:) - Happy Monday
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At that very moment.
Somewhere on an island in the Kanto region, inside Team Rocket's secret base, Giovanni sat alone in his private quarters.
The only light came from his computer screen flickering in the darkness.
He leaned back in his high-backed chair, let out a deep breath, and rubbed his tired eyes. The words on screen stood out prominently: [Defeated Gym Leader Roxanne!]
"Finally..."
He muttered under his breath, a hint of satisfaction in his voice.
Shortly after starting this game called "Pokémon: Emerald," he'd realized it was no ordinary challenge.
The difficulty was brutal. But even so, the first Rock-type Gym had been way harder than he'd expected.
Roxanne's Pokémon were ridiculously strong for what should've been a beginner's Gym. He'd lost count of how many attempts it took, how many times he'd adjusted his strategy before finally catching a break and squeaking by with a win.
In that moment, a familiar rush of triumph washed over him, one he hadn't felt in years. It was like being young again, challenging Gyms across regions as a Trainer.
But Giovanni was still Giovanni. The emotion lasted all of a few seconds.
His eyes unconsciously flicked to the time display in the lower left corner of the screen. His brow furrowed immediately.
"It's already... this late?"
He was genuinely surprised.
Without realizing it, most of the day had vanished in an endless cycle of loading saves, retrying, and challenging.
Outside, the artificial lighting system that simulated natural daylight had already switched to night mode.
A complicated mix of emotions replaced his earlier satisfaction.
As the leader of Team Rocket, commanding a vast underground empire, his daily decisions and responsibilities piled up endlessly. Every minute of his time was carefully calculated and accounted for.
Discipline and efficiency were the foundations of his success.
Yet here he was, having burned an entire afternoon and evening in front of a screen over a video game.
The stack of documents on his desk that needed his signature sat completely untouched.
"Ridiculous..." Giovanni shook his head slightly, took a deep breath, and tried to shake off the urge to explore the next town.
His original purpose for playing this game was to investigate the "Rainbow Rocket" lead and determine whether the game held any secrets that could benefit Team Rocket.
His real-world ambitions were what mattered. Getting sucked into a virtual world wasn't something he should be doing.
Could anything in this game actually strengthen Team Rocket's power?
Obviously not.
With that thought, he stood decisively, ready to leave the room and handle the work he'd been ignoring.
But just as he rose and his chair slid backward, urgent knocking echoed at the door.
"Come in," Giovanni instantly reverted to his usual commanding tone, his voice cold and sharp.
At this hour, for a subordinate to knock without being summoned usually meant some kind of emergency.
His gaze sharpened as his mind rapidly ran through possibilities.
A surprise inspection by the League? Had an operation in some region gone wrong?
The door swung open. An elite Team Rocket member in uniform hurried inside, his expression tense yet tinged with something strange... almost unsettling.
"Boss!" The subordinate dropped to one knee, his voice tight and urgent.
"What is it?" Giovanni asked directly, leaning forward slightly, bracing himself for bad news.
"N-no, Boss. All operations are proceeding normally," the subordinate quickly shook his head.
Giovanni's frown deepened. "Then what is it? Speak."
The subordinate's expression grew even more strained. He hesitated, seemingly unsure how to begin, then simply thrust his portable computer terminal toward Giovanni. A video was paused on screen.
"Sir... this... I felt I needed to report this to you immediately. You should... see for yourself. It's news and footage related to that Pokémon: Emerald game..."
Giovanni accepted the terminal with a puzzled look, his eyes settling on the screen.
The video title was sensational, the background appearing to be a lavishly decorated streaming room. He pressed play.
In the video, Iono, the Electric-type Gym Leader from Levincia in the Paldea region, was speaking excitedly into the camera. Then a red box materialized out of thin air on her desk.
She opened it, removed what looked like an ordinary piece of candy, and fed it to her Bellibolt.
The next second, Bellibolt was engulfed in evolutionary light...
Then came the "Special Attack booster" test, the insulated target exploding into fragments from an electric blast...
Meanwhile, scrolling text summarized the news: "Mysterious game delivers physical rewards through thin air!"
