Though it was technically the same person, battling 'Lillie' gave Haru an entirely different kind of thrill.
Of course, the Clefable container was exactly the same, but once she put on Lillie's clothes and adopted her voice, Haru couldn't help but feel a subtle sense of contrast.
It had nothing to do with physical sensations—this was a purely mental rush.
Lillie—damn it, standing right in front of him was Lillie!
And even more importantly, the person in front of him knew she was playing the role of "Lillie" while battling him! That alone cranked the buff to the max.
If a battle team that stacked evasion boosts was called a "Minimize Team," then Haru's current state was basically a "Maximize Team"—stacking accuracy boosts instead.
Naturally, Lusamine didn't miss the subtle change in Haru. Seeing that her performance had worked so well, she got even more into it.
"Haru, you really do prefer me as Lillie over Lusamine, don't you?"
"..."
Haru was speechless.
Oh god, what kind of loaded question was that?
Sure, she looked like Lillie right now, but fundamentally she was still Lusamine!
If he answered yes, that would be too cruel.
But if he answered no… how on earth was he supposed to explain the obvious excitement he was showing?
Thankfully, Lusamine didn't press the issue—she had only brought it up in passing before throwing herself back into the very suggestive joy of cosplay.
"Hmph, let's see if you can handle this wave of passion! Lillie!"
Under her relentless assault, Haru's Cannon Warrior let out a defiant roar.
Well, at least he'd secretly left Mew with the real Lillie to protect her. If he dragged this out just a bit longer… it should be fine, right?
—
Meanwhile, a Lapras glided into the port at Aether Paradise, riding the sea breeze.
The moment the Pokémon came to a stop, a young girl hurriedly jumped down from its back.
She had short blue hair and wore a sleeveless white top, a fishing rod still clutched in her hand.
The Alolan sun cast a golden glow over her figure, making her seem even more vibrant and full of life.
But… there wasn't even a hint of the usual contentment you'd expect from a dedicated fisher—her face was filled with nothing but worry.
As luck would have it, someone at the port recognized her and came over. "Lana, what brings you here?"
"Miss Wicke, I caught an injured Dratini while fishing out at sea today. I did what I could with my healing supplies, but it's still in bad shape."
"It just so happened that we were near Aether Paradise, so I came here hoping you could help."
As she spoke, Lana carefully cradled a tiny Dratini in her arms. The little dragon was in terrible condition, barely able to open its eyes—only the faint trembling of its tail proved it was still alive.
Though Lana looked like an ordinary fisher at first glance, she also held the title of Trial Captain of Akala Island.
According to the Alolan Island Challenge tradition, each island had one Island Kahuna, as well as several Trial Captains.
These Captains were responsible for guiding challengers through the Trial process.
Captains had to be under twenty years old and have completed the Island Challenge themselves. Moreover, they needed to be chosen by the Island Kahuna to officially take the role.
In short, anyone who became a Captain was already considered a talented young Trainer.
The only problem was… this talented young girl was an absolute fishing maniac. If she wasn't fishing, she was on her way to fish—and often ended up reeling in all sorts of oddities.
And now, she'd somehow managed to hook a baby pseudo-legendary Pokémon.
Wicke glanced at the worried girl and gently took the Dratini.
"Let me take a look."
As an Aether Foundation branch chief, Wicke was quite knowledgeable about Pokémon care—treating a Dratini shouldn't have been an issue.
But… the moment she actually examined the dripping wet Pokémon, her brow furrowed deeply.
She couldn't figure out what was wrong.
Yes, the Dratini was extremely weak, seemingly on the brink of death—but it had no visible injuries. It didn't seem to be sick or suffering from internal trauma either.
"Take it to the emergency room first. I'll need to file a request with the president—some of the necessary equipment is locked down, and we'll need her approval to use it."
"No—there's no time! I'll message her right now."
Wicke hurried toward the emergency room as she spoke.
But… this time, the usually reliable president didn't reply right away.
Though Wicke was technically on the same level as Faba within the Foundation, she was nothing like him. She truly loved Pokémon with all her heart.
There was no way she could just stand by and watch a Dratini die.
Seeing that the president hadn't responded, Lana grew even more anxious.
"What do we do now?"
"I'll go find her in person. I think I saw her heading toward her private quarters a moment ago—I'll go there."
"I'm coming with you!" Lana said quickly.
The two sprang into action. After finding an Aether staff member to rush the Dratini to emergency care, they immediately headed toward Lusamine's estate.
Strangely enough, they encountered quite a few obstacles along the way.
Fortunately, Wicke's authority as a branch chief let her handle most of the guards.
As for the few who refused to listen—well, Lana dealt with those herself.
At last, the two of them reached Lusamine's front door.
"We're going in! There's no time to waste."
Without hesitation, Lana shoved the door open—
And the next instant—
A wild Pokémon battle scene exploded before their eyes!
And the combatants were… Haru and Lillie? Wait—no, that height was all wrong!
Plus, after a bit of tussling, Haru had already stripped away parts of Lusamine's disguise. Within seconds, Wicke finally grasped what she was seeing.
Lusamine… had actually dressed up as Lillie!
"President, you—!"
Wicke was stunned. Lana, standing beside her, was equally speechless.