Meanwhile, on the other side.
Following the young man, whose eyes were hollow and whose pace was precise as a machine, Misty, Brock, and the anxious Pikachu and Misdreavus passed through a series of corridors that were far too quiet, finally being ushered into a room.
Rather than a dining hall, it looked more like a meticulously arranged lounge with a minimalist and severe style.
These people who trained their psychic powers... had probably trained their brains into psychic energy itself. In their eyes, there was only psychic power; they didn't care a whit about the enjoyment of daily life.
Not only did it lack the 'superior human' style of a Psychic, but it was also overly grounded and utilitarian.
With hard-lined metal tables and chairs, cold polished floors, and monotonous silver-gray walls, the only decoration was the geometric lighting fixtures hanging from the ceiling, emitting a soft white glow.
...This kind of dining hall was truly too unadorned.
...Couldn't it be a little more high-end?
The air was filled with a scent that was a mix of cleaning agent and some peculiar fragrance, carrying a sense of non-human order and alienation.
...In short, it did not look like a place for enjoyment.
"Please wait here for a moment. Lady Sabrina will be joining everyone for lunch shortly."
After the young man finished speaking in his flat, modulation-free tone, he turned and left like a programmed robot.
Aside from psychic powers and Lady Sabrina... he cared about nothing.
Leaving the two humans and two Pokémon in this overly quiet space.
As for whether there would be any problems? Who would dare cause trouble at the Saffron Gym!
Because of Sabrina's consistent performance and power, everyone held a blind sense of worship toward her. It seemed that as long as Sabrina was here, no accidents would ever occur.
"Joining... for lunch?" Misty repeated the phrase, exchanging an incredulous look with Brock.
They had envisioned various possibilities—
1. Ash coming out dispirited after being defeated.
2. Ash being turned into a doll.
3. Ash developing a reverence for psychic powers after being personally "tutored" by Sabrina.
But the option of "having lunch together" was truly beyond the scope of their imagination. Especially considering the gossip among fellow Gym Leaders—the Saffron Gym Leader, Sabrina, had never been an easy person to get along with.
One could even say she was quite difficult.
Although she was quite dutiful... but... should one call it an accident? Or an accident?
In short, Sabrina was not someone bound by duty.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu wasn't thinking that much.
Its little paws tightly gripped the back of the chair, ears standing straight up, looking around anxiously, searching for that familiar figure.
It had no interest in lunch.
It just wanted to know if Ash was safe.
Pikachu: My Partner!
Pikachu: My Partner, ahhh!
"Maa..." Misdreavus appeared even more uneasy.
She floated behind Misty, the purple mist around her fluctuating slightly. Not because of fear, but due to some... more indescribable premonition.
Misdreavus's strength was decent; she could evolve into Mismagius whenever she wanted. And Mismagius... could manipulate misfortune and fortune to a certain extent.
Misdreavus currently felt that she was about to be unlucky.
Moreover, this place made her instinctively feel repulsed. The omnipresent psychic power was like an invisible net, making even a Ghost-type Pokémon like her feel somewhat suffocated.
Right in the midst of this anxious waiting, the wall on one side of the room slid open silently again.
Then everyone, including Pikachu and Misdreavus, froze on the spot as if immobilized by a spell. Their pupils quaked, and their brains instantly fell into a state of crashing.
Shock!
A Great Shock!
Like a Magnitude 50 earthquake!
They saw... a scene sufficient to overturn all their perceptions.
Sabrina flew in... As a Psychic, she rarely walked with her feet.
She was still wearing that dark purple, tight-fitting combat suit, her long dark green hair moving without wind, and her face still wore that eternal, expressionless iceberg look.
But!!!
But in her arms... she was holding a person!!
Ash, whom they had been worrying about for ages, was being held in Sabrina's arms!
Not supported, not controlled, but held horizontally against her chest in a posture like one would hold a large doll.
This position originally belonged to Little Sabrina. Little Sabrina was often held against Big Sabrina's chest.
Seeing his companions, Ash's face wore a stiff smile that was a mixture of extreme awkwardness, resignation, and a sliver of an attempt to maintain composure.
His hat was slightly askew, and his hands hung awkwardly in mid-air, appearing as if he wanted to push away but dared not. His entire person looked exceptionally... petite in Sabrina's arms.
This image was already thrilling enough, but what made one's scalp tingle even more was yet to come.
Floating beside Sabrina was Little Sabrina, dressed in her white frock.
She wore an innocent yet wicked smile on her face, holding a delicate small bowl in her hand, which contained food that looked quite presentable.
She floated to a height level with Sabrina's chest, then used a small spoon to scoop up a spoonful of food. Carefully, and one could even say gently, she brought it to the lips of Ash, who was cradled in Sabrina's arms.
"Come on, Ash, say ahh~"
"...My ass."
Little Sabrina spoke in a voice so sweet it was cloying, as if coaxing a baby who refused to eat.
Maybe this is also a woman who could be a mother?
Ridiculous.
It was simply like playing house.
In fact, this really was Little Sabrina's hobby. The emotions Big Sabrina wouldn't show and the thoughts she suppressed would all be expressed by Little Sabrina.
Ash's face instantly turned bright red, flushing from his forehead all the way to the base of his neck.
