After seeing that person's appearance, Lumiere was as shocked as one could possibly be!
He couldn't figure out why Volo would be here. That outfit and that smile—there was no mistake, it was definitely him! Could this place be the Hisui region?
Volo was a direct descendant of the ancient Sinnoh people, and also the ancestor of Sinnoh Champion Cynthia, nicknamed "Cabbage Bro."
On top of that, he had another identity—the final boss of Pokémon Legends: Arceus!
He had hidden behind the scenes, plotting everything, concealing his ambitions beneath a kind and friendly exterior, fooling Akari and the others completely.
But after losing his composure at the Sinnoh Temple, he vanished without a trace, and no one knew where he went.
"It's over… Hisui region… I'm not some super Hisui native. I don't have their ability to wrestle Pokémon barehanded."
Lumiere felt numb. Of all the regions he could've transmigrated to, why did it have to be such a dangerous one…
But he couldn't give up. A chance to transmigrate had to be seized properly. Since he couldn't become a super Hisui native, then he'd train his body to the absolute limit!
If a Pokémon refused to be captured, he'd just keep pelting it with mud balls until it submitted!
Just as he was about to make some terrifying resolution, Togepi beside him seemed to sense a familiar presence. It popped out of its shell and happily ran toward Volo.
"Togepi~"
Volo reached out and caught the jumping Togepi, then carefully examined it and softly asked, "Looks like you were hurt a bit. Did you heal yourself with Life Dew?"
"Togepi~" Togepi smiled and waved its hand.
Lumiere watched this entire scene, and for the moment, set aside his earlier thoughts, feeling a bit regretful.
So Togepi belonged to Volo. Looks like finding a little sister for Rowlet would have to wait.
At this moment, Volo seemed to notice Lumiere. After placing Togepi on his shoulder, he walked over and asked gently, "Were you the one who helped stop them?"
"Uh… I guess you could say that."
Lumiere felt a little nervous. He knew full well that Volo wasn't a good person. Some things were fine if you didn't know them—but once you did, you could never look at them the same way again.
Of course, that was only part of the reason. The main reason was that this guy was just too handsome—pretty enough to be mistaken for a woman. No wonder so many people called Cynthia their wife; this face really did run in the family!
"Damn it, why do I suddenly feel defeated…"
Lumiere's own looks weren't bad, but compared to Volo, he seemed to fall just a tiny bit short—specifically in temperament. In that regard, he really couldn't compete.
Volo was the type who, even if you knew he wasn't a good person, would still strike you at first glance as a gentle, friendly, smiley big brother next door—someone you could completely trust.
Meanwhile, Lumiere was the type where you knew he was a good person, but aside from being a bit handsome, he left no strong impression at first glance. That was the difference in presence—no contest at all.
Noticing Lumiere's somewhat strange gaze, a hint of confusion flashed through Volo's eyes. His gaze then fell on Rowlet in Lumiere's arms, and after a brief observation, he said in surprise, "Is that a Rowlet? Why is it wearing clothes like a Snorlax?"
"For the sake of excitement, I decided to go all the way," Lumiere replied.
"I see…" Volo touched his chin and looked at Rowlet with interest, as if he had discovered something amusing.
"Please stop staring… go play with your Giratina already…" Lumiere screamed internally, afraid he might catch Volo's attention.
Fortunately, after staring at Rowlet's blank expression for a few seconds, Volo withdrew his gaze.
He then turned toward Drifloon in the sky and said in a gentle voice mixed with slight reproach, "You flew way too fast. I ended up chasing you all the way here from the Valley Windworks."
Hearing this, Drifloon looked like a child who had made a mistake, lowering its head and staying perfectly still.
Lumiere was slightly stunned. Wasn't the Valley Windworks a location in the Sinnoh region? Did it already exist during the Hisui era?
Seeing Lumiere's confusion, Volo smiled and explained, "We were playing with it originally, but it suddenly carried Togepi away. Then a gust of wind came up. My Togepi is afraid of heights, so I was worried it might fall. Thankfully, we managed to find it."
"Is Drifloon also your Pokémon?" Lumiere asked curiously. From what he remembered, the only Ghost-type Pokémon in Volo's team was Spiritomb—there wasn't a Drifloon.
Volo immediately explained, "No, this child is a wild Pokémon without a trainer. I only went to play with it because I accepted a commission."
"A commission?"
"Yes. It was a request from a little girl in Floaroma Town. She once saved a Drifloon near the Valley Windworks after it was injured when its string snapped. Those pink heart decorations were remade for it by her."
"After that, every Friday she would go to the Windworks to play with this Drifloon. But she was injured recently and couldn't go anymore, so she used her allowance to post a commission asking someone to play with Drifloon on Friday evenings."
"Although the reward wasn't much, I still decided to help. After all, don't you think this kind of special bond between humans and Pokémon is wonderful?"
Hearing this, Lumiere finally understood. No wonder the hearts were pink—that was the reason. So Drifloon really did just want someone to play with it. He had misunderstood it.
However, at that moment, Lumiere suddenly snapped back to his senses and realized that Volo had unknowingly stepped very close, wearing a sly smile. The distance between them was less than ten centimeters.
"!!!"
Lumiere was startled and hurriedly hugged Rowlet while retreating several steps back, angrily shouting, "What are you doing?!"
Volo smiled and struck his classic guiding pose, saying, "I don't know why, but I feel like you two are very interesting as well. I'm someone who's full of curiosity about many things—could I get to know you a bit better?"
By "you two," he meant Lumiere and Rowlet.
"It's over. The villain has taken an interest in me…" Lumiere only wanted to run now. He knew that with his own intellect, there was no way he could outplay Volo.
It was like Char Aznable meeting Kamille Bidan—he'd be schemed against from start to finish, completely powerless, and in the end only become part of a famous painting…
At this moment, Volo accidentally noticed the large bump on Lumiere's head and suddenly asked, "You seem to be injured?"
"Yes. I got hit on the head by Togepi falling from the sky. I can't remember a lot of things right now—I've even forgotten the way out of here."
Lumiere's mind reacted instantly. He seized the opportunity and pretended to have amnesia, hoping Volo would take him out. As long as he could get into a town, maybe he'd be able to shake him off!
Hearing this, Volo immediately showed an apologetic expression and said, "Then I'm really sorry about that. I'll take you out of the Floaroma Meadow and to the town hospital. I'll cover the medical expenses."
"Plan successful!" Lumiere kept his expression unchanged, but inside, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
"Rowlet?"
Rowlet looked up at him, tilting its head with a puzzled expression…