"Is she really Latias?"
Lance looked curiously at the red-haired girl beside Elias.
Based on what happened yesterday, this had to be Latios's little sister — Latias.
"Yeah, that's her," Elias nodded.
At the same time, Latias didn't forget to hug Elias's arm and cheerfully introduced herself:
"Hi there! Just call me Tias. I'm Elias's mom~"
On the way over, Elias had already mentioned this was a friend of Steven's — someone worth keeping friendly ties with.
And when it came to forming alliances and tapping resources, Tias had always been quick to turn on the charm.
It was just... what felt like a normal self-introduction to her came off as downright explosive in Lance's ears.
He froze for a second, then suddenly widened his eyes in disbelief as he turned to Elias.
"So regular girlfriends aren't enough for you anymore, huh?"
Now you're out here role-playing with your Pokémon?
The envy hit hard. But just as the words left his mouth, Lance suddenly remembered something.
Didn't Latios mention on the train that his sister once took in a human child?
And that the kid died at the hands of poachers trying to protect them?
Wait a second... could that child have been—
His friend Elias?
Thinking back to how emotional Latios was yesterday, Lance suddenly found the theory very plausible.
He turned to Elias and asked,
"So... the kid Latias adopted — that was you?"
"Of course, if you'd rather not talk about it, we can totally skip it!"
He was dying to know, but if Elias didn't want to go into it, he'd respect that.
Elias looked a little surprised by the question.
He hadn't expected Lance to know, but there wasn't really anything he couldn't say.
He nodded slightly.
"Yeah, it was me. The details are kind of complicated though... I'll explain another time."
Lance didn't know what to say for a moment.
It just hit him — some people are born to form bonds with Pokémon.
Adopted by a Dragon-type Legendary... That was something he wouldn't even dare to dream about.
And not just any Dragon-type — it was Latias.
He was absolutely jealous.
Latias, still happily slurping on her shaved ice, caught the gleam of admiration in Lance's eyes and gave a smug little hum, glancing sideways at Gardevoir with no small amount of pride.
Gardevoir, for her part, remained perfectly expressionless — clearly unimpressed.
As far as she was concerned, Lance was just another Dragon fanatic. The kind of Trainer who'd probably try to sneak Dragonite into bed if he could.
She had zero expectations for people like that.
"Gaaarde~ (Elias, feed me~)"
Handing him her neatly fluffed pile of shaved ice, Gardevoir purred softly.
Already feeling a little creeped out by Lance's jealous gaze, Elias quickly took the bowl.
He scooped up a spoonful and brought it to Gardevoir's lips, while smoothly changing the subject:
"By the way, Lance — how much do you know about Team Galactic in Sinnoh?"
He really did want to steer the conversation elsewhere, but Team Galactic was something he'd meant to ask about anyway.
After all, they weren't just on Latias's radar — they'd also worked with Gardevoir in the past.
Sure, she'd already shut down their plan to control Dialga and Palkia.
But just a few days ago, Elias had found some discarded files hinting at other shady operations they'd been running behind the scenes.
Double-crossing Gardevoir? That doesn't fly.
"Team Galactic, huh…"
Lance looked thoughtful, recalling what he knew.
"Since they're based in Sinnoh, I don't have all the details. But I do know their boss is a complete lunatic."
"Rumor has it he wants to create a so-called perfect world. The Sinnoh League's been tearing their hair out trying to deal with him."
He shook his head, a little overwhelmed even saying it aloud.
Man… makes you appreciate the good ol' Rocket Gang back in Kanto. Pure, focused evil — all about that criminal economy. No world domination nonsense, no cult vibes.
All the other regions? Either they're trying to destroy the world or rebuild it. Can't catch a break from these megalomaniacs.
Elias nodded.
He already knew most of this. It confirmed Lance didn't have much intel beyond the basics.
If he wanted to dig deeper… would he need to ask Cynthia?
As soon as Elias mentioned Team Galactic, both Gardevoir and Latias paused their squabble over who got to be fed and quietly tuned in.
Clearly, they were both invested in this topic.
Meanwhile, Lance remembered why he'd called this meeting in the first place.
He turned back to Elias and, seeing his slightly puzzled expression, gave a sly grin.
Under the watchful and clearly suspicious gazes of both Gardevoir and Tias, Lance spoke in a persuasive tone:
"Elias, have you considered rejoining the Investigation Division — and retaking your position as Deputy Director?"
"Don't worry, the spot's been saved just for you. If you say yes, you could start as early as tomorrow."
"I'll even bring Dragonite to welcome you personally. How's that sound?"
Lance had thought long and hard about this.
Sure, he felt a little guilty calling on Elias so soon after his return.
But…
Without him, Lance was barely hanging on.
Team Rocket might be behaving themselves these days, but the Masked Corps — who operated in the same region — were anything but friendly.
No one even knew what they were after, but they were powerful — easily on par with any of the old major criminal syndicates.
Especially their mysterious leader.
Even conservative estimates from the League put him at Elite Four-level strength.
Bruno, a fellow Fighting-type Elite, had once fought the guy — and got wrecked before he could even get a good look at the guy's main partner.
Sure, maybe it was a type disadvantage.
But still — that kind of power was not something you found in a typical gang leader.
This wasn't a slap-on-the-wrist situation. It needed serious firepower.
And Elias? Elias was the firepower.
No matter how strong that guy was, there was no way he could outmatch Elias.
Has he ever gone up against a Gardevoir with an Arceus-level stat sheet?
No? Then how about Mew, the literal ancestor of all Pokémon?
Not to mention — Elias now had both Latios and Latias at his side.
And that wasn't even counting the Gengar that rivaled Lance's Dragonite, or that scary-looking Milotic that definitely wasn't just for show.
Honestly, if Elias ever decided to challenge the Kanto League…
Lance was starting to think the future Champion title wasn't going to be his.
There was just no competing with that.
Even someone as easygoing as Lance couldn't help but feel a little defeated.
Still, while he was mired in existential dread, Elias could barely hold in a laugh.
He coughed lightly, glancing sideways at Gardevoir's stone-cold face as he teased:
"Gardevoir, any thoughts on why Johto's crime rate is suddenly skyrocketing?"
---
P.S.: Just had a sudden thought — if Gardevoir ever gets really worked up, wouldn't her cry sound kinda like "shi-ne"? ([死ね – "die!"])
Might wanna be careful around her...
T/N: author is saying that because her cry is shi nai!
...
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