Cynthia didn't return home again until two days later. The exhausted Pokémon poured into the courtyard, only to discover an unfamiliar Pokémon there.
Cynthia looked on curiously as Mismagius, under Darkrai's guidance, repeatedly practiced releasing a Black Hole in a continuous loop.
Only when Mismagius stopped did Cynthia beckon to it.
Cynthia reacted quickly. Before Mismagius could rub up against her, Cynthia pressed her down, hooked a finger under her chin, and teased her until Mismagius couldn't stop laughing.
"You're back so soon?" Luther, who was holding Pokémon food and preparing to serve the meal, froze in surprise.
Cynthia smiled as she teased Mismagius. "After all, I wanted to show my commitment. In reality, Bertha and I just inspected a few nearby cities."
Cynthia released all the Pokémon, letting them eat and rest freely in the courtyard.
Marill had just picked up her feeding bowl and was about to pour the food into her mouth when a hand suddenly reached out and took the bowl away.
The hungry Garchomp finished the entire bowl of food, chewed and swallowed, casually cleaned his teeth, and returned the bowl to Marill.
Looking at the empty bowl, Marill waved her fists and stepped forward to argue, but Gastrodon quickly opened his mouth and gently bit her to signal that she should calm down.
Milotic also moved her feeding bowl over and blocked Marill with her tail.
"Forget it. There's still plenty to eat. It's not worth getting beaten up over this."
"If there's not enough, we can just open new ones from the storeroom. All flavors are available."
Marill, puffing up with anger, looked at the feeding bowls piled up. Deciding to put the food first, she chose to spare Garchomp for today.
As he passed Darkrai, Garchomp shot him a sidelong glance.
"Aren't you the one who insists that freedom is the most important thing?"
Darkrai turned his head away. "Mind your own business."
Garchomp took this as mere stubbornness. When this idiot had argued with him about whether Cynthia even mattered, Garchomp had really wanted to dunk Darkrai's head underwater to wake him up.
Now, however, there was no need.
That guy named Luther would sooner or later make him understand all those things he had talked about.
After all, some things cannot be understood through words alone.
"It's good that you've subdued it. A powerful wild Pokémon that isn't familiar with human rules wandering around human society is always dangerous," Cynthia said after taking a sip of tea.
"Now is not the best time for you to officially use Darkrai. Relying too early on a powerful Pokémon to win will only stop you from identifying weaknesses in your own battles."
"I once told you that Dakota's upper limit wouldn't be very high. I didn't explain the reason clearly back then. Do you understand it now?"
Luther picked up a cream-filled biscuit and fed it to Mismagius as he replied, "Excessively powerful assistance instead becomes an obstacle to one's own progress."
'It's good that you understand. Having Pokémon that are stronger than you obey you is a good thing."
"But a Trainer's own judgement is even more important. Only by properly grasping the scale of usage and continuously improving yourself can you keep breaking through and moving forward."
This was Cynthia's unstoppable momentum; she seemed to exist solely to break the limits of Pokémon battles.
Luther could only accept her guidance and lower his head. Suddenly, he wondered whether Dakota was still chasing that Latios around everywhere.
...
A roar echoed once again from Evergreen's basement.
"The Pokémon League's latest operation wiped out all of the Hodgepodge Organisation's arrangements along Sun Heart City and the coast of Lily of the Valley Island. Our people didn't have time to withdraw. God knows how many secrets have fallen into the Pokémon League's hands."
"And those useless old men, those stinking geezers who only care about protecting themselves, are still arguing about whether I was right or wrong at a time like this!"
A glass flew through the air. Mira tilted her head and dodged it.
"And you, Mira, where did the people tracking you go? Don't you owe me an explanation?"
Mira took off her shoes, pulled off her black stockings, stuffed them into the shoes, curled her petite body up on the chair, and lay back comfortably.
"How would I know? I failed to rescue them and left Sun Heart City immediately. After that, Sun Heart City went on high alert. Maybe he's been locked inside ever since, who knows?"
Evergreen no longer had the composed, all-controlling air he'd displayed when he confronted Luther. Sweat poured down his face, and, in Mira's eyes, he looked like a desperate gambler who had lost everything.
The situation spinning out of control was only natural.
Had the Hodgepodge Organization ever truly confronted the Pokémon League head-on in twenty years?
It was only when the Pokémon League, the largest violent organization of all, swung its full force towards the Hodgepodge Organization that Evergreen realized just how badly he had underestimated it.
One exposure was all it took to be completely annihilated.
"The elders have decided to postpone the meeting. During this period, all members of the Hodgepodge Organization are to remain silent. Research halted. All activities are to be halted."
Mira played with her hair and glanced at Evergreen. "So that means all the preparations we made are useless?"
"The meeting will happen sooner or later, but I doubt we'll use the old location. It's no longer safe. We can only wait until the meeting is officially announced again, and then we can arrange things on-site."
Evergreen knew very well how dangerous on-the-spot arrangements were, extremely easy to expose.
But he could no longer care. That feeling of being stabbed in the back was unbearable. The wrong path the Hodgepodge Organization had taken was dragging him straight toward death.
"Let me ask one more thing, when do you think the meeting will be held?" Mira asked.
Evergreen let out a low chuckle. "Judging by how those old men have always done things, it'll definitely be when the Pokémon League has shifted its focus elsewhere."
"Mira, do you know Team Galactic?"
Mira crossed her legs and sat up straight. "I've heard you mention them. Aren't they trying to find the legendary Pokémon Palkia and Dialga and use their power to create a new world?"
After saying that, Mira frowned. "The Pokémon League has traced them?"
Evergreen gave a mocking whistle. "With the way Cyrus operates, was there ever any chance he wouldn't be found?"
"Team Galactic is about to have some really bad luck." Evergreen burst into schadenfreude-filled laughter.
"I don't know how far they've progressed, but since the Pokémon League has fully mobilized to look for us and found nothing, they won't let all that mobilized power go to waste."
"Let Cyrus and Team Galactic take this hit for the Hodgepodge Organization. We still have a chance. As long as the meeting can be held, nothing will be a problem!"
Mira took the stockings out of her shoes, put her shoes back on, yawned, and walked toward the door.
"Before the meeting is held, you're not thinking of leaving the Hodgepodge Organization early, are you?" Evergreen asked in a deep voice.
Mira yawned again and rubbed her eyes. "As long as you guarantee that after I leave, the Hodgepodge Organization will have nothing to do with me."
"Naturally. I've always been a man of my word."
Mira pushed the door open. "Deal."
Walking down the long, dark corridor, Mira sneered coldly.
"Credibility?"
"You don't really think I'm still the Mira from three years ago, do you?"
(End of Chapter)
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