Macro Cosmos Headquarters. Fifth Floor.
As the opening time for the Hulbury Gym Challenge drew near, Oleana's furious voice echoed through the research lab.
"Find every trace of Nathan today, and do it fast! I want his entire activity log within five minutes, no matter what he's been doing! Contact nearby League and company personnel. Use Psychic-type Pokémon to search, and Ghost-types to track his movements!"
The room was a flurry of noise: papers rustling, keyboards clacking, hurried footsteps. The already-overworked researchers had no time to respond. They simply stopped whatever projects they were working on and focused entirely on the sudden disappearance of the Hulbury Gym Leader, taking the place of the overwhelmed call operators to coordinate with on-site teams.
Unfortunately, none of the field teams knew anything. When ordered to search again, they all gave the same answer: everything had already been checked.
"Then go to Route 5! Ask Nessa! Has anyone questioned her yet?" Oleana shouted, her tone sharp.
She couldn't shake the feeling that Nathan had gone after her. But with his strength, if he really had attacked, Nessa should've struggled to fight back. At worst, she should've at least escaped.
Then why was he the one who disappeared?
And the footage from the earlier match... neither Nessa nor her Pokémon looked like they had just fought.
Could it be Nathan never went after her at all?
"Report! The field staff spoke with Nessa as part of standard procedure. She said she doesn't know either," a nearby researcher answered.
Oleana paced across the lab, considering whether to contact Peony, who was still in Hulbury.
How could a man like Nathan, so large, so noticeable, just disappear? And at such a critical moment, where could he possibly go?
That small time gap when the company's surveillance wasn't running...
Was it Shiro?
But why would he ambush the Hulbury Gym Leader? Because Nathan had cooperated with the company during the match and used Dynamax to block him? But that had already failed.
Unless... it had something to do with Nathan's damaged Dynamax Band.
Could it be that Shiro saw it, wanted it, and killed him to steal it?
No... judging from his behavior so far, he wasn't that kind of man.
Oleana couldn't make sense of it. Today's situation had spiraled far beyond what she expected.
Nathan's disappearance wasn't just a setback for the upcoming Gym Challenge match; it also meant the company's newly developed Dynamax Band prototype had gone missing.
If it had somehow ended up in another region, though… it wouldn't even work.
Dynamax relied entirely on Galar's underground energy network. Only this region had such a dense concentration of Dynamax energy capable of linking the band to a Pokémon. Without that energy, no other region could use it.
With that in mind, the loss of the band wasn't a huge concern.
But the man himself still needed to be found.
Those pests from the Hunters Guild had already stirred trouble in the Wild Area. If this incident turned out to be another infiltration by outsiders trying to disrupt Galar, then this wouldn't just be a missing-person case anymore.
Gradually calming herself, Oleana pulled out her communicator.
The strongest trainer currently in Hulbury was Peony. She needed him to mobilize Psychic-types to sweep the area. Even if it upset the chairman's brother, she didn't care. If it meant digging through every inch of the town, she'd find Nathan.
Just as she was about to call, the device vibrated softly. A familiar name appeared on the screen.
Shiro.
Suppressing the doubt rising in her chest, Oleana pressed the answer button and spoke first. "Do you know where Nathan is?"
"Of course."
Shiro's reply came quickly. He wasted no time explaining everything: how Nathan had suddenly attacked, how he was killed in self-defense by Nessa, and how the body was buried afterward.
Oleana listened in silence. When he finished, she actually felt a wave of relief wash over her.
So it was just a case of self-defense and a burial. For a moment, she had feared it was interference from an outside faction.
Without replying to Shiro, she turned to the researchers and barked, "No need to keep looking for Nathan. He was gravely ill and forced himself to finish his morning battle. His body couldn't take it anymore. Team One, handle the routine public statement. Team Two, contact the TV networks immediately. Team Three, speak with the local authorities in Hulbury and explain the situation. Move fast!"
The researchers, trained through years of strict obedience, didn't question her or ask for details. After all, whether the Gym Leader had disappeared or not had little to do with them. They followed her orders methodically and efficiently.
Oleana gave a brief glance around the lab before stepping out into an empty corridor. There, in a quiet corner, she lowered her voice and asked through the communicator, "Where's the body buried?"
Shiro told her the approximate location.
* * *
"So... that's it?" Nessa leaned against the rail of the high bridge, still unable to believe what she'd heard.
A Gym Leader of the League was killed... and all it took was a single phone call with Oleana to settle it?
Her sense of the world was crumbling.
"Yeah." Shiro nodded lightly, putting away his communicator. "Gym Leaders aren't as important as you think. Or rather, these minor ones aren't. This is the company's Galar. A dead Gym Leader who isn't one of their own doesn't matter."
Some of the long-time Gym Leaders who'd clung to their little towns were already in decline. Their strength had faded, yet they still refused to fully serve the company.
Wasn't that just asking for trouble?
This year's Gym Challenge was Macro Cosmos' way of cleansing the old system, replacing the regional gyms with company-backed ones. With that plan already in motion, a few deaths only made things simpler.
Nessa hadn't broken free from her childhood beliefs yet. Born and raised in Hulbury, she'd grown up thinking the Gym was everything, and its Leader, a ruler of sorts.
"This could be seen as overthrowing Gym tyranny," Shiro joked casually, "and the dawn of a new future under the company."
As he spoke, another thought crossed his mind. Among the spoils he'd taken from Nathan were several Water-type Pokémon... and more importantly, the Dynamax Band.
But he still didn't know how to use it. If he made a mistake and overloaded a Pokémon with Dynamax energy, the results could be disastrous.
Pondering that, he glanced at Nessa's troubled face. Remembering her connection to Sonia, he cleared his throat.
"Ahem, Nessa. Could you help me ask how to use the Dynamax Band?"
"Huh?" She blinked, still not processing what he'd said.
"Dynamax Band?"
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