This wasn't Liko's first "night raid."
Ever since being affected by certain strange influences back in Kitakami Village, she herself had been growing odder and odder.
Though the period when Haru defeated Nemona had temporarily eased her condition, it wasn't long before that strange impulse resurfaced—and this time it only grew worse.
As a result, every so often, Liko felt compelled to find some way to "draw closer" to her sensei, beyond even his Pokémon.
Fortunately, after so much time together, she had already memorized Haru's daily routine down to the finest detail.
Which explained why, to this day, he had never noticed anything out of place—and certainly never caught her red-handed.
Whenever Haru woke up feeling something was off, his first suspects were usually Mew or even Lusamine.
In his eyes, compared to Liko, it was far more likely those two were behind any strange goings-on.
After all, Liko was just a clueless girl. How could she possibly be up to anything devious?
Mew of course knew what was really happening, but for reasons of her own she never exposed Liko. At times, she even deliberately shouldered the blame herself.
Perhaps because of this, Liko grew bolder and bolder.
So bold, in fact, that even knowing a First-Rank Legendary—uncaptured, roaming free—was sharing that suite, she still crept into Haru's room.
The moonlight spilled softly across the room, like a veil brushing against the cheek. Outside the window, leaves swayed in the night breeze, whispering secrets no one else could hear.
Haru lay sleeping quietly on the left side of the bed. Atop his head, where it had no business being outside a Poké Ball, Mew was curled up, purring in sleep.
The rest of his Pokémon were well-behaved, tucked away in their Poké Balls.
That, of course, created the perfect opportunity for Liko to enact her plan.
Had Haru been surrounded by Pokémon, she would have had to seriously reconsider the risk of discovery.
Even so, she didn't act immediately.
She knew rashness would only increase her chances of being caught.
So the girl first carefully observed the sleeping Haru and the cat sprawled across him.
Seeing no sign they would wake anytime soon, Liko tiptoed forward again.
The closer she drew to Haru, the faster her heartbeat raced.
At last, she stretched out her small hand toward the pile of clothes at his side, searching precisely until her fingers brushed the magazine holster…
She glanced around cautiously, then finally lifted it before her face, taking a deep breath.
And instantly, a look of intoxication she could not suppress washed across her face, as though all the "pressure" she'd bottled up had suddenly melted away.
So… so good. This is exactly what she needed.
It felt as if her whole being had emptied out.
But… it wasn't enough. If anything, doing this only stoked that driving urge inside her even more.
Her gaze slid toward Haru himself.
He was completely hidden under the covers, but from the bare shoulders exposed, it was obvious—he was in his "primordial state."
What should she do? Stop here? Slip away unseen, back to her own room?
Logic told Liko that retreat was the best choice.
It wouldn't leave her fully satisfied, but at least she wouldn't be discovered.
Yet humans… especially humans ruled by impulses… rarely listen to logic.
Pulling off the covers would be too noisy. She'd get caught.
Then… what if she crawled in from underneath? Since sensei was in his "primordial state," a lot of things would be… convenient.
Thus, driven by that absurd compulsion, the girl lifted a corner of the blanket and began inching her way in from the foot of the bed.
Keep going, and soon she would reach Haru's feet… then his legs…
He remained asleep, undisturbed by her intrusion.
Just keep calm. Nothing will go wrong!
Even as she scolded herself as a "bad child," she squirmed forward.
What she didn't expect was that both Mew and Mew No. 2 were watching the whole thing.
Mew, of course, knew exactly what Liko was after. But she stayed silent, feigning sleep.
Mew No. 2, however, had no idea.
She recalled hearing that humans in close relationships liked physical contact. Could this be some kind of intimate gesture?
But then—why do it only when Haru was asleep?
And what was with that little scrap of cloth she'd breathed in so deeply?
Mew No. 2 could not for the life of her understand. But since Liko meant no harm, she decided to simply wait outside the room and watch.
If Liko really tried something unforgivable, she would intervene.
Her instincts told her, though, that this might be a chance to better understand human nature.
Meanwhile, in another room, Korrina stirred awake.
Though she couldn't see into Haru's room, she immediately noticed the presence of a Mewtwo sneaking around the doorway, watching like a thief.
Her brain switched to full alert.
Why was Mewtwo peeking in at her dad while he slept?
The more she thought about it, the more cucumber she became.
But she didn't say a word, didn't stop Mewtwo either—she simply returned to bed.
Forget it. Sleep first. She'd tell Haru later in private and let him deal with it.
Just then, perhaps feeling a chill, Haru—who had been lying on his back—shifted onto his side.
