Outside the Gym.
Bonnie was attempting to interact with Squishy. Squishy, however, maintained the cold dignity and aloofness befitting the strongest of Pokémon.
He offered zero response to Bonnie's candy-bean offensive. He was still deep in thought, replaying the words Bai Chen had spoken to Olympia and the others that morning.
Truthfully, as the Guardian of Order, he largely agreed with Bai Chen's perspective. He had even gained a spark of inspiration from those words. Human concepts of "good" and "evil" truly meant nothing on the scale of nature.
"Lillie and the others are coming out," Bonnie noted, spotting Lillie and Serena exiting the building. Bonnie's sharp eyes immediately caught Lillie's reddened eyes. "Lillie, were you crying just now?" she asked instinctively as they drew near.
Lillie rubbed her eyes and forced a smile. "It's nothing, I just tripped and fell earlier. It hurt a bit."
Anyone could tell she was lying. Bai Chen glanced back at the Anistar Gym, having a good guess as to what had transpired. "What kind of future did Olympia see for me?"
Bai Chen stepped forward and patted Lillie's head, saying only: "Don't worry."
This simple, vague sentence instantly pierced through Lillie's emotional defenses. She nearly broke into tears right there in front of everyone, but years of refined upbringing allowed her to hold it back.
"I... I'm fine," Lillie sniffled, struggling to contain her emotions.
Bai Chen was at a loss; he had never seen Lillie's emotions fluctuate so wildly. What exactly did she hear? This question lingered in his mind.
That afternoon, after finding a hotel, Lillie locked herself in her room. Seeing that things were definitely wrong, Bai Chen sought out Serena.
In Serena and Bonnie's room, Bai Chen sat at a desk, waiting for answers. Serena hesitated for a long time before finally telling him about the prophecy they had overheard that morning.
"Oh, is that all? I thought it was something serious."
Serena was stunned by his nonchalance. "Mr. Bai, are you okay?" she asked, making sure he wasn't just in shock.
"What could be wrong? It's just death."
Bai Chen had slain many monsters on his journey. Since he was in the business of hunting, he had long prepared himself for the possibility of being killed by a monster. Besides, prophecies weren't 100% accurate; he had already done plenty to change the future.
"If you die, you can't be with the people you like anymore," Serena countered. If she knew she were going to die, she would be devastated.
Bai Chen replied, "But all living things die one day, don't they? The point is whether your life has meaning.
If the prophecy says I sacrifice myself by my own will, it means I've encountered a situation where I absolutely must protect others. If sacrificing one of me can buy the thing I value most, then it's a worthy sacrifice."
Serena fell silent for a long time. Bai Chen's words touched her deeply.
"I didn't expect Lillie to cry over this," Bai Chen scratched his head, looking helpless. He prepared to leave to comfort her.
"Mr. Bai!" Serena called out.
"What is it?"
"Did Lillie mention to you before... that she wanted to fight by your side?"
"Oh? You know about that?"
"Yes... she consulted me about it."
"So, your advice was for her to come to me boldly?"
Serena gave a weak nod. It seemed her suggestion hadn't produced the desired effect. "Is that so?" Bai Chen said, noncommittal. The decision was still his to make.
Serena took a deep breath, psyching herself up. She summoned her courage and said, "Mr. Bai, to be honest... for a period of time, I was very focused on you." Before he could react, she hurriedly added, "Just... focused! Not 'like-like' interest! I'm very grateful for your help!"
"Haha," Bai Chen laughed. "Don't be nervous. I didn't misunderstand. I have a fair amount of self-awareness regarding my looks."
"Yes..." The flush on Serena's face faded slightly as she got to the heart of the matter. "Because I was focused on you, when I realized Lillie liked you, I thought she was amazing! Liking someone so incredible truly takes courage and immense effort.
When the person you like is that outstanding, you naturally want to find ways to improve yourself just to stay by their side. Someone as powerful as you puts an unprecedented amount of pressure on others."
"And?" Bai Chen didn't quite see the point yet.
"So, if you like Lillie too, please be a bit more tolerant of her 'selfish' request to stay with you. Today, after hearing what you said to Ms. Olympia and Champion Diantha, the first thing I thought was: in your vision for the future, where is Lillie?"
"You mentioned your wishes, the future of your partners, but you didn't mention her once. It might not be my place to say this, but if possible, I hope you'll include her in your future outlook.
At least, when you finally reach the summit, you'll have someone by your side to share the joy, won't you?"
Bai Chen stood frozen for a moment. Finally, he understood why Lillie's emotions had been so volatile lately. He thanked Serena sincerely. "Thank you. I owe you one."
He left the room immediately. As he opened the door, a loud thump followed—Bonnie had fallen onto the floor. She had clearly been eavesdropping. Bai Chen picked her up; what he and Serena talked about wasn't a state secret, so he didn't scold her.
