Sometimes, it really is hard for people to control what slips out of their mouths...
Originally, Cynthia just wanted to clear her name in front of her friend — to "wash herself clean."
But somehow, the words that actually came out twisted into something entirely different.
"What do you mean, let you take my place?"
Was she... was she acting like some kind of pimp?
No, scratch that — this wasn't just pimp-level nonsense.
This was full-on rocket booster tier!
Realizing what she'd just said, Cynthia immediately covered her mouth, her face burning with embarrassment.
Then, like a half-drowned Mew crawling out of a sewer drain, she cautiously glanced at Haru and Caitlin—
and bolted straight for the door of Caitlin's room.
She couldn't stay here. Not for another second. Not in this cursed place!
If she lingered any longer, her standing in Caitlin's heart might soon rank below that of a cockroach.
Being stared at by Caitlin with the same expression she'd use for literal garbage?
Absolutely not!
In times like this, running away was the only option.
Whether that counted as fleeing or just leaving didn't really matter—
since Mew hadn't bothered to stop her, Cynthia managed to slip out of her best friend's room in one piece.
"…"
The blonde young lady quietly watched the figure retreating into the distance, her feelings growing more tangled by the second.
Had it already come to this?
Contrary to what Cynthia might have imagined, Caitlin didn't feel disgusted with her at all.
If anything, what filled her heart was sympathy... and worry.
That one sentence Cynthia had blurted out wasn't something to take lightly — it could very well be an ominous sign.
Rumor has it that in cults or pyramid schemes, followers sometimes go so far as to drag their own family members into the fold, all in the name of "completing a divine mission."
That was exactly the kind of feeling Cynthia gave off just now.
She hadn't tried to "recruit" Caitlin yet, but clearly... she'd already had that kind of thought.
Only difference was, Cynthia's "cult" didn't worship some run-of-the-mill dark god —
it worshiped the Great Demon of Lust.
Even so... Cynthia hadn't yet lost her sanity. That meant there was still a chance.
This was the final opportunity. Caitlin had to succeed.
If things continued down this path, her dearest friend might really devolve into a brainless female whose head was filled with nothing but certain unspeakable fluids.
"The ending of this story — I'll be the one to decide it!"
"Even if my opponent is you, I won't lose!"
"Bring it on, Haru!"
The girl's determined eyes locked onto Haru as she declared her resolve, word by word.
Haru let out a short laugh.
"So you still think this is all my fault, huh?"
"Think about it. If I really had that kind of brainwashing power, why would you even doubt me right now?"
He sighed. "Whatever. If you want to play the savior, then go ahead.
Just remember to come find me tonight for your psychic outburst therapy—"
"—assuming you still trust me, that is."
With that, Haru turned to leave.
Being treated like some kind of mind-controlling villain was obviously irritating,
but he had promised to help Caitlin stabilize her powers.
And promises had to be kept.
But just as Haru reached the doorway—
Mew, who had been perched on his shoulder munching metaphorical popcorn the entire time, suddenly spoke up.
"Master, are you sure you don't want to have a little chat with the uninvited guests in this room, nya?"
Her voice wasn't loud, but it was just clear enough for everyone to hear.
Haru froze mid-step.
"What do you mean? The uninvited guests... You mean Cynthia? But she already left."
"Of course not, nya~ There are actually two other 'listeners' hiding in this room."
"All that sweet talk you and your future beep-beep tool were whispering earlier—
they heard every word, nya."
"WHAT do you mean, beep-beep tool!? You damn cat!"
Caitlin's voice cracked as her composure finally collapsed.
"Do all of you master-and-pet types share the same messed-up brain circuits?
The moment you lose your... X-fluid, your brain just dries up or what!?"
She'd held it in for so long, but now — she completely lost it.
"Mew was just mouthing off again, are you seriously picking a fight with a Pokémon? You're impossible to please."
Haru sighed. "And besides, shouldn't the focus right now be those suspicious people hiding in this room?"
"Don't be ridiculous! There's no way anyone's hiding in my room!"
Even though it was Mew, an actual Mythical Pokémon, who had made that claim, Caitlin clearly didn't believe her.
No — even if Mew was telling the truth, Caitlin would still insist she was lying.
