Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice-Chapter 218: Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice []

In the end, after Team Rocket and Team Flare agreed to meet in Kalos next month to discuss concrete implementation plans, the call ended.

"What do you think?"

After finishing the call with Lysandre, Giovanni turned to look at Joker.

"Isn't it just right? The two leaders of major criminal organizations meet, and due to a disagreement, one of them gets killed. Wouldn't that be great?"

Stephen's rhetorical question immediately made Giovanni understand what he meant.

Lysandre and Malva both serve as the Chairman and Elite Four of the Kalos League, respectively. Without evidence, it would indeed be inappropriate for Stephen to take action against them under his public identity.

After all, you don't have any evidence.

But if he uses the Joker identity, it's not a problem.

After all, he's already a wanted criminal registered by the League!

"I was thinking, if they don't bother me, I could just leave them alone. But since they're coming, I might as well wipe them all out at once."

Stephen said.

He never really took Team Flare seriously.

But since they're sticking their necks out, it'd be unreasonable for him not to cut them off.

"Joker's reputation is pretty good now, isn't it a problem?"

Giovanni brought up another point.

Ever since the Lily of the Valley incident, Joker's reputation has improved even more.

As early as last year's Indigo League battle, after Giovanni revealed the truth that Joker had joined Team Rocket, he attracted quite a few fans—Marnie is a typical example.

Many new members who joined Team Rocket this year did so because of Joker.

And the Lily of the Valley incident six months ago further boosted Joker's fame.

If Joker killed Lysandre, especially while Lysandre's identity as Team Flare's boss had not been publicly revealed, Joker's reputation would surely take a hit.

"Uncle, do you think I'd care about that?"

Stephen smiled and asked back.

In the manga, Red was nearly broken by Team Rocket, because the Three Beasts forced him with, "If you don't show yourself, we'll keep attacking the Sevii Islands."

This made Red give in.

So, many citizens shifted their anger onto Red and Green, saying, "If it weren't for you, the Sevii Islands wouldn't have suffered this."

When Stephen read this plot in a previous life, he found it infuriating. Now, he just finds it funny.

He doesn't want to be put on too high a pedestal—if I have no morals, no one can kidnap me with morality!

"Heh~ I must be out of my mind."

Giovanni shook his head and laughed.

Stephen took out his phone and replied to Diantha with a "Sure."

He was going to Kalos anyway, so he might as well join the fun.

"Just letting you know, I already took a screenshot of your reply!"

Worried Stephen would back out, Diantha replied instantly.

Stephen found it amusing and asked, "Who are the participants?"

Soon, Diantha sent over a document: the current contestant list for the Junior Cup.

Hmm... a bunch of names Stephen didn't recognize—99% are filler characters.

Just as Stephen was about to put his phone away, one name caught his eye—Alain!

Stephen: ...

Could it be that Alain, the one who used Water Absorb Blastoise?

Stephen didn't remember how old that kid was, but he was taller than Ash, so he must be a few years older and probably already traveling.

Stephen did not have a good impression of Alain.

But the reason wasn't Water Absorb Blastoise, but rather... why hasn't he been arrested?

Regardless of whether he was misled by Lysandre or blindly pursued power at first, in the end, he did a lot of bad things for Lysandre.

Later, Malva turned herself in to Officer Jenny—probably went to jail. So why didn't Alain?

Damn, double standards, huh?

Glancing at the list of filler names, Stephen quietly messaged Professor Oak.

...

After leaving Celadon Game Corner, Stephen took out his phone to buy a plane ticket to Kalos.

He often took little Hoopa around the world to leave teleport points everywhere.

Because for Hoopa to open a portal, it's like the Fly move in the games—it can only open portals to places it's already been.

Like, if you say Go to Area Zero, little Hoopa would just look confused and ask, "Where's Area Zero?"

After what happened with Malva two days ago, Hoopa had already left a teleport point in Kalos.

But unless he was in a hurry, Stephen still preferred walking or taking public transport for that sense of adventure.

At this moment, little Hoopa, who was playing games online, came up and said, "Big Brother Stephen, Mew said it wants to come out and play with us."

Stephen was a bit surprised—the lazy cat who'd turned completely useless wanted to go out.

Hoopa said it was because there hadn't been any good game releases recently, so Mew wanted to go out for a stroll.

Stephen, who sometimes played with Zoroark, thought about it.

True, there haven't been any big releases in the past two months.

No wonder the lazy cat wanted to go out.

"Alright, let it come."

Stephen couldn't think of any reason to refuse.

Although every time he asked that lazy cat for help, it tried to get something out of him, they got along pretty well.

Little Hoopa nodded and replied to Mew using Stephen's Pokédex.

"Ouch!"

With a surprised cry from a young woman, a blur flashed in front of Stephen.

Stephen instinctively reached out to steady Sonia, preventing her from falling.

