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"I lost…"
The Psychic young lady from the Sinnoh region lay on her back on the bed, her thick, long golden hair spread across the entire bed, beautiful and dreamlike.
"So, what exactly was I hoping for?"
Caitlin stared blankly at the ceiling.
To be honest, today's defeat had a significant impact on her.
If it were just a single battle loss, Caitlin wouldn't have taken it to heart; after all, winning and losing are temporary.
This world is vast, and following Mammon, she had witnessed too much already.
People should not be blindly arrogant and conceited; this is a very important lesson.
However, this time was different.
This battle was about whether she could confidently claim the title of Mammon's 'main wife' in public.
To put it simply, if someone asked, "Are you Mammon's wife?"
The first option was for Caitlin to proudly reply, with her head held high, "Yes, that's right, I am Mammon's wife."
The second option would be to reply, "Hmm, I am Mammon's second (?) wife."
Could those two be the same?
Caitlin rubbed her temples; her head was starting to ache.
She had always cared deeply about her status in Mammon's household, and precisely because of this, she wanted to proudly tell the world that she was Mammon's most suitable and perfect wife.
But now, she had lost.
She had personally lost the status of the main wife.
Although Selene had already said that she was welcome to challenge her again anytime, if she had already lost this time, would she truly have a chance to defeat Selene in the future?
Selene's talent was terrifying; it was a Trainer talent even more outstanding than Platinum's or Serena's.
Caitlin actually knew that her talent was genuinely not as good as Platinum's, even though she trained and improved every day.
Yet she knew that Platinum and the others were still slowly catching up.
This was a natural, inherent difference that effort alone couldn't compensate for; the world is like that, it's never fair.
Talent, unseen and intangible, yet a very real thing.
Caitlin raised her arm, her gaze slowly fixing on the Cherish Ball in her hand.
Inside was Lugia, her favorite Pokémon, and the most precious Pokémon Mammon had entrusted to her.
"Caitlin, are you feeling down?"
A pleasant, somewhat childish voice echoed in Caitlin's mind.
It was Little Lugia's telepathy.
"No… well, a little. I'm feeling a bit lost right now, Little Lugia."
Caitlin instinctively tried to deny it, but then realized she couldn't hide it from Little Lugia, and said softly, her voice low.
To outsiders, she always presented an image of elegant self-possession, but who knew that she was actually just a seventeen-year-old girl?
"Is it because of today's battle? I'm sorry, Caitlin, it's my fault." Little Lugia blamed itself.
"No, it has nothing to do with you, Little Lugia. It's my fault as a Trainer; you performed very well."
Caitlin gently comforted Little Lugia, knowing full well that today's battle was her fault.
If she had predicted Articuno using Endure, then Little Lugia would never have lost.
But the fact was, she hadn't seen it coming. What a… failure.
"Little Lugia, do you think I am… an excellent Trainer?"
Caitlin pursed her lips and asked Little Lugia in a low voice.
She rarely questioned herself. In fact, ever since joining Team Rockets, she had always maintained a humble attitude when sparring with her Team Rockets colleagues.
From Guzma and Gladion at the beginning, to Zinnia and others later, it had always been this way.
And the facts proved that her talent was actually quite good, and with double the effort, she progressed very quickly.
Until yesterday, Caitlin believed she was already very strong, confident she wouldn't lose even if she faced Cynthia again.
But today…
"Of course! To me, Caitlin is the best Trainer!" Little Lugia replied without hesitation, decisively.
"Caitlin, we made a promise, didn't we? You're going to help me get stronger, and then I'm going to challenge Father!"
Little Lugia's somewhat childish telepathy was very earnest.
"You are the best partner to me, Caitlin. As long as we work hard together, I will defeat all your opponents!"
"Although we lost today, next time! Next time we definitely won't lose to it again!"
Little Lugia declared firmly. That bob-haired Articuno, it would definitely electrocute it next time!
"Caitlin, cheer up! You're such a beautiful girl; such weakness isn't something Caitlin would say."
Although Little Lugia was still young, it roughly understood that Caitlin was affected by today's defeat.
But this wasn't the Caitlin it knew.
Hearing Little Lugia's words, ripples appeared in Caitlin's eyes.
"Ah, I understand. It was my fault."
Caitlin let out a long breath, and a smile returned to her delicate face.
"I won't give up! I must become Mammon's first wife!!"
Even if only for a short time!
Caitlin's fighting spirit reignited. Yes, if her talent wasn't as good as Platinum's or Selene's, then she would work harder!
Double the effort! Two hundred times the effort!
She had Lugia! The Lugia Mammon entrusted to her was her greatest confidence!
As long as she could defeat Selene once, she would rightfully become Mammon's 'main wife,' and then…
Then she would take Mammon and get married directly!
What was the point of those women fighting amongst themselves? Weren't they all just in name only?
She would directly become Mammon's legal wife! A sudden rise to power!
As for the wedding, it could be held later; it didn't matter, Caitlin didn't mind.
And it was likely that her wedding with Mammon would be held together with Selene and the others; it wouldn't be separate.
So Caitlin wasn't too concerned about the wedding anymore; she wanted to be the first person to register and become Mammon's wife.