Mew toppled from his head onto the soft pillow.
Liko froze, just inches from her target, convinced she'd been caught.
But Haru's breathing, and Mew's, stayed steady—still deep in slumber. She exhaled in relief.
Refocusing, she finally carried out her objective without alerting a soul.
And so… that stormy night passed in silence.
---
The first light of dawn spilled gently through the sheer curtains, scattering across Haru's room. Glimmers danced over the carved wooden frame of the bed, highlighting its intricate patterns.
The air smelled faintly of fresh wood, as though the old locust tree outside had let its fragrance drift in.
Haru's eyelids fluttered, then slowly opened.
This was his third day in the Kanto region. According to his plan, today he would head to Cerulean City's Gym—not just to watch, but to take part in a Gym challenge.
Of course, first he had to wait for Miss Cynthia, who'd promised to meet him. Once the Sinnoh Champion arrived, they'd head to the Gym together.
Challenging a Gym while escorted by a Champion… come to think of it, who else had ever done that?
But before Haru actually got up, something felt wrong.
He absentmindedly recalled Mew to her Poké Ball—when had she even slipped out?—then noticed a suspicious wet spot on the sheets.
He frowned. It wasn't bedwetting, nor… anything else like that.
So then… what was it?
His first suspicion fell on Mew's Poké Ball. But before he could investigate, the doorbell rang.
With a sigh, he shelved the interrogation for later. Mew often knew things but refused to say, preferring to "take punishment."
Well… could that really be called punishment for her?
If it wasn't Mew, then the only others in the house were Liko, Mewtwo, and Korrina.
All of them "pure-hearted," surely not the type to sneak into his room at night… right?
Shaking off the thought, he dressed quickly and opened the front door—only to find, as expected, Cynthia.
Today, though, she wasn't in her usual long black dress with trousers. Instead, she wore a rare white dress, not unlike Lillie's, with tights covering her legs.
The sight triggered a reflex in Haru's mind.
Put simply, he was… stimulated.
Of course, being a decent man, Haru didn't let it show. Even faced with Cynthia dressed so much like Lillie, he simply said calmly:
"That's a very beautiful outfit."
"Thank you."
Cynthia smiled at the compliment.
No matter how strong one was, being praised by the opposite sex always brought a certain warmth. Especially when that person was anything but ordinary.
The same words from different mouths could carry very different weight.
"Come in—no need to take off your shoes."
Haru stepped aside to let her into the living room.
"I thought you'd arrive later. I figured once you got here, we'd head straight for the Gym.
"But since you're early, I'll keep my promise from yesterday—and tell you more about Sinnoh's history."
Settling on the sofa, he added, "If you don't want to believe me, you can always take it as just a story I'm making up."
Cynthia said nothing, only pulled out the notebook and pen she'd prepared.
After yesterday's events, she found herself believing Haru more and more.
She couldn't yet be certain his version of Sinnoh's history was true, but it was worth recording. She could always check murals and relics later to confirm.
"I remember we last spoke about Arceus and Giratina, right?"
She nodded slightly. "Yes. You told me Arceus was the name of the god."
"That's right. It was the god at the dawn of the world. The Sinnoh Dragon Trio, including Giratina, were its first creations.
"And back when Sinnoh was still known as Hisui, an avatar of Arceus once descended.
"But only the chosen could sound the Celestial Flute and reach the place where that avatar awaited."
And, there, even play a game of dodgeball with Arceus.
Haru added that part silently in his mind.
At that moment, Mewtwo—sitting nearby in human form—suddenly interrupted.
"This Pokémon you call a god… is it strong?"
Her eyes still burned with defiance, the spirit of one unafraid.
Whether it was youthful recklessness or sheer courage, she didn't shrink back at the mention of "god"—instead, she thought of challenging it.
"That one… theoretically speaking, 'strong' isn't even the right word anymore."
"Arceus possesses eighteen Plates, each representing a type.
"In battle, it can freely shift its type at will. I don't need to explain what that means—you already know the implications."
Indeed, even the old myths about Arceus spoke of its power. Equipped with a Plate, it would switch its type to counter its foe whenever it used its signature move, Judgment.
In other words, unless a Pokémon had absolutely no weaknesses, Arceus could always exploit them.
It was just a shame those Plates couldn't be used outside its legend—otherwise they'd be the strongest items in existence.
Still, the Plates only applied to offense; they didn't change Arceus's type defensively.
If they did, it truly would be invincible.
Haru went on to describe details of the Hisui era, filling in many gaps in Cynthia's archaeological knowledge.