"Where... where is this? Er... Stephen?"

Sonia, wearing a lab coat and black-rimmed glasses, was still a bit dazed.

She had just finished her morning work, and as usual, was having lunch with "Pikachu" when suddenly...

"Pikachu! This is your doing again!"

Sonia poked the knockoff yellow mouse in her arms with a scallion.

She already knew her Pikachu was good at teleporting, but didn't know its true identity.

"Pika Pika~"

The knockoff mouse tilted its head and acted cute.

"I'm planning to go to Kalos. Want to come?"

Stephen invited her.

He suddenly realized that after getting Hoopa, he hardly ever asked the lazy cat for help anymore, nor did he visit Sonia much.

It was like treating her as a tool—use and discard.

"Oh~ Is the champion inviting me? When was the last time you asked me for a walk?"

Sonia teased with a smile.

"Uh... sorry, I've been busy."

Stephen felt a bit guilty.

"Tsk, but you still have time to get into scandals with Kalos's Elite Four?"

Sonia rolled her eyes at Stephen.

Although she was Nessa's bestie, she wasn't in Stephen's family group, so she didn't know Lysandre and Malva's real identities, nor that Malva's previous actions prevent Stephen from revealing the truth.

Stephen just shrugged and took the blame.

He had benefitted before, anyway.

...

The next day, Stephen and Sonia flew to Lumiose City in Kalos.

Just after passing security at Lumiose Airport, they were surrounded by reporters.

"Dr. Stephen, two months ago you refused Unova Champion Alder's invitation to the Junior Cup. Why did you accept Champion Diantha's invitation now? Is it because you prefer Kalos?"

"Is it because your opponent is Elite Four Malva? Are you two really that close?"

"But rumors say that Malva has been seen dating another young man frequently in the past six months, which is similar to your situation, Dr. Stephen. Are you two seeing other people?"

Upon hearing the last question, Sonia, walking behind Stephen, was dumbfounded.

"Seeing other people?"

Is this how people date nowadays?

"Excuse me, are you Professor Sonia from the Alola Space Research Institute? Why are you with Dr. Stephen in Kalos? Does your good friend Nessa know?"

The chief reporter from Lumiose TV, Viola, noticed Sonia and pointed the mic at her.

Since joining the Space Research Station, Sonia has gained some fame in Alola.

Recently, she discovered the Ultra Beast codenamed "UB02: Expansion" (Buzzwole) and promptly informed Bea, helping her catch it.

Stephen rubbed his temples.

Kalos reporters are as gossipy as ever.

If they put this much effort into real work, Team Flare wouldn't have gone undiscovered for so long.

Stephen said, "Sonia is a good friend of mine. She's been working hard lately, so I invited her to Kalos to relax. I hope everyone doesn't jump to conclusions. Kanto's Champion Lance and Elite Four Lorelei are also close, but they're just good friends, right?"

Viola and the reporters froze.

They didn't expect Stephen to use Lance and Lorelei as examples.

It's true—when Lance and Lorelei, childhood friends of similar age, first became famous in Kanto, many thought they were a couple.

But after so many years, anyone with eyes can tell there's nothing there.

But is Stephen the same as Lance?

If Lance dated, he'd instantly top the trending searches; if Stephen dated several people at once, fans would barely blink.

"Get lost! Didn't you hear Brother Stephen say they're just friends?"

Suddenly, a young boy's angry voice rang out.

The reporters looked over to see a boy who looked about seven or eight.

Gary!

"Brother Stephen!"

Gary waved enthusiastically.

"I thought it was your older brother."

Stephen was surprised. Yesterday he'd messaged Professor Oak, saying if the kids from Pallet Town were free, they could come to Kalos for the Junior Cup to let the new generation spar and learn from each other.

He thought Blue would come, but it was Gary instead.

And it's not because he wanted to balance Alain's strength.

"My brother's coming from Kanto, so he's slower. It's faster from Alola."

Gary smiled.

Everyone quickly left the airport, and Diantha's car was already waiting.

"Thank you for accepting our invitation, Dr. Stephen."

Diantha, sitting in the front seat, smiled and half-turned around.

"No problem. I also wanted to invite my good friend Sonia to relax. She's been working with Professor Burnet on Ultra Beasts in Alola and is exhausted."

Stephen chuckled.

"Mhm, nice to meet you, Miss Sonia."

Diantha reached out to Sonia.

"Likewise, nice to meet you."

Sonia shook her hand.

Diantha looked at Sonia's outstretched hand—and what was behind it...

Diantha's expression soured.

Big. Really big!

Diantha wanted to ask Sonia what she ate to get that big.

"Um... Champion Diantha, is there anything else?"

Seeing Diantha not letting go, Sonia couldn't help but ask.

"S-sorry."