His lips quivered, and his eyes frantically darted toward the petrified Misty and Brock at the entrance, transmitting desperate signals of "Help," "I don't want this either," and "Do something quickly!"
But the stiffness of his body indicated that he probably didn't even have room to struggle at this moment.
Being held against Sabrina's chest, he could feel Sabrina's figure and temperature.
Especially the 'Brain Wave Pads' behind his head—they were truly large and luscious.
And Sabrina did not shy away from it at all.
But Ash really felt... mm.
"Wu..."
Ash let out a vague syllable, trying to turn his head away.
But that spoon of food seemed to have eyes, tracking his lips with precision. Such was Little Sabrina's bad taste.
"Pi... Pika?" Pikachu's ears, which had been standing up, instantly drooped, and its bristling fur slowly smoothed out.
It tilted its head, looking at this inconceivable scene, its small eyes filled with massive confusion.
Hmm... The Trainer looks fine. Not injured, didn't turn into a doll. It's just... his situation is a bit strange.
Pikachu let out a few grumbles of unclear meaning from its throat, seeming to judge whether this was a new type of "battle" or "punishment" that it couldn't understand.
But no matter how it looked, it didn't seem like it!
Don't let Ash's struggling appearance fool you.
Pikachu could guarantee with its partner's life—its own Trainer was enjoying this right now.
Pikachu: Humans are still so hard to understand.
Misty's jaw almost hit the floor.
She opened her mouth, unable to produce a single syllable for a long time, only able to point a trembling finger forward, as if she had seen a scene from the end of the world.
All the tragic, tense, and serious scripts Misty had rehearsed in her mind... were shattered into powder at this moment by this absurd, bizarre scene that was also bubbling with pink bubbles.
Well, because the reality was too impactful, Misty couldn't quite react.
Jealousy?
That would have to wait until she processed this later.
After all, the difference in body figures between the two sides was too vast.
Brock, on the other hand, kept rubbing his eyes with his hands, then held his forehead, trying to confirm if he was having a collective hallucination due to excessive tension.
His rich experience as a Gym Leader and his life experience were completely unable to explain everything happening before him right now.
What was this?
The Psychic Queen's unique way of caring?
Or some new type of mental attack aimed at destroying the challenger's will through extreme awkwardness?
—Damn it!
—It's too enviable!
Let go of that Ash and let me take his place!
Sure enough, Brock had the fastest reaction speed. Brock had already recovered from the overly impactful reality and was acting true to his character.
However, amidst this extreme shock and speechlessness, Misdreavus's reaction was completely different.
"Maa!!!"
She didn't relax like Pikachu, nor did she fall into cognitive chaos like Misty.
Her small body first went violently stiff.
Immediately after, an extremely sharp, even ferocious light instantly erupted in those big eyes that had originally been watery with worry.
She stared dead at Sabrina—whether it was Big Sabrina or Little Sabrina.
A terrifyingly strange intuition, originating from being of the same kind, shot through Misdreavus's entire body like a cold electric current.
Wrong!
This feeling...
"Maa, maa, maa—!!!"
An unprecedented emotion—a mixture of anger at her territory being violated, unwillingness at having attention stolen, and an indescribable sentiment similar to jealousy—erupted like a volcano in Misdreavus's heart!
She sensed a threat!
An unprecedented threat!
Pikachu was a partner, Misty was a companion, and even that newcomer Charmeleon was just a junior who needed looking after.
But this "Sabrina" was different!
This was no longer the worry of her Trainer being targeted by a powerful opponent; this was... another "opponent" harboring ill intentions breaking into her "home," trying to lay a finger on her most cherished "possession"!
Heartbreak?
No, what filled Misdreavus's heart at this moment was a raging fighting spirit and a determination to defend her territory!
Enemy!
This is a love rival!
—Gwah!
—You let go!
—Don't you hold him!
The purple mist around Misdreavus churned violently, almost condensing into a solid substance.
Her small body trembled slightly from anger, her gaze locking dead onto Sabrina, as if she would pounce in the next second to use her strongest Ghost-type move to drive this "fellow kind" out.
On the other side.
Ash, being held by Sabrina and fed by Little Sabrina, amidst his extreme awkwardness, also keenly perceived the gaze from the doorway—Misdreavus's gaze, which had almost condensed into ice spikes.
He turned his eyes with difficulty, meeting Misdreavus's eyes that seemed to be burning with ghostly purple flames.
Ash's heart instantly skipped a beat.
It's over... Mengmeng seems to have... misunderstood something?
And this misunderstanding looks very deep!
As for whether this was true or a misunderstanding, let us skip this topic for now.
Ash tried to respond with a helpless and soothing look, but evidently, in this current scenario that looked like the 'Paradise of Ultimate Bliss' no matter how you viewed it, any eye contact appeared pale and powerless.
The atmosphere in the dining room thus solidified in a contradiction of extreme absurdity and surging undercurrents.
On one side was the Sabrina sisters' (?) care, oblivious to others.
On the other side were Misty and Brock's sluggishness from their worldviews collapsing, Pikachu's oblivious confusion, and Misdreavus's raging hostility toward the "invader of her kind" that was about to explode.
In short...
Things being what they are, let's just eat first.
____
New Story: Danmachi: But I am a God, time to make a family!
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