Chapter 6

The sun had already started to set by the time they reached Stow-on-Side. The station was a little outside of town, but Looker was more than happy to stretch his legs for a bit after the long train ride. The golden twilight glow combined beautifully with the reddish glow of the arid land around the town, and for one brief moment Looker allowed himself to fully enjoy the beauty of the world. He had travelled a lot, to many different places, each wonderful and amazing in their own right, but he had always been so busy with the task at hand that he never got a chance to fully enjoy it. But this time he decided, this time it would be different. He could never tell about his work anyway since none of it officially happened. But now he would ensure that he would have a story to tell.

The entrance to the town was guarded by an immense statue of three Diglett carved into the rockwall, towering over the road as an ancient sentinel to protect the people of Stow-on-Side. The sun had gotten low enough that it partially disappeared behind the rock carving, and the circle of light surrounding it combined with the shadows covering it gave the statue almost a mythical feeling.

'Impressive, isn't it?' said Piers, as he caught up with Looker. 'They say the Diglett were the ones who originally created Stow-on-Side centuries ago. I don't know if there's any truth to it, but at least it has created some impressive artwork.'

Looker only nodded, choosing to not say anything out of fear to ruin the moment. But then his eye was caught by a group of hikers and backpackers making their way past the statue towards the town. It was only now that he realized there was music coming from the town, and the characteristic rumbling sound of many people being together in one place.

'I thought this was supposed to be a small, quiet town,' Looker said, frowning.

'It is,' Piers answered. 'But not today. They're announcing the new gym leader for the upcoming season today, and after that there's a festival. Come on, you really don't want to miss it.'

He grabbed Looker's arm, who in turn grabbed hold of Toxel, and together they went into the town. As they got closer, the sounds were more defined, and Looker could clearly see the signs of a festival about to happen. Tables showcasing all sorts of beautiful items and trinkets for sale, street performers showing off their artistic prowess, and countless stalls offering a wide variety of delicious foods to the hungry visitors. He even saw one selling malasada, and made a mental note for himself that he had to go there before the night was over. As they made their way through the crowd, he heard one woman shout:

'Fossils! Get your fossils! Buy them, sell them, revive them, Cara Liss has got you covered! Doesn't matter if they're incomplete, we'll just smash 'em together and you'll be good to go!'

'Well that cannot possibly be legal,' Looker mumbled.

'Yeah don't get me started,' Piers replied. 'There's a new case for you right there, as soon as you're done with this one.'

The lights, the scents, the music and the scenery of the town were almost enchanting. Looker was not one to dance, but even he could feel himself getting lost in the vibe of the festival. Toxel too was looking completely amazed by all the festivities, although Looker did occasionally catch him trying to grab another Spikemuth Wafer out of Looker's pocket.

In the center of the town stood a podium, with a short, slightly overweight man. His brown hair stood upright from an overdose of hairgel, although it was starting to fall a bit due to the heat of the city. The man's olive green suit was somehow both too big and too small: the sleeves were too long and almost fell over his hands, but around his waste the suit was doing its very best to stay together. Looker recognized him immediately from the file that the agency had given him: the newly appointed chairman Nicholas, Rose's replacement as head of the Galar Pokémon League.

Nicholas walked up to a microphone, guided by the cheers from the crowd just as the music started to fade out for a moment. 'People of Stow-on-Side, you have been absolutely wonderful tonight! And the festivities are only just beginning, because tonight we will show the world that this city can party like no one else!' Nicholas had to pause for a brief moment as the crowd cheered and roared and applauded so loudly that Looker felt like the buildings of the town would come down. 'But now… the moment you have all been waiting for. It is time to announce who will be the gym leader for this amazing town in the next season of the Galar Pokémon League. Who will defend the honor of this city both as the fourth gym in the challenge, and as a competitor in the champion cup. Will it be the fighting leader Bea? Or the ghost leader Alistair? I won't keep you in suspense for any longer. Stow-on-Side, your next gym leader is…' With a flamboyant gesture Nicholas pulled an envelope from his suit pocket, opened it, paused for dramatic effect, and then said as loud as he could with a grin from ear to ear: 'Alistair!'

The crowd erupted in cheers and applause, as the young Alistair walked up on the podium. Nicholas shook his hand heartily, they posed for a few photographs, and then it was Alistair's turn to say a few words. But Looker didn't listen to anything the young man had to say. Instead all his attention went to the man in the olive green suit, who stood so calmly and confidently on the podium there to fulfil his role.

Nicholas was a complete mystery. Nobody had seen him before, nobody had known him before, nobody even knew what role exactly he had in Macro Cosmos. But as soon as Rose and Oleanna were forced to resign from their positions, Nicholas was made chief executive officer of the company and chairman of the league. Overnight, this complete stranger had become the most powerful man in all of Galar, and nobody even seemed to know who he was.

For a brief second Nicholas and Looker locked eyes. The smile on Nicholas's face froze for a moment, and his body tightened up ever so slightly. A veil of concern seemed to fall over his face. And then suddenly it was gone again, and Nicholas stood next to Alistair completely relaxed with that warm grin as he congratulated the gym leader. Looker shook his head. If he didn't know any better he would have told himself that he was just imagining things. But he had seen this happen too many times before. The confident, the popular, the charismatic leaders, the power brokers of a region. Their strongest power wasn't their money or their organization or even their Pokémon. Their strongest power was the ability to convince people that they weren't a threat. Making their biggest weakness somebody who they could not fool.

And Looker wasn't easily fooled.