Ace and Green sat on the sofa, smiling, eating snacks, and sipping black tea while chatting about interesting things that had happened since they started their vacation.
Meanwhile, in a surveillance room far away, Lusamine silently watched Ace and Green on the screen. With a stern face, she spoke calmly: "Have they been investigated?"
"We've already sent people to investigate. The wreckage of Ultra Beast UB03 has been found."
A woman dressed as a secretary handed a folder to Lusamine and said, "Based on the inspection results from the wreckage, it can be confirmed that Ultra Beast UB03's cause of death was decapitation in a single blow. As for other injuries, they cannot be determined due to excessive scavenging."
"What a pity. Such a beautiful existence, buried in the sea like this, it's truly unsightly."
Lusamine glanced at the file, then tossed it to the secretary, stating calmly, "So, can we determine that the other party wasn't lying?"
"Cannot be determined."
The secretary put the file away and calmly narrated, "Based on the fatal wound, we cannot determine the Pokémon that made the kill. We can only say that the other party has little suspicion, but the remaining possibility is that they possess terrifying strength. From this perspective, we can only default to believing what they said is the truth."
"Heh, how interesting."
Lusamine smiled, then pushed open the door of the surveillance room.
"Then let me go and meet these two people."
With that, Lusamine adjusted her demeanor and slowly walked towards the reception room.
...
In the reception room, Ace and Green exchanged conversation leisurely, seemingly unaware of anything.
However, these two, who had grown up struggling in harsh reality, noticed that something was amiss almost immediately upon entering.
The subsequent acting between them was practically flawless.
Just as the two were running out of things to talk about, there was a knock on the reception room door, and Lusamine finally arrived.
"I apologize for the delay."
Lusamine had a wide smile on her face, and her expression was exceptionally sincere. If Ace and Green hadn't already sensed that something was off, they might have been fooled by her facade.
"It's alright, Big Sister Lusamine. I heard you're the President of the Aether Foundation."
Green said with a smiling face, "It's truly amazing that you have such a large enterprise at such a young age. I must learn from you."
"Oh my, such sweet talk."
Lusamine's smile was radiant. "But I'm not young anymore, you know, I'm already a mother of two children."
"Really? I can't tell at all!"
Green looked incredulous. "You look like you're only in your twenties, Big Sister."
"Hehe, I just take good care of myself."
"Do you have any secrets?"
"Well, about that..."
Soon, Green and Lusamine started a lively conversation, leaving Ace completely unable to interject.
But that was fine. While Ace quietly listened to the two women discussing beauty and skincare tips, he was also silently perceiving his surroundings.
Ace could sense that Gengar had arrived near them about three minutes before Lusamine entered.
Gengar had already finished scouting the internal structure of the Aether Paradise and had now returned to Ace's shadow via the shadows.
Ace naturally crossed his legs, and his hand silently scratched his back as if he had an itch.
A trace of Aura converged on his fingers, making contact with Gengar through the shadow.
Soon, Gengar's memories were transmitted to Ace's mind via the Aura.
Ace quickly skimmed through Gengar's memories and discovered that the internal structure of the Aether Paradise was indeed quite complex, and the things Ace was particularly concerned about were mostly on the second basement level of the Aether Paradise.
"Just as I expected, everything is there."
Ace thought silently, "To complete all the side quests, a trip down to the Aether Paradise's underground is necessary."
"Ace."
Just as Ace was quietly reviewing the memories, Green tugged on his arm, bringing Ace back to his senses.
"The clothes I'm wearing are the ones you gave me, right?"
Green smiled at Ace, letting Ace know the topic she wanted him to answer.
"Yes. I thought they looked good at the time, so I bought a set."
Ace smiled faintly, inwardly complaining, Weren't we just talking about beauty tips? Why are we talking about fashion now?
Ace's answer made Lusamine laugh, and she complimented Ace on his good taste.
They continued to talk about a series of female-related topics for almost an hour. If not for the occasional question directed at Ace, he estimated he would have fallen asleep listening.
When the conversation was winding down, Lusamine naturally switched the topic, steering the conversation towards Xurkitree.
She began asking Ace and Green about the situation after Xurkitree's arrival.
Ace and Green gathered their wits, coordinating with each other to consistently state that they had nothing to do with it, and that Xurkitree was already dead when they saw it.
As for the Pokémon that killed Xurkitree, Ace deliberately guided the conversation toward Tapu Lele.
This wasn't an intentional move to frame Tapu Lele, but rather because if Xurkitree had encountered Tapu Lele, as the guardian deity of Akala Island, Tapu Lele would absolutely repel or kill Ultra Beasts like Xurkitree.
Therefore, pinning the event on Tapu Lele was logical, reasonable, and left no room for error.
After all, unless Lusamine personally went to Tapu Lele for verification, there would be no proof.
As for going to Tapu Lele for verification?
Please, Ace wasn't looking down on Lusamine, but even the Island Kahunas or Island Queens who had good relations with Tapu Lele might not be acknowledged by it, let alone Lusamine and members of the Aether Foundation.
Through a series of purposeful questions, Ace and Green's answers were essentially flawless, though they also intentionally left some ambiguities.
After all, if the answers were truly too perfect, it might raise suspicion about whether the other party was lying.
With the questions finished, Lusamine had no way to continue the interrogation and could only lead the conversation to other topics, continuing to chat with Green about topics of interest to women.
By the time all the topics were exhausted, Lusamine and Green had become a pair of close girlfriends who talked about everything.
Of course, that was just on the surface.
What their relationship would be like in private would have to wait for time to tell.
After touring the surface facilities of the Aether Paradise and finishing the line of questioning, Ace and Green appropriately suggested leaving.
Lusamine was very considerate and escorted Ace and Green to the Aether Paradise dock, watching them ride Lapras and depart from the Aether Paradise.
"They're a tough nut to crack."
Once they were far away, Green and Lusamine instantly dropped their pleasant expressions. Both had sensed how difficult the other was to deal with during the preceding casual conversation.
Ace sat on the side, looking at the instantly-changed Green, and couldn't help but sigh.
Women...
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