On the way to the police station, Lumiere mooched another bread breakfast off Volo. His debt was really piling up now—but fortunately, he had thick skin.
Looking at the Rowlet in his arms, full and already getting drowsy again, he tapped its round head with a finger and whispered, "Next time you sneak food, don't do it right in front of people. Remember! Turn the lights off first! Got it!"
"Rowlet!"
Rowlet instantly woke up, nodded, then tilted its head and fell asleep again.
"..."
Volo shot them a speechless glance, said nothing, and instead looked ahead at a deep-blue building with a police emblem hanging outside. Only then did he speak. "We're here."
Following his gaze, Lumiere suddenly felt a bit doubtful. "By the way, is this really okay? I'm seriously of unknown origin right now."
"It's fine. I've got experience."
Volo patted his shoulder and gave him a confident thumbs-up, indicating that everything was under control.
"Huh???"
Lumiere didn't understand at all. What did he mean by "experience"? You could have experience with this kind of thing?
Even though he felt completely lost, he still followed Volo into the police station.
Once inside, Lumiere immediately sensed how different it felt. It was far too quiet, and the color scheme was cold-toned, as if hardly anyone ever came in.
Looking around, the only person there was a Officer Jenny at the front desk, dressed in uniform. She was idly petting a Shinx sleeping on the counter while playing on her phone, looking extremely relaxed.
Which made sense. The Villain Mutual Aid Society handled many everyday problems, significantly reducing the police workload.
Still, reduced didn't mean unnecessary. There were always more urgent matters that only they could handle.
Volo led Lumiere over. Shinx sensed the movement, opened its eyes, and alerted Officer Jenny that someone had arrived.
She snapped back to attention, flipped her phone face-down on the desk, straightened her police cap, and asked gently, "How can I help you?"
Volo stepped up to the counter and pointed back at someone behind him. "My friend here lost his ID and wants to get a replacement."
"Alright." Officer Jenny sat upright and began typing on the keyboard in front of her. "Name, registered home address, ID number."
"Uh… Lumiere. No home address. No ID number either…" Lumiere replied awkwardly.
"???"
Officer Jenny looked up at him, her expression clearly asking whether he was bored out of his mind and had come here with an accomplice just to mess with her.
At that moment, Volo jumped in to smooth things over. "Actually, my friend here has had a really tragic life. His parents died right after he was born, and he was abandoned deep in the mountains. He survived only because a pair of Machamp found him and raised him."
"Unfortunately, the good times didn't last. Those Machamp were captured by passing trainers while protecting him. After that, he grew up alone in the mountains, until I happened to find him and bring him out."
"Damn it!" Lumiere almost cursed out loud. That was exactly the story he had made up earlier!
You didn't even believe it yourself—how did you expect Officer Jenny to buy it?
Sure enough, Officer Jenny raised an eyebrow and stared straight at Volo, looking at him like he was an idiot.
Just when Lumiere thought it was over, Officer Jenny seemed to notice something. She suddenly stood up and exclaimed, "Wait—you're Volo? The Gold Member Volo from the Mutual Aid Society?"
Volo smiled confidently and admitted it without hesitation. "That's right! It's me!"
Lumiere saw the entire scene clearly from the side and exclaimed in shock, "What the hell—why does everyone know you? Is a Gold Member really that big a deal?"
"Of course," Volo replied proudly. "There are fewer than ten Gold Members in the Mutual Aid Society so far—and I just happen to be the most handsome one among them! Do you understand how valuable that is?"
"Damn it!"
As much as Lumiere hated to admit it, Volo probably really was the most handsome among them. In the world of 'Breaking the Shell to Cute,' the only male characters who could compete with him in looks were probably Steven and N. Truly terrifying.
At that moment, Volo suddenly patted Lumiere on the shoulder. "Why are you still standing there? Go inside and take your photo for registration."
"Huh?"
Lumiere snapped back to reality, utterly baffled. That was it? It was settled already? Way too fast.
Volo explained quietly, "I'm a Gold Member, and I've accepted commissions from police stations in other towns. So they tend to trust what I say."
"So basically… they gave you face," Lumiere summarized.
"Pretty much. The rest is on you. Just follow Officer Jenny's instructions. I've got things to do, so I'll head out first. See you if fate allows."
Watching Volo wave and leave the police station with his backpack, Lumiere let out a sigh of relief. It was finally taken care of…
An hour later, he walked out of the station holding a freshly issued ID card. Just as he was about to show it to Rowlet, he realized it was still asleep, so he didn't disturb it.
However, without a phone, he still couldn't accept commissions even with an ID. So for now, he'd have to look for other kinds of work. Once he got a phone, then he could start doing commissions.
The reason he was so fixated on commission work was simple—he didn't want to be tied down by regular jobs. Commissions were more flexible… assuming he could make it work. If he couldn't even afford to feed Rowlet, then he might as well go work in a factory.
Just as he stepped out of the police station doors, someone walked straight toward him, wearing that familiar signature smile, clearly coming for him on purpose.
Before Lumiere could say anything, Volo spoke first. "I just remembered—don't you not have anywhere to go right now?"
"That's true."
Hearing that, Volo suddenly proposed, "Then how about coming with me to Jubilife City? My place is pretty big. One more person won't be a problem at all."
"...What do you mean?"
Lumiere felt like he was picking up on some strange undertones. Like maybe you could just sleep there after getting tired, no problem at all.
Volo chuckled softly. "I just think you two are pretty interesting…"
"..."
Lumiere instinctively took two steps back.
"Of course, the house isn't free," Volo continued. "I'm a merchant—I never do business at a loss. You'll have to help me with something. Long-term, until you can afford to pay rent."
"What kind of thing? Is it normal? Can a kid even handle it?"
Lumiere felt like Volo's words were getting stranger and stranger. He fired off three questions in a row, all while edging back into the police station.
Volo thought for a moment, then replied, "In a certain sense… it's probably not normal."
"Then forget it." Lumiere chickened out. Whether a kid could handle it or not was one thing—he definitely couldn't handle it himself.
Just as he was about to turn around and look for Officer Jenny for help, Volo continued, "I want you to help protect a girl. I'll explain the details after you meet her."
Lumiere stopped in his tracks, uncertain. "Huh? That's it?"
"Of course that's it. What did you think I meant?"
"..."