"Gengar, follow her and observe," said Cain after thinking for a moment.
Upon hearing the command, Gengar nodded and sank back into the ground.
Five minutes later, Rose returned with a somber expression.
Cain was still sitting, watching her without saying a word.
At first, he had sent Gengar merely as a precaution... but he hadn't expected to hear something interesting.
Rose forced a smile upon seeing Cain on the sofa and said, "Sir, you may need to wait a bit. The main person in charge of Celadon City will be back shortly."
Her expression was so grim precisely because of that.
Originally, the senior members of the Hunter Guild were out, so a high-level client like Cain had fallen under her care.
Not to mention the commission she could earn from this transaction—if she managed to establish a good relationship, she'd secure a stable, high-level client long-term.
However, her maximum authority only allowed her to handle the purchase of Quasi-Elite level Pokémon. For Elite-level ones, special authorization was required.
And when that person found out about the presence of such a client, they dropped everything and rushed back.
At that point, Cain would be under their management, and everything Rose had done would be for nothing. Like trying to fill a bucket using a bamboo sieve.
How was she supposed to smile in such a situation?
What she didn't know was that Cain already knew everything.
Rose was someone with potential. Though others may not have realized it, Cain did.
Because in the future, she would indeed raise her strength to the Elite level.
Cain didn't know what kind of opportunity would lead her to grow like that, but he knew she wouldn't just be an ordinary Elite-level trainer.
The problem was that she had lost too much time at the beginning, and that delay would likely cap her potential at the peak of the Elite level.
With more investment from the start, she might've even gone further.
A whole year wasted without any progress... Cain considered it a shame.
All of this, theoretically, had nothing to do with him. Whether Rose became strong or not didn't concern him in the slightest.
But there was one person he did need information about: Logan, the one who had once threatened him.
Cain admitted he was vengeful. If someone offended him, they had better kill him on the spot—or prepare to suffer his revenge a hundredfold.
He didn't see himself as noble; he lacked the grandeur of so-called "great men." If someone wronged him, they would pay dearly once he had the strength.
So, after what he had overheard, Cain had an idea.
An idea still immature—but interesting.
"Are you in trouble, Miss Rose? I wonder if I could help you," Cain said calmly.
Rose was stunned to hear him.
From the moment she first saw him, this hooded man had said her name. Clearly, he knew who she was. And now he was asking something like this?
He didn't seem like someone interested in women, but...
Cain smiled at her expression.
"Perhaps I can help you, but first I need you to help me with something that's been bothering me for a long time."
This made Rose lower her guard slightly.
In circles like this, friendship or affection meant nothing. Everything moved through interests.
If he had something to ask, that made him more believable.
"Go ahead," Rose replied, relaxing a bit as she sat on the sofa across from him.
The guild head would still take at least half an hour to arrive. She had some time.
"It's very simple. I'm sure you can help me," Cain continued. "I just want you to tell me where someone is. His name is... Logan, bearer of the Hunter Guild's Sun Medal."
"Logan?" Rose was surprised to hear that name after so long.
Today really was full of surprises.
To know Logan, this man must have been a client from Saffron City, without a doubt.
Even so, she couldn't clearly remember someone like him.
"It's been a long time since I've heard that name... Logan was the Guild Head in Saffron City for a while, but he wasn't there long. Then he was reassigned. He should be working in the Hoenn region now," Rose explained, as if recalling the past.
She remembered Logan had once been one of her suitors. But then he was transferred, and she was reassigned as well, so they lost contact.
Though, to be honest, she was never truly interested in him.
Still, she couldn't deny that as a core member of the guild, Logan had a much smoother path ahead.
"Hoenn, huh...?" Cain muttered.
So the damn "sun dog" was now in the Hoenn region.
"May I ask why you're looking for him? I could send him a message for you," Rose offered, after hesitating a bit.
She didn't particularly want to talk to Logan, but if it earned her favor with a high-ranking member of Team Rocket, it was worth it.
Cain smiled.
If she could contact him, that was enough.
Without dragging out the topic, Cain asked, "Miss Rose, you're not a core member of the Hunter Guild, are you?"
It wasn't something she needed to hide.
Hunters were ranked with golden stars, but core members had a Sun Medal. Rose, on the other hand, was an external member, represented with a Moon Medal.
Everyone who knew her knew she wasn't part of the core.
"That's right," Rose nodded.
Though she masked it well, Cain caught a glimpse of frustration and regret in her eyes.
Joining an organization is easy. Leaving... is nearly impossible.
Unless you have enough strength to ignore its existence entirely.
When she rose to the Quasi-Elite level, she gave up her hunter status to join the Hunter Guild, thinking it would be her springboard.
But it turned out to be a swamp. The more she struggled, the deeper she sank. Escaping was almost impossible.
Upon hearing her answer, Cain nodded.
"Then you know well that, as an external member, your position is very delicate. I'd bet you haven't been able to properly train your Pokémon in a long time, am I wrong?"
"What are you trying to tell me...?" Rose asked, beginning to sense something.
"I want to give you a chance. A real one. One that could help you soar—and at the same time, give you a remedy for regret... if you choose to take it."
Cain paused for a moment, waiting for her reaction. Seeing that Rose wasn't too upset, he continued: "Leave the Hunter Guild."
Just as he expected, though Rose had already guessed it, her expression turned complicated upon hearing those words.
Leaving the guild... hadn't she wished for that a thousand times?
"Join Team Rocket? I imagine they'd be the first to hand me over if that earned them favor with the Hunter Guild," she replied with a sarcastic laugh.
Team Rocket was a more powerful organization than the guild, yes...
But they had been entangled with each other for a long time. They wouldn't clash over someone like her. She wasn't worth that much.
Cain shook his head as he spun the psychic-blocking beads between his fingers.
"Yes... and no."
(End of chapter)