"Rare Candy actually exists, instantly levels up Pokémon!" "League launches investigation, identity of 'Wind Studio' remains a mystery!"
Giovanni froze.
Then.
"...What??"
For the first time, his normally composed face showed an expression of complete shock.
His mind raced, trying to process the absurd information before him.
Special effects?
That was his first thought.
But the video's clarity, the authenticity of the environment, especially the fact that the Paldean Gym Leader and her Bellibolt were both real, verifiable figures, and the League investigation couldn't be faked...
Moreover, he'd just personally experienced this game's extraordinary difficulty.
So... all of this was real?
The thought struck his mind like a lightning bolt.
He jerked his head up, looking at the subordinate who was cautiously watching his reaction, his voice carrying a roughness he himself didn't notice.
"This video... is the source reliable? Has its authenticity been verified?"
"Yes, Boss, absolutely confirmed!
Right now the entire internet is blowing up! The Paldea League has already sent people to investigate.
Tons of players are posting on social media about items they've received! This method of appearing out of thin air, plus rare rewards like Rare Candy, has sent everyone into a frenzy!
Our intelligence division's analysis says the chances of this being fake are... extremely low!"
His subordinate's words struck like a hammer blow, shattering Giovanni's last shred of doubt.
He sank back into his chair, eyes locked on the frozen image of shattered target fragments on screen, inner shock rolling through him like a tidal wave.
Rewards from the game... can become real?!
This game that he'd just dismissed as "unable to strengthen Team Rocket"... actually possessed the power to transform the virtual into reality?!
Wait. What did this mean?
It meant that if he could obtain those rare items in the game... like Rare Candy that instantly raised Pokémon levels, or various supplements that dramatically boosted move power... and what else might exist in the game that was even more incredible?
Like... items that could grant absolute control over Pokémon? Or... clues to Legendary Pokémon??
An unprecedented wave of excitement instantly drowned out Giovanni's earlier regret about wasting time.
This wasn't just a game. This was clearly an untapped goldmine of infinite possibilities!
A potential shortcut to instantly amplifying Team Rocket's strength, perhaps even surpassing the League!
Work? Documents?
Compared to this earth-shattering discovery, those daily tasks were completely meaningless!
Oh, right.
"Rainbow Rocket..." Giovanni murmured, his gaze growing sharper and brighter.
He now had a completely new, intensely burning understanding of that name.
He suddenly realized that if the game could deliver rewards to reality through thin air, then everything in the game, including Rainbow Rocket, was very possibly... real too!
He waved dismissively, sending his reporting subordinate away.
The room was once again occupied only by him and that computer still displaying the game screen.
Giovanni didn't hesitate for a second. He gripped the mouse again. This time, his eyes no longer held idle curiosity, but blazed with clear, ambitious purpose and excitement.
He expertly maneuvered his character out of the Gym, opened his bag, and looked at the meager collection of Poké Balls and Potions inside.
Before, he'd thought these were just game data. Now, looking at them again, the feeling was completely different.
"Need to push through the game quickly... obtain more rewards!" he thought. "Rankings! That global ranking system! Top five percent... top one hundred..."
He recalled the reward rules he'd seen when browsing the game instructions. Previously, he'd brushed off these so-called rankings.
Now they'd become his most urgent objective.
Discipline? Work? All of that could wait.
Right now, conquering this game and maximizing the "real-world rewards" it offered was Team Rocket's most important, highest-priority "work."
Without any delay, he controlled his character, taking his freshly victorious Beedrill that had just gained a level from defeating the Gym, and headed straight toward the next town.
The screen's soft glow illuminated his stern, hunger-filled face, casting his silhouette in flickering light.
Meanwhile, in a rather inconspicuous café private room in Saffron City in the Kanto region, the atmosphere was gloomy.
Seated around the table were the core employees who'd collectively resigned from Dream Factory just days ago, including Adam, the programmer who'd first thrown down his ID badge, along with several planners and artists.