But when it came to deeper truths about Arceus and its creations, he deliberately held back.
He wasn't about to reveal everything just yet.
Put simply—he was baiting the hook.
Cynthia didn't mind. She'd already gathered more than enough valuable information for one morning.
She carefully recorded every word in her notebook, determined to verify them later.
After all, Hisui lay one to two thousand years in the past. Investigating that far back was no easy feat.
But it was exactly the sort of challenge Cynthia relished.
Otherwise, why would she still be following Haru around?
Once the "history lesson" was finished, Haru finally led the group to the Cerulean Gym.
The most famous Gym in town—but one with wildly split reviews.
Some Trainers claimed its badge was basically free: the challenge a breeze, plus a chance to enjoy a water ballet.
Others swore it was cursed: the Gym Leader fought viciously, the trials near-impossible.
As an "information expert," Haru naturally knew the truth.
Simply put, Cerulean didn't have just one Leader.
Day-to-day, it was run by the three Sensational Sisters: Lily, Violet, and Daisy.
They cared more about water ballet than battling, and their skills were… questionable. They also handed out badges with shocking generosity.
Their youngest sister, Misty, was by far the strongest—but she was often away on her travels. When she did take charge, challengers tended to suffer.
From the average Trainer's perspective, it all depended on luck.
But for someone like Haru… Misty or not, it really didn't matter.
Still, Cynthia couldn't fathom why Haru, upon arriving in Kanto, would immediately go pick a fight with a Gym Leader.
Seeing how he'd been buzzing with excitement ever since they left the house—just because of a Gym challenge—Cynthia finally couldn't help herself.
"So you really have never taken part in a Gym challenge before?"
"With your strength, you could at least be an Elite Four member."
She honestly didn't get it. Why was Haru so enthusiastic about this kind of "fish-bashing" pastime?
What happened to a master's dignity? Shouldn't someone at his level be challenging famous Trainers directly?
Oh… right. He was scheduled to battle Blue soon. Fair enough, then.
"I have done it before," Haru replied with a grin. "But I've never entered an official League Conference, and I've never collected a full set of badges."
"I've always had too much on my plate.
"For example, teaching Liko. She may look like just an ordinary girl on the surface, but in reality, there's this evil group called Explorers who have been targeting her all along.
"Until she's fully grown into her potential, I can't afford to let my guard down.
"So yeah, I've never even had the chance to join a proper League. Isn't it only natural that I'd be interested in Gym challenges now?"
He shot Cynthia a casual smile as he said it.
The unfamiliar name made Cynthia frown. "An evil organization? Explorers?"
Maybe it was just her imagination, but she had the constant impression that Haru was always clashing with one sinister group or another.
For someone like that, she couldn't help but feel a degree of respect.
Odd as he might be sometimes, everything he did marked him as standing firmly on the side of "justice."
"…I can't say more. It involves certain secrets about Liko."
"But if you ever run into anyone calling themselves Explorers, just attack them on the spot. You won't go wrong."
"I see… understood."
With that, their conversation ended just as the group arrived at their destination—Cerulean Gym.
But unlike the lively crowds that usually gathered for the water ballet shows, the Gym today looked… desolate.
The front doors were tightly shut. Outside, random junk was piled in a mess, making the place look as though it had just been ransacked.
Worse, there was even a dark red stain, like blood, seeping from the gap beneath the doors.
And yet, through the upper windows, they could see lights still glowing inside.
Haru hesitated, pressing the doorbell and giving the door a few raps with his knuckles. No response.
"…Something happened in there?" he muttered uneasily.
Just from the scene around them, his imagination had already spun out a dozen conspiracy plots and murder cases.
Which, in the Pokémon world, really didn't fit the tone at all.
And if the three Sensational Sisters really had come to harm, wouldn't that be far too tragic? They were such nice, big-sisterly figures, after all.
"…Should we break in and check?"
Cynthia and Liko had both picked up on the gravity of the situation as well. Neither had ever faced anything like this before, and both were visibly tense.
So the group didn't waste another second—Haru kicked the doors wide open, and they charged into the Gym that now looked all kinds of wrong.
The place was massive, but eerily empty. No people anywhere. So they headed straight for the direction where they'd seen the light through the glass earlier.
Only to discover…
It wasn't a murder scene. There had been no looting.
Instead, standing before them were the three Sensational Sisters—midway through changing into their swimsuits.
They stared at the intruders in stunned silence, each holding a different type of bra in hand.
"…Big sis, are you ready yet?"
A younger girl's voice floated in from deeper inside.
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