"You've trained Q well," Steven commented, glancing at the Mimikyu who, just before returning, had landed another Draining Kiss on the downed Dragonite. He nodded with approval.
That Dragonite was clearly quite powerful—at least on par with a high-ranking officer's Pokémon. Most trainers wouldn't be able to handle such a formidable opponent, especially since Dragon-type Pokémon tend to scale very well into the late stages of battle.
But in front of Q, the Dragonite hadn't been able to withstand more than a few attacks before collapsing.
"It wasn't too bad. The Dragonite clearly underestimated me," Edward replied, casting a glance at the bloodied and unconscious Pokémon.
Dragon-types typically weren't this weak, but there was no helping it—Q was a Fairy-type Pokémon, a natural counter to Dragons. What's more, she had been consistently snacking on Fear Candies, and by now, her Fear Awakening gauge was completely maxed out.
In this state, not to mention Dragonite—even a Legendary Dragon-type Pokémon might not withstand more than a few hits from Mimikyu.
"You getting stronger puts my mind at ease," Steven said, smiling as he patted Edward on the shoulder. As the morning mist cleared, the battlefield ahead came into view.
One by one, the enemy trainers were being dragged out and thrown to the ground, bound and defeated. The uniformed agents who had subdued them said nothing—just turned and silently disappeared back into the forest to resume fighting.
"Our father really went all out," Steven commented, looking at the silent agents. "That elite team named 'Shield isn't easy to hire."
In the Pokémon world, not everyone dreams of becoming a Pokémon Trainer who travels to collect badges and challenge Gyms. Many choose different paths. Some become Rangers, Investigators, others Researchers, and some—after winning major tournaments—choose to become mercenaries.
It's a curious world.
Edward agreed. Judging from how none of the attackers had managed to breach their defenses, it was clear this team was no joke. Their strength spoke for itself.
Soon, the battle wound down. Steven's Metagross came walking out of the forest, dragging an unconscious man in one claw. Edward took one look at the man but didn't recognize him—his face was bruised and swollen, and his left arm hung at an unnatural angle, clearly broken.
"…Team Aqua officer," Steven said, recognizing the man. His identity had already been logged with the League as one of Team Aqua's publicly exposed executives. They hadn't expected to actually capture him—this was quite a rare catch.
Edward glanced at the man again, but it didn't leave much of an impression.
"…Cynthia says Team Galactic is currently gathering near Mt. Coronet. And the one leading them… is your childhood friend." Steven looked over at Edward meaningfully. Edward paused, then nodded. He knew who Steven was referring to—Shizuka.
At the mention of Shizuka's name, Edward couldn't help glancing at Zoroark. She didn't seem nervous at all, instead radiating an air of confidence in her own strength. Edward scratched his head—Shizuka, Zoroark… Was there a hidden link between these names?
Or was all of this just one of Zoroark's elaborate pranks?
Zoroark was absolutely capable of such tricks. Edward had heard that once, when Zoroark was bored, she spent an entire year pretending to be someone's long-lost dream girl online. Her patience was legendary.
Edward thought it was a pretty ridiculous stunt, but clearly, Zoroark found it entertaining.
"Do you need me to go?" Edward scratched his head. He wasn't sure if the League wanted him to try to persuade Shizuka—to bring her back to the right path, or at least to stop her from doing anything worse.
Though it sounded absurd, life itself was often absurd.
"No. What are you thinking? With the current situation, if you show up there, I'd be worried the League might get the wrong idea." Steven said with a disapproving look. Edward awkwardly nodded—fair enough.
Rather than having him try to persuade Shizuka, the League would probably prefer it if he had nothing to do with her at all.
Even if Shizuka was a high-ranking executive, she was still replaceable. But if Edward, a important member of the League and founder of a highly popular production studio, were connected to any dark organization… that would be a major threat.
Still, speaking of Team Galactic's boss—
"Brother, the League…" Edward looked around, then leaned in close to Steven.
Steven raised an eyebrow and had Metagross throw up a soundproof and light screen barrier around them—preventing not just eavesdropping, but also any lip-reading by prying eyes.
"Does the League know who Team Galactic's leader is?" Edward asked quietly.
"No. We have absolutely no information," Steven replied, shaking his head.
"I think the League should start by investigating the rich. I mean, an organization as big as Team Galactic has to have some serious funding behind it, right?" Edward said, sharing his theory.
He really wanted to say it was Cyrus, but he couldn't. He hadn't done any investigation to support that claim—it wouldn't be credible.
"…There are a lot of wealthy individuals in Sinnoh," Steven said with a frown. "Unless there's solid evidence, it's basically impossible to make arrests."
They couldn't just start investigating every rich person. If they did that, Devon Corporation would probably be under constant surveillance themselves.
Edward rubbed his face.
What a pain.
He considered filing an anonymous report about Cyrus… but even that might not help. While he knew Cyrus was the leader of Team Galactic, he had no concrete proof.
It's easy to report someone anonymously, but without evidence, those reports are usually ignored.
It's like a random citizen anonymously reporting that a billionaire is a spy—nobody would take that seriously.
But if the second-richest person in the world filed a real-name report that the richest person was a spy—even without evidence—it would definitely prompt an investigation.
If Edward were to publicly accuse Cyrus by name, the League would certainly take it seriously and start looking into it. But that could cause more harm than good.
An anonymous report with no evidence… it was a tough spot.
Edward felt frustrated. He remembered who Cyrus was, but not where Team Galactic's base was located. It had been years since he played the Sinnoh games.
Unlike how he dealt with Team Magma and Team Aqua, there was no straightforward way to take on Team Galactic.
"Let's go. I'll take you home," Steven said firmly.
(End of Chapter)