Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice

Stephen informed Will and Karen of his decision made the previous night: if they still couldn't find a chance to meet Lusamine today, they would simply resort to taking action by force.

"Although I agreed with this approach from the start, why did you change your mind, Stephen?"

Will asked curiously.

As the team member most eager to stir up trouble, Will had indeed wanted to take the hard route from the beginning. However, due to Stephen's insistence, he had been holding back. Now that Stephen had suddenly changed his mind, Will found it a bit hard to adjust.

"Nothing much, just tired of waiting."

Stephen didn't mention that it was because Umbreon was running out of patience. That would hurt the little fox's pride.

Will, being rather thick-headed, didn't overthink it and instead excitedly patted Stephen on the shoulder. "That's the spirit! We're not the type to sit around and behave ourselves—we're the type to stir things up, to turn the world upside down!"

Karen, on the other hand, being a girl and skilled at observing Pokémon's emotions, saw things more clearly than Will.

As the one responsible for preparing the Pokémon's meals, she had noticed that Umbreon had been eating less and less over the past few days. Combined with Stephen's sudden change of plans, she had a vague guess about what was going on.

However, Karen didn't say anything.

Seeing Will's clueless expression, she smirked internally, thinking, "Ignorance truly is bliss."

At the same time, she couldn't help but admire Stephen's willingness to change plans for Umbreon. He genuinely cared about his Pokémon, always considering things from their perspectives.

"There's no special training today. Everyone, take a good rest," Stephen announced after breakfast.

Given Umbreon's current state, it wasn't suitable for training anyway.

...

After Breakfast

Stephen began fiddling with various devices at the lab bench, items that his companions couldn't make sense of.

Will was busy preparing equipment for their operation.

Karen, sitting on the sofa with a comb in hand, was brushing their Pokémon's fur while watching TV with them.

"Don Oh! (I want to watch Professor Oak's lecture!)"

Stufful protested loudly, showing no interest in the Kalos-region drama starring the child star Diantha that was currently airing on TV. Stufful was far more interested in the knowledge shared in Professor Oak's lectures.

"Jyn! Jyn!"

Will's Jynx, holding the remote control, shook her head repeatedly.

Today's episode was the most exciting one yet. The male protagonist was devastated to discover his long-time crush was his father's illegitimate daughter, and was now facing a shocking revelation from his mother: the male protagonist and his father were not biologically related. Jynx couldn't wait to see how the story would unfold.

"Don oh!"

Stufful raised its fist.

Even without the telepathic abilities, Karen could guess what Stufful was trying to say:

If you don't hand over the remote, I might just show you some of my moves.

"Everyone, get along, okay?"

Karen furrowed her brows slightly, stepping in to mediate.

No matter how harshly they treated their enemies, internal conflicts among companions were unacceptable.

"Stufful, if you're interested in learning, you can ask Stephen to teach you. You can't treat your teammates like this, understood?"

After some thought, Karen decided to side with Jynx.

Although Jynx's trainer was rather annoying, Jynx herself had done nothing wrong. Moreover, Karen felt that allowing Stufful's domineering personality to grow unchecked would not be a good thing.

"Don oh!"

Stufful, puffing with anger, stomped over to Stephen.

Watching Stufful's sulking figure, Karen chuckled softly and shook her head. Then, her attention was drawn to the news ticker scrolling across the bottom of the TV screen:

["The 9th Alola Women of the Year Awards will be held in two days at the Aether Foundation's Space Research Center in Konikoni City on Akala Island. This year's frontrunner is still Aether Foundation Chairwoman Lusamine. This also marks..."]

The moment she saw "Lusamine," Karen didn't bother reading the rest. She immediately stood up and hurried to the lab.

"Stephen! I've found a way to meet Lusamine!"

...

Two Days Later, Akala Island, Alola

Due to Lusamine's attendance at the Alola Women of the Year Awards ceremony, Stephen and his team arrived in Konikoni City, hoping to finally meet her.