Bonnie brushed the dust off her clothes and whispered, "I just saw Lillie head toward the river."
"Thanks."
Bai Chen didn't go to the river immediately. Instead, he headed straight for the commercial district to buy something.
By the river, Lillie was wandering alone. She leaned against a railing in the park, the mirror-like water reflecting her silhouette. She let out a long sigh. She had never hated her own powerlessness as much as she did now.
If I were as strong as Mr. Bai, I could protect him while he can't fight, and find a way to avoid that ending of death. But now, I can't do anything...
She had been thinking for a long time about what she could possibly do. But no matter how she searched, she found no answers.
Her request to go back with him was a desperate attempt to be of use. Bai Chen had been tactful that day, but she knew the truth: she would just be a burden.
Lillie leaned her head on the railing and sighed again. She had lost count of how many times she had sighed today. She stared blankly at the calm water.
After an hour had passed, she checked her phone and saw no messages from Bai Chen. She refreshed the list several times before putting it away.
Whatever. I should head back. Even if I can't help, I shouldn't cause trouble.
Just as she prepared to leave, an explosion erupted about 200 meters away. She looked up and saw a hot air balloon floating in the sky with a large 'R' printed on it.
"Team Rocket?!"
She recognized them instantly. After a moment's hesitation, she grabbed the Monster Ball in her bag and rushed toward the scene. No matter who they were attacking, she couldn't let them get away with it.
Meowth was leaning over the basket, shouting arrogantly at Bai Chen below. "It's no use! This is my specially-made Super Sticky Foam! Even a truck at full speed would be stopped dead, let alone you!"
Below them was a white sea of foam. Bai Chen and Nergigante were stuck deep inside. Nergigante tried to pull her limbs free, but as Meowth said, the foam absorbed her strength perfectly. It felt like falling into a mountain of cotton; no matter how much force she used, there was no feedback.
Bai Chen tried as well, but he was completely immobilized. Due to his current physical state, he couldn't even use Psychokinesis.
"This foam is also insulated, so Thunderbolt won't work either! This Legendary Pokémon is now property of Team Rocket!" Meowth pressed a button, and a large insulated cage descended to trap Nergigante. The material was specially treated so it wouldn't stick to the foam.
"Banbaro, deactivate Minimize! Use Toss!"(Note: It wasn't Diablos, but Banbaro — sorry for the mistake.
Suddenly, from the other side of the park, a ten-meter-long monster—Banbaro—charged out of the trees.
Using her massive, bulldozer-like horns, she scooped up a roadside tree and hurled it at the balloon. The heavy timber slammed into the basket, nearly knocking the trio out of the sky.
Jessie, seeing Lillie come to the rescue, angrily sent out her Pokémon. "Gourgeist, teach this rude brat a lesson! Shadow Ball!"
"Banbaro, endure it!" Lillie commanded. Banbaro lowered her center of gravity, taking the Shadow Ball on her back. As a massive Brute Wyvern, her natural defense was formidable; the attack did little damage.
Lillie commanded Banbaro to throw another tree, but Team Rocket wouldn't fall for the same trick twice.
Gourgeist shattered the wood mid-air. Banbaro was a powerhouse in close combat, but against a flying opponent, she had few options.
Bai Chen saw this and shouted, "Lillie! Use my Pokémon!"
He couldn't reach his own balls, but Lillie could if she jumped into the foam. Guided by his voice, she saw his trainer's belt. With a dash, she leaped into the sticky mess, her head thumping into Bai Chen's stomach with a force that made him hiss.
She successfully grabbed a ball. She didn't know which one it was, but she pressed the button: "Please help me!"
Kirin emerged from the ball, and a crack of thunder split the sky. "Kirin, please repel the enemy!"
"Heee-nn!" Kirin neighed, leaping effortlessly out of the foam sea. He summoned heavenly lightning, a bolt of azure electricity striking the balloon directly. With a massive explosion, the trio became stars in the distance.
"Meowth, didn't you put lightning rods on the balloon?" James asked as they flew.
"We ran out of budget... it all went into the foam!"
"This is a total bummer!" Jessie wailed. "And this was supposed to be our final mission in Kalos!"
With the crisis averted, Lillie struggled to stand up in the foam. But since even Nergigante had trouble, she was hopelessly stuck. "We'll have to wait for rescue," Bai Chen told her.
"Mhm..." Lillie whispered, her head resting on Bai Chen's stomach.
"I didn't expect you to save me." While Bai Chen hadn't felt truly endangered, Lillie had saved him. He paused, then looked at her. "By the way, didn't you say a few days ago that you wanted to come back to my hometown with me?"
"I'm sorry. I was being selfish," Lillie apologized. She had come to regret asking.
"Is that so? Then... I wonder if you could grant me a selfish request."
"Huh?" Lillie looked up at him in confusion.
"When I go back this time, come with me."
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