Nathan nodded slightly as she saw Lily out of the room.
But outside Nathan's hotel, someone had already been watching.
As soon as Lily entered Nathan's room, Chiyou received the news.
"Capture that woman!"
Meanwhile, the authorities of Valar had purposely withdrawn all security personnel near Nathan's hotel.
Their goal was clear—to target Nathan and prevent his return.
After their previous attempt to recruit him had failed, Valar had already begun planning to eliminate this genius.
After all, with someone as strong as Nathan, he would undoubtedly shine at the World Championship.
And their strongest trainer, Fujiwara Taka, had already lost to him.
If they simply let Nathan return unscathed, there was no way Valar would have a shot at the championship.
But if they wanted to take out a genius trainer like Nathan, they couldn't act openly.
This was now a matter between two nations.
Conveniently, the Dark Organization Chiyou from Celestia had recently arrived in Valar.
This meant it was a terrorist attack from their own Nation.
Once Nathan was dealt with by them, the officials could just shift the blame onto the Dark Organization.
—
After leaving the hotel, Lily casually hailed a taxi.
"Miss, where are you headed?"
The driver asked in fluent Celestian as soon as she got in.
"The airport. Driver, how did you know I'm Celestian?"
Lily was startled for a moment. She hadn't even spoken yet.
The driver chuckled and said, "A lot of Celestian folks have come to watch Nathan's matches these past few days. You're the twelfth one I've picked up today."
After hearing his explanation, Lily thought it made sense. With so many fans here to see Nathan, it wasn't strange for the driver to assume she was Celestian.
"So, you're Celestian too then?"
Lily asked while purchasing her plane ticket on her phone.
The road to the airport was a bit far, and running into a fellow countryman made her willing to chat a bit.
The car drove for almost half an hour, and Lily successfully bought her ticket.
But when she looked out the window, she was shocked to find they had already left the city and were heading into unfamiliar territory.
"Driver, this doesn't seem like the way to the airport?"
Lily asked suspiciously.
As she spoke, her hand didn't stop moving. Out of the driver's sight, she dialed Nathan's number.
Nathan had just finished showering and lay down to rest when he received the call. Curious, he answered it.
But she didn't hear Lily speak. Instead, she heard her chatting with the driver.
"Aiya, it's just that Nathan is way too popular. The main road to the airport is jammed, so we're taking a side road," the driver said with a smile.
By now, Lily was almost certain she was being kidnapped.
She had grown up as childhood friends with Nathan and never imagined she'd be kidnapped because of him.
This kind of thing only happened in TV dramas—yet now, it was happening to her.
"Oh, I see. Well, Nathan is quite popular. I wonder if he has a girlfriend?"
She said casually, keeping up the act.
—
Hearing the conversation on the phone, Nathan immediately got dressed, grabbed his Poké Balls, and left the hotel.
He quickly hung up the call and sent a location-sharing request to Lily. The moment it was sent, it was accepted.
Looking at the location displayed on his phone, Nathan's expression turned to fury.
Lily was clearly nowhere near the airport. In fact, she was heading in the opposite direction, and moving further away.
In other words—Lily had already been kidnapped.
They had dragged Lily into this just to get to him.
Nathan was burning with anger. No matter who was behind this, they wouldn't get off easy.
With a swift motion, he released his Flygon.
Driving would be too slow, and he couldn't risk falling into a similar trap.
He wasn't afraid for himself—his Pokémon were powerful enough to deal with any situation.
But Lily was a different story. She wasn't weak, but if the enemies came in large numbers, she wouldn't be able to handle it.
"Whoever you are… you're dead today!"
With fury in his voice, Nathan mounted Flygon and pointed in the direction of the signal. Flygon took off at full speed.
…
"A dragon has a reverse scale. Touch it, and you die."
Lily was one of Nathan's reverse scales.
Although Flygon was fast, Lily had already been in the car for nearly half an hour. Catching up would still take some time.
In the taxi, Lily was still chatting with the driver as if nothing had happened.
"Driver, we're still not there? It's already been over 40 minutes."
"Almost there."
The driver felt slightly relieved that Lily hadn't become suspicious.
Everyone had Pokémon these days. If she panics in the car, he could be in serious trouble.
What if she released a massive Pokémon? This little taxi might take both their lives.
Lily kept glancing out the window, silently praying that Nathan would arrive soon.
Eventually, the car stopped—but not at the airport. They were now in a remote mountain village.
"Miss, we're here. Please step out."
The driver got out and walked around to open the door for her.
"So it really is a kidnapping. But are you that confident Nathan will come just for me?"
Lily said calmly as she shouldered her backpack and got out.
The driver froze for a second, then realized—this woman had known all along.
But so what? She was already here. Even if she knew, what could she do?
Call Nathan?
Even if she did, this place was full of their people. If Nathan came alone, it would just save them the trouble of hunting him down.
"Miss Lily, we've done our research on Nathan. We know you're his childhood friend. If he doesn't come for you, then he's a real jerk."
The driver chuckled. Lily's cooperation pleased him.
Lily scanned the area. From the moment she got out of the car, at least a dozen people were watching her.
She had clearly walked into a tiger's den.
But she wasn't a helpless little rabbit. And even a rabbit will bite when cornered.
"You're right. Nathan isn't a jerk. And he should be arriving right about now."
As she spoke, she held up her phone, showing the shared location.
On the screen, Nathan's icon was now less than 10 kilometers away.
Seeing the screen, the driver's pupils contracted slightly.
They were confident in their ability to handle Nathan—but his Pokémon were terrifying.
Without full preparation, taking him down would be near impossible.
"Alert! Alert! Nathan is almost here! Restrain the woman!"
The driver shouted.
As he reached for her, Lily reacted.
With a high kick, she knocked his hand aside and quickly threw out several Poké Balls.
Her Pokémon emerged.
"Protect me!"
She stepped back until her back was against the car, her Pokémon standing in front of her.
As soon as her Pokémon were out, over two dozen enemies rushed in.
Seeing her resistance, they weren't going to wait. They needed her under control before Nathan arrived.
"Attack!"
More than 20 Pokémon were released. All types.
Lily's Pokémon suddenly looked small and vulnerable in comparison.
She glanced at her phone again, watching Nathan's icon draw closer. Her heart pounded.
Her Pokémon were already struggling to hold out.
She may have been a genius too, but she wasn't Nathan. He was on another level.
She only had two Elite-level Pokémon.
Against 20 or 30 enemies, even five or ten Elites might not be enough.
One by one, her Pokémon began to fall.
And soon, none of them could stand anymore.
Lily had no choice but to watch as she was surrounded and restrained.
She had tried her best to hold out until Nathan came—but the numbers were just too overwhelming.
—
High above, Nathan saw that Lily's signal had stopped moving.
She had been taken to a fixed location.
His heart tightened. Lily had only come to celebrate his championship—and now she was suffering because of it.
He never wanted to see something like this again.
Flygon, sensing its trainer's urgency, flew even faster.
Finally, the location indicators for Nathan and Lily overlapped.
Landing near an empty taxi, Nathan dismounted Flygon.
He immediately noticed clear signs of battle on the ground.
Scuffed dirt, crushed grass, and lots of footprints.
Clearly, the enemy numbers weren't small. Judging by the footprints alone, there were at least twenty or more opponents.
(End of Chapter)