"Charr!"
A young, spirited cry rang out.
Edward turned his head and saw a small Charmander standing behind them, holding a cup of berry tea. It sipped casually while curiously observing Edward and Headmistress Lillian.
The Charmander appeared completely uninjured and quite healthy, so it was unclear why it had ended up at the shelter.
"Smolder, how many times have I told you not to go around scaring people on purpose?" Headmistress Lillian said helplessly. Edward raised an eyebrow at the name.
What the heck? This little guy was named Smolder?
In the Pokémon world, people often gave Pokémon fairly casual names—usually based on their type, appearance, or a unique trait.
Smolder the Charmander stuck out its tongue at Headmistress Lillian and happily swished its tail back and forth.
"This little guy isn't actually a resident of the shelter. A close friend of mine entrusted him to me," Headmistress Lillian explained, sighing. "He's well-behaved in most ways—except that he loves to scare people. He especially enjoys hiding behind them and suddenly shouting to startle them. Every time he pulls it off, he's overjoyed. Sometimes I honestly wonder if he's even a Charmander. Only Ghost-types usually enjoy pranks this much."
"Well, it's Headmistress Lillian we're talking about," Edward chuckled. With her kind nature and strong character, it was no surprise others would trust her with their Pokémon.
She had run this shelter for a long time and was a former Gym Leader. This Charmander certainly wouldn't grow up weak.
Edward was curious about why someone would entrust a young Charmander to the shelter. Usually, younger Pokémon were passed down to the next generation—he knew of families where elder Pokémon left behind eggs or children, who then became the new family companions.
But he didn't ask. Everyone had their reasons.
After chatting for a while, Edward left—he still had work to take care of at the company. There was a lot to manage, and the second episode of their series was about to air. They also needed to finalize and insert a product placement segment.
Leaving the shelter with Q in his arms and Fortune walking beside him, Edward strolled down the streets of Rustboro City. Fortune was reading a book while walking, something Edward had once warned him about—worried he might bump into someone or something.
But Fortune had confidently demonstrated his multitasking skills: he could walk and read with zero issue. After that, Edward stopped nagging him.
Back at the company, Zoroark was already waiting in Edward's office.
The moment he saw him, Edward knew something was up.
"What's going on?" Edward asked, pulling out his chair and placing Little Q on the table.
"Boss, there's been new progress on the matter you asked me to monitor," Zoroark said quickly, handing over a dossier.
Edward opened it and scanned the contents.
It was intelligence on Team Magma and Team Aqua.
He immediately sat up straight.
"Boss, our hired private investigator spotted some Team Magma members near Mt. Chimney. They're currently being tailed," Zoroark explained, pointing to the enclosed photos.
The images showed figures wearing Team Magma uniforms moving stealthily through the forest.
Edward narrowed his eyes.
He had previously asked Zoroark to track the movements of Team Magma and Team Aqua. After all, this world wasn't exactly like the games or the anime, so Edward needed real-world intel on both groups.
And now, Team Magma had actually appeared at Mt. Chimney.
"I remember... what was it that Team Magma wanted at Mt. Chimney?" Edward scratched his head. If he recalled correctly, they had a base there and had discovered the resting place of Groudon—one of Hoenn's three legendary Pokémon.
Even though Groudon had become a meme in fan circles for being unable to fly, it was still a legendary with undeniable prestige.
Of course, finding Groudon didn't mean they could wake it. But if Team Magma had already reached Mt. Chimney, then the timeline for them heading to Mt. Pyre to retrieve the Red and Blue Orbs was probably fast approaching.
"As for Team Aqua," Zoroark continued, "we've only had scattered sightings—nothing consistent yet."
Edward nodded. Groudon's location near Mt. Chimney made it easier to investigate, but Kyogre was a different matter.
Finding Kyogre required specialized deep-sea diving equipment.
Sure, Pokémon like Sharpedo or Tentacool could use the move Dive, but to reach the truly deep ocean trenches, human Trainers needed reinforced diving suits. Otherwise, the pressure alone would crush them.
That said, Team Magma and Team Aqua would eventually join forces—there was no other way to retrieve the orbs from the League. They couldn't do it alone.
"We'll deal with them separately," Edward decided.
He had zero interest in experiencing Hoenn being ravaged by alternating droughts and downpours. The best thing to do was shut down both teams before they could act.
Team Aqua would be trickier to deal with.
Team Magma, on the other hand, now had a confirmed objective.
"Have our investigator pay close attention to the underwater caves near Mossdeep City. See if Team Aqua is hiding there," Edward instructed.
Zoroark nodded and jotted it down before heading off to make the arrangements.
Meanwhile, Edward remained seated, reviewing the intelligence file in his hands.
In the games, Team Aqua had a base near Mossdeep City, and there were no Officer Jennys in-game—only the player character could stop them. But this was the real world. All Edward needed was their location.
Once that was confirmed, he could call for backup.
Steven Stone, plus Hoenn League inspectors, investigators, and Officer Jennys—that would be more than enough to give both Teams a serious beating.
And if worse came to worst, he could bring in Gengar and hand out a few Fear Candies.
Gengar could easily serve as a high-tier combat force.
(End of Chapter)