Pokémon: My Parallel World Daughters Revealed

[System Notice: Dawn’s punishment must be carried out within twenty-four hours. Dawn and Asher, please arrange the time and location of the photoshoot yourselves.]

[Dawn]: Um... Mr. Asher, where do you think would be a good place to take the photos?

[Asher]: I... ahem. I think Lake Verity near your home in Twinleaf Town would be perfect. The scenery is beautiful, and there usually aren’t many people around.

[Dawn]: Lake Verity? It really would be a good place for photos... But Mr. Asher, how do you know I live in Twinleaf Town? Σ(⊙▽⊙）

[Asher]: ...Lucky guess.

[Steven]: Hahahahahahaha! A "guess"! Brother Asher chose that word beautifully! With a single "guess," he completely brushed aside the fact that he secretly investigated where a young girl lives!

[Asher]: Steven, what are you talking about? What do you mean, "secretly investigated"? Do I look like that kind of person?

[Misty]: Then explain how you knew Dawn lives in Twinleaf Town.

[Asher]: Well... can I explain it to you after I get back?

[Cynthia]: Other questions can wait. This one cannot. You need to explain it right now.

[Elesa]: Exactly. Hurry up and explain yourself. The three of us have been watching you this whole time, and you still thought you could play dead and bluff your way through this?

[Asher]: Fine. Since you insist on asking, I’ll stop pretending and lay my cards on the table. The truth is, I’ve been a die-hard Dawn fan from the very beginning!

[Dawn]: ...Huh?

[Johanna]: ...What?

[Steven]: Hahaha! I knew it! Brother Asher’s answer never disappoints!

[May]: Mr. Asher is actually a Dawn fan?! Σ(⊙▽⊙）

[Asher]: Yep. I’ve followed her ever since her very first Pokémon Contest. I’ve watched every single competition she’s entered. I was even there in person for her performance in Hearthome City, where she combined Bubble Beam and Mirror Coat.

[Asher]: The spread angle of Bubble Beam was adjusted extremely well, and the timing of Mirror Coat was nearly perfect. Which is why I believe Miss Dawn is an exceptionally gifted Pokémon Coordinator!

[Dawn]: G-gifted is a bit much... I-I’m really not... (⁄⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄⁄)

[Piplup]: Piplup, piplup! (Dawn’s blushing! She’s blushing!)

[Dawn]: Piplup, don’t jump in at a time like this!

[Diantha]: @Misty @Cynthia @Elesa, you three are really letting him off that easily? No punishment?

[Cynthia]: ...Darling has a legitimate reason this time, so we’ll let it go for now.

[Elesa]: Mm. If he really has been following her since the beginning, then there isn’t much we can say about that.

[Misty]: But darling, could you please just explain things clearly from the start in the future? Making us chase you down for answers every single time is exhausting.

[Asher]: All right, all right. I’ll try from now on.

[Brock]: Damn it! He was clearly one step away from disaster, yet he still found the perfect excuse to escape—and even managed to make the girl herself blush in the process!

[Brock]: This level of skill has already surpassed ordinary romantic technique! This is strategic-class emotional intelligence! A summit I could spend my entire life climbing and never reach! Mr. Asher! Please! Accept me as your disciple! I’ll do anything!

[Max]: Seriously. Brock’s old habits are acting up again.

[Croagunk]: Croagunk. (Poison Jab.)

[Brock]: Numb... I’m numb... Why...? I only wanted to learn...

Just as the chat descended into complete chaos, another System notification appeared.

[System Notice: Punishment execution will begin in ten minutes. Contestant Dawn, please designate the location and photographer.]

In the real world.

"All right."

Dawn rapidly tapped the screen several times.

"Location—Lake Verity!"

"Photographer—Mr. Asher!"

"Confirm, confirm, confirm!"

[Teleportation beginning.]

The instant a pillar of white light rose around Dawn, Piplup was gently pushed away by an invisible force.

The little penguin rolled halfway across the grass before finally stopping.

It lifted its head and saw its Trainer waving at it from inside the pillar of light.

