Cameran Palace.
While Mew was happily playing with Victini, Meloetta, and the others,
the battle between Sir Aaron's Lucario and Li Wei's Lucario had already begun.
This was a duel without Trainers.
In last year's Lily of the Valley Conference, Li Wei's Lucario had won their showdown.
This time, no Trainers were involved.
Beside them, the battle between Metagross and Zeraora had also begun.
Although Li Wei had won every match in the points stage apart from the two he had forfeited,
Lucario, Metagross, and the others had not grown conceited.
After all, Li Wei had yet to face a truly formidable opponent.
In this year's Master League, the points stage was merely a warm-up. The real battlefield lay in the Knockout Round.
Meanwhile, Li Wei had arrived at Philip's Workshop in the castle.
The enormous stone fireplace was purely decorative, but it still lent the room a comforting, traditional atmosphere.
Modern ovens and mixers sat harmoniously alongside gleaming copper pots and wooden molds.
Li Wei tied on the spare apron Philip handed him and stood beside the spacious kitchen island.
Philip had only a few assistants, and they had already gone home for the day.
At Li Wei's arrival, Philip's face glowed with excitement.
Very few people could discuss dessert making with Philip and offer him suggestions for improvement.
Li Wei was one of them.
Li Wei regarded Philip as a teacher, while Philip considered Li Wei a kindred spirit.
Anyone willing to study desserts seriously was a friend of Philip's.
Philip laughed heartily. "With all those Pokémon of yours, we've got our work cut out for us today."
Philip had known well in advance that Li Wei was coming; Li Wei had already spoken with Queen Arianna.
When the subject of girlfriends came up, Philip could barely squeeze