"Ah, Red… you really didn't let me down."
Lucas took a drag of his cigarette, a satisfied smile tugging at his lips as he looked at the confrontation between Lorelei and Red.
Yes, he had anticipated this kind of situation—especially after Lorelei unleashed Blizzard on the passengers without a second thought.
Red had never truly belonged to the League. He simply couldn't tolerate evil when it appeared before his eyes.
And what Lorelei did… undoubtedly crossed Red's bottom line.
That Red would step in to stop Lorelei? Completely natural.
Because no matter who the opponent was—what their identity, stance, or background—Red didn't care.
To him, Team Rocket, who stole Pokémon and harmed the innocent, was evil.
But now, Lorelei, who ignored the lives of innocent passengers just to attack Team Rocket, was no different in Red's eyes. She, too, had to be stopped.
"Archer."
"Yes, Mr. Lucas?"
"We can withdraw now. The operation's already exposed."
Lucas gave the order without hesitation. There was no need to continue tangling with those Trainers.
Lorelei's appearance was already a wild variable. And if Lorelei was here, that meant other League agents were definitely on their way.
As for how Lorelei found the S.S. Anne…
Lucas's eyes narrowed slightly as he recalled something old man Fuji once said.
It was highly likely Fuji had secretly alerted Lorelei and even planted a tracker, helping her pinpoint the location.
But in that case, did only one Elite Four member show up?
Lucas raised an eyebrow—yeah, that wasn't guaranteed.
"Yes, but… Mr. Lucas?"
Archer's gaze held a flicker of resentment. From the moment Lorelei appeared, the S.S. Anne operation was destined to fail.
Still, he knew that retreat was the wisest move.
After all, Team Rocket hadn't suffered any major losses—they even captured a bunch of Trainers' Pokémon.
But if they lingered too long and the League's reinforcements arrived, escaping would be near impossible.
Only problem…
Archer looked toward the main entrance, expression darkening—Lorelei had already blocked it!
"You expect me to babysit you?"
Lucas cast a sidelong glance at Archer. The elite Rocket executive, one of the generals feared by Ash and his friends as a villainous boss, gave a sheepish smile and lowered his head.
He was this close to crying.
They just wanted to bully some civilians, but who knew that would show up to disrupt the operation, now even Lorelei had arrived.
Archer was suffering in silence.
"So, you really insist on getting in the way, huh?"
Lorelei pushed her glasses up, her cold eyes fixed on Red.
Not only did he obstruct her, but he even called her evil?
Guess she had been too lenient. She shouldn't have wasted time talking with this guy.
"I just don't want those people to get hurt for no reason."
Red wasn't intimidated by Lorelei's icy glare. His voice was calm and resolute.
Until today, he'd had a fairly decent impression of the Pokémon League and the Elite Four that the Kanto people were so proud of.
But seeing Lorelei in person now, he truly couldn't believe it.
This woman, who so casually disregarded innocent lives—was this who protected Kanto?
Belief or not didn't matter now. Reality had slapped him in the face.
"If you're willing to sacrifice civilians just to eliminate Team Rocket, yet feel no guilt or remorse, then how are you any different from Team Rocket, Lorelei?"
Red's voice remained low, but every word hit hard.
He wasn't being unreasonable. He understood that sometimes, sacrifices were necessary for the greater good.
But was this one of those situations?
No.
This was entirely avoidable.
Lorelei could have avoided harming Ash and the others—but she chose not to.
So how was she any different from Team Rocket?
The only distinction was that Team Rocket was blatant evil, while Lorelei hid behind the reputation of "fighting evil."
"Red…"
Brock and the others were deeply moved by Red's words.
Maybe they were initially happy to see Lorelei arrive, but her actions soon chilled their hearts.
Sure, news might report that "some civilians were accidentally harmed," and most people would just sigh and move on.
But they were the ones in that situation.
"Brother!"
Tears welled up in Ash's eyes—this was his idol!
As for Lorelei?
Ash had no real concept of the Elite Four anyway.
He just thought this icy woman was really, really mean.
"I'm the same as Team Rocket?"
Lorelei's expression changed dramatically—yes, dramatically.
She had always harbored deep hatred toward Team Rocket and devoted herself to destroying them.
And now someone dared say she was just like them?
That she was no better than those scumbags who tortured Pokémon?
What a joke!
"You little brat… you've really pissed me off."
Lorelei's once beautiful face was now clouded in shadow.
From beneath her thick purple bangs, behind those glasses, her eyes shimmered with a dark, menacing haze.
Right now, she gave off the chilling vibe of a bottomless frozen abyss—deeply unsettling.
In other words—she'd snapped.
"Blizzard!"
No more words. Lorelei gave the cold order.
She was going to freeze this kid into an eternal ice sculpture!
Lapras and Dewgong immediately unleashed a torrential blizzard toward Red.
"Espeon, Psychic!"
Red's expression grew serious—he'd been watching Lorelei closely and reacted instantly.
Espeon's eyes glowed a deep blue as ripples of psychic energy surged forth.
"Thunderbolt!"
Red's Pikachu leapt into the air, cheeks crackling with golden sparks before unleashing a bolt of electricity.
Psychic and Thunderbolt collided head-on with the incoming Blizzard—immense energy surged and clashed in midair.