"Piplup, wait here until I come back!"

Before Dawn had even finished speaking—

She vanished into thin air along with the pillar of light.

Piplup plopped down onto the grass.

It crossed both flippers over its chest and let out an extremely displeased—

"Piplup."

Lake Verity.

When the white light faded, Dawn found herself standing on a wooden pier beside the lake.

A gentle breeze blew across the water, carrying with it the crisp, refreshing scents of grass and freshwater.

"Oh, right. I should fix my hair first..."

Dawn hurriedly pulled a small mirror from her bag and began carefully tidying her hair while looking into it.

"You look pretty good like that already."

A voice suddenly came from the opposite end of the pier.

Dawn spun around.

Asher was leaning casually against the wooden railing.

He wore a dark-gray short-sleeved shirt, with his sunglasses pushed up onto his forehead.

His expression was completely relaxed, as though he had already been waiting there for quite some time.

Dawn was just about to raise a hand and greet him—

When an incredibly unfamiliar yet overwhelmingly intense physical reaction suddenly struck her.

Thump!

Her heartbeat abruptly accelerated.

Then it began pounding wildly inside her chest.

At the same time, the temperature of her cheeks skyrocketed.

Dawn pressed one hand against her chest and stared wide-eyed.

What’s happening?

This was clearly the first time she had ever met Asher in person.

When they had spoken in the chat before, she hadn’t felt anything strange at all.

So why had everything changed the instant she saw him face-to-face?

[VIP Chat Group]

[Iris]: Wait, wait, wait! Why did Dawn suddenly start blushing?!

[May]: And that’s a really obvious blush! It went all the way from her cheeks to the tips of her ears! I can practically feel the heat through the screen!

[Diantha]: That reaction feels strangely familiar... When I danced with Asher, my heart suddenly started racing too, and I couldn’t control it at all. I always assumed it was a side effect caused by the System controlling my body.

[Lorelei]: But the System isn’t controlling Dawn’s body this time. It simply teleported the two of them to the same location.

[Wallace]: Now this is interesting. Could Asher have some kind of unusual aura or field around him?

[Cynthia]: @Asher, darling, what exactly is going on here?

[Elesa]: Damn it. He must be deliberately ignoring the chat while he has the chance.

[Misty]: @Asher, you’d better explain yourself properly when you get back.

Beside Lake Verity.

Dawn was experiencing one of the most awkward moments of her life.

She tried to say something to break the bizarre atmosphere.

But when she opened her mouth—

She suddenly had no idea what to say.

"M-Mr. Asher... I-I..."

"Just call me Asher."

Asher looked at Dawn, whose face was so red she practically looked ready to start steaming.

He didn’t seem bothered in the slightest.

Instead, he gave her a bright smile.

"Come on."

"The lighting is perfect right now. Let’s head down by the lakeside and test a few angles first."

The two had barely found their first shooting location beside the lake when—

A camera roughly the size of a palm suddenly materialized in front of Asher.

Immediately afterward, an explanation appeared on the screen.

[Dress-Up Camera: Insert a photograph of an outfit into the slot at the bottom of the camera. The camera can then directly replace the subject’s current clothing with the corresponding outfit.]

[VIP Chat Group]

[Wallace]: A camera that can instantly change someone’s clothes just by taking a picture?! That technology is ridiculous!

[Valerie]: As a fashion designer, I have to say—this item is practically a divine invention! Whenever I design a new outfit, I could simply insert the design into the camera and immediately see how it looks on a model. I’d never have to stay up all night rushing to make another sample garment!

[Elesa]: I want one too, but no matter how I look at it, this definitely doesn’t seem like something our world could mass-produce.

[Clemont]: It directly converts a two-dimensional image into a three-dimensional physical object, and does so instantaneously without physical contact. Doesn’t that completely violate the law of conservation of matter?!

[Professor Sycamore]: It really is a System-provided item. As expected, it’s anything but ordinary.

...

TL: Thanks, SacredLoneWolf, for the membership!