Although Alola didn't have as many surveillance cameras as Johto, Karen still wore a sun hat and sunglasses that covered most of her face, just in case.

However, such attire was common in Alola and didn't attract any attention.

Stephen put on a pair of plain, unimpressive black-framed glasses.

He seemed less wild than usual and a bit more like a bookworm.

"Why all the roundabout plans? Can't we just sneak into the Aether Foundation and grab what we need?"

As soon as they entered Konikoni City, a slouched Will weakly complained.

"Idiot! Don't say things like that in public!"

Karen smacked Will on the head from behind.

"The Aether Foundation isn't that strong, but if we're discovered, suspicion will naturally fall on us."

Stephen, walking at the front, explained calmly.

"Huh? We wouldn't make such a rookie mistake, right? The Aether Foundation is just a Pokémon protection group—there's no way it's more dangerous than Olivine Gym."

Will was puzzled.

"Idiot! Last time we acted in Johto, and now we're in Alola. If our actions here get exposed, the League will naturally investigate anyone who traveled from Johto to Alola during this time."

Karen retorted sharply.

"So what? Alola is the most famous vacation spot in the Pokémon world. There are tens of thousands of tourists arriving daily—how could they trace it back to us?"

Will still didn't get it.

Karen silently quickened her pace to put some distance between herself and Will, afraid of getting infected by his cluelessness.

"There may be a lot of tourists, but if the search narrows to kids around 12 years old, the list gets much smaller."

Stephen reminded him.

Finally, Will understood.

It was true. After all, even though they wore masks during their heists, their short, childlike frames—barely over ten years old—were still obvious.

If they acted in Alola as the Phantom Thieves and their trail was exposed, the League only needed to check which kids had traveled from Johto to Alola during this time. It wouldn't take long to zero in on the three of them.

"We're here—the Space Research Station."

Stephen suddenly spoke.

Will looked ahead.

"Whoa, there are way too many people!"

He was startled by the scene before him.

Everywhere he looked, it was packed with people!

"It's just an awards ceremony. Why does it feel like a celebrity meet-and-greet?"

"You got it right, chubby brother. Lusamine, the chairwoman, is a celebrity in Alola."

Will had barely finished complaining when a small girl nearby chimed in.

The three of them turned to look.

They saw a little girl who resembled Will with her purple hair, styled into a high ponytail, and slightly upturned eyes. Her small pouty lips gave her an adorable, kitten-like appearance. She looked to be about three years old.

Stephen added, "Yeah, the Alola Women of the Year Award is given to women who have made outstanding contributions to Alola. Since its inception nine years ago, Lusamine has won all eight previous awards. This ninth one will probably—"

"And the winner is… Miss Lusamine!"

On the temporary award stage, Kukui, the Pokémon Professor of Alola, announced the winner's name.

The crowd erupted into cheers and applause.

Immediately following, a stunning woman in a pure white dress, her golden hair cascading like a waterfall nearly to her heels, ascended the stage amidst thunderous applause.

"She's gorgeous…"

Will was completely mesmerized.

"I've seen the light."

Stephen, however, wasn't just looking at Lusamine. His gaze also fell on the four- or five-year-old twins following behind her.

In his opinion, it was precisely the presence of those twins that made Lusamine seem even more radiant.

"Huh?"

Karen was utterly confused as she glanced at Stephen, unable to understand what he meant.

"Given this situation, there's no way we can approach her, right? What now?"

Karen felt the need to remind the two that they were here on a mission.

Although Stephen wasn't as over-the-top as Will, he also stared for a good while.

Stephen rubbed his chin in thought. After a moment, he suddenly took a deep breath and shouted:

"Lusamine, I love you!"

The entire awards venue fell into an awkward silence.

To be honest, if those words had come from a grown man, people would have laughed it off.

After all, in Alola, plenty of people were infatuated with Lusamine.

But when those words came from a 12- or 13-year-old kid, it was a completely different matter.

In an instant, Stephen became the most eye-catching person in the entire venue.

PS: Stephen can't hold back his intrusive thoughts.