The howling echoed across the cavern platform and all the way to the entrance of the rocky tunnel. Within just a few minutes, the tunnel began to tremble faintly.
Using his psychic abilities, Shiro could see that the sleeping Larvitars and Pupitars were gradually being awakened by the sound. One after another, they broke free from the layers of rock that had covered them for years and began making their way toward the cavern platform.
Counting them carefully, there were about twelve Larvitars and eighteen Pupitars. Their strength ranged from Intermediate-level to Gym-level. Adding the Tyranitar that led them, there were thirty-one in total.
"There should be enough Pokéblocks, right..."
Shiro stared at Tyranitar's massive body, which stood nearly ten meters tall. He then looked at the hundreds of Pokéblocks that were not even enough to fill the gaps between its teeth and fell into deep thought.
Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon really were huge resource consumers.
* * *
Ever Grande City.
The League Headquarters.
Inside the main conference hall on the second floor, the arguing never stopped.
At the head of the table, Drake was so furious that he repeatedly slammed his fist against the long table. Even that failed to quiet the room.
Senior League officials, representatives of the Jenny and Joy families, and the representative from the main League had all gathered together. Yet most of what they were saying was aimed at condemning him.
"Drake! Is the Red Orb in your hands?"
"You're an Elite Four member, yet you've repeatedly violated League laws. Fine, we can overlook that. But you actually raised criminals to strengthen your own position and stole the Red Orb?"
"Elite Drake, hand over the Red Orb now. Chairman Goodshow may still be willing to let this go..."
"I knew you, Drake, were no good!"
"Look at this. It's a joint report against you signed by the League's Elite Four, the Jenny family, and the Joy family. We also have testimony from Hoenn's local Professor Birch. Everything is already clear. Drake, what else do you have to say?"
The representative from the main League was a stern-looking middle-aged man with glasses. He stood up and raised a document in his hand.
That was the key point of the whole matter.
Hoenn's Elite Four member Glacia had joined forces with the Jenny and Joy families from the Kanto League to submit a joint report. After learning about it, Professor Birch of Hoenn had also willingly stepped forward to testify.
Their testimony claimed that Hoenn's Elite Four member Drake had an unclear relationship with the criminal organization Team Magma and was very likely the person secretly controlling the organization.
"I'm the true leader of Team Magma?"
Drake wanted nothing more than to release his Salamence and let it swallow every single person in the conference hall.
"How the hell is that possible?"
Who the hell would have thought they would go this far just to frame him?
Besides, there wasn't a shred of actual evidence. It was all speculation!
"Ahem..."
At that moment, Hoenn Chairman Sterling cleared his throat and stood up. He spoke meaningfully, "Elite Drake, this isn't about whether it's possible or not. Right now, two major families from the Kanto League, a Hoenn Elite Four member, and a Hoenn Pokémon Professor have all accused you."
"The two Hoenn officials can also serve as witnesses. That's already the best evidence we can get."
"Just admit your mistake to the Main League Chairman and hand over the... location of the Red Orb. Then we'll all have an explanation to give."
Hearing this, Drake's face darkened and he nearly lost his temper. Still, he forced himself to hold back. He gritted his teeth, his cheeks tense, and sat down while listening to the nonsense spouted by the League parasites in front of him.
What did they mean by saying that he had taken the Red Orb?
What did they mean by calling him the secret leader of Team Magma?
He could let that bastard Birch slide, but what the hell was Glacia doing?
The Joy and Jenny families had been enemies for years. Yet they had actually joined forces at a time like this, and they had acted incredibly fast. The news had reached the main League within only a few hours.
The incident had barely happened, yet the main League had already sent a special envoy over.
There had to be some maneuvering by the Jenny and Joy families. Otherwise, given the League's efficiency, it would have been completely normal for this matter to be dragged out for half a year.
As for the Red Orb...
Who the hell knew where Team Magma had hidden it?
Drake had been dragged into the conference hall for this meeting the moment he returned to League Headquarters. He had not even had time to ask Devon about it. Joseph also showed no intention of telling him that the Red Orb had been stolen.
Or rather, after informing Shiro, Joseph had assumed that the League already knew.
"Elite Drake, please explain. Where did you hide the Red Orb?" The main League envoy glanced down at the time and spoke with obvious impatience.
The witnesses are all here, and the culprit is only a regional Elite Four member. So why had this dragged on for so long?
Were all those people shouting over each other here to help or just to cause trouble?
Why was it that so many League officials were nowhere to be seen on normal days, yet the moment something happened, they all came crawling out? Watching the drama was one thing, but they were all just wasting time.
The main culprit hasn't even confessed yet!
"I didn't do a damn thing! I don't know where the hell the Red Orb is! Team Magma did it. Team Magma did it!"
Drake's face turned bright red as he shouted at the top of his lungs. Clearly, however, no one believed him.
It wasn't just the main League envoy. Even Chairman Sterling, the Vice Chairman, and many other League officials and trainers, including investigators and candidate Elite Four members, all joined in and began accusing him.
"Drake! You're still refusing to confess after all this? Do we have to bring in more witnesses?"
"Just admit it. Things have already reached this point. Make it easier for everyone..."
"Damn Drake is really stubborn!"
Suddenly, Drake remembered the most important point. He desperately tried to calm his emotions before roaring, "All of you, shut the hell up! Shut the hell up!"
The muscles all over his body bulged. His raised trapezius muscles looked almost like armor over his shoulders, while his face was flushed red and looked as though he might tear someone apart at any moment.
Everyone who had been speaking was startled and could not help but feel afraid.
After all, Drake was an Elite-level trainer. If he really started causing trouble in the League Headquarters conference hall, people could actually die.
Besides, everyone knew that Drake could not possibly be the secret leader of Team Magma. That was precisely why they dared to accuse him so openly.
Regardless of what Glacia and Birch thought, the two major Kanto families had always been at odds with Drake. They were already pushing this matter with all their strength.
On top of that, Chairman Goodshow had learned about the situation and issued an order. Everyone naturally preferred to go along with it.
Taking another step back, someone had to take responsibility for the lost Red Orb, right?
And if Groudon really awakened, Hoenn could suffer millions of casualties. Someone had to be found to take the blame first.
If Drake willingly carried this burden, everyone could calm down and then find a way to clear his name.
But Drake was not the kind of person who enjoyed taking the fall. He immediately shouted, "Birch! Birch was the one who lost the Red Orb! You all know that, don't you?"
After those words were spoken, everyone fell silent instead.
The main League envoy checked the document and explained, "That's right. According to Professor Birch, he had applied to keep the Red Orb in his possession long ago. Your Hoenn Elite Four also had no objections, and ever since the orb was found, it has remained in Birch's custody."
"And only you and Birch knew where the Red Orb was."
**
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