Mina and Ash, two heroes, stood before the Vermilion City Gym as the sun slowly faded away. They were there to put an end to the tragedy of Rubbish Island—the beginning and the end of it all.

  Perhaps because of the rampage, standing—let alone walking—seemed impossible for Mina. Her body had collapsed again, turning into a pink, slime-like substance resembling a Ditto, leaving only her face and torso intact.

  Yet, she began to walk. Each step felt as if lead weights were shackled to her legs, a struggle against gravity. Simultaneously, she endured agony akin to her very bones and flesh slowly melting away like candle wax.

  Despite it all, she kept walking toward the gym.

  As they neared the gym, Mina’s pace slowed noticeably. Her legs tangled, and she stumbled. Ash hurriedly supported her collapsing frame.

  “...Let me help you.”

  Ash draped her arm over his shoulder to support her. He was strong enough to carry a Hippopotas on his head and toss logs as big as his own body. He could boast about lifting most heavy things.

  But Mina’s weight was greater than any person or Pokémon he had ever supported. It felt most similar to the crushing weight he felt when Bayleef used to Body Slam him.

  This heaviness...

  It wasn't a matter of her physical mass…

  It was what she had gone through...

  What she carried...

  What she had endured...

  Even though Ash knew somewhat of her life through Karen, the pain, injustice, and rage she had withstood for an unimaginable time weighed heavily on his own heart, making it difficult to bear.

  “Ash Ketchum... You?”

  Surprised by his resolve, Mina looked at Ash. Previously, she had been drooping, barely able to walk while being supported, but she seemed to slowly regain her senses, reacting to Ash's ragged breathing.

  Ash felt in his bones that no matter what he said, it would be futile given her desperate actions. So, he couldn't say much.

  “...I’m sorry.”

  That apology was Ash’s desperate attempt to understand Mina in any way he could. After traveling from Kanto to Galar, he become the first Alola Champion and the World Champion.

  Meanwhile, the squishy, slime-like texture of Mina’s arm—no longer human—pressed against Ash’s collar, burdening him.

  “....”

  Mina unwittingly smiled.

  “Ha, how pathetic. An assassin hoping for salvation? I’m disqualified as an assassin, utterly disqualified!”

  Sensing the strong contradiction in her current behavior, her faint smile turned into laughter, then a full-blown cackle. Ash watched her, bewildered.

  He couldn't understand her laughter at all. To him, she was unpredictable, eccentric, and beyond imagination. However, perhaps thanks to the laughter, strength began to return to her body.

  “I know without you babbling on, Ash Ketchum. Your journey is all about ‘if we all try hard together, everything works out,’ right? In a way, that’s a very irresponsible and naive story, isn't it?”

  Ash couldn't deny her words and remained silent.

  “....”

  The massive pink slime clump of Mina’s upper body slowly regained strength and morphed back into a human arm.

  “You and I are mirrors. I can't understand you even if I want to, and you won't be able to understand me even if you try—not even in death!”

  The slime on her lower body also regained strength, transforming back into her legs.

  “But that’s human life. Even humans can’t understand each other; isn’t it natural that humans and Pokémon, who don't even share a language, can't understand one another?”

  Although her limbs had returned, she still lacked the strength to walk on her own. Ash continued to support her as he spoke.

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  “...Still... I’ve made up my mind.”

  “Made up your mind about what?”

  Ash stopped walking and looked straight into Mina’s slightly wavering eyes.

  “I want to see the end of your story.”

  At Ash’s absurdly pure answer, Mina smirked and averted her gaze.

  “Heh... You want to see the end of my story without even knowing what I'm thinking? You're still a kid.”

  Her words reminded him of Iris, who always called him a kid whenever he did something silly. Ash giggled.

  “That's right! I am a kid. I’ve always been a kid, and maybe I’ll be one forever. But I’m not pathetic enough to ignore the pain you’ve been through!”

  Soon, his smile faded into a serious expression, unable to hide his worry for her.

  “...What I’m trying to say is, don't push yourself.”

  As soon as he finished speaking, they stood before the Vermilion City Gym. Click-clack. Sounds resembling guns being loaded and the chaotic stomping of military boots echoed from within.

  Even though he had prepared himself, Ash felt an immense wave of fear and instantly tensed up. However, Mina pushed his arm away.

  “Thanks for the advice, but I have to be the one to end the tragedy of Rubbish Island. You want to know the truth about the island too, don't you?”

  Mina had pushed him away forcefully, but her eyes had changed while her body still stumbled, strength not fully returned.

