Without stopping for even a moment, they hurried straight to the battlefield against the Hunter Guild.
Thanks to Juan's coordination, who was supervising everything from the League's headquarters, as soon as it was confirmed that the battle at Meteor Falls had ended, he gave the order for the League forces on the front line against the Hunter Guild to launch a direct attack.
Up until that point, since the League had been fighting on multiple fronts, the troops stationed at the Hunter Guild battlefield had mainly maintained a defensive stance.
Among the forces present were Sidney, the head of the Jenny family, the head of the Joy family, as well as Steven's second uncle from the Stone family—Vivian Stone's father.
They were joined by three Chief-level investigators, more than six hundred regular League members, and even units from Slateport City's Gym.
And even with such a formation, all they could do was hold the line; that alone showed the overwhelming scale of the Hunter Guild's deployment this time.
The League's sudden offensive caught the Hunter Guild somewhat off guard, leaving them no time to prepare.
However, in truth, that worked perfectly in their favor: amid the initial confusion, they decided to engage the League in open combat—and for a brief moment, they actually gained the upper hand.
But just when they thought victory was within reach, Slowking suddenly appeared on the battlefield, bringing Cain and the others with him.
In an instant, the entire situation was completely overturned!
They were only seven people, yet the League's top-tier combat power had instantly more than doubled.
At that moment, Sidney was facing off against an elderly man with half-gray hair, around fifty or sixty years old—known as Old Cassius, a member of the Hunter Guild's High Council and fifth in rank.
He was the main person in charge of this operation, and the Elite-level experts fighting here were either his direct subordinates or those he had lured in with various benefits and promises.
The Hunter Guild had six major divisions: Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos. Each region had a regional head, and in Hoenn, that position belonged to none other than Old Cassius.
Losing the Hoenn region had been a massive blow in terms of profit and resources, so it was no wonder he had decided to take such a risk.
His original plan was simple: to take advantage of the conflict between the League and Team Magma and Team Aqua to reestablish the Hunter Guild across several cities in the Hoenn region.
As long as the League was busy suppressing Team Magma and Team Aqua, they would turn a blind eye to the Guild's movements. Once the Hunter Guild had taken root again, wiping them out completely would come at far too high a cost.
Old Cassius never imagined that the League in Hoenn would react so drastically, launching a direct assault that left them no chance to establish themselves.
And so, the situation had evolved into what they now saw—he was riding a tiger and could no longer dismount.
He had only two options: either directly defeat the League's main forces, allowing him to openly establish branches again so that even the League would think twice before attacking in the near future, or retreat.
But he had invested a fortune in this operation, mobilizing countless resources. Retreating would mean losing not only that investment but also the enormous "pie" that was the Hoenn region.
As a result, his influence within the Hunter Guild's High Council would plummet to nothing—and many of his subordinates wouldn't survive the aftermath.
Fate had taken an unexpected turn: believing he had found an opportunity, what actually awaited him was total annihilation.
Thus, Old Cassius fought against Sidney, the Dark-type Elite Four member.
Meanwhile, the head of the Jenny family was facing off against a woman in a black leather jacket, dark high-tech glasses, and violet lipstick—the leader of Hoenn's largest poaching group, whom Old Cassius had lured in with generous promises, especially after the Guild's eradication had drastically reduced her profits.
The others were also battling opponents of comparable strength.
When Old Cassius saw Drake and the others appear, his expression darkened.
"Drake...? You're here? Don't tell me—?" he asked coldly.
Drake didn't respond. He simply smiled, opened his arms, and called out his Pokémon, ready to sweep across the battlefield.
Even so, Old Cassius didn't show any fear or despair.
He raised his voice and shouted toward the sky: "I accept your terms! But I must win this battle!"
Everyone looked up, seeing nothing unusual.
Cain, however, frowned, feeling a bad premonition.
Then, a languid voice suddenly echoed from above: "If you had accepted our terms earlier, none of this would've been necessary. However, our conditions have changed—everything we discussed before must increase by thirty percent."
Before their eyes, a crack opened in the air. From it slowly emerged a woman dressed in silvery-gray clothing, wearing strange white glasses similar to those used by Team Flare.
She floated in the air, supported by a faint wave of psychic energy.
Cain's pupils contracted instantly.
That energy fluctuation... that spatial rift...
The Sacred Church!
Did they intend to get involved in the affairs of the Hoenn region? Or... had they already been involved from the very beginning?
The woman smiled upon hearing Old Cassius's reply, and with a wave of her hand, three more figures—two men and another woman—all in the same silvery attire—emerged from the rift, hovering in the air beside her.
She declared lightly, "No, we'll only hold them off. The rest is up to you; after all, we're not exactly at an advantage in numbers."
Old Cassius's expression grew even harder. He knew he was being blackmailed—he had too much invested in this operation to allow it to fail.
He clenched his teeth and gave a single, harsh reply: "Fine!"
Drake, mounted atop his Salamence, looked at them with a frown and said firmly, "Madam, this is a matter between the League and the Hunter Guild. I advise you to think carefully. Don't make a mistake and bring about your own destruction!"
His tone was sharp and forceful.
Had the League truly lost all its weight? Could anyone just show up and treat them with such disdain?
Was it that the title of Hoenn's Strongest Elite Four Member no longer commanded respect—
or could it be that my sword... just isn't sharp enough?
(End of chapter)