The shockwaves were intense, making everyone's eyes sting.
"Red is… this strong?"
Brock and the others were stunned.
This wasn't like earlier, when Espeon had dispersed Blizzard mid-way. This was a full frontal clash!
They knew Red was powerful—but this powerful?
Especially compared to Ash, who—well, let's not talk about that.
The attacks finally destabilized and exploded.
BOOM!
The deafening blast made their ears ring.
Lorelei's expression grew darker. This kid… might really be stronger than her?
No!
There's no way this naïve idiot could be stronger than her!
She refused to believe it!
"Dewgong, Sheer Cold!"
She had no intention of letting it go—Red's words had infuriated her to her core.
She'd sacrificed so much for Pokémon—and now she was being compared to Team Rocket?
Unacceptable!
Though cold by nature, Lorelei had an extremely sensitive nerve when it came to this.
Just then, a shout changed everything.
"Wait—Team Rocket's escaping!"
Ash's panicked cry rang out.
Team Rocket was getting away?
Everyone—including Lorelei and Red—snapped their eyes toward Lucas.
"Oh my~ guess we've been discovered. Such a nosy little brat."
Lucas smirked, glancing teasingly at Ash.
Behind him, a large hole had been blasted in the wall. Team Rocket members were already fleeing through it.
Ordinary people couldn't break through that reinforced energy-plated wall, but for Lucas—it was a piece of cake.
Why hadn't they noticed? Because the fight had masked all the noise.
"Damn it!"
Lorelei's eyes turned icy cold. As much as she despised Red's "foolishness," she really didn't want Team Rocket to escape.
"Dewgong, Sheer Cold!"
A dreamy blue beam shot from Dewgong's mouth toward Lucas.
Sheer Cold!
In the games, it's a one-hit KO move. While not quite the same in reality, it remained one of the most dangerous Ice-type techniques—far stronger than Ice Beam.
A direct hit would freeze the target into a solid ice sculpture.
"Now now, don't get in the way, Lorelei. Shouldn't you focus on that kid who insulted you?"
Lucas sighed as he watched the attack come.
He knew this would happen once he ordered the retreat—those two would stop fighting.
"Moonblast."
Gardevoir raised her arms. A silvery moon rose behind her as a pink beam pierced through the air, clashing with Sheer Cold.
Shockingly, after just two seconds of resistance, Moonblast shattered Sheer Cold and continued flying toward Lorelei!
"Lapras!"
Lorelei's eyes widened. Lapras quickly countered with an Ice Beam.
BOOM!
The explosion erupted just meters from Lorelei, sending strong shockwaves all around.
Her long purple hair was tousled by the wind, but she didn't care. Her eyes remained fixed on Lucas.
This isn't right.
Why is this Gardevoir's Moonblast so strong?
Was he… holding back the whole time?
"Oops~ might've used a bit too much force. Consider it a warning. I'm not looking to fight the Elite Four just yet."
Lucas tilted his head slightly.
He'd been holding back, only defending—deliberately escalating Lorelei's attacks to provoke Red's backlash.
Otherwise?
Lorelei wouldn't have stood a chance.
"He's extremely strong. He defeated two of my main partners with ease. If we don't work together, we'll lose."
Red stepped beside Lorelei, serious.
The real enemy… was still Lucas.
As long as Lorelei didn't endanger Ash and the others, Red wouldn't fight her.
"Team Rocket actually has a monster like this…"
Lorelei glanced at Red with a frown. She knew priorities, but didn't answer—her eyes remained conflicted.
Lucas Blackthorn, Lance's cousin… was terrifyingly powerful.
With him, Team Rocket was even harder to deal with.
"I think… we should let them go."
Red hesitated but said it anyway, knowing Lorelei would hate it.
Lucas was retreating. There was no need to stop them.
Even if Red's Charizard and Venusaur weren't down, he wasn't sure he and Lorelei together could beat Lucas.
"Are you kidding me?"
Lorelei glared coldly at Red.
Watch Team Rocket escape in broad daylight? No way!
Red frowned. He'd expected this—but his decision was still the most logical one.
Otherwise, if Lucas was truly provoked… he could destroy the whole ship.
And sure enough, most of Rocket was already gone.
"Blizzard!"
Lorelei didn't hesitate—her Pokémon launched a full-powered Blizzard.
This wasn't just aimed at Lucas. It covered every remaining Team Rocket member.
"Psychic!"
Red reacted instantly. Espeon unleashed a vast wave of psychic energy, redirecting the blizzard upward to smash into the ceiling.
Lucas blinked.
He was just about to tell Gardevoir to intercept, but… well, guess he didn't have to.
These two were already fighting each other again.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
Lorelei turned, furious.
This bastard not only refused to help—he was getting in her way again!
"You were about to hit them, too!"
Red pointed to Ash and the others, voice even louder than Lorelei's.
Lorelei's chest rose and fell in fury. Right now, she really wanted to slap this hard-headed idiot to death.
"Team Rocket's getting away! Are you blind?!"
For the first time ever, Lorelei's icy voice turned shrill—angry to the point of swearing.
She had never been this furious in her entire life!
(End of Chapter)
Chapter Dump so guys are lucky.