Being openly rejected didn't surprise Lucas at all. He simply kept his polite smile and said to Colress,
"My friend, I don't know exactly what kind of experiment you're working on, but I have no interest in cloned lifeforms.
You'd best leave now."
Colress shook his head, finding it all rather amusing. Although Lucas didn't seem like an ordinary person, in his eyes, he was still just another big talker.
Ever since Colress revived and modified Genesect, ordinary life had ceased to impress him.
To put it simply—Colress's vision had elevated to a higher plane.
"If it's not necessary, I'd prefer not to use force."
Lucas gently tossed a Poké Ball into the air. A burst of white light flashed, and an overwhelming divine presence descended.
The sacred White Dragon spread its wings midair, slowly descending and landing in front of Lucas. Its majestic dragon eyes stared down at Genesect.
Genesect slightly lowered its stance, alert and ready for any sudden move from Reshiram.
"Reshiram?!"
Colress was momentarily stunned as he gazed upon the beautiful Reshiram, then his expression tightened.
This was the real White Dragon—not an illusion conjured by Zoroark. The divine pressure alone, along with Genesect's instinctual vigilance, made that abundantly clear.
This man… he was Reshiram's Trainer? The true Hero of Truth?
This development was completely unexpected. Colress had never imagined that the man inviting him to join an experimental project would turn out to be the White Dragon's Trainer.
"Tell me more about your experiment."
After a moment of thought, Colress looked at Lucas's ever-present smile and decided to at least hear him out.
The title "Hero of Truth" was more than enough to make him treat the man with seriousness.
Still, if he wasn't satisfied with the project, Colress would not join, regardless of how powerful this man was.
Sure, Reshiram was strong, but his Genesect wasn't just for show.
"Using Mew's genes as a foundation, we're cloning a lifeform from scratch—one capable of rivaling legendary Pokémon. Is that enough detail?"
Lucas's smile widened slightly. As expected, the name of the White Dragon carried serious weight.
At the very least, others would instantly realize he was no ordinary individual the moment they saw Reshiram.
"An artificial legend?"
Colress's calm demeanor cracked for the first time as he stared at Lucas in disbelief.
What kind of lunatic would come up with such a plan?
Colress was genuinely shocked. What did "legendary" even mean in this context? And "artificial legend"? How would that even work?
Even for him, reviving and modifying Genesect had been his greatest scientific achievement. He believed his Genesect army was not inferior to legends.
But that was based on modifying an already-existing ancient Pokémon. First he revived Genesect from a fossil, then modified it.
But what was Lucas saying now?
Just by using a Pokémon's genetic code, he was going to create a legendary Pokémon entirely from scratch?
That was absurd beyond belief!
"Is that really possible?"
Colress frowned deeply, his mind racing to explore the feasibility of such an experiment.
To him, cloning biological organisms was not overly difficult. But could such a creature truly rival a legend?
Could it even survive? What kind of gene sequence could support that? The biological demands to create such a lifeform—let alone raise it to maturity—were beyond immense.
"Why wouldn't it be possible? Like you yourself said, science can reach where the human mind cannot.
Creating an artificial legend is incredibly difficult, but it's precisely because it's difficult that it's worth pursuing.
And in fact, there is already one successful case—a being currently growing and evolving, with the potential to rival even the highest-tier legendary Pokémon."
Lucas chuckled softly. Yes, to the people of this world, the concept of an artificial legend was absolutely insane.
So insane, in fact, that most wouldn't even dare to imagine it. And yet, reality had already gone further than mere imagination.
Not only had someone dared to attempt it, they had succeeded!
Colress: "...!!"
"What's its name?"
Colress didn't doubt Lucas's words. He trusted his own ability to read others, and he believed what he was hearing.
In fact, if one looked closely, they'd see Colress's hands trembling slightly—not from fear, but from sheer excitement.
Yes, he was excited. So excited he could barely contain himself.
"Mewtwo. Created using Mew's genes and enhanced with the DNA of various top-tier Pokémon. A genetic Pokémon—an artificial legendary."
Lucas's smile deepened. He already had a feeling Colress would bite, but now it was time to seal the deal.
"So, Dr. Colress, would you be willing to join us?
Someone has already taken that first step and proven the miracle of science.
But I believe we can go even further.
The ultimate limit of science is to create a god—and even if it's a man-made god, it can still surpass all expectations.
Dr. Colress, we need you to help make that leap."
No true researcher could resist such a challenge—especially not when there was already successful precedent.
Of course, most scientists would balk at the moral implications, viewing genetic cloning as inherently wrong.
They would question whether an artificial legend would be a blessing or a disaster for humanity.
But for certain people, such moral constraints meant nothing.
People like Dr. Colress, the "Mad Scientist" standing before him.
With barely a moment's hesitation, Colress steadied his emotions and delivered a crisp, unwavering reply:
"I'll join."
"A wise decision. So then, Dr. Colress, when can you depart?"
Seeing Colress agree, Lucas's smile grew even wider as he reached out his hand.
He had expected Colress wouldn't refuse—scientists like him, hovering in a morally gray zone, rarely hesitated when their curiosity was piqued.
