Ayana's condition was significantly worse than Tyra's.
Kashiwagi wasn't entirely sure how she had lost to her opponent at first, but once Aggron dug a charred, blackened Skuntank out of a nearby rock pile, the picture became clear.
She got blindsided by an Explosion or Self-Destruct, didn't she?
Either that, or the enemy had spewed out flammable gas before detonating themselves to go out in a literal blaze of glory.
"Don't worry, one shot of this and I guarantee she'll wake up!"
Kashiwagi spoke to the anxious Quagsire. The Pokémon's injuries were no lighter than Ayana's, but its devotion to its trainer had kept it conscious until now. Chansey kept spamming Heal Pulse on the massive creature to restore its stamina.
Kashiwagi pulled a syringe from his bag and injected the contents into Ayana's abdomen. A long, sharp intake of breath followed, and her pupils instantly snapped from a hazy blur into sharp focus.
"Drink some water."
He helped her take a few sips. Her breathing gradually leveled out, and she spoke in a raspy whisper.
"What happened to... that person?"
"Knocked out. Tied up tight."
"There's still another Executive... missing. We need to move..."
"I took that one out. And if the one at the machinery warehouse is also gone, then Team Snarl is currently headless. We're just waiting for you to lead the counter-attack."
As he spoke, Kashiwagi could feel Ayana staring holes into him, but he kept his face straight and his voice steady.
After a moment, Ayana slowly sat up. She gazed at the bright, flickering flames on the horizon and murmured, "No need. It's already over."
"Huh?"
"Do you know where these people came from?"
"Uh... weren't they Top Executive Gemat's men?"
"The Top Executive currently facing off against the Boss at Mine No. 2 is named Roki. This means two of Team Snarl's Top Executives launched a coordinated counter-strike against us—a scenario that was actually anticipated."
Ayana spoke in somewhat cryptic terms.
Kashiwagi didn't catch her drift at first, but when a sudden burst of static hissed from her pocket followed by a human voice, everything clicked.
"Ayana! Ayana! We've reached the position. What's the situation? Why was there an explosion?"
"This is Ayana... I'll give details later. You can... come in and clean up the mess now."
Ayana spoke a few brief words into the radio and ignored the frantic "Hello? Hello?" coming from the other end.
"The Rock Unit is here. If you still have the energy, you can coordinate with them. As for me, I need to sleep." Ayana turned and leaned into her Quagsire.
Ignoring the filth and the danger of the battlefield, she closed her eyes and fell into a deep, heavy slumber.
Kashiwagi's lip twitched. The stimulant he'd just injected her with was enough to make a dying man do jumping jacks, yet Ayana had passed out that quickly?
He didn't think the medicine had worn off. She was simply that exhausted.
Well, whatever.
It's finally over. I wonder when things will wrap up at Mine No. 2.
Kashiwagi let out a long, weary breath.
The Battle for Mine No. 1 left countless casualties on both sides.
However, the number of prisoners was even greater.
Over a hundred regular members, a dozen squad leaders, and three High Executives—two heavily injured and one currently in emergency surgery.
Overall, despite the material losses, Team Snagem had achieved a crushing victory.
Kashiwagi—who had single-handedly captured one Executive and assisted Ayana in neutralizing another—naturally became the greatest hero of the defense.
Even though his initial plan was to grab his team and run, the results spoke for themselves: in terms of merit, no one could touch him.
His exaggerated combat record made the arriving Rock Unit reinforcements hesitate to even think about stealing credit. No one wanted to offend "Demon-wood," whose growth rate was nothing short of freakish.
He's taking down High Executives after only a few months. What happens in a few more?
Nobody dared to imagine it.
On the other hand...
Once the defense was over, even though the stalemate at Mine No. 2 continued, Kashiwagi was permitted to return to Pyrite Town with the wounded Sand Unit members.
This signaled that his mission was officially complete. He just wondered how big of a "reward pie" Soshiro would be willing to slice for him.
"You can never have too much money," Kashiwagi mused.
He checked his savings. They had originally dipped below 8 million, but half a month of working as a private chef had actually caused his balance to rise, successfully launching a charge toward the 10-million mark.
Once this mine war is truly settled, I'll find a chance to use those clues, he thought silently, waiting for news from Mine No. 2.
Meanwhile...
Inside the Team Snarl headquarters, Gemat was smashing everything in sight. "Useless! All of you are useless! How could we lose like this!?"
Who would have thought a foolproof strategy would be wiped out so easily? Not a single person had returned; they were all captives of Team Snagem!
Three High Executives and over two hundred official members—this loss wasn't just painful; it was like having his heart cut out!
With his bargaining chips drastically reduced, it meant he would take a massive hit in any future dealings.
"Did you find him yet!? Answer me!"
"I am so, so sorry! We searched the entire base, but there is no sign of him!" The subordinate bowed as low as possible. Unsurprisingly, Gemat hurled a heavy object at his head for his incompetence.
"You're useless too! Get out!"
"Yes, sir!"
The man scurried away. Hearing Gemat's enraged roars from behind the door, he felt a wave of dread. The situation within Team Snarl was becoming increasingly unstable. He had no idea where their future lay.
Two days passed.
Following repeated skirmishes at Mine No. 2, both sides had reached their breaking point.
Food and water supplies in the mine were running low, and Roki's unit from Team Snarl was growing weary of the offensive. The mounting casualties had forced many deluded members back to reality.
As a ragtag bunch of thugs, they simply weren't willing to keep fighting. It didn't matter how many times their superiors claimed that Mine No. 2 would collapse in a few days or that a great victory was imminent.
At this point, the Mayor, who had finally sensed something was wrong after being misled by intelligence multiple times, personally arrived at the outskirts of town. He called a halt to the meaningless struggle and urged both parties to sit down for peace talks.
Roki of Team Snarl didn't want to give the Mayor face, but the man hadn't come alone. As a top-tier power in the town, the Mayor's security force was different from the street thugs of the gangs—they were "Regular Army" grade.
They were armed with the cutting-edge technology of the Orre Region.
So, however unwillingly, Roki had to sit down and negotiate with Team Snagem.
The negotiations lasted half a day. Both sides nearly came to blows multiple times.
The final result followed the original plan: Team Snagem paid a negligible amount of money to take ownership of both mines, including the heavy machinery inside.
As for the miners and the captured Team Snarl members, the haggling was still ongoing. However, both sides knew that even if it was hard to swallow, the deal was done.
News of Team Snagem's grand victory quickly spread throughout Pyrite Town. Other factions looked on with either envy or alarm. Those with foresight pointed out that Team Snagem's momentum wouldn't stop here.
Of course, none of that chatter stopped Team Snagem from beginning their internal distribution of rewards.
Kashiwagi, who had performed brilliantly in the defense, once again saw the name of Demon-wood echo through every underworld faction in Pyrite Town.