Diantha withdrew her hand, embarrassed.

"So sad..."

Stephen couldn't help but feel for Diantha.

"Um... before the Junior Cup starts, I have a Tri-Crown Satellite Exhibition match tonight. Would you all like to come watch?"

To break the awkwardness, Diantha took out some tickets from her sachet and handed them to Stephen.

"Tri-Crown... Satellite match? What's that?"

Gary read the strange name aloud.

"It's a type of event only held in Kalos. Unlike traditional battles, it focuses more on performance."

Stephen explained.

"Like a Contest?"

Gary asked instinctively.

Recently, under Hoenn Champion Wallace's promotion, Kanto and Sinnoh started holding Contests.

His sister Daisy even went, and Gary had watched a few.

"Not quite. Contests have two parts—Pokémon Showcase's appeal with moves for a high score, and battling. Satellite matches have different themes each time—sometimes like Contests, sometimes dressing up your partner, making sweets with your Pokémon..."

Diantha, as a top performer in Kalos, explained.

But Gary waved his hand dismissively, "I'm not interested. I'll find somewhere to train Stufful and Swablu—gotta win my first badge before my real adventure."

"Want to go watch?"

Stephen looked at Sonia.

Sonia bit her lip. "Well, sure, let's go."

Soon, they checked into the most famous Hotel Richissime in Lumiose City.

That evening, before going to watch the Satellite Match, Gary said, "Brother Stephen, my brother's here. I'll go pick him up..."

Seriously? What a coincidence!

Stephen didn't think much and invited Sonia out for dinner.

"Aren't you afraid of being photographed?"

Sonia joked.

"I already have enough scandals. What about you? Not afraid Leon will misunderstand?"

Stephen joked back.

"Don't mention that idiot!"

Sonia's smile dropped instantly.

It's been over a year since she left Galar, and that guy hadn't called her once.

She wasn't going to chase after him like a lovesick puppy.

Stephen had no comment.

Leon and Lance had different personalities but were equally clueless about relationships.

At the theater entrance, as expected, Stephen and Sonia were swarmed by fans.

Stephen said helplessly, "If we don't go in now, the match will start."

"Dr. Stephen, according to reports, Professor Sonia was childhood friends with Galar's Champion Leon, while Elite Four Malva has been seen with another young man frequently in the past six months. Do you prefer women who already have boyfriends?"

A male fan asked.

Bewear suddenly jumped out and shoved the fan aside.

Its frightening aura made the crowd back off.

Stephen silently gave Bewear a thumbs up.

After Stephen and Sonia sat down, Sonia suddenly asked, "Do you like women who already have boyfriends?"

"..."

Stephen's face grew darker.

Soon, the Satellite Match began.

The big screen behind the stage began showing footage of Diantha winning the Kalos Queen title in her youth (though she's still young).

The lights dimmed.

"Gardevoir, Moonblast."

Diantha's voice rang out.

A pale pink orb appeared in the center of the stage, expanding into a full moon above.

Diantha and Gardevoir appeared together.

The crowd went wild.

"So beautiful!"

Sonia's eyes sparkled.

"The biggest difference from Contests is that the trainer performs with their Pokémon."

Stephen analyzed.

While the themes vary—sometimes cooking, making clothes, sometimes even quizzes—later rounds are all about showing off your Pokémon's charm with moves, just like the performance round in Contests.

The main difference is that in Contests, trainers just give commands, but in performances, trainers participate too.

That's why, in the anime, Serena almost never wore the same outfit twice.

...

After Diantha's exhibition, the rest of the matches weren't as impressive.

Before the results were announced, Stephen and Sonia left to avoid being mobbed by fans.

"Diantha and Gardevoir's performance was amazing—especially ending with a Mega Evolution, it was the perfect touch."

Sonia was still entranced.

Stephen smiled, "Why don't you try it?"

"Me?"

Sonia pointed at herself in disbelief.

"Huh? That little girl's eating without paying?!"

At that moment, an unhappy shout came from a dessert shop across the street.

They looked over.

A child in a black cloak, about a meter tall, was being scolded by a shopkeeper.

People were starting to watch.

"Let's go check it out," Sonia said, crossing the street.

"Are you okay, kid?"

Sonia crouched down and gently patted the girl on the shoulder for comfort, glimpsing rare pale pink hair under the hood.

"Are you her mom? Good! Your daughter ate a bunch of cookies in my shop and didn't pay. Time to settle the bill."

The shopkeeper looked annoyed.

Sonia raised an eyebrow.

Do I look like someone who's had kids?

She didn't argue, just pulled out her wallet to pay.

Looking at the kid's outfit, she figured she was a homeless child—probably just hungry.

[He told me I could try as much as I want.]

At that moment, a little girl's voice rang out.

But it didn't come from her mouth—it echoed in everyone's mind.

Telepathy!?