Chapter 265: Cynthia: Mammon, Could You Give Lady Back?
"If you can't handle losing, don't play the game."
That was all Paul offered in response to Nora's accusation. There'd only been two executives to begin with, and clearly not enough to go around for everyone — so naturally, it came down to whoever could actually pull it off. Paul saw absolutely nothing wrong with what he'd done — he'd used his own head to secure Jupiter and Saturn. What exactly was the problem with that?
"Ha?! You little— I'm challenging you to a one-on-one!"
Nora felt this gloomy Sinnoh local was being genuinely shameless. Are all the locals here this rude?
"Don't have time." Paul refused flat out. No need to even think it over — battling Nora now, losing, and then having to sit through her gloating afterward? Paul decided to steer well clear of that particular storm. Sure, Nora came across as loud and carefree, but her actual strength was genuinely considerable — Paul knew that much perfectly well.
"Lord Mammon, this round's two executives were caught jointly by Lady and myself. We'll split the merit points evenly between us," Paul said, bowing to Mammon.
"Eh?" Platinum blinked at that, about to say something, but caught Paul shaking his head slightly at her. She let it go without pressing the point.
"Good. As a reward for capturing both executives, you two may each pick one item from the current redemption store," Mammon replied, smiling.
"Lord Mammon, does that include Mega Stones?" Platinum's eyes brightened slightly. Mega Stones were currently the rarest, most precious items available. Sure, given her standing, the Berlitz family would spare no effort supporting her — but realistically, finding the specific stone she wanted on short notice wasn't easy. And now that she'd been forced into Team Rocket, reaching out to her family wasn't exactly convenient either.
"Of course," Mammon confirmed with a nod.
"I want Garchomp's Mega Stone!" Platinum chose without a moment's hesitation. Garchomp was already one of her top two fighters — being able to Mega Evolve it would be a massive boost to its combat strength. Sure, according to Professor Sycamore's Mega Evolution analysis over in Kalos, Mega Garchomp apparently loses a bit of Speed in the process — but that was a minor flaw against an otherwise overwhelming gain, since Mega Garchomp's offensive power was simply devastating.
"Waah~ So jealous." Roxie could hardly stand it — a free Mega Stone, and her pick of which one, no less! She really wanted a Gardevoirite herself.
"Guess our thinking was too narrow. We should've gone straight for the two executives themselves," Dulse said with a sigh, resigned. Otherwise his own Salamencite would've had somewhere to land too, wouldn't it?
"...Attacking the opposing trainer directly isn't exactly within the rules for a proper battle, though, is it?" Wulin hesitated. That was exactly why he'd been so stunned watching Paul's Magmortar seize Jupiter and Saturn from behind earlier.
"This isn't a sanctioned battle — we're wiping out an evil organization here," Dulse shrugged. "Look how fast that guy's brain works — he walked off with the big reward for it." Dulse gestured toward Paul.
Wulin considered that thoughtfully.
As for Nora and Touko — Nora was still gnawing on her handkerchief, thoroughly envious.
"Garchomp's Mega Stone, fine. What about you, Paul?"
Paul thought it over, brow furrowed slightly. He'd looked over the Mega Stone list before, but honestly, his current main lineup barely had anyone who could actually Mega Evolve.
"I want Steelix's Mega Stone," Paul finally decided. Mostly because Steelix was the only one in his current core team that could really make use of one. And Mega Steelix's Ability, Sand Force, reduced incoming super-effective damage — plus, after Mega Evolving, Mega Steelix became purely Steel-typed, which counted as a meaningful indirect boost to its overall combat power too.
"Done. I'll get them transferred over shortly," Mammon said, nodding.
"Good work today, everyone. You've got three days of free time to enjoy yourselves now — all expenses covered by the company," Mammon said, turning to address the whole operation team with a smile.
"Yesss~!"
"Boss is so generous!"
"First time in Sinnoh — no idea where's fun to check out yet."
"I'm working for this company until I retire!"
No question, this gesture from Mammon had the whole crowd of students thoroughly thrilled, loyalty overflowing. Which was, of course, exactly the effect Mammon had been going for.
Most of the academy students began dispersing after that — an unfamiliar region, an unfamiliar city, held plenty of appeal for them. But a few stuck around.
"Come on! Let's spar a bit!"
Nora eyed Dulse and Wulin challengingly — Blueberry Academy's two strongest. Sure, both were prodigies in their own right within Unova, but Nora intended to make it clear today: even among prodigies, there's still a gap.
"Fine," Dulse agreed without hesitation. He was curious himself, honestly, just how good these two girls really were.
The group found a nearby training field, with the matchup set as Nora & Touko vs. Dulse & Wulin. Not a doubles match, though — singles, to better showcase individual strength.
Mammon naturally tagged along too, genuinely interested in seeing the four of them battle.
"Mammon, who do you think wins?" Elesa naturally positioned herself near Mammon, asking with genuine curiosity.
