Faba had never thought much of Maki at first. Sure, the kid had emerged from an Ultra Wormhole, but in his eyes, he was just some brat who had been sucked in by accident. Maybe he had some research value, but there was no reason to pay him too much attention.
Still, the possibility that Maki held secrets about the Ultra Wormhole intrigued him. If he could extract useful information, a promotion and a raise would be just around the corner!
Just as he was thinking about this, he overheard Maki mention another person who had also entered the Ultra Wormhole. Faba's eyes immediately gleamed with excitement, and he quickly moved closer.
"Ah, about that… I was actually on my way to inform President Lusamine myself," he said smoothly.
Maki suddenly seemed to remember something and turned to look at Lilie.
"Where is the President usually at this time?"
"Hmm… she should be in her office right now."
"Alright, then let's go find her there."
With that, Maki and Lilie started heading toward Lusamine's office.
"Uh, uh, uh! Actually, there's no problem if you tell me first. I can pass the information to the President on your behalf!"
Seeing these two brats planning to ditch him and take all the credit, Faba hurried after them with quick steps.
"Director Faba, you must be quite busy with your research. There's no need to trouble yourself with this. We'll report directly to the President ourselves. You should focus on your work!" Maki waved dismissively before swiftly pulling Lilie along as they ran ahead.
"What—?! Why, you—! Those insolent little brats!" Faba gritted his teeth in frustration but ultimately had no choice but to return to his lab.
...
"Hehe, you really know how to shake people off," Lilie giggled once they had gained some distance. She could tell that Maki had deliberately dodged Faba.
"Well, what can I do? He's so annoying. And he was born with a villain's face. You don't like him much either, right?" Maki shrugged.
Faba just had one of those classic bad-guy faces. Meanwhile, he himself had successfully blended in, even forming brotherly bonds with a Doduo without arousing suspicion.
"Hmm, true. He's definitely irritating. And for some reason, just seeing him makes me dislike him," Lilie nodded in agreement.
Well, of course—you lost your memories because of him.
Maki knew the truth but couldn't exactly say it outright. That would be like a wolf outing himself as the prophet. No, it was better to wait until Lilie remembered everything on her own.
"By the way, where are we going?"
Even after shaking off Faba, Lilie was still walking ahead without stopping. Curious, Maki turned to ask her.
"Huh? Weren't you the one who said we should see my mother?" Lilie looked at him in surprise.
"I was just saying that offhand…" Maki's lips twitched. He had assumed she was just playing along, but she had actually taken it seriously.
"Wait, so you were lying to me?!"
"No, no! I just meant that I never actually planned on telling President Lusamine about this," Maki quickly clarified when he saw her misunderstanding.
"Why not? Isn't this important information?"
"Because it's not really valuable… But whatever. Since we're already here, might as well say it anyway."
They soon arrived in front of Lusamine's office. With a "might as well" mentality, Maki knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Lusamine's sweet voice called from inside.
Hmm… It might sound odd to describe a mother of two as "sweet," but for Lusamine, the term was strangely fitting.
"Maki. And Lilie. What brings you two here? Have a seat."
Lusamine seemed to have been going through some documents, but upon seeing Maki and Lilie, she quickly set them aside and gestured toward the sofa in her office.
"Mother, when I come in, you usually just tell me to go play somewhere else," Lilie pouted, puffing up her cheeks in protest at the difference in treatment.
"Oh dear, that's just because of work. So, Maki, what brings you here?" Lusamine chuckled as she patted her daughter's head before turning her attention to Maki.
Lilie, now thoroughly ignored, sulked in the corner of the sofa, hugging her Clefairy.
"Uh… it's actually nothing major. I just remembered someone else who came through an Ultra Wormhole. Then I ran into Director Faba and used that as an excuse to get away from him."
"Someone else came from an Ultra Wormhole?"
Lusamine barely acknowledged Faba's name, nor did she seem surprised that Maki disliked him. Instead, all her focus was on the person Maki had mentioned.
Her eyes lit up, and she leaned in slightly toward him.
"Ahem. Mother, mind your posture," Lilie coughed pointedly, reminding her mother to be more composed.
"Yes, but this is quite an important matter," Lusamine replied, her tone laced with curiosity and doubt. "Are you sure it's 'nothing major'?"
"Hmm… I know who she is, but there's nothing we can do about her," Maki said, spreading his hands in resignation.
"You're saying we?" Lusamine raised an eyebrow. Because Lilie was present, she didn't speak too directly, but the implication was clear.
That "we" obviously included both the Aether Foundation and Team Rocket.
The Aether Foundation's influence was mostly limited to Alola, and their strength wasn't overwhelming. That part was understandable.
But Team Rocket? If even they couldn't do anything, then just who was this person?
"Anabel. The Battle Tower Tycoon. She's also an agent of the International Police."
"Ah… I see now." Lusamine paused for a moment before giving a wry smile.
The Battle Tower Tycoons were on par with Caitlin's bodyguard/butler, Darach. Their status was just slightly below that of the Elite Four, but they possessed Elite Four-level strength nonetheless.
While such strength wasn't particularly threatening to Team Rocket, the Aether Foundation had very few who could claim they could definitely defeat someone of that caliber. In fact, Lusamine herself might be the only one.
Not to mention, the International Police had the League backing them. That alone was a formidable barrier. No wonder Maki thought that even Team Rocket wouldn't act recklessly against her.
-------
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]