In the forest, Sordward could hardly believe this was real.
Rose had actually obtained Moltres from Shielbert and used it to ambush him.
And those damn Poké Balls. They all malfunctioned at such a critical moment.
He stumbled through the woods, gripping tree trunks as he moved. His body was completely spent. His legs burned with pain, and his lungs felt as if they were filled with acid.
"Stop running, Mr. Sordward. Stay and have a chat with me." Rose's calm, almost leisurely voice came from behind.
Sordward's body stiffened. He tried to draw on his psychic power again, but there was no response at all.
Rose smiled helplessly, tilted his head, spread his hands, and hummed.
"Don't bother with psychic powers. You're already fully inside this device's field. Your Poké Balls can't be opened anymore, right? And anything below Champion-level abilities won't work either."
He hovered above Sordward, looking down through the thinning trees. Then he gave a light command. "Move!"
The moment his voice fell, several company members who had been waiting in ambush rushed out. They tied Sordward up tightly and even gagged his mouth.
"Reporting! The target has been successfully captured! Operation complete!" The squad leader below snapped to attention and shouted.
Rose smiled faintly and waved his hand. Sordward's Poké Balls flew over on their own. He then gave another order.
"Take him away directly. Send him to Oleana for research."
"Yes, sir!"
They responded and lifted Sordward, who was still struggling.
A Flying Taxi slowly flew over from not far away. After the members transported Sordward away, Rose finally let out a sigh.
"What a fool. I wasted so much time dealing with him."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Peony, who had just arrived.
"My dear brother, you came too late. And it seems you didn't catch anyone."
Peony replied in a low voice, "Shiro was too cautious. There was no way he would meet me again."
"What a pity." Rose curled the hair at his temple, sounding a little regretful. "I was planning to appoint him as an expedition captain and send him to handle missions in the other regions. Of course, that would require you to capture him alive."
"He would never trust us. And I don't believe you really thought that way either. It's already generous that you didn't slice him up."
Peony shook his head, lightly patting the Bronzong beside him. He then frowned and continued.
"And honestly, I thought the plan was to catch Shiro. You changed it again without warning and didn't even tell me!"
He would never believe his brother's nonsense. No one ever knew what Rose was really thinking.
"Heh…" Rose chuckled without saying anything.
His plans were never fixed. They always changed on the fly.
After the capture of Shiro completely failed before the finals, Rose had no intention of bringing him back anymore. He also had no interest in currying favor with Sordward.
Fortunately, he had prepared in advance and successfully secured Shielbert.
Dealing with Sordward turned out to be unexpectedly easy. That man had no sense of caution at all and knew nothing about Pokémon battles. He could not even notice immediately when Articuno was taunted.
So these two were this stupid. He should have acted sooner.
"A weak trainer remains weak even if they possess a legendary Pokémon. It only gives them more capital to put on an act…" Rose muttered as he casually tossed the obsidian-like Poké Ball in his hand.
Peony said nothing and directed Bronzong to move south.
"Where are you going?" Rose asked, puzzled.
Peony glared at him and shouted, "Because of you, damn it! My two daughters haven't seen their father for over half a month! Where do you think I'm going?"
Rose stopped twirling his hair and was about to respond when he felt his communication device vibrate in his pocket.
Ignoring Peony, he checked the device.
It was a call from Oleana. She began with a report.
"Chairman Rose, all the rampaging psychic-type Pokémon in the building have been subdued. I've also received word that Team A4 is bringing the person over."
"Good." Rose nodded slightly. "Make sure you study Sordward properly. Try to find a simple way to mass-produce real psychics…" He paused as another thought crossed his mind. "As for Shielbert, keep him alive for now. He can serve as backup experimental material."
"Yes, Chairman Rose."
After responding, Oleana hesitated and asked, "We've already prepared the mind-control drugs. As for your plan regarding Shiro…"
"It failed," Rose admitted calmly.
Oleana's voice wavered. "Then Mesprit has already been… stolen. The company's black market operations…"
"No need to worry." Rose raised his hand again and curled his hair. The short beard at his lip lifted slightly with a smile. "It's just one Mesprit. We already have a better replacement."
Galarian Articuno.
Oleana let out a breath of relief. "Then should we send out a wanted notice for Shiro to other regions?"
Rose thought for a moment, then turned to look toward the eastern sea. His smile widened.
"No need."
"Yes."
Oleana did not ask for reasons. She ended the call.
Rose did not put away his device. Instead, he checked the new message with interest.
It was from Shiro.
"Goodbye, Chairman Rose."
* * *
"Goodbye, Galar."
Standing by the edge of the deck, Shiro murmured to himself and threw Macro Cosmos' communication device forcefully into the sea.
The other device in his hand connected immediately.
"Hello?" Professor Rowan's voice was loud. "Is this Mr. Corviknight? If not, please don't kill him. I have ransom money…"
"I succeeded."
Shiro's face darkened, but he continued.
"I've successfully left Galar and reached the S.S. Anne. I'm on the deck, and there's no danger."
"Oh…" On the other end, Rowan let out a long breath, clearly excited. "That's great. Then come to Sinnoh first. How about I treat you to a meal?"
Sinnoh?
Shiro thought it over. He was about to refuse when Rowan added.
"The annual Pokémon Academic Summit is about to start. We'll really need you there. Otherwise, the researchers below won't even be able to enter Professor Oak's lab."
The Pokémon Academic Summit…
He remembered now. It was something he had promised Rowan.
Since the conference was in Kanto, he would have to go there anyway. Staying in Sinnoh for a while was fine.
He had finally left Galar. He could first see how ordinary trainers lived, then travel around.
With his current strength, challenging Kanto's Gyms or even entering the Indigo League would not count as bullying newbies, right?
Then again, Kanto was the central league, with open access and constant travel. Trainers there were probably stronger than those in Galar.
Still, it was unlikely that every Gym Leader was Elite or Champion-level. Galar was not exactly a beginner area either.
As Shiro thought this through, Rowan continued talking excitedly.
"Mr. Corviknight, you have no idea how famous you are now. More than half the academic world is waiting for the conference. Professor Carolina from Sinnoh has been very interested in you for a long time. She asked me ages ago about Galar's legendary history…"
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