At the highest peak of Mt. Silver, where the headquarters of the Central Pokémon League was located.
An elderly man who occupied a supreme position was sitting directly on the white snow, a smile on his face as he gazed into the distance at the inner area of Mt. Silver.
Suddenly, a figure appeared behind him. It was a middle-aged man dressed in a black military uniform, with a firm and resolute face. Following the elder's line of sight, he looked toward the interior of Mt. Silver and, in a distant area of the sky, vaguely made out an enormous mass of dark clouds mixed with lightning. However, beneath those clouds, no rain was falling; instead, flashes of fire could be seen.
"Is that Moltres fighting with someone again?" asked the man in the black uniform.
The white-haired elder smiled, his entire face wrinkling like a chrysanthemum. "That's right."
Upon hearing the reply, the man frowned.
"Do you have no intention of intervening? Although we have an agreement with that Moltres to guard the interior of Mt. Silver in exchange for granting it a certain degree of freedom, every time someone enters the mountain and steps into its sphere of influence, it always tries to provoke the trainers who enter."
"If the opponent is strong, it can still be acceptable, but if not... it's very likely that, after coming out, they'll be completely broken."
"How many League trainers have already suffered because of it? If it weren't for us, even its divine position would have already—"
"Silence," the white-haired elder suddenly interrupted, opening his eyes and casting a glance at the man behind him.
The man's face showed a trace of unease; he knew he had spoken too much.
"This is Moltres's own affair. We will not interfere too much. Moreover, it still knows its limits: it does not take lives, it merely has a violent temperament. But who can say that this violence is not part of its own destiny? The choices it makes will determine its future. We have already interfered more than enough," the elder said calmly.
Although they were standing atop Mt. Silver, surrounded by snow, the elder gave off a feeling of acceptance of fate and governance through inaction.
If Cain were there, he would undoubtedly think that this elder resembled a figure he had heard of: the Elder of the League.
This elder was none other than the current president of the Central Pokémon League, which encompassed the six major regions of the Pokémon world. As for his name, no one had known it for a very long time, nor did anyone dare to address him directly. Some called him "President," while others simply knew him as the "Elder of the League."
"Then who is the trainer fighting Moltres this time? Being able to summon such a massive cloud above its head is not something an ordinary person could do. They should be a fairly strong trainer, but I haven't heard that anyone notable has recently entered the interior of Mt. Silver. I haven't received any reports either," the man said, his expression full of doubt.
Upon hearing the question, the elder's smile appeared once more.
"He's a very interesting little fellow. Even I cannot clearly see what is happening, but I find it extremely interesting. Hahahaha..."
After saying that, the elder burst into laughter.
If an ordinary person heard those words, they would probably think the elder was suffering from senile dementia: he couldn't see clearly, yet still said it was interesting. Had he gone mad?
But the middle-aged man showed not the slightest hint of ridicule or doubt.
He knew the elder's abilities very well. If he said it was interesting, then it was undoubtedly so.
His attention was focused on something else.
"An interesting little fellow? How many years has it been since you last spoke like that about a trainer? Who is it?" he asked curiously.
The elder shook his head.
"It can't be said, it can't be said. It's not time yet. Haha..."
Since the elder had spoken that way, the man did not ask further. Immediately afterward, a trace of discomfort appeared on his face.
The elder did not turn to look at him, but seemed to have sensed his expression.
"As for the second one, you don't need to take it so much to heart. I told you long ago that his mind was not upright, that he liked to use tricks and shortcuts. But you saw his talent and wanted to protect him at all costs, and I had no choice but to agree. Fortunately, up until now, he hasn't caused losses that are too severe."
The "second" he referred to was, in fact, the commander of the Second Legion of the League's army—the very Black Messenger who had been defeated by Cain.
And that man who had just appeared, dressed in a black military uniform, was the commander-in-chief of all the Central League's Legions. From the First Legion to the Ninth Legion, all were under his jurisdiction.
That the commander of the Second Legion had been infiltrated by the Sacred Church without him, as commander-in-chief, detecting it was clearly a case of negligence on his part.
However, the elder, as president of the Central League, had no intention of reproaching him.
"I will confirm the new commander of the Second Legion as soon as possible and stabilize the recent unrest within that legion," the man said, determination in his eyes.
The elder waved his hand casually.
Then, the man nodded respectfully and disappeared from the place.
The white-haired elder continued sitting on the snow, gazing into the distance. But now his eyes had turned a grayish-white color, filled with countless unknowns, as if he could observe innumerable unseen things.
...
Elsewhere.
When rain began to fall from the sky, Cain had Gengar once again change the majority of his Pokémon's abilities to Swift Swim.
The reason he chose rainy weather instead of Tyranitar's sandstorm had also been carefully thought out.
Leaving aside the impact a sandstorm would have on the environment, Cain still remembered that he had come to search for materials. He didn't want to end up destroying them with his own hands instead of finding them.
Moreover, Moltres was a Fire-type Pokémon, and rainy weather exerted good pressure on it. Even if it only slowed its recovery speed, that was already a positive outcome.
Combined with the synergy between rainy weather and the Swift Swim ability, the power boost for so many of Cain's Pokémon was clearly greater than the simple effect of a sandstorm controlled by Tyranitar.
All of this had been considered in advance by Cain.
The idea was good, but the gap in raw strength still existed.
What they were facing was a genuine Moltres, and even in terms of level, it held an enormous advantage. Even with all of Cain's Pokémon on the field, they could not gain even the slightest upper hand.
If it were not for Kommo-o and the experienced Darkrai holding the situation together, several of Cain's Pokémon would have already lost their ability to fight.
At that moment, the situation was such that Kommo-o, Darkrai, Mega Gengar, and Mega Tyranitar took turns resisting Moltres's attacks, while the other Pokémon harassed it from the sides, trying to create some kind of opportunity.
However, the battle was becoming more and more unfavorable for Cain and his Pokémon.
Even with the constant healing support from Florges and Magearna, Kommo-o and the others were finding it increasingly difficult to withstand a Moltres that had already gotten serious.
(End of chapter)