The Celadon City police had fully "deployed," and additional officers had been called in from nearby cities to completely surround the south side of Celadon City.
Lines of Growlithe and Arcanine stood on alert.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that right now, not even a fly could get out of the south side.
"Still no sign of Erika?"
Lorelei was, as always, dressed in a black women's suit and pencil skirt.
The fitted outfit showed off her full figure perfectly.
But despite that flawless body, her cold tone and expression were enough to chill anyone to the bone.
"Apologies. According to the Gym staff, Erika left the Gym at noon and hasn't returned since. We can't get in touch with her either."
The Officer Jenny in charge of Celadon City gave her report.
"Hmph. Negligent."
Lorelei snorted coldly, arms folded.
The Officer Jenny wanted to cry.
She'd always had a good impression of Erika.
Even though she was young, as a Gym Leader she was very responsible.
Aside from her love of napping, Erika hardly had any flaws.
But today really was strange.
This didn't match Erika's personality at all.
Had something happened to her?
"Then we don't need to wait any longer. The civilians on the south side have all been evacuated, yes?" Lorelei asked lightly.
"Yes, the evacuation is basically complete."
"Then begin preparations for the operation."
Lorelei pushed up her glasses, the eyes behind the lenses cold as ice.
"Yes!"
The Officer Jenny in charge stepped back, taking out her communicator to start relaying orders.
"Filth should be wiped out completely."
Lorelei's expression was indifferent as a Lapras appeared in front of her.
She'd seen it before—she'd personally seen the records of gene experiments in one of Team Rocket's bases, those white sheets of paper covered in bloody data on Pokémon gene experiments.
Over the past year, in the Team Rocket bases she'd eradicated, those materials were no longer there.
It seemed Team Rocket had abandoned their gene experiments.
But so what?
Could that erase the sins they'd already committed?
It couldn't.
Evil deeds had to be repaid in blood.
Once Team Rocket, Team Rocket for life.
Nothing could change that.
Every last member of Team Rocket, she would personally pass judgment on.
"Earthquake."
Lorelei's red lips parted as she coldly uttered two words.
Lapras lifted its upper body, then slammed down hard on the ground—a Ground‑type Earthquake.
Rumble…!
The earth shook violently as a tremendous quake spread outward.
The shockwaves were almost tangible, rippling out like waves on water.
Nearby buildings couldn't withstand the intense shaking; they collapsed and crumbled, deafening crashes echoing one after another.
Lorelei's face remained unmoved.
Her eyes only watched as everything before her was reduced to ruins under the Earthquake.
"Th‑this…"
"I know it's to wipe out Team Rocket, but this is…"
"Shh! Keep your voice down, do you have a death wish?"
"With a quake like that, you really think any of those Team Rocket guys are still alive down there?"
Even the Officer Jennys farther away, feeling the aftershocks through their boots, were stunned.
They'd already heard the stories:
Lorelei of the Elite Four hated evil with a vengeance, loathed Team Rocket to the core, and treated their eradication as her personal mission.
But opening with an Earthquake like that felt seriously over the top.
Most of Team Rocket was still hiding underground, and Earthquake was basically a "special attack" against underground targets.
This was just… Way Too Extreme.
The Officer Jennys all fell silent.
Meanwhile, in the underground base—
The violent tremors shook most of the base, dust pouring down from above.
"An Earthquake?? It has to be Lorelei! That damn, vicious woman!"
Ariana only managed to avoid falling by bracing herself against a wall, cursing under her breath.
"Lorelei? Is she trying to bury us alive?"
Gladion was stunned.
The Kanto Elite Four were League members!
How could they be this bloodthirsty?
"That woman's always treated us like life or death doesn't matter. We can't hide underground anymore."
Ariana gritted her teeth.
Rumble…!
An even stronger tremor hit.
Sections of the base had already started to cave in.
Clearly, Lorelei had ordered Lapras to use Earthquake a second time.
"Caitlin, can we still use Teleport?"
"No. It's blocked."
Caitlin sent out her Alakazam to try; it shook its head at her.
The entire south side of Celadon City was rigged with heavy communication jammers and psychic interference devices.
They were specifically there to keep Team Rocket from contacting the outside—or escaping with Teleport.
"Move! Our only option is to head up and try to break through."
Gladion's voice was low and steady.
"What about Lord Damian?"
Ariana asked.
"Damian doesn't need us worrying about him.
He's got his own plans."
Caitlin shook her head, patting the dust off her shoulder.
She wore a fitted black jacket and pencil pants, her slim, graceful figure clear even under the grit.
This base was already reaching its limit.
The pressure on an underground structure from repeated Earthquakes was enormous.
If Lorelei used it two more times, they really would end up buried alive.
"Full breakout!"
Ariana nodded and decisively issued the order through her wireless communicator.
Up above.
"So you've finally decided to come out?"
Lorelei's face was expressionless.
From where she stood, she could clearly see several points in the rubble where explosions had blasted open exits, with crowds of Team Rocket members pouring out.
But those were all small fry.
Lorelei didn't care about them.
This was a large Team Rocket base, which meant there had to be executives on site.
Those were her true targets.
Regular Team Rocket members were evil.
Executives were an evil that could never be forgiven.
Lorelei's gaze quickly locked onto Ariana and the two beside her.
Regular Team Rocket grunts all wore the standard black uniform, but executives had no strict dress code in Team Rocket.
Ariana, for instance, was dressed in a white uniform.
Caitlin, for mobility's sake, was in a fitted top and long pants.
Gladion was the same, wearing the black punk‑style clothes he favored.
The three of them stood out clearly among the crowd of Team Rocket members.
"Ariana."
Lorelei's lips curved into a cold arc.
One of Team Rocket's Four Admins, Ariana, was a sizable catch.
Even from far away, Ariana could feel a chill crawling up from the soles of her feet.
She turned—and saw Lorelei in the distance, smiling at her with a warmthless expression.
Ariana's heart dropped.
Crap.
That crazy woman was here for her.
Elsewhere.
"What a spectacular sight, don't you think, Miss Erika."
Damian had picked out a relatively flat patch of ruins and sat on a small stool, leisurely watching the chaotic melee between Team Rocket members and League personnel.
He seemed to be in a good mood, even chuckling to himself.
"…"
Dressed in a floral kimono with light makeup on, beautiful and composed, Erika looked completely out of place on this battlefield.
She pressed her lips together, her lovely face a little dazed.
A scene like something out of a history book—a full‑scale war—hit her harder than she'd expected.
"No matter what kind of world it is, the complexity of human hearts will always lead to conflict.
That's something you can never avoid.
That's reality."
Damian slowly stood, turning his head to the side as the corners of his mouth lifted.
"Wouldn't you agree… my friend?"
Following Damian's gaze, Erika saw a red‑eyed boy in a baseball cap walking slowly toward them.
~~~
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