Lillie left.
Gladion trembled with anger.
"Lillie—"
The thing he had dreaded most had happened. Judging by Lillie's expression, she had clearly remembered something awful.
She had finally become able to touch Pokémon again...
Gladion clenched his fists, consumed by guilt and resentment.
He resented Lusamine for burying herself in work and ignoring Lillie's state of mind.
He blamed himself, too. If he had been strong enough back then, he could have saved Lillie from Nihilego before she became unable to touch Pokémon.
The brooding teenager kicked a nearby sand pile. White grains flew into the air.
"Damn it!"
"..."
Seeing this, Baimu wondered if he should say something to the kid.
Before he could speak, Gladion recalled Type: Null, bowed a hurried goodbye, and said he was going to check on his sister. Then he ran off without looking back.
Should I follow and help?
There was nothing he could do to help. Better leave it.
Baimu shook his head. Most of what came next would unfold at Aether Paradise. Unless Gladion asked him for help, he had no way to get involved.
Fortunately, Faba was good at research but hopeless as a villain.
Both Lillie and Gladion had seen him open an Ultra Wormhole and release Nihilego, yet only the frightened Lillie had been hypnotized.
Gladion had come away untouched.
Of course,
it was also possible that wiping both their memories would have raised too many suspicions, so Faba had not dared try.
Either way,
if Lusamine had not been so busy with work that she rarely spoke to Gladion or Lillie, Faba's actions would have been exposed long ago. She had not even known whether the Silvally project had succeeded.
After all, communication was one of the central themes of Pokémon the Series: Sun & Moon.
"Time