Chapter 184: It Would Be Nice If Mammon Became Unova's Champion
"Senior, was I too rough back there?"
Mammon's expression was apologetic, his tone gentle, as he watched Clay's face cycle through a complicated mix of emotions.
"..."
Clay's cheek twitched a few times. What was there even left to say?
He'd been the one to push for the match. He'd been the one who insisted Mammon go all out. And now he'd just been comprehensively destroyed.
"Not at all. If anything, I'm the one who looked foolish here." Clay pulled himself together and offered the admission with real respect. "Your strength is genuinely extraordinary, kid."
Whatever his reputation as the regional "underground boss," Clay was a man of considerable magnanimity. And his admiration for Mammon was completely sincere — that level of power was, frankly, absurd.
What made it worse was how young Mammon was. It wasn't as if Clay had never encountered talented prodigies before. He'd run into two genuinely remarkable girls just this year alone — the kind that left a lasting impression.
But this black-haired kid from Kanto was operating on an entirely different scale.
"Hah~ I told you, Dad. Mr. Mammon's really strong." Skyla let out a relieved breath, shooting her father a small reproachful look.
Clay laughed, sheepish and a little embarrassed.
"Thank you for the kind words, Senior. I still have a long way to go." Mammon replied with an easy smile.
"It's getting late — Senior, Miss Skyla, we should be on our way." Mammon made his excuses. His actual reason for being in Driftveil was Ghetsis, and there was no point dawdling.
"Is there something urgent? If you're not in a rush, why not stay for a meal? I know a great place." Clay tried to keep them a little longer — he genuinely wanted to build a connection with this young man.
They'd only just met, but between Mammon's strength and his manner, Clay could already tell: this kid's future had no ceiling on it.
If it weren't for the striking young woman beside Mammon — the one with the impossible looks and presence — Clay wouldn't have minded encouraging a little more contact between him and Skyla.
If Skyla and Mammon ever ended up together, Clay would die happy in his sleep.
Then again — he didn't actually know what Mammon and Caitlin were to each other. Maybe they weren't even a couple. And his daughter was plenty cute, plenty talented in her own right. There was always a chance.
"There's actually something I need to take care of right now. Thank you for the offer, Senior — maybe next time, when there's an opportunity."
Mammon declined as graciously as he could.
"Fair enough. If you ever need anything, let me know — I've got some pull around Driftveil." Clay let it go without pushing, smiling.
"I will."
Mammon nodded to Skyla and led Caitlin away. Clay and Skyla walked them all the way to the gym entrance, watching them go.
"A dragon among men." Clay sighed, watching Mammon's retreating back.
"Wonder what brought a kid like that to Unova, though."
He was curious. Surely Mammon hadn't just come for a casual training trip, not with strength like that.
"Skyla, you know anything about this Mammon's background?" he asked his daughter.
"Mm~ honestly, no idea." Skyla tapped her chin, thinking. "I was too focused on his battles to look into the rest. But Dad, seriously — every single match, just the one Annihilape. Even the finals, just sweeping through six opponents with one Pokémon!"
She gave an admiring little click of her tongue.
"With talent like that, doesn't surprise me at all." Clay had zero trouble believing it. He'd just experienced it personally, after all.
"Oh! I remember now — there was a comment in the broadcast chat saying Mammon's the son of one of Kanto's official Gym Leaders." Skyla suddenly recalled it.
"That explains it. Official backing." Clay nodded.
"A kid that young, that strong, huh." He let out a thoughtful breath. "It'd be nice if he became Unova's Champion."
"Pfft~ that's probably a stretch, Dad. Mr. Mammon's from Kanto."
"That's why I said 'it would be nice.'"
Privately, Clay sighed. As a Unova Gym Leader, he naturally wanted to see his home region thrive. But things had gone the opposite direction lately — Unova kept getting weaker, not stronger.
Alder had become a complete non-entity in competitive terms. If fresh blood like Mammon could step in and take over the Champion role, Unova might actually have a shot at recovering some of its standing.
He found himself genuinely hoping that was why Mammon had come — for the Champion's seat itself.
Kanto's Champion, after all, was that unbeatable monster, the Dragon Master Lance. Maybe Mammon, young as he was, didn't have the confidence to challenge Lance directly and had come to Unova instead, where the bar was lower?
Clay turned the idea over. Genuinely plausible, the more he thought about it. If that really was the situation, he'd be thrilled.
He suspected Alder would hand over the title with a grin from ear to ear if it actually came to that.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
Mammon and Caitlin had only just left the Driftveil Gym.
"Caitlin — what do you think about recruiting from Blueberry Academy?"
Mammon was turning the idea over, something that had only just occurred to him.
"...Eh?" Caitlin's mind briefly went blank.
"Blueberry's not on the level of Citrus Academy, but the students they produce are genuinely excellent — far better than the average pickup we get off the street."
He thought it through out loud. Citrus Academy was Paldea's premier Pokémon institution, and one of the most prestigious schools in the world. Worth noting: Citrus Academy's founding dated back eight hundred years, while the Pokémon League itself had only existed for a little over a century.
That alone told you something about its standing.
Blueberry, as Citrus's sister school, hadn't existed nearly as long — but it benefited heavily from Citrus's resources and reputation, and its students were genuinely impressive. Certainly a cut above whatever Rocket could pick up through random recruitment, and far more potential to grow.
It occurred to Mammon that Rocket could stand to establish several proper academies of its own — train fresh talent directly, rather than relying on scraps recruited from the street.
