"Indeed, luck has been on my side lately."
Lucas lit a cigarette, the flame briefly illuminating his calm face before he exhaled a thin wisp of smoke. Hearing Giovanni's words, he smiled faintly and replied with a relaxed tone.
He had to admit—his luck truly had been quite good. Otherwise, how could he have so smoothly obtained both Reshiram and Rayquaza?
"If it were only luck," Giovanni said with a small chuckle, his deep eyes narrowing slightly as he looked at Lucas, "then gaining the recognition of such legends wouldn't have been possible."
After all, those were true top-tier legendary Pokémon, completely different from the likes of the three legendary birds.
Would mere luck be enough to earn acknowledgment from such beings? Of course not.
The stronger a Pokémon was, the more discerning and proud its gaze became.
Just look at Ash in the original story—he had traveled through countless regions and met numerous legendary Pokémon. Some of them held him in high regard, others were neutral, and some even disliked him.
But had there ever truly been a legendary Pokémon that chose to travel alongside him?
In a true sense, the only legendary Pokémon Ash ever really captured was Melmetal from the Alola Region.
Even in "I Choose You," the movie where Ash was chosen as the Rainbow Hero and Ho-Oh itself descended to meet him, what was the outcome in the end?
No one knew for certain, except that Ash had fought against Ho-Oh once.
Yet clearly, Ash never captured Ho-Oh. Whether it was due to insufficient strength, or some other reason, no one could say.
Gaining the favor or acknowledgment of a legendary Pokémon and having that same legendary willingly follow you as a companion—those were two completely different things.
The former, at best, made you a friend of the legendaries. The latter meant the Pokémon had truly become one of your core partners—your main team.
"Lucas, the current you… you've already surpassed me. Time really flies."
Giovanni lifted his coffee cup, taking a slow sip as he spoke, his voice carrying an almost imperceptible note of emotion.
Yes—once upon a time, Giovanni hadn't been completely certain of victory if he fought Lucas, but he believed that, overall, he was still slightly stronger.
After all, his years of experience and deep foundation weren't just for show.
But now, Lucas had captured not one, but two legendary Pokémon—Reshiram and Rayquaza. It was obvious that Lucas had already far surpassed him.
Just like the battle between Lucas and Lance back in Celadon—according to the intelligence reports, the final result was clear: Lucas had won.
He and Lucas had known each other for only about a year. Yet within that short time, Lucas had already overtaken him.
"Boss, that doesn't sound like you at all." Lucas raised an eyebrow, amused.
Coming from a man as ambitious as Giovanni—a man who once dreamed of ruling the world—those words felt oddly out of place.
Although Lucas knew that Giovanni had always been friendly toward him, he understood the reasoning behind that friendliness very well.
Giovanni knew that keeping Lucas close—binding him to Team Rocket's side—was the best possible outcome for the organization.
But generally speaking, people in positions of power never wanted uncontrollable elements within their ranks.
From Giovanni's perspective, Lucas was a man of unrestrained temperament, one who believed deeply in the law of the jungle—the strong devour the weak. Such a person could never align himself with the Pokémon League.
That was exactly why Giovanni was happy to cooperate with Lucas. Because Team Rocket needed someone like him—someone with overwhelming strength.
Matori had once warned Giovanni about Lucas's unstable temperament, but Giovanni hadn't cared.
Risk always came hand-in-hand with reward—and when the potential reward was as great as Lucas, what was there to fear?
If you wanted someone like Lucas to help you, how could there not be any risk involved?
But now, it was no longer just a matter of risk. Lucas had grown far beyond what anyone had anticipated.
If he ever developed ambitions of his own, Team Rocket might very well face complete destruction.
And yet, even now, Giovanni still seemed to trust Lucas deeply. In fact, his attitude toward him… had subtly shifted.
"Lucas, we've known each other for quite some time now," Giovanni said with a faint smile, smoothly changing the subject. "Not too long, not too short. But even after all this time, I still don't know—what is your true goal?"
Giovanni's gaze was sharp, but there was curiosity behind it as well.
In his eyes, this era was unusual—filled with monsters.
Lucas, Blue, Red… just within Kanto, there were already three extraordinary individuals. And since Lucas was the White Dragon Trainer, it was inevitable that there also existed a Black Dragon Trainer somewhere.
But what exactly was Lucas's goal? Giovanni had never been able to figure that out.
"Of course, to become the strongest Trainer," Lucas replied casually, taking a deep drag of his cigarette without hesitation.
Since he was a Trainer, wasn't that the most natural goal?
"Is that truly all? No other ambitions?" Giovanni narrowed his eyes slightly, clearly dissatisfied with such a simple answer.
"Come on, Boss, you know me," Lucas said with a grin. "I've always been the kind of guy who goes with the flow. But if I really had to say it… then maybe, I just want my life to be a little more interesting."
He smiled faintly as he spoke.
Yes—that had always been his philosophy.
The reason he'd joined Team Rocket was for many reasons, but the two biggest ones were: the organization's freedom from restrictions—and the convenience it offered for him to move around and stir up trouble.
"Hah… that's exactly your style."
