After Cain completed the exchange, the staff immediately reported it to their superior.
Then, the superior, quite alarmed, relayed the information to Giovanni.
Giovanni, who was sitting in his office reviewing documents, was momentarily stunned upon receiving the report.
He had already anticipated that Cain would redeem all his points—after all, not just anyone gets a 30% discount.
He was also prepared for Cain to earn a little extra.
But what he didn't expect was...
That brat had so much money saved up!
He took out several hundred million Pokédollars, converted it all into points, and completely wiped out the resource exchange center!
Cough, cough... It's fine. Let the kid earn a good profit, Giovanni said, sipping some tea to calm himself.
"Ehh... Yes, sir!" the person on the other end of the phone replied. Though a bit stunned, he decided not to say anything more.
However, at that moment, he understood something very clearly: if Cain couldn't become an ally, he must never become an enemy.
His backing was far too strong.
"In a moment it's my training time. Bring me the Sacred Earth I asked you to gather earlier," said Giovanni.
Known as Giovanni the Earth Lord, the materials that benefited him most were, of course, Ground-type ones.
"Uhh... boss... that... there's none left," replied the subordinate, almost on the verge of tears.
That Sacred Earth had been recently gathered at Giovanni's request.
It had just been stored a few days ago. But they forgot to mark it as non-redeemable, assuming its price was too high for anyone to bother.
And who would've guessed that a thief would come today?
Giovanni frowned deeply upon hearing that over the communicator.
"Forget it... then send me the Earth Dust," Giovanni tried to at least get an alternative.
"Bo-boss... that's... also gone..." the staff replied, now almost crying.
Several black veins popped on Giovanni's forehead.
How many things had that guy exchanged!?
No longer paying attention to the trembling subordinate, Giovanni directly hung up.
He was furious. He really needed to take it out on someone.
He looked at his communicator on the desk...
...
On the other side, Cain had just returned to his room, loaded with materials.
That 30% discount had been a blessing. Though he spent a lot of money this time, it was worth every point. He had never felt so satisfied shopping.
He had completely emptied the Team Rocket's resource reserves.
At that moment, Cain held a small glass box in his hand. Inside was a yellowish material that looked like dirt.
"I didn't expect to get this lucky. I managed to get a unit of Sacred Earth," Cain thought, smiling inwardly.
Sacred Earth was a rather rare material.
It enhanced a Pokémon's perception and control over Ground-type energy.
Though it was single-use, its effect was extraordinary.
During training, using it while developing Ground-type moves would amplify the effect significantly, making training more effective and efficient.
In terms of training, it had an effect almost equivalent to the Earth Plate.
Though being single-use and only applicable during training greatly reduced its value.
Still, it was highly prized.
And if combined with other materials, the resulting item's effects would be even better.
Even though Tyranitar is Rock/Dark-type, he could still use it.
Plus, Swampert was a Ground-type Pokémon too.
So when Cain saw that material, he bought it without hesitation.
With a 30% discount, it was a steal.
Besides that, he'd acquired many other materials. By his estimate, with what he bought—even if he let all his Pokémon consume resources at the highest rate—he could maintain an intensive half-year training period in that unknown space.
Sprawled out on the sofa, he felt completely relaxed.
But it hadn't been long when his communicator rang.
Seeing the caller, Cain made a strange face.
It was Giovanni. Again.
Did he already find out everything I exchanged?
He started getting nervous.
Although, knowing Giovanni's magnanimity, he shouldn't be upset over "a few" resources...
"Did you need me, boss?" Cain asked as he answered the call.
"Do you have everything ready? Did you review all the information?" Giovanni asked in a calm voice.
"Yes, all set," Cain replied sincerely.
"Then go to the coliseum on the lowest level of the complex. I'll be there shortly," said Giovanni, and hung up.
Cain froze.
What did that mean?
Was Giovanni going to battle him?
He felt a chill.
Wouldn't that be a guaranteed beating?
He couldn't even beat Giovanni's signature Pokémon!
Though, thinking it through, Giovanni probably wouldn't use a Pokémon of that caliber.
That calmed him down a little.
Either way, there was no escaping it.
So he decided to go down obediently to see what was going on.
Following the signs, Cain reached the lowest level of the complex, the Team Rocket battle coliseum. A place usually used to resolve personal disputes.
But obviously, the battlefields for regular members and those for higher ranks weren't the same.
He went straight into a private battle room, whose structure was far more reinforced than the common ones.
Upon arrival, there was no one else.
He strolled around a bit and quickly noticed the differences from a regular battlefield.
The floor material and the overall construction were much more advanced.
In an organization like Team Rocket, where winning by any means was valued, having League-level facilities was surprising.
"How is it? Not bad, huh?" said a firm voice from the entrance.
A man in a black suit, with a large red "R" embroidered on his chest, dark red undershirt, firm face, short hair, and a confident expression on his lips walked in.
No doubt about it: it was Giovanni, the boss of Team Rocket.
He entered without any bodyguards.
He came alone.
He unbuttoned his collar, took off the black coat, and tossed it on the ground, revealing the dark red shirt beneath.
At a glance, his build was clearly strong and robust.
Pure vitality.
He rolled up his sleeves, loosening any button that might restrict movement.
Giovanni was at his prime—his peak physical and mental condition.
At that time, his ambition was the entire Pokémon world.
If he truly managed to control Mewtwo completely, Cain believed that Team Rocket could genuinely replace the League.
Because he was Giovanni.
(End of chapter)