Because if Cynthia didn't have those "books" on her,
then the ones hiding here were almost certainly the true culprits.
All she could do now was pray —
pray that Mew was just joking.
Unfortunately for her... Mew did lie sometimes —
but when it came to Haru, she almost never did.
She had noticed things before — plenty of things —
but most of the time, she simply chose to look the other way.
After all, exposing those sneaky girls wasn't much fun.
Sometimes she even helped people like Liko out of amusement.
But this time was different.
This time, the ones she'd caught were... special.
Latias and Chloe, she didn't particularly care about — she barely even knew them.
The real issue was the one hiding under the bed.
Mewtwo.
Hehehe... My dear daughter, caught red-handed again, aren't you?
No matter how powerful you become, in the end, you're still nothing more than putty in my hands.
With that wicked thought, Mew hopped off Haru's shoulder and gracefully transformed into her human form, a mischievous grin curling her lips.
She sauntered across the room, her gaze leisurely sweeping from corner to corner.
"Now then... where are you, my dear little girl?"
She hummed softly as she approached the curtains, pretending to grow more and more excited—
then, with a dramatic flourish, she yanked them open.
"Found you, didn't I?"
The result, of course, was entirely predictable—
there was absolutely nothing behind the curtain.
So… had Mew just been bluffing?
Had she actually failed to notice Mewtwo's presence at all?
At least, that's what both Mewtwo and Caitlin (and the others) thought.
Ha—so the old cat wasn't as sharp as she pretended to be, huh?
All that dramatic buildup, and for what? A complete whiff.
Pathetic. She hadn't even sensed her presence!
Or… maybe Mewtwo's concealment skills were simply too perfect, even for that old feline to detect.
Thinking that, Mewtwo couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath.
Was she really that amazing now—
so powerful, so terrifying, that even Mew herself had been fooled?
That thought alone sent a chill of awe (and pride) through her.
Too scary.
She was too scary.
At this rate, maybe one day she really could become the strongest Pokémon in the world.
Meanwhile, from Chloe's perspective—
Seeing how confident Mewtwo seemed, she finally allowed herself to relax.
That made sense, after all. Her partner wasn't some ordinary Pokémon; she was a Legendary capable of Mega Evolution.
No way someone like that would get caught so easily.
Nothing to worry about. Problem solved.
For the next few minutes, Mew rummaged through several more potential hiding spots around the room—
closets, drawers, even behind the dresser—
but ultimately came up empty-handed.
"Huh? Don't tell me I was wrong, nya? That fellow's really not here?"
"But I definitely sensed a trace of that one's aura just a moment ago, nya..."
Mew crossed her arms, tilting her head with a puzzled expression as she muttered to herself.
"I told you," Caitlin said, relief creeping into her tone, "there's no way anyone would really break into my room like that."
Seeing Mew look genuinely confused, Caitlin—who'd been on the verge of a panic attack—finally felt her heart unclench.
Thank goodness.
Thank goodness Mew was just spouting nonsense.
Looks like they'd dodged that bullet.
Now all she needed to do was figure out who actually stole those "books."
And of course, more importantly—
somehow bring Cynthia back onto the right path.
"Alright then," Mew said breezily, "since there's nothing here, let's head out, nya.
I was kinda hoping to see how that stinky little sister of mine fights after Mega Evolving, though."
Still in her human form, Mew reached for Haru's hand and took a step toward the door—
—but in the next instant, her figure vanished completely.
When she reappeared, everyone realized she was now standing right beside the bed.
Teleport.
That was unmistakably Teleport.
And as she crouched down, her lips curled into a mischievous grin.
"It's been, what, a few minutes? Missed me already, my dear daughter?"
"…"
"Aaaahhh!!!"
For a heartbeat or two, the entire room went dead silent—
and then a deafening scream erupted from under the bed.
The one who screamed wasn't Mewtwo—though her face looked like thunder, she still had too much dignity for that.
No, the real screamer was Chloe—
unlucky, innocent, poor Chloe, who just so happened to get caught in the crossfire.
Her luck today couldn't have been worse.
If it had been just her hiding under there, Mew probably wouldn't have bothered.
