Pokémon: My Parallel World Daughters Revealed

The video continued playing.

Cynthia stood outside the entrance to the Sinnoh League headquarters as the car behind her drove away.

She wore a pale-gray overcoat and carried a travel bag in one hand. The wind had blown her hair slightly out of place.

This business trip had forced her to endure harsh conditions and work overtime for several days in a row. At that moment, all she wanted was to pick up Tiana, return home, and soak in a hot bath.

She pushed open the doors to the League headquarters.

The receptionist at the front desk looked as though she had just seen her savior.

"Champion Cynthia! You’re finally back!"

Cynthia’s footsteps halted.

The last time the receptionist had spoken to her in that tone was when Tiana brought Garchomp into the conference room.

"...Has Tiana caused trouble again over the past few days?"

The receptionist’s smile froze.

Cynthia understood.

She took a deep breath and pushed open the conference-room door.

Inside, Flint was sprawled across the table, his eyes dull and lifeless.

Lucian sat in a corner with several documents spread out before him, but his entire body radiated an aura of complete resignation.

Aaron was huddled beside the window. When he saw Cynthia enter, tears actually welled up in his eyes.

"Cynthia."

Aaron’s voice trembled.

"You’re back."

"...I was only gone for a few days. How did all of you end up like this?"

"A few days?!"

Flint shot to his feet, sending documents scattering across the floor.

"Do you have any idea how we survived those days?!"

Flint began counting on his fingers.

"On the first day, Tiana brought Gible to challenge me. I let Infernape battle her and won. She didn’t cry or anything—she merely poured ten bottles of horseradish sauce into Infernape’s lunch. Ten bottles!"

"Infernape breathed fire for the entire afternoon," Aaron added. "Even the smoke coming from its mouth was red."

Flint continued:

"On the second day, for some reason, she became fixated on Lucian’s Bronzong. She said that since Bronzong was so round, it should be possible to roll it like a ball."

Lucian adjusted his glasses.

"She made Gible chase Bronzong for two entire hours. Now, whenever Bronzong hears Gible’s cry, it hides inside its Poké Ball. I can’t even persuade it to come out anymore."

Aaron continued:

"Then, on the third day, she came to me and asked whether my Wurmple could use its silk to seal the conference-room door shut."

"...And you let her try?" Cynthia asked.

"Of course I refused! But she said that if I didn’t let her try, she would have Salamence take Wurmple flying so it could experience flight ahead of schedule. My Wurmple ended up developing a fear of heights!"

Flint pointed outside the window.

"And a few days ago, she made Salamence land on the statue of Dialga! There are still claw marks on the statue’s head! The League’s maintenance department says repairs will take at least two weeks."

Cynthia fell silent for a moment.

"...Where exactly did Tiana’s Salamence come from?"

Three pairs of eyes simultaneously turned toward her.

"You’re her mother, and you’re asking us?" Flint replied.

"I assumed my husband had merely lent it to her. But judging by how readily it accompanies her in causing trouble, that probably isn’t the case."

Lucian adjusted his glasses.

"Then we have no idea. You would be better off asking Asher."

Cynthia rubbed the space between her eyebrows.

"I’ll ask him. Where is Tiana now?"

Flint cleared his throat.

"Well... we paid a considerable price to convince Asher to take her away."

"What price?"

"I agreed to cover three days of his League duty, Lucian agreed to organize a month’s worth of ancient-text archives for him, and Aaron gave him his entire annual leave."

Flint finished counting on his fingers.

"Then there was Bertha. She agreed to help him search for some kind of stone in a mine near Eterna City."

Cynthia took a deep breath, turned around, and walked out of the conference room.

[Regular-Seat Chat Group]

"The entire Elite Four has been wiped out."

"Looking at it this way, Bertha was the most dignified one. She exchanged a single stone for her safety."

"Sinnoh Elite Four: We’ve seen everything imaginable. Tiana: You definitely haven’t seen this."

[VIP Chat Group]

[Diantha]: Hahahaha! How interesting. Are all four members of the Sinnoh Elite Four truly helpless against Tiana?

[Aaron]: We really are. Judging by the methods she used in the video, Tiana thoroughly understood every one of our weaknesses.

[Lucian]: After comparing myself with my parallel-world counterpart, I suddenly feel that my present life is quite pleasant.

[Bertha]: Hehehe. She’s only a child. It’s perfectly normal for her to be a little troublesome.

[Professor Carolina]: Exactly. The more I watch her, the more I like her. She’s identical to little Cynthia at that age~

[Cynthia]: Grandma~

[Professor Carolina]: All right, all right. This old woman won’t say anything more.

[Brock]: Looking at it this way, Asher must be her accomplice.

[Ash]: Huh? What does this have to do with Asher?

[Gary]: He gave her that Salamence, and he never stopped Tiana from doing any of those things.

[Diantha]: So, which of her parents did Tiana inherit this personality from? @Asher @Cynthia

[Cynthia]: ...

[Steven]: Wherever Brother Asher goes, I will stand beside him. I support Brother Asher in this matter!

[Gary]: Good grief. As expected of his number-one hater—you appeared at the first possible opportunity.

[Brock]: Why isn’t Asher saying anything again?

[Iris]: Asher was muted just now.

[Wallace]: I wonder what Asher will do to Steven once his mute ends. It’s so difficult to guess~

[Gary]: Forget about that for now. Let’s continue watching.

The video continued playing.

Inside a luxurious restaurant—

Tiana sat on a chair with her short legs dangling in the air and swinging back and forth. An enormous glass of ice cream stood before her.

Gible lay on the table with its face buried inside a smaller cup, its tail swaying from side to side.

Asher sat opposite them, holding a cup of black tea and looking perfectly relaxed.

"Daddy, this ice cream is delicious."

"Then eat as much as you like. You have another mission this afternoon."

"What mission?"

"Didn’t Uncle Aaron’s Wurmple enjoy flying yesterday? You can take it flying again this afternoon."

Tiana’s eyes lit up.

"Okay!"

Cynthia stopped behind Asher with her arms crossed.

"Honey."

The teacup in Asher’s hand paused.

Then he placed it down with exceptional composure and turned toward Cynthia, his smile gentle and candid.

"Darling, you’re back. You must have worked hard. Have you eaten yet? Would you like some black tea first?"

"No."

Cynthia pulled out a chair and sat down.

"First, explain where Tiana’s Salamence came from."

"Oh, that."

Asher rubbed his nose.

"Tiana said she wanted a larger Dragon-type Pokémon, so I took her to look around a Pokémon Day Care."

"You visited a Pokémon Day Care and somehow came away with a Salamence?"

"Fate is a difficult thing to explain."

Cynthia took a deep breath.

"What kind of Pokémon Day Care sells a Pokémon on Salamence’s level? Couldn’t the two of you at least invent a more believable excuse?"

Asher shrugged.

"All right. I gave Salamence to Tiana."

"...Honey, I don’t object to you giving Tiana a Salamence, but wasn’t it too soon? Tiana has almost turned the entire League headquarters upside down!"

"Darling, you can’t look at it that way."

Asher took another sip of black tea.

"In my opinion, their repetitive daily lives must be terribly boring. I merely added a little excitement for them."

Cynthia fell silent again.

She had initially wondered where Tiana had learned so many different ways to torment people.

Now the mystery had finally been solved.

...

TL: Here’s the fifth extra Chapter—now get lost! Hmph. From now on, 100 stones will only get you 2 extra Chapters, you little gremlins!