In one of the more discreet city blocks of Lumiose City, owned by a Master ranked trainer, the property's owner had just finished reviewing the routine reports from their various businesses when one particular matter caught their attention. Without hesitation, they contacted the two fellow Master ranked trainers with whom they jointly managed the enterprise and shared their findings.
"We've lost three bases within the past 24 hours," they summarized. "The Poacher's Paradise east of Aquacorde City, another southeast of Snowbelle City, and a third south of Couriway City. Judging from the pattern, the valley north of Anistar City will likely be their next target."
"Who's responsible?" the second asked. "Is it Wulfric again, someone making a play for our market, or another disgruntled parent?"
"It appears to be a Champion ranked bounty hunter looking to earn either quick money or a reputation. The identity attached to the submitted bounties is Alex Wattson."
"Hold on, let me check my sources," the third said, briefly falling silent before speaking again. "Alex Wattson. Champion rank. Founder of the Silver Network, a bounty hunting organization that has established itself throughout Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn, with recently opened branches in Sinnoh and Unova. Judging from the expansion pattern, Kalos is almost certainly next. It seems he's scouting the place and gaining a reputation for his bounty hunters."
"We're taking him out, right?" the second asked. "He's just another ambitious upstart trying to break into the market. If we let the Silver Network establish itself here, it'll start eating into our profits."
"I agree," the first replied. "It'll be far cheaper to pay a lump sum to eliminate him now than let his organization gain a foothold and bleed us dry."
"Then I'll prepare an ambush at the Anistar base," the second said. "A dozen Champions backed by a hundred Elites should be enough to overwhelm him. It'll be expensive, but it'll save us far more if it keeps the Silver Network out of Kalos."
"Wait," the third interrupted as they read more information. "I'm seeing some rather concerning details."
"Such as?"
"According to his records, he has personally defeated several Master ranked trainers and over a hundred Champions. More recently, one of his highest-profile bounties involved destroying Team Dominion's main headquarters on a remote island by himself. If we're going to kill him, we'd better make absolutely sure we succeed on the first attempt. Otherwise…"
The video call fell silent.
Sure, they were three Master ranked trainers with the wealth to hire even more Champions and Elites. They also had the home-ground advantage to stage the perfect ambush. But they couldn't guarantee they could kill him if even the infamous Team Dominion, those psychopaths with armies, had failed. Given the resources the operation would require, including risking their own personal safety, without any guarantee of success, the numbers simply didn't add up.
"Ugh," the second muttered. "So he's one of those prodigies. Fine. We can afford to lose a fifth base before we start consolidating our forces."
"Agreed," the third said. "Besides, the Silver Network isn't particularly aggressive. Even after establishing themselves in a region, they mostly target Experts and low ranking Elites. Their expansion slows our income, but the increased prices from the scarcity more than offset the losses. Financially, it's still acceptable."
"So we're just letting this one go?" the first asked.
"It's cheaper that way."
"Fine."
"Then we're in agreement," the third concluded before ending the call and turning their attention to the next item on their agenda.
-----
"The total comes to a little over 200 million credits, Alex," Nyx reported after submitting and tallying all the bounties. "That doesn't include the League's extra reward or whatever gratuity Wulfric decides to add once he hears about it."
"Not bad for a day's and night's work, huh?" Alex said with a satisfied grin.
"Only if you don't end up in a war with three Master ranked trainers who can afford to hire armies of mercenaries," Nyx replied.
"It'll be fine," Alex said confidently. "The numbers should work out in our favor. They aren't purely Underworld organizations. They're businesses first and foremost."
"I hope you're right, because if they decide you're worth the expense, they can field an army that rivals Team Dominion."
"Not without drawing the League's attention. Mobilizing that kind of force isn't exactly subtle, and they still have legitimate businesses to protect. Anyway, what's next on the agenda?"
"Human traffickers," Nyx replied, pulling up a map. "They're protected by enough money and influential clients that most bounty hunters can do little more than watch. If we leave them alone, we'll keep losing overzealous bounty hunters to them. The three largest organizations, in particular, are exceptionally dangerous."