But because she'd teamed up with Mewtwo, Mew's curiosity had been piqued—
and once Mewtwo was exposed, her "partner in crime" naturally got dragged out too.
Haru's expression turned oddly complicated.
"…Your room sure is… lively."
He glanced at Caitlin with a strange half-smile.
"What exactly do you keep in here that attracts all these people?"
Honestly, even he hadn't expected that Caitlin's room would turn out to be a den of hidden "talents."
Compared to that, Caitlin herself—who merely kept a fairy wand tucked in her cabinet—seemed almost tame.
"I-I don't know!" Caitlin stammered, completely flustered.
"I really don't know why they all decided to hide in my room!"
She was on the verge of mental collapse.
There really had been people here!
And worse, those "books" had actually been in their possession all along.
This was a total disaster.
While Caitlin's thoughts spiraled into despair, Mew happily confiscated the "precious manuscripts" from Mewtwo and Caitlin—
then, without mercy, dragged all the "ladies under the bed" into the open.
Yes, even now, Mewtwo, Chloe, and Latias still believed those papers contained the secret techniques of Champions.
Everything had happened so quickly that they hadn't even had time to inspect them properly—
and hiding under the bed had been too dark to read anything anyway.
But now, watching Mew snatch the pages from her hands, Mewtwo's mind spun into another paranoid narrative:
Mew stole my secret manuals just to study them herself… and once she masters them, she'll come back and crush me!
Yes, that had to be it!
Mew was afraid of her growing stronger—so she acted first!
That only meant one thing:
Mewtwo had to steal them back as soon as possible.
If Mew got too far ahead, the balance of power could reverse completely!
When Mew finally hauled her "prisoners" out, both Haru and Caitlin got a clear look at their faces.
"Mewtwo... it really is you," Haru said flatly.
"And Chloe? Why are you mixed up with her?"
"...Hmph."
Mewtwo just turned her head away, refusing to answer.
Chloe, meanwhile, looked like she was on the verge of tears.
Why did she have to be caught up in this mess!?
It hurt.
It hurt so much.
Before anyone could say more, Mew neatly stacked the confiscated pages together, bowed deeply, and presented them to Haru.
"Look at this, Master~ these have some real power behind them, nya."
"…What is this?"
Under Caitlin's panicked stare, Haru accepted the bundle—
and the moment his eyes scanned the pages, his face froze.
"...Where did these come from?"
He carefully re-stacked the papers, his gaze shifting toward Mew.
In the corner where Haru couldn't see, Caitlin stared at Mew with a pleading expression.
Please, I'm begging you—don't expose me.
Blame it all on Mewtwo! You love tormenting her anyway, right? This is your golden chance!
Even though she said nothing aloud, Mew instantly caught her meaning.
And her response was—
"They belong to Lady Caitlin here, of course~ But it seems our dear daughter and her friend had their eyes on them too, nya."
"Can't blame them though—these contain some very special knowledge, after all."
Yes—without a moment's hesitation, Mew sold Caitlin out completely.
Sure, she did enjoy messing with Mewtwo,
but wasn't this way funnier than just blaming her outright?
This kind of entertainment was at least twice as satisfying.
"Mewtwo, trying to steal these?"
"And Gardevoir... you actually—"
Haru gave her a long, complicated look.
"I guess I really underestimated you."
Holding the stack of papers, he finally understood the true meaning of never judge a book by its cover.
She'd been scolding him for his "impure thoughts,"
and yet behind the scenes…
The more he thought about it—
especially after connecting the themes of those books with Caitlin's earlier moral lectures—
the more his scalp tingled.
He couldn't help but think—
So this is the real you, huh?
And just when the atmosphere had reached its peak of awkward tension—
the door to Caitlin's room slammed open again.
Not picked, not quietly nudged—
but kicked open.
And stepping through the doorway was a mature woman with snow-white hair, dressed exactly like one of the "yuki-onna" heroines from those very same books.
The only difference was the absurdly long strand of hair—an ahoge—curling from the top of her head, swaying with every movement.
And the instant she entered, her sharp gaze locked straight onto the bundle of white pages in Haru's hands.
***********************
Read advanced chapter ahead of everyone else on my P@treon.
P@treon/GodDragcell