"Eh?"
By the time Lillie reacted, she could only see Mamen's back as he walked away.
She hadn't even thanked him properly. With a soft sigh, Lillie turned and waved at Mizuki.
"I'm over here, Mizuki!"
"Whew— why did you suddenly run so far?"
Mizuki jogged over, a hand over her chest in concern.
She knew very well that Lillie wasn't a Trainer.
"Sorry, Nebby suddenly floated out again."
"Hmph, I knew it. Definitely this little rascal."
Mizuki crouched slightly and poked Nebby's cheek. This mischievous little thing loved slipping out to wander around.
Nebby puffed up his face in protest, glaring at Mizuki angrily.
"Oh? You dare glare at me? Do you still want candy?"
Mizuki planted her hands on her hips, openly threatening the little nebula.
"N-Moh! Moh!"
"Good, good! That's a kid who understands. Stick with me— food and treats all day long!"
Mizuki nodded with satisfaction. Of course, she had absolutely no idea what Nebby had actually said.
Lillie gave an awkward but polite smile. She was pretty sure Nebby had just gone "bleh bleh bleh," not whatever Mizuki thought it meant.
But that wasn't something she should point out.
"By the way, Lillie, you managed to find Nebby by yourself this time?" Mizuki asked curiously.
She knew very well that when Nebby ran off, Lillie usually struggled to find it alone.
"No, a very gentle boy found Nebby."
"Oh?"
Mizuki's voice suddenly jumped several pitches.
"It's not what you're thinking."
Lillie shot Mizuki a light glare. Although they had only known each other for a few days, they already felt like close sisters.
She didn't know why, but she felt so comfortable around Mizuki — this was exactly the kind of friend she had always longed for.
…
Elsewhere, Mamen was walking toward the villa he had bought.
Since he would be staying in the Alola region for a while, he needed a temporary residence.
It wasn't far from the beach — about ten minutes from the coastal area.
But…
"Hm?"
Mamen looked toward a nearby training field. A girl seemed to be doing special training inside.
That wasn't strange. What was strange was that Mamen found her face familiar.
He thought for a moment — after all, being reincarnated for sixteen years made some memories a bit fuzzy.
"What is she doing here?" he raised a brow.
She wore a long white-and-pink fitted dress that outlined her graceful figure, with a white sash tied around her slender waist.
Her features were exquisite, her fair skin almost glowing under the sun. Luxurious golden hair flowed behind her.
She was a very beautiful girl — and she was Caitlin!
The owner of the Battle Castle during the Platinum era, and later, in Black/White, the Psychic-type Elite Four member of Unova.
An elegant sleeping beauty with a hint of arrogance, born into a prestigious Sinnoh family. Because her psychic power was enormous and hard to control, losing a battle would cause her emotions to fluctuate and trigger a psychic rampage, causing huge destruction.
This problem even got her banned from League competitions, which was why in Platinum, despite being the true owner of the Battle Castle, the player battled her butler Darach instead.
Later, once she gained control over her emotions, she went alone to Unova to train — and quickly rose to become part of the Elite Four.
It was worth mentioning that Caitlin was extremely wealthy. In the games, she openly says she has villas all over the world — one of which she lets her best friend Cynthia use.
"Interesting."
Mamen thought for a moment, then walked toward Caitlin out of curiosity.
She was currently helping a Kirlia practice Psychic.
Psychic was a powerful and practical special attack move. For Kirlia to already know it, that meant either its level was high or it had learned it through a TM.
TMs were very useful items — just use one and a Pokémon could instantly learn a move.
Of course, it was a shortcut. Even without a TM, and even if Kirlia wasn't a high enough level, if another Pokémon taught it the move, Kirlia could eventually learn Psychic on its own.
That method just took time.
But if one had money, buying a TM was simpler and faster.
And the price wasn't cheap — especially for strong and practical moves like Psychic.
Caitlin noticed Mamen approaching, but didn't pay him any mind, continuing Kirlia's special training.
Her method was simple — Kirlia repeatedly used Psychic on her other Pokémon, a Metagross.
This was the common choice for trainers without a sparring partner.
"The results are really mediocre…" Caitlin's elegant brows slowly furrowed. She was starting to feel irritated, blue psychic light flickering in her eyes.
But she quickly caught herself, taking deep breaths to suppress her rising frustration.
"If your training doesn't feel effective, how about I spar with you instead?"
Caitlin turned her head upon hearing Mamen's voice.
"Solo training is never as good as real battle training, don't you agree?"
Mamen smirked slightly and lifted a Poké Ball as a gesture.
"You have a point."
Caitlin understood that well and examined the unfamiliar boy.
"But if it ends up being a boring battle, I will get very angry."
"Don't worry, beautiful lady. I'll make sure you enjoy it."
Mamen's smile slowly turned wicked.
And at that moment, tendrils of dark purple mist rose behind him, accompanied by chilling "jiejiejie" laughter.
"???"
Caitlin tilted her head, staring blankly at Mamen — who now looked exactly like some dark final boss.
What… what happened to make him look like that?
"Gengar!! Would you CUT IT OUT already!!"
Mamen's face twitched as he looked at the purple-black aura surrounding him, completely unable to hold his composure.
Hearing his voice, the chubby gray-black shadow-creature poked halfway out of Mamen's shadow, blinking innocently.
"Jie? (You don't like the dramatic effects?)"
Mamen's eye twitched again.
He had no idea where this fat ghost had learned this nonsense. It definitely had been binge-watching dramas behind his back.
And specifically the kind where a hero fights a demon king.