Giovanni fell silent for a moment before letting out a quiet laugh, shaking his head in amusement.
"Although… something still feels off."
As Lucas watched Giovanni, his eyes flickered thoughtfully.
There was something different in Giovanni's tone and demeanor today—something subtle yet undeniable.
But Lucas didn't sense any hostility from him. Rather than cautious probing, it felt more like… expectant probing.
Expectant?
What exactly was Giovanni expecting from him?
Lucas's thoughts churned rapidly.
What could have caused such a shift in Giovanni's attitude?
With Giovanni's level of ambition and insight, he couldn't possibly feel inferior to Lucas just because Lucas had captured two legendary Pokémon.
Lucas knew Giovanni's character too well. He was a true statesman, a visionary far deeper and more calculating than even Lance.
Even Lance, after being defeated by Lucas in Celadon, hadn't resigned himself to that loss. Instead, he strove to grow stronger, seeking greater power to one day surpass Lucas.
Would Giovanni—a man who once sought to rule the world—ever accept being lesser than someone else so easily?
Impossible.
Unless—there was something else. Something Giovanni valued even more.
Something unavoidable. Something he couldn't control.
Suddenly, Lucas's brow furrowed slightly as a thought surfaced.
If this were Giovanni from the Pokémon Adventures manga series, his early self was ruthless and ambitious, driven entirely by his lust for power.
But later in the story, that same Giovanni began to soften—to "turn white," so to speak.
Though still technically an antagonist, his actions increasingly showed traces of humanity.
And what had caused that change?
Aside from the devastating defeat in Saffron City, which had burned Team Rocket's Kanto branch to ashes, there was one more critical factor—
His illness.
Yes. Giovanni suffered from a terminal illness—one so severe that it fundamentally changed his outlook on life.
It was the discovery of that illness that caused his priorities to shift.
No longer obsessed with world domination, he began searching for something else entirely—his long-lost son.
His emotional side eventually suppressed his ambition.
'…Don't tell me this guy's planning to have me temporarily inherit Team Rocket,' Lucas thought, his eyelid twitching.
If Giovanni really was gravely ill, that explained a lot.
Even if he couldn't let go of his ambitions, even if he still burned with desire to rule the world, he would now focus on finding a cure.
But could Team Rocket truly function without him?
Of course not.
Even someone as competent as Archer couldn't replace Giovanni's leadership.
Among the executives, no one truly obeyed anyone else. Even if Giovanni personally appointed an interim leader, they wouldn't be able to command the rest.
Right now, among all of Team Rocket's senior ranks—the three Executives, four Generals, and three Beast—not a single one could unite the organization.
Except for Lucas.
Lucas's sheer strength and presence could suppress them all.
That was why Giovanni had been probing him earlier—he wanted to know whether Lucas had any interest in assuming that mantle.
Of course, this was only Lucas's conjecture. He couldn't be completely certain what Giovanni was thinking.
But if Giovanni truly was terminally ill… then things would indeed become very interesting.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Lucas's lips.
In the original manga, Giovanni's illness was beyond medical cure.
Even Cianwood's most famous pharmacy couldn't heal him—it could only slow the progression of the disease.
To truly cure it, no ordinary medicine would suffice. It would take something—or someone—with the power of legend itself.
In that story, only Celebi was able to heal Giovanni completely.
But by then, Giovanni had already changed. His ambition had faded, replaced by the warmth of family.
He even helped the protagonists fight against his former subordinate, Archer…
"Boss, what are your plans for the Silph Company next?"
Putting aside his thoughts, Lucas asked calmly.
Everything so far was speculation. There was no rush—Giovanni couldn't hide something like this forever. Sooner or later, the truth would come out.
Besides, even if Giovanni was seriously ill, there was no way he'd simply abandon everything he had built.
He would undoubtedly make thorough preparations before stepping back.
"I've already arranged a meeting with Silph's president. Tomorrow, we'll go directly to the company," Giovanni said lightly, wearing his usual calm, composed smile.
His relaxed attitude made it clear that he didn't consider Silph to be anything particularly troublesome.
Although Silph Co. was one of the world's top corporations, in Giovanni's eyes—it was nothing more than another piece on the chessboard.
"I see. Having a respectable public identity really is convenient," Lucas mused with a smirk.
Indeed, Giovanni's official identity was as clean and impressive as it could get—not only was he the Viridian City Gym Leader, but also a successful and respected businessman.
That made it easy for him to arrange a meeting with Silph Co.'s president.
And once they met that man—bringing him under control would be child's play.
"Since Silph Co. is such a large company, we can't let its operations halt suddenly—it would attract too much attention," Lucas said after thinking for a moment. "But once we've taken it over, your position as a Gym Leader might become a bit of a problem."
Giovanni gave a low hum of agreement, his eyes narrowing slightly.
After all, a Gym Leader could take a leave of absence—but not for long.
Once they controlled Silph Co., someone would need to personally oversee things.
And Giovanni himself was the best man for that job… except that his public identity as a Gym Leader would make that inconvenient.
Lucas's words hung in the air, the cigarette smoke curling lazily between them.
Giovanni smiled faintly, but said nothing.
(End of Chapter)