Still, Lucas couldn't help feeling a touch of joy at the acceptance.
"Anytime."
Colress had already regained his calm demeanor, shaking Lucas's hand with a faint smile.
Most of his research data was stored with Team Plasma, but compared to the project Lucas had just described, what did that even matter?
"Then let's prepare to leave. But you might need to disappear from public view for a while, Dr. Colress."
Lucas's grin deepened. He liked people who got things done without dragging their feet.
"Though, to be fair, Team Plasma might not take your departure too lightly.
When I ran into the Hero of Ideals before, I may have caused him a bit of trouble."
Lucas scratched his chin thoughtfully. A bit of trouble.
He still didn't know how N and Zekrom had managed to escape Kyurem.
But one thing was certain—N and Zekrom were still alive. Reshiram had told him so the day before.
Praise be to the Great Arceus—N surviving really was a blessing! After all, the destined showdown between Truth and Ideals had yet to occur.
If Kyurem had interfered and ended it prematurely… that would've been a joke.
Lucas was still looking forward to having some fun with N and his Black Dragon.
"That's no problem. Team Plasma is a joke now anyway. Ghetsis has already been consumed by his own ambition."
Colress replied nonchalantly. He fully understood what accepting Lucas's offer implied.
This was no ordinary man—he was the White Dragon's Hero.
And the legend of the White and Black Dragons was a tale passed down through Unova for centuries.
In Colress's eyes, Team Plasma was no longer worth investing in. Ever since N gained Zekrom's approval, Ghetsis's ambition had spiraled out of control.
But Colress knew better—just having the Black Dragon wasn't enough to conquer Unova. That would be pure lunacy.
"I agree. With your abilities, Dr. Colress, Team Plasma is hardly worth worrying about."
Lucas raised an eyebrow as he glanced at the shiny Genesect.
That must be Colress's trump card. Coupled with his Champion-level skills, Colress's personal power was already at the peak of the world.
No wonder he didn't take Team Plasma seriously.
"If I hadn't already sent the other four Genesect back to headquarters, I'd have given you a few."
Colress recalled his shiny Genesect and said this to Lucas with a hint of regret.
As a researcher, he wasn't particularly interested in power—just enough to protect himself was fine.
He conducted his research to share his results with others.
If he and Lucas were more familiar, he wouldn't have minded giving him this Genesect.
It was only being kept around to deal with Ghetsis.
But trust took time to build. Although Lucas gave him a good impression, it was still too soon to fully trust him.
Still, it was a pity. He'd basically thrown away four revived Genesect by giving them to Ghetsis. What a waste.
"You're too kind, Dr. Colress. Let's get going."
Lucas laughed lightly and glanced at the entrance to the base. The Team Plasma members had finished packing up the research materials.
Clearly, they were getting ready for Colress to wrap up his business.
"Alright."
Colress adjusted his glasses and walked up to the Team Plasma members.
"Give Ghetsis a message for me: thanks for all the hospitality these past few days. From now on, I'm out."
He took some USB drives containing research data from his assistant and calmly left behind one final message—then turned and walked away without a second thought.
To him, Team Plasma had no future. The sooner he left, the better.
"???"
His departure was casual, but the Team Plasma members were dumbfounded.
"That's the White Dragon, right...? Dr. Colress just left. What do we do?"
"What do you mean, what do we do? Run! Unless you want to end up in jail!"
"Yeah, yeah! And contact Lord Ghetsis—Dr. Colress's bailed!"
After some confused back-and-forth, the Team Plasma members quickly reached a consensus: flee to the nearest base. This one had already been exposed—they couldn't stay.
----------------
"What?!"
In N's castle, Ghetsis's expression turned pitch-black as he listened to the phone report.
Colress quit? And with the White Dragon's Trainer, no less?
That backstabbing traitor! He switched sides that quickly?!
The White Dragon's Trainer had barely shown up, and the bastard already defected!
Furious, Ghetsis slammed the call shut and immediately redialed Colress.
"Moshi moshi?"
"Colress! What the hell are you doing?!"
Ghetsis was furious. You dare greet me like that after stabbing me in the back?
"I don't understand what you mean, Lord Ghetsis. Our relationship was always one of cooperation.
Now I've decided to terminate that cooperation. Is that not allowed?"
Colress chuckled coldly, his calm tone infuriatingly relaxed.
The nerve of this guy to lecture him.
"Don't bother contacting me again. The four Genesect and the Colress Machine—I'll consider them gifts.
Let's part ways peacefully, Lord Ghetsis."
Colress said flatly. He knew Ghetsis would never return those assets anyway, so why bother asking?
Might as well play the gracious card. After all, they had worked together for some time.
As for what happened to Ghetsis in the future—well, that was no longer his concern.
"You—!"
Ghetsis's face darkened even further. Just as he was about to speak, the line went dead.
And when he tried calling again… blocked!
Crash!
He instantly smashed his phone to pieces, his face stormy with rage.
That damn traitor! That bastard!
"Peaceful parting? Peaceful my ass!"
"I can't just let him go.."
Ghetsis forced down his fury and sat back, deep in thought.
Colress was far too valuable to Team Plasma. He couldn't just let this go.
(End of Chapter)