"Honestly, before I saw you scoop three spoonfuls of soup from the sofa, I thought it might still be possible to find an actor willing to take this job," Edward said seriously. "But after I saw you actually pour that soup onto your rice, I realized there probably aren't many actors who would be willing to go that far."
Sure, there were plenty of dedicated actors who were willing to make sacrifices in pursuit of artistic excellence—but Edward felt that Mewtwo's particular request was asking way too much. What if a Team Rocket agent decided they had to see the infamous "sofa-scooping" trick with their own eyes?
Would they really expect an actor to perform a scene where they cooked onion beef on the sofa and then scooped out three ladles of soup from inside it to pour on rice? That was far beyond what any normal actor should be asked to do.
And unlike traditional film productions—where a performance might go down in cinema history—helping Mewtwo play a disgusting slob wouldn't earn much recognition. At best, the actor might get a decent paycheck, but that was about it. Edward figured not many would be willing to take on such a role.
"I had no choice," Mewtwo said with a sigh. "Once I noticed those people spying on me, I tried several strategies. But after testing a few things, this was the most effective one—it made them retreat the fastest."
Apparently, the Team Rocket operatives watching Mewtwo were particularly sensitive to gross-out material.
Other tricks and deceptions worked more slowly, but disgust seemed to make them flee almost instantly.
Edward fell into thought.
He originally wanted to ask why Mewtwo didn't just deal with them directly—but after thinking about it, he understood Mewtwo's hesitation.
If Team Rocket agents started disappearing near this location, the organization would likely send in more people and officially label Mewtwo as their target.
So instead of escalating the situation, Mewtwo's plan to divert attention made a lot more sense.
"You could try using psychic power to hypnotize them," Edward offered. "Make them believe you're not their target."
Mewtwo looked cautious. "That could be detected by other psychic-type Pokémon."
Edward couldn't help but laugh.
Mewtwo was a legendary Pokémon—god-tier—and yet it was acting so cautious when it came to Team Rocket.
"Do you need my help?" Edward asked.
Mewtwo quickly shook its head.
It had already come up with a plan. If successful, it would get Team Rocket off its back for good.
Edward didn't press further. After chatting for a while, he left Mewtwo's place.
He still had to attend the recording of that variety show in the afternoon and select the cast for Sherlock Holmes Season Two.
Out on the busy street, Edward stretched lazily as he walked, watching the bustling crowd and Pokémon.
Now that the Red Orb was in his possession, the Aqua Team had no way to awaken Kyogre.
Plus, with Groudon as his trump card, he didn't feel particularly threatened. Even if Team Aqua launched a full-scale attack, as long as backup arrived in time, he could easily hold them off.
More importantly, no one on the Aqua Team could withstand Groudon's might.
While Groudon's Primal Reversion made it more vulnerable to Water-type moves, its Desolate Land ability completely neutralized all Water-type attacks.
Only other Water-type legendary Pokémon could pose a threat in that form.
So in a way, Edward had already solved the looming apocalyptic crisis in the Hoenn region.
All that remained was the meteorite.
But Edward already had some plans in motion to deal with that.
After returning to the company, he attended the variety show recordings.
Once two episodes were completed, the cast for Sherlock Holmes Season Two was finalized.
Edward then took the team to Galar for filming.
On the journey, he invited Giovanni, who finally managed to free up some time and join them.
"…So this time, I get the full script?"
Sitting on the plane, Giovanni flipped through the pages and asked curiously.
Edward nodded.
This time, Giovanni had been given all of his character's lines.
Edward planned to finish filming all of Giovanni's scenes in one go.
That way, if Giovanni's true identity was revealed later, they wouldn't run into the awkward situation of needing to replace the actor who played Moriarty.
Sure, modern technology and Shizuka's illusions could make recasting seamless, but Edward still preferred not to risk it.
Swapping out actors could complicate things—especially when it came to achieving the emotional depth he wanted for the role.
So his plan was to get everything done now while he still could.
Giovanni eyed Edward curiously.
The whole thing felt a little strange, almost as if Edward expected him to be unavailable for future filming.
"It's just that, as a Gym Leader, your schedule may not always be open," Edward said, picking up on Giovanni's suspicion.
"So it's more convenient to get all your scenes done ahead of time."
It was a reasonable explanation.
After all, it wasn't like he could come out and say, "I know your secret identity and that you're the head of Team Rocket—and your cover's about to be blown."
"I see. That makes sense."
Giovanni nodded in understanding.
With the script discussion over, Edward leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest.
Beside him, Giovanni busied himself with messages on his phone.
While handling business, Giovanni noticed a new text notification.
He glanced at Edward—who appeared to be asleep—then quietly opened the message.
(End of Chapter)