If she could achieve this, she would be satisfied.
As for Selene challenging her again in the future, or Platinum rising in status through her child, Caitlin could watch them contend with a smile.
It didn't matter, you all can fight.
Anyway, Caitlin felt that with her strength, even if she couldn't be the boss at home, being second or third should be fine, right?
But first, she had to work twice as hard and defeat Selene once to make it legitimate.
"Woohoohoo~ I, Caitlin, am truly a genius!"
The golden-haired girl excitedly twisted her body on the bed, thrilled that she could come up with such a brilliant idea!
"Caitlin, are you alright?"
Little Lugia asked worriedly. It felt that Caitlin's sudden 'madness' was a bit abnormal.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
"Again!!"
"No, Selene, this is your sixth time, and you still want more? What if you get dehydrated?"
"I don't care! I want more!"
"You're so bold after a short rest. Who was just shouting, 'Daddy, rest a bit, I'm about to die…' and so on?"
"Shut up!! I was letting you win just now, hurry up and move!"
"Tsk~"
Mammon couldn't help but click his tongue, but indeed, there was nothing more to say at this moment.
Fight!!!
Time came to the next day.
Mammon yawned and walked into the living room, where he saw a delicate white figure.
"Mammon~ You're here! Breakfast is ready, you know?"
Seeing Mammon approach, Lillie flashed a big smile.
"Lillie is so good. Come here for a kiss."
Mammon walked over, embraced Lillie, and gave her a big kiss on her fair, delicate cheek.
"Oh my~ You're all slobbery. Hurry and eat; I just warmed it up for you."
Lillie's pretty face flushed, and she said shyly.
Although she received a good morning kiss every day during this period, Lillie still couldn't help but feel shy, especially since the living room wasn't an enclosed space.
What if her mother, or Miss Caitlin, saw them?
"Where's Selene? Is she still not awake?"
Sitting beside Mammon, Lillie rested her chin on her hands, watching her beloved eat breakfast, and blinked as she asked.
"That girl is both weak and loud. She insisted on fighting with me until midnight, so she probably won't be up until the afternoon."
Mammon replied with a smile. But, it had to be said, Selene was actually quite enduring.
Much stronger than Diantha, who was a complete pushover.
"Pfft~"
Lillie's face turned red again. She, of course, knew what Mammon meant by 'fighting until midnight.'
Speaking of which, what did that kind of thing feel like?
Lillie pursed her lips. Although she had already confirmed her relationship with Mammon, they still belonged to the respectful type, and so far, they had only kissed.
Perhaps… she should be more proactive?
Lillie looked at Mammon's handsome profile; Mammon was still as good-looking as before.
She just wondered if her and Mammon's child would inherit their good looks. It should, right?
And was it better to have a boy or a girl? Or twins?
Lillie's mind wandered off to who knows where for a moment.
"By the way, Platinum is going back to Sinnoh today. Is she not awake yet?"
"Miss Platinum woke up an hour ago. She went to the backyard for special training," Lillie replied, then couldn't help but sigh.
"She's really so diligent~ I wish I had Trainer talent too."
Lillie couldn't help but feel a little envious. However, her Trainer talent was truly mediocre, and compared to battling, she actually preferred reading.
"Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. Instead of forcing yourself into things you're not good at, Lillie, you might as well help me manage my companies and businesses."
"I might not be good at that either, you know."
Lillie smiled faintly. She knew about the companies and businesses under Mammon's name.
"You can try if you're interested," Mammon said, taking a sip of milk.
"Mhm~ I will."
Lillie considered it carefully and also felt that perhaps she should find something substantial to do.
Afterward, Mammon and Lillie sat on the sofa, embracing and chatting. Selene's match wouldn't start until the afternoon, and to be honest,
The early stages of the competition weren't really that interesting to watch.
Around eleven o'clock, Lillie went to see Lunala. Not long after Lillie left, Caitlin emerged from her room, yawning lazily.
"Mammon, good morning~"
Seeing Mammon, Caitlin offered a beautiful, gentle smile.
"Caitlin, you're finally awake. It's not early now. You rarely sleep in this late."
Mammon smiled and patted the seat beside him. Caitlin gracefully walked over and sat down.
"Hmm~ Perhaps it's because I slept well last night. Oh, Mammon, I have some good news."
Rarely, Caitlin winked at Mammon and shook her phone.
"What good news?"
"I've 'turned' the Alola Elite Four, and she even brought another colleague who wants to join our Team Rockets too," Caitlin said slowly with a smile.
"Oh?"
Mammon glanced at Caitlin's phone; the chat contact displayed was Acerola.
Mammon had some impression of this Ghost-type specialist loli girl, but he really hadn't expected Caitlin to still be in contact with her.
"Acerola is very interested in our Team Rockets, and Kahili is too."
"Tsk~ I wonder what Kukui's reaction will be when he finds out."
Mammon couldn't help but click his tongue.
"Kukui knows. And according to Acerola, when they had their meeting last night, Olivia was the angriest one."
Caitlin's face held a smile.
"And in the end, Olivia seemed to have slammed the door and left."
"Huh?"