Serena is seeing Lorelei in person for the first time. Before this, she had only glimpsed Lorelei on TV but paid little attention, focusing all her attention on Ash instead.
For Serena, the existence of the Elite Four, or perhaps Ash himself, is something she might never encounter in a lifetime...
Unexpectedly, during her first journey to the Orange Archipelago, she met Ash and even the legendary Elite Four.
She truly isn't just ordinarily lucky...
Speaking of which, Lorelei seems to know Ash. From the ease of their conversation, they seemed like old acquaintances, even joking with each other. Are all the women Ash knows this beautiful?
Furthermore, it's not just about beauty with Lorelei; her figure is stunningly complemented by a simple professional outfit. If she were a man, one might find it hard to take their eyes off her.
"This is Serena, my new partner. Brock stayed on Valencia Island to help Dr. Nemu. Serena is from the Kalos Region. We met by chance on Penggan Island, and she joined our team." Ash first introduced Serena, then asked Lorelei why she was on this island for an exhibition match.
Generally speaking, an Elite wouldn't just casually come out for an exhibition match because they are Elite! They have real power and responsibilities and are usually incredibly busy.
The last time Lorelei was able to have an exhibition match with Ash was because she received a mission to supervise Giovanni and welcome Ash. Plus, Lorelei also wanted to help clear up the rumors about Ash, the rising star of Kanto, so she agreed to an exhibition match with him.
But why does she have time today to come to Ganju Island for an exhibition match? A mission from the League?
"Actually, the exhibition match is just a cover. My real purpose here is... to investigate Team Galactic."
"Investigate Team Galactic?!" Ash's tone was slightly surprised, clearly not expecting Lorelei to have the same purpose as him.
"Yes, I actually know about your mission, Ash. But I thought we should act separately. After all, putting all the responsibility on you would be too unfair. You're just a fifteen-year-old kid. I didn't expect to run into you on Ganju Island." Lorelei smiled, but her tone was slightly heavy.
No one knew how much she reacted when she first learned from the League that Ash was going to the Orange Archipelago to investigate Team Galactic and search for Lugia.
Not just because Ash is the hope of Kanto, but also because he's only fifteen. No matter how strong he appears, Lorelei always sees him as a child!
Having a child undertake a cross-regional criminal organization mission—isn't that a joke?
This is something even the Sinnoh Champion couldn't wade through. So far, there's no news from Cynthia transmitted back to the League. Typically, if traces of Team Galactic were found, it should have been reported back to the League for reinforcements.
Even in the absence of sightings, Cynthia would regularly report back safely. Now, with no news from Cynthia, it can only mean one thing — Cynthia has encountered trouble.
The likelihood of this assumption is up to ninety percent, but the League dare not spread this news casually. If people within the League knew even the Sinnoh Champion has no news about the investigation, it would be a severe blow to the League's morale.
So currently, the only ones who know of Cynthia's lack of news are Ash and the League's top officials and the Elite Four.
Ash knows because Cynthia promised him to keep in touch regularly, checking on Little Lugia, and they exchanged phone numbers.
But now, Ash cannot reach her, and she's not called back either, making Ash faintly uneasy. However, he believes Cynthia is not someone to easily fail—she's a Champion! And ranked second among the Eight Great Masters!
This means Cynthia is second in the world, and with her brilliant mind, how could she possibly fall at a mere small branch of Team Galactic?
However, the League doesn't see it this way. They think Cynthia has already encountered misfortune, so they must send someone new to the Orange Archipelago for this investigation.
Originally, it should have been Lance to come here. After all, if even Cynthia met with misfortune, sending others would be pointless.
However, Lance had important matters at hand that couldn't be left, and Lorelei volunteered, so it was she who came to the Orange Archipelago to find Team Galactic's whereabouts.
"So, Miss Lorelei, is there any news on Team Galactic?" After hearing Lorelei recount the situation's details, Ash eagerly asked.
Traveling all this way, Ash only knew to go to Asia Island to find Lugia. Other than that, he had no other information — no news on Team Galactic and none on Team Rocket.
However, he did capture three Pokémon along the way, including a Snorlax considered a battle god. If it was just a simple journey, these two weeks would have been very fruitful for Ash indeed.