Three prominent red markers appeared on the map over Ambrette City, Cyllage City, and Coumarine City. Smaller markers dotted the other cities, but those represented local brothels where prostitution was more common than the sale of trafficked victims from other regions. The three major hubs, however, served as central distribution points. Most trafficked victims passed through them before being sold to wealthy clients, with a large portion ultimately disappearing into Lumiose City, never to be seen again.
"What do you recommend?" Alex asked.
"You can take down all three without much political backlash," Nyx replied. "None of their clients would want to be caught anywhere near a trafficking investigation. The problem is their security. These distribution hubs are the backbone of their operations, so they'll be heavily defended. Expect multiple Champions at a minimum, and possibly a Master ranked trainer if they aren't on vacation."
"Then I'll start at the top," Alex said. "I'd rather hit the biggest operation first than give them time to reinforce it after hearing about the others. Which one do you recommend?"
"Coumarine City," Nyx answered. "It's deeper inside Kalos, giving it access to a larger customer base, and it's the closest of the three to Lumiose City. It's the most well defended distribution hub."
Targeting the lower-risk operations first would only scare the major players into hiding, disrupting their business while minimizing the damage. It was better to catch the largest organizations off guard and maximize the time and resources it took them to recover.
"One more thing," Nyx added. "While you're there, you can spend some time dismantling the drug distribution networks. Many of their operations share the same docks, warehouses, and sometimes even the same ships as the traffickers. Once you hit the trafficking ring, the League's investigation will put the entire area on alert anyway. You might as well use that window to shut down the drug operations before they have a chance to move their stock or disappear. They're dangerous too, but nowhere near as heavily defended."
"Got it. Thanks, Nyx."
"That's what I'm here for," she replied before ending the call.
Alex didn't waste any time as he teleported to Coumarine City that afternoon to scout the place.
Unlike Aquacorde City's historic charm, Coumarine City had fully embraced Kalos's modernization. The once quaint seaside town had grown into a sprawling coastal metropolis where sleek high-rises overlooked the ocean and residential towers stretched toward the horizon. Tree-lined boulevards linked commercial districts filled with restaurants, shopping centers, hotels, and corporate offices, while autonomous buses and electric vehicles flowed through meticulously managed traffic. Digital billboards covered entire buildings, cycling advertisements, League announcements, and live stock prices. Despite its dense population, the city remained remarkably clean thanks to maintenance drones and diligent Pokémon.
Coumarine thrived on both tourism and commerce. Luxury waterfront apartments stood beside high-end resorts, conference centers, and bustling entertainment districts. Business executives, wealthy tourists, trainers, and researchers filled the streets, while parks, seawalls, and artificial beaches balanced the city's modern skyline with scenic ocean views.
The docks formed the heart of the local economy. Kilometers of cargo terminals, warehouses, container yards, shipyards, and private piers handled a constant stream of commercial traffic. Cranes, automated haulers, forklifts, and dockworkers kept goods moving around the clock. Amid the endless flow of legitimate cargo, drugs, trafficked victims, and other contraband could vanish among thousands of shipping containers with alarming ease.
It was here that Alex found the private section of the docks reserved for a shipping company that, just as Nyx had mentioned, handled both human trafficking and drug distribution. The area had effectively become a fortress. Security patrols moved constantly between watchtowers, fenced checkpoints, and rows of nondescript warehouses, while Champion ranked auras swept the grounds under the occasional, unmistakable presence of a Master ranked trainer overseeing the operation. A quick estimate put well over a thousand trainers on site, keeping the entire enterprise running around the clock.
A conventional assault was out of the question. The moment the alarm was raised, the defenders would have time to organize, relocate their drugs, and destroy evidence before he could reach the trafficked victims. The compound needed to be thrown into chaos first, forcing everyone to react instead of coordinate.
Under the cover of night and concealed by his Dark type energy, Alex slipped through the perimeter unseen and made the drug warehouses his first priority. Drugs were the easiest assets to relocate during an emergency, so they had to be destroyed first. One by one, he planted timed explosives throughout each warehouse before melting back into the shadows.
He then made his way toward the warehouse with the greatest concentration of life force, which undoubtedly housed the trafficked victims. That was where he intended to make his stand.
As the explosives' timers quietly reached the end of their countdown, Alex's lips curled into a feral grin as he fixed his gaze on the Master ranked trainer overlooking the warehouse from the top floor. At last, he had an opponent worthy of his full attention.