Major Grant looked at Jason without a trace of sympathy.
"Deputy Mayor Jason... you'd better hope the investigation finds nothing else."
Then he turned to Aaron.
"How do you want to handle this?"
Aaron's anger had cooled into something much simpler.
"By the book. Being old doesn't put anyone above the law, and neither does being deputy mayor. Investigate what happened and deal with everyone according to what they actually did."
He reached into the System Backpack and produced the golden badge representing his national honor and honorary rank.
The old woman stared at it without understanding at first.
Aaron crouched slightly and held it where she could see.
"You can read this, right?"
Her eyes moved across the inscription.
Recipient of Hualis's Highest National Honor
Honorary General of the Hualis Pokémon League: Aaron
Aaron gave her a faint smile.
"I gave you plenty of chances to stop. You kept making accusations, threatening people, and demanding that I be arrested because you thought your son could protect you."
Her face slowly lost its color.
"That's impossible!" she shouted. "You're too young! That has to be fake!"
Aaron straightened and put the badge away.
"Believe whatever you want."
He had already lost interest in arguing with her.
"Grant, I'll leave the rest to you. Find out exactly what happened, and don't give anyone special treatment—whether they're ordinary citizens or the deputy mayor."
Grant nodded.
"Leave it to me."
Aaron gave Jason one last glance and walked away.
The airport incident did not end there.
The elderly couple and Jason's aide were detained while the confrontation aboard the aircraft and the disturbance at the airport were investigated. Jason himself soon attracted considerably more scrutiny than he had expected.
That scrutiny uncovered far more than his mother's behavior.
Investigators eventually found evidence of corruption, bribery, and eight mistresses. Jason was removed from office and placed under investigation, with the case proceeding from there according to law.
The elderly couple had spent the entire day relying on their son's position to intimidate strangers.
In the end, all they accomplished was drawing attention directly toward the person whose position they had been so proud of.
But all of that came later.
...
Aaron left the airport, called a ride, and finally headed home.
By the time he arrived, it was already around five in the afternoon.
The moment he opened the door, he found his parents and younger sister sitting down for dinner. Growlithe and the family's Hisuian Zoroark were there with them.
Aaron smiled.
"Dad, Mom, Lily. I'm home."
For a second, everyone at the table simply stared at him.
Then his mother and Lily were out of their seats almost at the same time.
"My son! You finally remembered where you live." His mother grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him over. "So? Did you at least bring me a future daughter-in-law?"
Lily squeezed in beside her.
"I was starting to think you'd been kidnapped and had your kidneys stolen. What took you so long?"
Aaron stared at the two of them.
"I missed you too."
"Woof! Woof!"
Growlithe came charging over and immediately started licking his leg.
"Zoro!"
Zoroark followed close behind and wrapped its arms around him, happily rubbing its face against his cheek.
Aaron endured the enthusiastic welcome for a moment before laughing.
"All right, all right. I get it."
He conveniently ignored his mother's question and turned toward Lily.
"I brought you something."
That immediately got her attention.
"What?"
Aaron reached into the System Backpack and took out a Fire Stone.
"This."
Lily's eyes widened.
"A Fire Stone?"
"Yep. Growlithe can use it whenever you're ready. Then he'll be able to evolve into Arcanine."
Her face lit up.
Before Aaron could react, she grabbed him and planted a kiss on his cheek.
"Thank you! You're the best!"
Aaron wiped his cheek with the back of his hand.
"You could've just said thanks."
"But where's the fun in that?"
He smiled and ruffled her hair.
"You're my little sister. Of course I'm going to look after you."
His mother immediately leaned into the conversation.
"You know, girlfriends also appreciate being looked after."
Aaron pretended not to hear her.
He took out some Energy Cubes instead and crouched beside the two Pokémon.
"Come here, you two. It's been a while."
Growlithe happily accepted the treat before going right back to licking Aaron's hand. Zoroark followed his example and gave Aaron another enthusiastic lick across the cheek.
Aaron recoiled.
"Seriously? Him I understand. He's a dog. What's your excuse?"
"Zoro!"
"You've been spending way too much time with Growlithe."
Zoroark looked entirely unapologetic.
Laughing, Aaron returned to the table and stole a piece of braised pork straight from one of the dishes.
His father looked up at him.
"If you're going to steal dinner, at least get yourself a bowl and some chopsticks."
Aaron grinned.
"Good to see you too, Dad."
The older man tried to maintain his usual expression, but the slight smile at the corner of his mouth gave him away.
"Go on."
Aaron headed toward the kitchen.
Behind him, his father added, "And bring a glass. Have a drink with me tonight."
Aaron glanced back.
"Sure."
That evening, the house was livelier than it had been in a long time.
Victor claimed he was only going to have one drink.
He did not stop at one.
By the end of the night, Aaron was standing beside the sofa looking down at his sleeping father with an expression somewhere between amusement and disbelief.
He had somehow managed to drink his own dad under the table.
Not that it had been much of a contest. With Aaron's enhanced physique, the alcohol barely registered.
After helping his mother clean up the kitchen, he checked the time.
Almost ten.
He had to be up early the next morning to meet Major Grant at the Sealine City Base before their expedition into the newly discovered secret zone.
Aaron headed toward his room.
Then he noticed the glow of a computer screen.
Greninja was sitting in front of it, completely absorbed in an anime.
Aaron stopped at the doorway.
"Frog Boss, don't stay up all night."
No response.
"Seriously. Turn the light off when you're done."
"Grenin."
Without looking away from the screen, Greninja flicked a small water shuriken across the room.
Click.
The light went out.
Aaron looked from the switch to Greninja.
On the monitor, another episode of anime ninja was already playing.
Greninja leaned closer to the screen with complete concentration.
Aaron decided not to ask.
Tomorrow was going to be a long day.
...