Sinnoh Region.
Pokémon League Headquarters.
Six people sat in the Elite Four's highest-level conference room.
Sinnoh League Chairman Igor, Elite Four Bertha, Xia Yan, Cynthia, Gardenia, and acting Elite Four Lucian.
As everyone knew, although a region was said to have four Elite Four members, having five people was perfectly reasonable.
Lucian had originally been more or less earmarked by the Sinnoh League as an Elite Four member. There simply had not been an opening yet.
Besides.
As the secretary to Xia Yan, the slacker Elite Four, Lucian was practically acting in Xia Yan's place. He was merely missing the title, and needed to follow Xia Yan's wishes in the arrangement of certain matters.
The six sat around a small round table.
Oh, no.
Lucian sat behind Xia Yan, while Chairman Igor sat off to one side without participating.
"Gardenia, you've really made something of yourself."
Looking at Gardenia, with his explosive hair and somewhat carefree demeanor, Xia Yan could not help but say it.
"Hehe—"
Gardenia rubbed his nose and smiled. "Senior Kelvin just wasn't fighting seriously."
Kelvin, the Flying-type Elite Four, had never been particularly Enthusiastic about being one of the Elite Four. Skilled in Flying-type Pokémon, she preferred to live as freely as a bird.
It was just that.
Sinnoh had indeed been in a period of transition before, so under Chairman Igor and Bertha's persuasion, she had continued dedicating herself to the Sinnoh Region.
But now.
Lucian, Gardenia, Aaron, and the others had all grown up.
Xia Yan had arranged for the three of them to help him handle matters. While he had indeed made those arrangements so he could slack off, it could not be denied that he had reported the matter to Igor and Bertha beforehand, under the lofty banner of training and cultivation.