukui's expertise, the two managed to cross the sandstorm-filled Haina Desert in a single afternoon and gradually caught sight of the outline of the Ruins of Abundance.
Once a towering cliff blocked their path, Kukui finally said, "Climb up—once we get over this cliff, we'll see the Ruins of Abundance."
Lucas nodded and released Dragonite, ready to fly up directly.