"Master, save me!"
Having suffered a disgraceful betrayal, the despairing Necrozma (in Lana's form) let out a resentful cry from the distance.
She believed—no, knew—that Lana, who now held most of her powers, would surely rescue her from the clutches of this devil.
And as someone fused with Necrozma, Lana indeed heard the cry.
Yet… she didn't stop running.
Sorry, Little Necro. It's not that I don't want to help, but...
With a constitution that goes limp the moment that man even brushes her, resisting just isn't an option anymore.
But don't worry. I'm going to help you reach ascension.
Once I capture that Solgaleo in Ultra Space, we'll become Dusk Mane Necrozma.
And once we reach that form, nothing can stop us!
Fueled by these thoughts—and certain vivid memories of Haru's signature water cannon—Lana ran even faster.
This time, she really was off to do something big!
When Haru dragged "Lana" by the ankle back to the rooftop of the Ultra Megalopolis Tower, Mew's admiration for him reached an entirely new peak.
Haru might not know whether the one in his grasp was Lana or Necrozma, but Mew had no such confusion.
"I'm Mew. This is definitely Nezzy."
As one of the foremost Mythical Pokémon, Mew knew just how powerful Necrozma could be.
In Alola, she was invincible. And according to Mew's own master, even back then, Necrozma hadn't reached her final form.
If she were to absorb both the Sun and Moon deities… terrifying. Just terrifying.
Honestly, even Mew wasn't sure she could beat an incomplete Necrozma.
And as for certain so-called legendary Pokémon? They'd probably just get flattened on the spot.
Right, you unnamed embodiment of the North Wind?
Yet… despite all that power, her master had just captured Necrozma like it was nothing?!
No matter what state Necrozma had been in, the result was clear: she was now her master's captive.
And if nothing went wrong, she might even be trained by him into… well… some sort of bio-energy disposal unit.
At this point, Mew didn't want to reveal herself just yet.
Watching her master in action from the shadows… what a joy.
Maybe one day she could write a book about it. After all, there were famous Pokémon Professors in every region—but a Pokémon who became a human professor? That'd be a first.
Eyes sparkling, Mew used her psychic power to hold up both her phone and camera.
Meanwhile, over with Haru, his whip cracked through the air, and some strange spherical object was already prepared.
"I'm here to learn! What do you think you're doing?!"
Necrozma shouted as Haru dropped her to the ground and attempted to pounce on him.
But… her strength was basically that of an unplugged rice cooker. With pure physical force alone, Haru tripped her up again.
Only then did she realize the flaw in this human form—
Humans were far too weak.
As someone who had always stood at the pinnacle of power, she'd never felt like this before.
A weakling? She was a Tier 1 deity from birth. That word had never applied to her.
But now… it was too late. In this merciless world, if you fall behind, you get punished.
The sphere in Haru's hand drew ever closer.
Soon it was tied to her forehead with a strap, and the strange pink object was shoved into her mouth.
"Mfffuh—mmmhph—!"
She tried to speak again, but all she could produce were vague muffled sounds.
"I don't know what exactly happened to you, but if you messed up, you have to accept the consequences."
Haru gave the whip a sharp tug, his face radiating the authority of an "educator."
"And since you're still infused with Necrozma's power, it's perfectly reasonable for me to use some… advanced techniques."
"But I'm not a demon. Besides, the earlier stuff was getting kinda dull."
"So let's try something new."
As he spoke, Haru somehow procured several vine-like whips and tied them to Lana's wrists and ankles.
Then he secured the other ends to four surrounding pillars.
And just like that, "Lana" was suspended mid-air in the shape of a giant "X."
But this… this was only the beginning.
Haru then fastened a toy version of a Steelix to a spot behind her—
"Now, work that body of yours! If you can manage to wrap that flowery form of yours completely around that pillar-shaped toy behind you, I'll let you go."
"But be careful… because if it takes too long, the punishment will escalate."
"How about it? Aren't I being merciful?"
Haru gave her a sunny smile.
"Mmmnmmph?!"
Little Nezzy craned her head to glance behind her—then froze.
You've got to be kidding me.
With all four limbs tied, she couldn't even push off anything.
And that weird rod behind her? It was so far away it might as well have been on another continent.
You never meant to let me go, did you?! What kind of messed-up first-timer is this guy?!
And wait—what was that about Lilligant? Wasn't that a species of Pokémon?
Haru seemed to read her thoughts and cheerfully clarified:
"Don't panic! I wouldn't set you an impossible task."
Saying that, he moved directly in front of her—and grabbed Lusamine instead.
Then he maneuvered Steelix toward Lusamine's… well, let's just say, a soft spot.
"If you use your arms to push against me, you'll move backward from the recoil."
"It might take some effort, but hey—I gave you hope."
"You liked that twisted cuck roleplay? Great - let's see how you like it when it's real."
"This is your lesson. Reflect on it properly—and don't forget to push hard. Otherwise…"
"Even I don't know what I'll do next."
Necrozma struggled a bit more, but Haru simply pulled a blindfold over her eyes.
And just like that—her world went dark.