Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice

Upon hearing this, Lance, who had been sulking with a sour face ever since arriving in Sinnoh, finally broke into an excited smile.

Riley's Aura abilities, to put it simply, are somewhat like a police dog sniffing out a target based on scent.

 Though simple, it is undoubtedly an effective method.

"Can you sense the Aura of the real Jewel of Life now?"

 Cynthia impatiently asked.

Hearing this, Riley closed his eyes again.

 The people in the meeting room could see a fleeting blue light emanating from Riley, spreading outward like a wave.

About ten seconds later, Riley reopened his eyes, scratched his nose, and said:

 "Uh… sorry, I can't sense it."

"Huh?"

 Lance immediately entered his moody mode.

 You held it in for so long, and that's your big reveal?

Steven stepped in to explain:

 "Riley's Aura sensing range is only a few kilometers. It just means that Joker isn't within that range."

Lance was dumbfounded. "A few kilometers? What good is that?

 Do you think Joker is that dumb?

 He caused such a massive incident, and you think he'd hang around the area near the Sinnoh League headquarters?"

Then again, criminals from Detective Conan's crime scenes always seem to return to the location of their crimes, so maybe it's not impossible.

Steven shrugged. "Do you have a better idea, then?"

For a moment, Lance was at a loss for words.

 Nope, he didn't.

At this moment, Cynthia finally spoke:

 "Let's set out. We'll take Mr. Riley with us and search for Joker across the entire Sinnoh region."

Cynthia was planning to use Riley as a walking Aura radar to conduct a carpet search of Sinnoh.

 Once Joker, who possesses the real Jewel of Life, enters Riley's sensing range, they'll be able to find him!

Honestly, this plan was only marginally better than looking for a needle in a haystack.

 But for now, it was the best they could do.

Shortly after, Cynthia reported her plan to Chairman Goodshow.

Goodshow, seeing no better alternative, approved the formation of a temporary search team consisting of Cynthia, Steven, Lance, and Riley.

Initially, Goodshow hesitated about including Lance, but seeing his determination, he figured Lance would've found a way to join regardless.

 However, Goodshow did not give Lance command of the team, entrusting leadership to the more rational Cynthia instead.

...

["What do you think, Nanu?"]

 After approving Cynthia's request, Goodshow called Nanu, an experienced investigator.

Nanu, who had left Sinnoh to investigate Johto as Joker's main area of activity, replied:

 "It's fine. There's not much else we can do. But Joker is probably 99% not in Sinnoh. He's smart enough to know the Sinnoh authorities are closing in on him."

At that moment, Nanu had just exited Goldenrod City Gym in Johto.

 He had been investigating the Gym Leader's granddaughter. Whitney, who had reportedly been saved by Joker during the Goldenrod Station incident a year ago.

However, upon questioning her, Nanu discovered the girl knew nothing of significance.

 Joker had captured dozens of members of Team Shadow and loaded them onto a train before sending them away.

 What happened to them afterward? Nobody knew.

"Probably nothing good," Nanu muttered to himself, scratching his head.

"Um… sir, are you investigating Joker?"

 As Nanu pondered his next move, a soft, childlike voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Huh?"

 Startled, Nanu turned around to see a bespectacled, shy, and adorable girl.

"How do you know that?" Nanu raised an eyebrow.

"Whitney told me," the girl said, pouting. "She said you asked her lots of questions about Joker. But Joker isn't a bad person!"

Nanu remembered now—Mary was one of Whitney's friends, also saved by Joker during the Goldenrod Station incident.

"Alright, alright, he's not a bad guy," Nanu said dismissively, too tired to argue with a little girl. He waved her off and left quickly.

Mary stomped her foot angrily. "Just you wait! I'll prove it!"

...

Meanwhile, Stephen had no idea that Lance, Cynthia, and Steven—three of the most prominent future Pokémon Champions—had formed a temporary team to track him down.

 He was busy with something else entirely.

[Lord Stephen, Kodia has located the Zorua. It's in the Lostlorn Forest.]

Receiving the text from Proton, Stephen stood up and called out:

 "Everyone, let's move."

"Hah! Finally! I was about to grow mold from boredom," Will said, leaping off the couch like an overexcited Husky.

Karen took Stephen's phone, glanced at the message, and said:

 "Lostlorn Forest… I've heard of it. It's a small forest."

Stephen nodded. "According to Proton's intel, Kodai didn't make a big show of it. He only brought a few trusted subordinates, clearly trying to keep this operation under wraps."

"I'm curious about this Zorua. What makes it so special that a businessman like Kodai would go to such lengths?"

Having borrowed a Zorua from Gladion before, Karen had some understanding of the species.

 Its Illusion ability was undeniably powerful, but it hardly seemed worth all this effort.

"Whatever makes it special, it'll be yours in the end," Stephen said with a smile.

Karen smiled back.

Meanwhile, Will rolled his eyes as he packed his gear.

 "Did you two forget I'm still here?"

...

A few days later, at the headquarters of Kodai Network Group in Nimbasa City…

Under the protection of his trusted bodyguard, Kodai approached the luxury SUV waiting at the entrance.

Suddenly, Kodai stumbled, clutching his head in pain as he let out a low groan.

"Mr. Kodai! Are you alright?"

 His subordinates rushed to his side, but Goone raised a hand to stop them.

 "Don't worry about it. Back off."

Serving Kodai for years, Goone knew exactly what was happening.

"Ugh…"

Kodai groaned, gripping his head as a series of images flashed before his eyes like a slideshow.

He saw himself kneeling in a forest, his face twisted in frustration.

 Opposite him stood three figures wearing masks.

 At the feet of one of them—a young girl—was the Zorua he had been pursuing so desperately.

The searing pain in Kodai's mind began to fade.

"Boss, what did you see this time?"

Kodai took a deep breath, his eyes glowing with an eerie blue light as he rubbed his temples to ease the lingering discomfort.

 He didn't answer Goone directly, instead mulling over the images in his mind.

 "Those three… I remember them…"

After a long moment, Kodai seemed to reach a decision.

 He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"Chairman, I've discovered Joker's whereabouts."