Chapter 26: She’s My Daughter Now
[Parallel-World Celebrity Series—Episode One: Water-Type Pokémon Master Raina—Stage Two has concluded.]
[Stage Three will begin in twenty-four hours.]
[A new round of random questions will begin at that time.]
[All viewers, please prepare yourselves.]
[VIP Chat Group]
[Ash]: We have to wait another twenty-four hours?!
[Gary]: It’s an intermission. That’s perfectly normal.
[Ash]: But I want to keep watching!
[Gary]: Then complain to the livestream. Telling me won’t accomplish anything.
[Ash]: ...@Livestream! Hey! Could you stop pausing?!
[Screen]: ...
[Ash]: It’s ignoring me.
[Gary]: ...Are you an idiot?
[Misty]: Twenty-four hours... That might be for the best. I need some time to process everything.
[Daisy]: What do you need to process, Misty?
[Misty]: My daughter’s performance in that Gym battle.
[Violet]: Didn’t you say she "wasn’t your daughter"?
[Misty]: ...She’s my daughter now.
[Violet]: That changed quickly.
[Misty]: That’s enough from all of you!
[Lorelei]: Hehe. In that case, I’ll go get some rest too. See everyone tomorrow.
[Ash]: Then I’m going to train!
[Gary]: Train for what?
[Ash]: I’m going to train my Pokémon and then—become even stronger!
[Dawn]: I’m going too! I need to prepare for tomorrow’s Pokémon Contest!
[May]: Then I’m going as well!
The chat group gradually fell silent.
The screen also faded into darkness.
...
Inside a luxurious hotel somewhere in the Alola region...
Asher lay on the bed with the screen floating before him.
"Broadcasting my reincarnations... and showing them in such incredible detail..."
Asher gently swirled the wine in his glass.
"Tch. Why does this increasingly feel like the work of that damn system of mine...? System? System?"
There was no response.
The System had announced that it was entering dormancy after he completed his final reincarnation mission.
Asher rose from the bed and walked toward the window.
"If it keeps exposing everything like this..."
He finished the wine in his glass.
"They’re going to discover me sooner or later. How am I supposed to face them when that happens?"
He remained silent for a while.
Then he gave up thinking about it.
"Forget it. I’m not dealing with that."
He turned around, returned to bed, and pulled the blanket over his head.
"For now, I’ll play dead. As long as I don’t speak in the chat group, no one will know I exist."
...
The Team Rocket trio were currently camping in a forest.
James crouched beside a campfire, using a stick to poke at the Berries roasting among the flames.
"What do you think would happen if we caught that golden Gyarados and presented it to the Boss? What kind of reward would we receive?"
Jessie’s eyes lit up.
"A golden Gyarados? That’s an unbelievably rare treasure!"
"And that Blastoise is incredibly powerful too!" James continued. "If we could catch both of them..."
"You two need to wake up, meowth."
Meowth tapped his stick against the ground.
"That Gyarados is terrifyingly powerful. Even if we found an opportunity, do you really think the three of us could catch it?"
Jessie: "...We could outsmart it."
James: "Right! We’ll use our intelligence!"
"The last time we ’outsmarted’ Pikachu, we got shocked so badly that we couldn’t speak for three days, meowth."
Jessie: "..."
James: "..."
Meowth sighed and resumed poking the Berries.
"Forget it. Let’s fill our stomachs first, meowth."
...
Castelia City, Unova Region.
Elesa had just finished a modeling shoot. Wearing high heels, she walked through the corridor outside the studio with a sandwich in one hand and the floating screen before her.
Her manager hurried over from the side.
"Ms. Elesa, your next shoot begins in fifteen minutes."
"I know."
Elesa took a bite of her sandwich without looking away from the screen.
"Are you watching that livestream?"
"Mm-hmm. It’s currently on an intermission."
Elesa took a sip of milk tea.
"But honestly, Raina looks as though she has considerable potential as a model."
Her manager stared at her.
"...You really can’t go three sentences without bringing up your profession."
...
Eterna City, Sinnoh Region.
Gardenia crouched beside a flower bed outside Eterna Gym, using a small shovel to loosen the soil around a newly planted Berry seedling.
The Turtwig beside her released a soft cry and nudged her hand with its head.
"Do you think I should say something in the VIP Seats too?"
Gardenia tilted her head and considered it.
"Never mind. There are too many people."
Turtwig sighed.
"What is that sigh supposed to mean?!"
"Turtwig."
"I am not making excuses!"
...
Slateport City, Hoenn Region.
Captain Stern stood inside a third-floor exhibition hall of the Oceanic Museum. Before him was an enormous Relicanth fossil.
"Prism Scales... ancient medicines..."
He adjusted his reading glasses, his brow deeply furrowed.
"I’m afraid these clues point toward something far greater than ordinary lost technology."
His assistant approached and handed him a thick collection of documents.
"Captain, here are the records concerning ancient alchemy that you requested."
"Thank you."
Captain Stern opened the documents and ran his finger across the yellowed pages.
"If my theory is correct... the medicinal system Asher possesses may have some connection to the origins of ancient Pokémon."
"Are you suggesting...?"
"It is still only speculation."
Captain Stern closed the documents.
"For now, we should continue watching. Stage Three will begin in twenty-four hours, and it should provide us with more clues."
...
Santalune City, Kalos Region.
Viola sat in front of a computer inside Santalune Gym.
"Is Valerie here?"
Her fingers flew across the keyboard. Displayed on the screen was a chat group titled:
Kalos Gym Leaders Group Chat
[Valerie]: I’m here~ Did you find something interesting again, Viola?
[Viola]: I’m organizing every scene involving Raina from this stage of the livestream. I want to make a compilation showing her growth.
[Ramos]: What’s that young lady busy working on now?
[Viola]: Ramos! I’m making a photographic collection of Raina’s growth!
[Ramos]: Oh. This old man is only watching for the entertainment, but Raina’s Gym battle certainly wasn’t bad.
[Wulfric]: Ramos! You’re here too! Listen to what happened when I searched my freezer for the Ice-type Pokémon food I froze last time. You’ll never guess what I found!
[Ramos]: What was it?
[Wulfric]: An enormous block of ice had formed inside the freezer, and trapped inside it was the Bergmite I lost last year! It was still alive!
[Ramos]: ...How many centuries has it been since you last defrosted that freezer?
[Wulfric]: I thought that Bergmite had disappeared! It turns out it had been living in the freezer for an entire year! It’s even grown twice as fat!
[Valerie]: ...
[Viola]: ...
[Ramos]: ...
[Viola]: Valerie, I’ve sent you the parts I’ve already finished. Next is Raina’s first Mega Evolution. I need to save screenshots from three different angles...
[Valerie]: Viola, do you still have enough storage space on your computer?
[Viola]: I cleared an entire drive specifically for this. There’s plenty.
[Ramos]: ...I truly don’t understand young people these days. This old man is going to bed.
[Valerie]: Good night~