  Ash knew she did it because she didn't want him to bear the responsibility.

  So, as a strong individual who was neither child nor adult, Ash forcibly pulled her back into a supportive hold, wearing a determined expression.

  “Yeah... As the Pokémon World Champion, I have to know the truth. And I have to let people know!”

  Mina instinctively realized that Ash was becoming an "unfair adult"—one who didn't get drunk on power but took full responsibility for it.

  “Still struggling in a dream, Mr. Champion... I hope that dream comes true...”

  Gulp.

  Ash swallowed dryly and cautiously pushed the gym door open. Creak. The hallway was silent—dead silent, suspicious enough to suggest an ambush.

  Thud, thud, thud.

  Mina and Ash’s footsteps echoed loudly in the empty void of the hallway.

  Clack, clack, clack.

  Behind the sound of their own steps, Mina’s eyes sharpened, her nerves on high alert. She could sense faint but sharp breathing behind the rhythm of their walking. She spoke in a voice barely audible to Ash.

  “Four.”

  Ash, confused by her cryptic words, instinctively lowered his voice.

  “What?”

  Just as she said, two behind them and two behind the pillars on either side—a total of four were holding their breath, tightening the encirclement.

  Ash was oblivious, but Mina could hear the thin breaths and the surprisingly suppressed sounds of military boots with terrifying clarity. Judging that a wrong move would get them both killed, she whispered to Ash again.

  “Ash Ketchum, when I give the signal, run for that door in front!”

  Ash gave a short nod.

  “Okay! Give me the signal!”

  Mina partially transformed her upper body into slime, letting it droop to pick up a small pebble from the floor. Returning to her human form, she and Ash—who was trying his best to look nonchalant—walked forward slowly. The soldiers maintained their formation to capture the two "monsters."

  Holding the small stone, Mina quietly glanced around to assess the murderous intent of the soldiers.

  Then, her eyes met with a soldier standing to her right. Unfazed by her immense killing intent, he was staring through the scope of a sniper rifle.

  Suspicious, Mina checked the others and realized that aside from the one on the right, they were aiming assault rifles at them.

  ‘Two rifles, and one bazooka...That bazooka for capture?’

  The situation was clear. There was only one move she could make!

  In the brief moment the soldier on the right adjusted his breathing, causing his scope to waver slightly, she threw the pebble. Faster than the blink of an eye, like a beam of light, it flew toward the sniper's scope.

  Ting!

  As the sniper's scope jolted, the formation of the soldiers targeting Ash and Mina wavered, creating a crack in their defense.

  “Run!”

  As soon as Mina shouted...

  Rat-a-tat-tat!

  Bullets poured down like rain, threatening to turn them into honeycombs. Ash kicked off the ground, instantly scooping Mina onto his back, and sprinted toward the door deep inside the gym.

  Fwoosh!

  The bazooka trooper pulled the trigger. The shell burst in mid-air, deploying a massive steel net that descended upon the two.

  At that moment, Pikachu leaped from Ash’s shoulder and swung its tail to use Electroweb. With a sharp crackle, the electric web unfurled, intercepting and entangling the capture net in mid-air.

  “Great job, Pikachu!”

  Pikachu returned to Ash’s shoulder. Bullets began to hail down again, but thanks to Ash’s superhuman stamina, they had already tumbled through the door deep within the gym—where Lt. Surge awaited.

  “Phew... That was close...”

  But there was one thing they had overlooked. Lt. Surge, leading the military forces, didn't have just four men. Nearly a hundred soldiers were aiming their weapons squarely at Mina and Ash.

  It was the worst-case scenario she had imagined. Mina let out a scream that sounded like her last breath.

  “Damn it!”

  Their bodies were instantly painted red by dozens of laser sights. Surrounded by an overwhelming number of soldiers and drowning in murderous intent, Ash simply let out a deep sigh. He looked toward a blond man standing casually among the troops, holding a Poké Ball unlike the others.

  “...Vermilion City Gym Leader Surge! Isn't this a bit too much for a welcome greeting? You’d better keep your promise!”

  Thank you for reading my story. What did you think of Mina’s journey so far? And what are your thoughts on Ash, who embraces her despite everything?

  "our story"—the story of those who have lost their dreams, suffering from the threat of war and the crushing cost of living.

  But you know the reality all too well, don't you? Stagnant wages, finding ourselves forced into adulthood when we weren't ready, the skyrocketing cost of living...

  "story of a child forced to become an adult."

  I created her "so that she would not be forgotten."

  I wanted to record our story as it is now, to capture the despair we feel in this moment.