"Dulse and Wulin are both quite good, but I don't think they're a match for Nora and Touko," Mammon said with a smile — his own personal read on it. After all, Nora and Touko, as sisters, were the kind of natural prodigies who could dominate an entire era outright — much like how Leon had burst onto the scene in Galar and simply ruled the region through sheer overwhelming strength ever since. It was just that this particular generation of "prodigy freaks" seemed to be popping up in practically every region at once, and Nora and Touko themselves were rivals to each other too. Dulse and Wulin were both undeniably talented trainers — Wulin especially, who strictly qualified as a genuine prodigy in his own right. But set against Nora and Touko, they still fell a step short. Though, admittedly, that was a subjective read — plenty of factors could sway an actual battle's outcome, and both Dulse and Wulin fielded genuinely strong rosters regardless.
Dulse, grandson of Drayton, had fully inherited Drayton's love of Dragon-types, and ran an all-Dragon lineup accordingly. Wulin, meanwhile, had built a genuinely excellent, well-rounded team — Seismitoad, Dragonite, Beartic, Porygon2, Incineroar, and his ace, Vespiquen. Weather support, utility, raw offense, debuffing — Wulin's lineup covered every base, genuinely a beautifully constructed team, on top of the individual strength he'd carefully trained into each member.
The battle got underway quickly. First up: Nora versus Dulse, both sides agreeing on a full team battle.
Dulse led with Flygon, Nora with Hydreigon, and the exchange got intense fast. In the end, though, Hydreigon came out ahead, taking the first win. Dulse, undeterred, sent out Dragonite next. Both pseudo-legendaries in their own right, Hydreigon and Dragonite fought an even more grueling battle — but in the end, Nora seized her opening. After Dragonite forced its way in for a close-range strike, Hydreigon landed a devastating Draco Meteor, taking Dragonite down as well.
"That girl is strong!" Reisso, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but click his tongue — Hydreigon had already taken down two of Dulse's Pokémon in a row. Sure, Hydreigon was covered in visible battle damage by now, but having claimed two straight victories, its presence only grew fiercer.
"Her battle experience is just on another level," Roxie noted, brow rising slightly — and her ability to seize openings really was remarkable, consistently catching the tiniest slips in Dulse's calls without fail.
The battle continued, and by the end, Dulse's ace, Metagross, fell to Nora's Volcarona as well. Nora's own losses amounted to Hydreigon and Gothorita running out of steam.
"Hmph hmph~! Now you've seen what I'm capable of!"
Victorious, Nora planted both hands on her hips, chest puffed out, thoroughly pleased with herself. Told you so — how could a bunch of students possibly match up against the great Nora?
"Strong, strong, genuinely impressive. I concede," Dulse said, throwing up both hands in surrender. No helping it — he'd genuinely given it everything, and still couldn't overcome her.
"Wulin, your turn now. Bring your A-game," Dulse said, stepping off and clapping Wulin on the shoulder.
"Touko won't lose either," Nora said, pouting slightly, full of confidence in her good friend.
Touko rolled her eyes, exchanging a friendly greeting with Wulin, who returned it with a polite bow.
Their battle didn't hit quite the same visual spectacle as the previous one, but it was every bit as compelling in its own right — Wulin's tactical execution was polished and sharp, giving Touko genuine trouble throughout. Still, after losing four Pokémon of her own, Touko ultimately pulled out the win, taking down Wulin's final ace, Vespiquen, to close it out.
"Are students these days really this ferocious?"
Platinum, having watched the whole thing unfold, was thoroughly stunned — Dulse and Wulin were both so young, hadn't even graduated yet.
"Trainers like Dulse and Wulin are the rare exception," Mammon said, shaking his head.
Then he turned his head — a short distance away, an elegant, regal-looking woman was slowly making her way toward them.
Cynthia.
"It's— Miss Cynthia—"
Platinum's face went through a complicated mix of emotions, flushing with awkward embarrassment. She felt genuinely at a loss — mostly unsure how to even face Cynthia now, given her current status as a member of Team Rocket.
Cynthia had already reached them by now, her lovely eyes sweeping once over Platinum, half-hiding behind Mammon, then over Caitlin's faint, composed smile, before finally settling on Mammon himself. Something in Cynthia's chest sank quietly.
"Mammon. Welcome to Sinnoh."
Cynthia looked him squarely in the eye, offering her first words.
"Thanks. Honestly, no need to be this formal, Cynthia — I never even got around to saying hello to you myself," Mammon said, mouth curling up slightly, answering her at an easy pace.
"That's a greeting I'd genuinely rather never have to give," Cynthia said, resigned. "So — could you give Lady back to me, Mammon? She's just a kid who only started her journey this year." Cynthia made the request directly, unwilling to watch someone as pure and untainted as Platinum get dragged into Team Rocket's colors. She didn't want to see a repeat of what had happened with Caitlin — bringing Caitlin back at this point was practically a lost cause already, and now there was Platinum on top of it. Why does this keep happening to the people around me?
Hearing Cynthia's words, Platinum felt a small pang of genuine gratitude — though also something oddly bittersweet. She wasn't really a child anymore, after all—
"Cynthia, you really are something else..."
Mammon clicked his tongue, looking Cynthia over with unrestrained, appraising eyes — a gaze so pointed it left Cynthia feeling, for a moment, as though she were standing bare in front of him.
☆☆☆
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Inkshaper
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you