"I didn't expect you to be so good at running. Originally, I wanted to give you a quick death, but you've wasted too much of my time. Now, I can only let you bid farewell to this world in agony."
Looking at the deacon shrouded in black robes, the man's eyes flickered with a hint of despair. He knew his own situation better than anyone; as someone who wasn't even a Trainer, he had only managed to flee this far by relying on his researched weapons and extreme caution. Now that the reinforcements he had imagined were nowhere to be found, and he had to face a Star-level Deacon alone, he couldn't help but feel hopeless.
Even so, the man did not give up his resistance. Instead, he desperately threw out the gadgets he carried and turned to flee.
"A mantis trying to stop a car!"
With that, the person in the black robe casually tossed a Poké Ball. A flash of white light revealed a Druddigon that lunged forward with a roar. A single Hyper Beam was unleashed, instantly vaporizing the assortment of junk the man had thrown.
Just as the robed man ordered Druddigon to continue the attack, an Annihilape suddenly lunged from the spatial rift. A single punch heavily injured the Druddigon, despite its Leader Rank strength.
Before the robed man could understand the situation, Alakazam appeared behind him and knocked him unconscious. The fleeing man didn't fare much better; he was knocked out by a Ditto transformed into Alakazam.
Letting out a burp, Gu Yuan stepped out from his hiding place. After quickly finishing his lunch, he had remained lurking in the area, never expecting to witness such a good show. Most importantly, based on the situation between these two, there seemed to be a hidden secret—which was the key reason Gu Yuan had intervened.
Especially regarding the hunted man; Gu Yuan knew that for someone without a single Pokémon to enter this area was a minor miracle in itself. After clearing the scene, Gu Yuan had Alakazam use Teleport to make the entire group vanish from the spot.
Once they found a relatively secluded location, Gu Yuan began to interrogate them. With the assistance of Alakazam and Gengar, and the fact that Gu Yuan, as a Middle-tier Psychic, had learned quite a bit regarding hypnosis, the entire interrogation process was relatively easy—except for the robed man, whose mental defenses were not easily breached.
Through the interrogation, Gu Yuan discovered that he had accidentally hooked a very big fish.
First, regarding the man in the black robe: according to the information extracted under hypnosis, he was a member of the Hunter's Guild and served as one of their Star-level Deacons. According to the Hunter's Guild's hierarchy, an Intermediate Rank trainer can become a One-star Deacon, and so on, with Ace Rank trainers serving as Three-star Deacons.
Once a member possesses Leader Rank strength, they can pass an assessment to be promoted to a Star-level Deacon. There are also Moon-level Deacons representing Elite Rank strength and Sun-level Deacons for Champion Rank. As a vital component of the Hunter's Guild, deacons handle miscellaneous responsibilities, ranging from guild operations and website protection to mission execution.
Completing missions earns corresponding rewards and contribution points, which can be exchanged for various high-quality items within the guild; the general process is extremely similar to the internal workings of the League. Furthermore, like the League, the Hunter's Guild can be divided into four main departments: operations, logistics and medical, combat, and internal inspection.
This robed man was a member of the internal inspection department. The reason he was hunting the other man was that the latter had betrayed the Hunter's Guild. Unlike the robed man, the fugitive was a researcher—the most special existence within the Hunter's Guild.
Among the researchers the guild possessed, some were raised by the guild itself, while others were forcibly abducted through various means. This man was one of the latter. Through excellent performance and cooperation, he had successfully numbed the Hunter's Guild's vigilance and found an opportunity to escape. Unfortunately, his lack of personal strength meant he ultimately couldn't escape the guild's pursuit.
If he hadn't met Gu Yuan, the man would likely be dead by now. According to the researcher, he was studying cloning technology, and the subjects were primarily various Pokémon. However, by the time he fled, the cloning target had actually become the legendary Zapdos!
Gu Yuan did not entirely believe everything they said, but he was able to extract a significant amount of useful information. First was the location of the Hunter's Guild's extremely hidden base mentioned by both men. Second, if the Hunter's Guild was indeed researching cloning technology, then Tobias, who appeared at the Lily of the Valley Conference years ago, might have some connection to them.
Of course, it was still too early to say for sure, but since Gu Yuan knew the location of this base, it would be a pity not to do something about it. Thinking of this, he dialed Agatha's number. Although Gu Yuan was confident in his own strength, the robed man had mentioned that the strongest person in that base possessed Elite Rank strength. To ensure nothing went wrong, Gu Yuan felt it was best to have Agatha send people to assist him.
"I understand. I will send people over. If you are interested, you can follow along to take a look."
After Gu Yuan narrated the entire incident, Agatha's reaction wasn't as grand as he had expected. Just as he was feeling puzzled, her voice rang out again.
"We have never given up investigating the Hunter's Guild. During this time, catching members from within the guild has been an easy task. Unfortunately, we have never been able to obtain useful leads from these people."
Agatha then gave Gu Yuan a detailed briefing on the Hunter's Guild. Within the guild, deacons below the Star-level are considered mere peripheral members, responsible for tasks assigned by Star-level and higher deacons.
However, Star-level and higher deacons wear a special device whenever they go out on a mission. If they encounter an attack and fail to verify their safety through a report within a short period, it immediately triggers the guild's attention. Subsequently, all information regarding that hunter is transferred or erased, and the base is immediately abandoned.
Perhaps it seemed like a bit of an overreaction on the surface, but it was precisely through this caution that the Hunter's Guild had remained hidden until now, preventing the League from obtaining any classified intelligence. Additionally, the guild's operations brought in a continuous stream of profit, allowing them to support such "prodigal" behavior.
After learning this from Agatha, Gu Yuan finally understood why the Elite had reacted that way. After hanging up, Gu Yuan thought for a moment and decided to go see for himself. Even if those people transferred quickly, he didn't believe they would leave without a single trace!