He filed the thought away to act on once he got back. Every region where Rocket had planted a flag — open a couple of schools.
"That's... a workable idea in theory," Caitlin said carefully, "but pulling it off won't be simple."
If Rocket were a normal corporation, recruiting from Blueberry would be a non-issue. But they were a criminal organization.
"It's not as difficult as it sounds." Mammon smiled. "We start by approaching them under a corporate front — present the benefits package, get their interest — then sound out their actual feelings privately, once they're already engaged."
Any organization that wanted to grow needed talent. And Mammon was well aware Blueberry had genuine prodigies on its rolls.
Take Skyla — already one of the Blueberry League's own Elite Four, a parallel system the academy ran to mirror the actual regional League. Her potential was real; at minimum she was Elite-Four-tier already, and she was still young. A run at Champion-tier wasn't out of the question down the line.
But more important — Blueberry had Kieran.
Kieran's raw talent was off the charts. As the rival character in the Scarlet/Violet DLC, his potential was never in question. After his "fall" — going dark, in fan terms — he'd torn through the entire Blueberry League and claimed its Champion seat in remarkably little time, reaching genuine Champion-tier strength.
He still wasn't on the level of the protagonist or Nemona, sure. But within the Scarlet/Violet cast specifically, Kieran's talent ranked third, behind only those two.
And Kieran was, crucially, recruitable. His psychology ran to extremes in certain directions — which was, after all, exactly why he'd gone dark in the first place.
"Doable." Caitlin nodded, genuinely on board.
"I'll have Gladion start preparing the groundwork once we're back, and then—"
Mammon's phone rang before he could finish. Kagura.
"Mammon! Mammon! I found that Ghetsis guy you mentioned! Get over here, quick!"
Kagura's voice came through, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Good." Mammon's eyebrow lifted. He hadn't expected her to deliver this fast.
Inside a public park, a middle-aged man in an elaborate, faintly disturbing robe was delivering an address to the small crowd gathered around him.
Kagura leaned against a tree nearby, watching with obvious interest.
"My name is Ghetsis. Ghetsis, of Team Plasma."
His voice carried real weight — magnetic, persuasive.
"What I want to discuss today is the liberation of Pokémon. Have any of you ever truly considered the question?"
"We humans have lived alongside Pokémon for as long as anyone can remember — partners, each indispensable to the other. That's the assumption most of us carry, isn't it?"
"But is that really true?"
What is this guy even talking about?
Kagura tilted her head, baffled. Was he genuinely arguing that humans and Pokémon didn't actually need each other?
Is something wrong with this man?
She was struggling to process it. If this was actually his stated position, it was certifiably deranged — worse than Magma and Aqua combined, and that was saying something.
"Could it be that this is simply a comfortable fiction we humans tell ourselves?" Ghetsis continued, voice low and deliberate.
"Trainers order Pokémon around at will, treating their partners — their coworkers — with casual contempt. Who among you can swear with absolute certainty that this never happens?"
"Pokémon, unlike us, carry within them possibilities we cannot fathom. There is so much we could learn from them!"
"And given that — what do we owe creatures like this?"
He raised an arm, his voice climbing in intensity.
"That's right! Liberation! Only by freeing Pokémon can true equality between our species ever be realized!"
Absolute lunatic.
That was the entirety of Kagura's assessment.
She'd more or less worked out what he was actually after, too. Convince everyone else to "liberate" their Pokémon, while he kept his own. The math worked out perfectly — everyone else loses their partners, and he ends up standing on top.
Fortunately, nobody in the crowd was clapping. At least these passersby still had functioning brains, which was a relief. For a moment there she'd genuinely been worried Unovans walked around with walnuts for brains.
Clap clap clap—
Right at that moment, loud, enthusiastic applause rang out.
Kagura blinked. There's actually someone idiotic enough to buy into this nonsense?
The other bystanders looked equally puzzled — probably thinking exactly what Kagura was.
But Ghetsis himself lit up immediately, turning toward the sound.
A young man, strikingly handsome, black hair, wearing an elaborate long black coat that screamed not a normal civilian.
"Beautifully said, Sage. That speaks directly to what's in my heart."
Mammon grinned, his tone the picture of sincerity.
"A young man your age, already grasping my philosophy — your future has no ceiling." Ghetsis was visibly moved.
"You flatter me, Sage. And given how committed you must be to such a noble vision — surely you've already led by example?"
Mammon's smile stayed perfectly warm as he asked.
Something flickered, barely visible, across Ghetsis's brow. Lead by example? Out of the question. Actually releasing his own Pokémon? Only an idiot would do something like that.
"Naturally. I freed my own Pokémon long ago." Ghetsis didn't even hesitate before the lie.
"Wonderful. That puts my mind at ease."
Mammon produced a Poké Ball.
"Young man, if you're hoping to liberate Pokémon yourself, the wild is the place to do it." Ghetsis assumed Mammon was about to follow his example — release something of his own, right here, for theatrical effect.
"You've misunderstood me, Sage."
Mammon's smile widened, friendly and bright.
"...?" Ghetsis blinked.
"What I meant was — since the Sage has already let his own Pokémon go, I don't have to worry about you fighting back."
Mammon's smile was the picture of robust good health.
"...?" Ghetsis's brow furrowed sharply.
"Ghetsis, the natural-born cultist criminal — surrender. Today, on behalf of the righteous and lawful Team Rocket, I'll be the one delivering you your verdict!"
Mammon's voice carried, loud and full of conviction.
"...?!"
Ghetsis stood frozen, stunned.
Did this man just say "righteous"? Righteous, what?
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