The guards were shocked to see the red-haired woman. They bowed respectfully and withdrew. If she was here, it was above their pay grade.
"Greetings, Young Master Li Yuan. I didn't expect my humble temple to attract a great Buddha like you. What brings you here?" The sexy red-haired woman greeted him elegantly. She wanted to avoid conflict until she knew his purpose.
"No need for formalities, Madam Ariana. I'm here because I have use for you," Li Yuan glanced at the "R" badge on her chest and spoke calmly.
But his plain words set off a tsunami in Ariana's mind. Her pupils contracted.
"Ariana" was her name as a Team Rocket Executive in the Pokémon world. Since coming to Earth, she had changed her name to hide her identity. Only a few insiders knew her real name. How did he know?
Did he hypnotize her subordinates? Or had his influence infiltrated their organization?
Hypnosis was unlikely; her trusted aides hadn't been compromised.
So, infiltration?
If he had spies inside, his presence here might expose them. She had to investigate this later.
"What do you mean, Young Master Li? We shouldn't have any conflict," Ariana's elegant tone dropped a few degrees. Her expression shifted as she weighed whether to treat him as a threat.
"Don't be nervous, Madam. We have no conflict. I'm not here to find fault or take over. I just have some goods I need to offload urgently," Li Yuan smiled, ignoring the trouble his simple sentence caused her.
"Young Master Li overestimates me. If you can't handle it, we probably can't either," Ariana couldn't read him. But he wasn't friendly. She should stay away.
"Really? With Silph Co.'s wealth, you can't even spare a few million?" Li Yuan looked surprised.
"A few million? What are you selling?" Ariana was confused. A few million was nothing. Why couldn't he handle it himself?
"Nothing much. Just three Veteran-rank Houndoom I picked up recently. I don't like them, so I'm selling them. I'm too lazy to haggle—one million each isn't too much, right?" Li Yuan set the price.
Ariana's mouth twitched.
Good lord. I thought you barged in here for something big, making me run over in a panic. And it turns out it's just a few million in business?
And 'too lazy to haggle'?
This is daylight robbery!
Houndoom were strong, comparable to starters. Selling for a million wasn't impossible.
But these were Veteran-rank adults. Who buys fully grown, high-level Dark types? Taming them was a nightmare.
If she bought them for a million, she might not even be able to resell them, let alone make a profit.
"Madam, what's with that face? Is that too expensive for you? Houndoom are worth it," Li Yuan looked at her with feigned disbelief.
"Fine. We'll take them. anything else?" Ariana's eye twitched. She wanted to curse. She had never seen such blatant extortion.
But thinking about it, it was just three million. Not worth offending him over. Besides, if they couldn't sell them, Team Rocket could use them. They had plenty of people who could tame Veteran Dark types.
To tame evil Pokémon, you just had to be more evil than them!
"That's right. Don't act like I'm taking advantage of you. Here are the balls. Wire the money to my account. I'm leaving." Li Yuan took the balls from his bag, handed them over with his card number, waved, and teleported away as if afraid she would change her mind.
Ariana stood alone in the wind, messy.
She stared at the three Poké Balls, her brain failing to process.
So... he came all this way just to sell three Pokémon?
Are you sick? With your assets, do you lack three million?
You just came here to take advantage of me?
Wait... I didn't even check the goods. Did he give me empty balls?
Fuck! Surely not? A billionaire playing Team Rocket for three million?
Even if you have power, isn't that too arrogant?
Or was the prank fake, and he really came to collect a protection fee?
But who collects a protection fee this small?
Ariana didn't understand. She suspected Li Yuan had ulterior motives. Their organization's "Project" was at a critical stage; no instability could be tolerated.
She worried Li Yuan knew about the Project. She had to take precautions and purge the traitor he planted.
She wondered if the Chinese government had noticed them. Li Yuan's mother was an official; his appearance might be a warning from the government. Otherwise, it was hard to believe a rich kid came for three Houndoom.
It must be that. Team Rocket couldn't hide forever.
Back in the Pokémon world, Ariana wouldn't have cared. Team Rocket was at its peak then, rivaling the League in economy and tech.
But now?
Since the worlds merged, the population plummeted. Team Rocket suffered heavy losses. Most veterans were dead or missing. Even Giovanni's status was unclear; orders came from HQ, but no one had seen the Boss in person.
Once the ruler of Kanto's underworld, Team Rocket was now reduced to living in the gutters like a small gang, extorted for three million by a brat. How infuriating!
Hmph! Just wait. When our Project succeeds, we'll collect all debts!