"Ugh, I've sent out dozens of resumes. Got replies from a few companies, but the offers they're giving... aren't even as good as when we were working overtime at Dream Factory," sighed a planner wearing black-framed glasses, stirring his now-cold coffee.
"That's normal. The industry's in a slump right now, everyone's tightening their belts.
Plus with us all leaving together like that, some companies think we're troublemakers,"
replied a more experienced-looking artist, his tone filled with resignation.
Adam gulped down some ice water, refusing to accept it. "So we escaped one nightmare just to go back to another?
The thought makes me sick! If only... if only we could join that 'Wind Studio.' Now that's what making games is all about!"
His words brought a momentary silence to the room. Everyone's eyes lit up briefly, then dimmed again.
"Wind Studio... who wouldn't want to work there?" The planner gave a bitter laugh. "But the problem is, that studio's too mysterious. Can't even find an official website, let alone any job postings. They're harder to track down than Legendary Pokémon."
"Yeah, it's like they appeared out of nowhere, only interacting with players through the game.
Even if we wanted to join, we wouldn't know where to start," the artist agreed.
The group fell silent again, only the café's soft background music echoing around them.
Walking away had felt satisfying, but the path forward remained completely unclear.
Suddenly, the former marketing department member who'd been mostly quiet looked up, eyes flickering, and lowered his voice. "Guys, I have an idea... might be a bit risky, but it could work."
"What idea? Let's hear it!" Adam urged.
"Think about it. Why does Wind Studio stay so mysterious? Most likely because they don't want outside interference, or they have their own plans.
If we just sit around like this, they'll never even know we exist," he paused, glancing around the circle, then continued, "But what if we... actively make some 'noise' to show our position and prove our commitment?"
"Noise? What kind of noise?"
"Like... we gather up all of Dream Factory's dirty secrets and expose them!" The marketing member's voice dropped even lower, yet carried a thread of determination.
"Evidence of plagiarism, insider details about maliciously suppressing small studios, falsified revenue data, all of Nova's shady operations... we've all got some of this stuff.
If we release this information, not only will Dream Factory be completely ruined, but more importantly, it's like we're handing Wind Studio proof of our loyalty!
Showing them we've completely cut ties with our past, and that we have industry intel and practical experience they might need!"
The room fell silent once more. All they could hear were several people's slightly heavier breathing.
The proposal was too bold. Once they did this, there'd be no turning back, and they'd very likely make enemies of everyone in the industry with connections to Dream Factory.
Adam suddenly slapped the table, though this time he controlled his force to avoid attracting outside attention.
"Let's do it! What's there to be afraid of? We're already in this situation, what more do we have to lose? Rather than wasting away at those dying companies, let's take the gamble! What if the studio notices us?"
"Right! I agree! This is way better than aimlessly sending out resumes!"
"Count me in too! I've been sick of Nova and that garbage company for ages!"
A burn-the-bridges atmosphere spread through the room.
The group quickly reached consensus and began carefully recalling and organizing the materials they had on hand.
They decided the former marketing member would take the lead, choosing the right timing and channels to release these exposés in batches.
Half an hour later, the internet was hit by a wave of scandal targeting Dream Factory.
Internal email screenshots, evidence of falsified financial data, plagiarism comparison images... a series of damning evidence was released by anonymous accounts, rapidly triggering heated discussion and outrage within gaming circles.
[VergilGlazer442: Holy crap! Dream Factory is this shady??]
[LesGynn: Knew it, Fantasy Chronicle was plagiarized, it's confirmed!]
[I_am_Gengar: Nova's a real piece of work, no wonder all his employees quit!]
[Sunday_Silence: This exposé is brutal. Dream Factory's toast.]
These revelations did generate significant buzz, making things even worse for the already overwhelmed Dream Factory and Nova.
However, compared to the world-shaking global news of "Emerald delivering physical rewards through thin air," the scandal of one gaming company was like a pebble tossed into the ocean.
Though it created ripples, it was quickly swallowed by far larger waves.
Clearly, people cared more about whether they could rank in the game than the old dirt on a company about to go under.
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~ Push the story forward with your Power Stones
free chapter - Monday
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