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"A press conference? After the spring tournament ends?"
Li Xiang looked at Bai Wanhua across the table, startled for a moment.
"Yes, that's right."
Bai Wanhua maintained the dignified composure of an elder. "You know how many uninvited guests the school chased off a couple days ago. So to make some people shut up... Of course, if you're unwilling..."
"If it'll reduce the number of calls I get, then I can do it."
Li Xiang responded quietly.
Over the past two days, his old SIM card had become unusable. Hundreds of calls daily, and he had no idea who leaked his number.
Good thing he had already switched to a new card.
Bai Wanhua was momentarily stunned, seemingly not expecting Li Xiang's number to be exposed so quickly. "Do you want me to call Miao Shuang later and have her help you change your number?"
"Already changed it. Aunt Bai, I agree to the press conference." Li Xiang repeated himself.
This form of address was requested by Bai Wanhua herself, not something he said to curry favor.
"I understand."
Bai Wanhua nodded. "Go get some rest. The prepared response draft will be ready for you. You can just read it verbatim when the time comes."
Li Xiang stood up, ready to take his leave.
Bai Wanhua seemed to remember something else. "Do you have any plans next Saturday?"
"Saturday? I should be free."
"Good. Next Saturday at nine in the morning, wait for me at the principal's office. I'll take you to Teacher Mo's place. He has something to discuss with you."
"...Okay."
The two agreed on the time.
After leaving the principal's office, Li Xiang exchanged a puzzled look with Riolu. Mo Ye wanted to see him?
Since arriving in Mist City, he hadn't met with this Elite Four member, nor did he intend to cultivate a relationship with Mo Ye.
What could he possibly want now?
Completely baffled.
Back at the villa.
Incineroar sat on the sofa, leg bouncing restlessly. Its eyes lit up the moment it saw Riolu and Li Xiang return.
"Roar!"
It waved urgently at Riolu, apparently anxious. Even Greninja's frantic signaling went completely unnoticed.
Riolu's eyes went wide, its little heart pounding wildly.
Seeing his two teammates' strange behavior, Incineroar belatedly realized something was off. Cold sweat immediately beaded on its brow.
'This cat...'
Li Xiang narrowed his eyes but said nothing.
In the study, Metagross poked its flattened head out. "Metagross!"
'Hurry up! I've already logged into your account! Let's rank up, rank up!'
"Coming!" Li Xiang turned and walked toward the study. Greninja and Riolu breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
The cold sweat on Incineroar's face evaporated.
But halfway there, Li Xiang suddenly turned around.
"Come back before dinner. Come find me if anything comes up."
He patted Incineroar's arm, then glanced at Riolu on its shoulder. "You too."
The two were momentarily stunned, then nodded earnestly and dashed out through the floor-to-ceiling window.
Greninja, waiting by the window, saw this and hurried over.
"Ninja?"
'What about me?'
"You want to go too?" Li Xiang was surprised. Asocial Greninja actually wanted to tag along with the cat and dog?
Greninja nodded frantically.
"Alright then. Keep an eye on those two. I know you're the most cunning and reliable one."
Li Xiang whispered into Greninja's ear.
Greninja looked deeply moved, as if entrusted with a sacred mission.
It saluted Li Xiang solemnly and, carrying this sense of purpose, flew out through the window.
'So easy to handle, this chuunibyou kid.'
Li Xiang thought wryly, then turned and walked into the study to game with Metagross and Aegislash.
Xian Mountain.
Today, Xian Mountain was rather noisy. The leader of the Iron Cats Group was finally being released from "prison"—their backbone had returned.
No more fear of those ambitious wolves from the Savage Hounds Gang.
As executives, Incineroar and Riolu naturally had to be present. Besides, they still had their most important objective: asking Perrserker about the secret of Misty Lake.
That's why they were in such a rush.
As for Greninja... it was purely there to watch the excitement, plus it carried the mission Li Xiang had given it.
—Keep an eye on Incineroar and Riolu.
As an obedient frog, it absolutely remembered its duty.
The three Pokémon sprinted all the way to the Colosseum.
"You're finally here!"
Luxray spotted them, its claws scraping the ground with slight impatience. "Hurry up, the boss is about to come out!"
Just like in movies when a gang boss gets out of prison, all members of the Iron Cats Group had to show up, to save face for their leader and demonstrate the group's cohesion to the other factions.
...Even if they learned this from films themselves.
Luxray led the way, Incineroar and the others following behind. Soon, they entered the conservation base.
Their destination was reached.
—Behind a certain tall building in the Mist City Conservation Base, beyond a small door.
All the top executives and regular executives of the Iron Cats Group were here, standing in two rows.
Further back, the rank-and-file members crouched on the ground, chests puffed out with heads held high.
Even further, in the forest, were many other groups, watching coldly from the sidelines.
Among them, the Savage Hounds Gang had the most members.
Spotting the arriving Incineroar and Riolu, Absol, the young master standing at the head of the line, quickly trotted over.
"What took you so long! We've been waiting for you two! Stand next to me!"
It called out, gesturing for the cat and dog to stand beside it.
Greninja, as usual, stayed invisible. Since it hadn't joined the Iron Cats Group, it naturally didn't stand with the cats.
The lineup was based on status yet Incineroar and Riolu, as executives, could stand next to Absol without any objections. Meowstic even moved aside to make room.
This proved both the authority of Absol as the group's young master and that Incineroar's formidable strength had earned the cats' conviction.
In the front-middle section, the Galarian Meowth stood in formation. It glanced at the cat and dog, then looked around, a trace of confusion flickering across its face, as if something that should have been there was missing.
Soon, the small door opened.
The cats stirred restlessly, but the one emerging first wasn't Perrserker—it was a thin, stooped old man with a balding head.
"Oh my? You're all waiting here?"
The kindly old man smiled warmly, as if looking at a group of beloved children. "You've worked hard. Why didn't you send someone to call for me?"
Absol stepped forward, its usual stern expression completely melting into one of docility as it rubbed against the old man's pant leg.
The other top executives followed suit.
"Good children, good children."
The old man chuckled, patting their heads. He noticed Incineroar and Riolu standing unmoved. "New members? Come here, come here~"
He beckoned to the cat and dog.
They hesitated, then slowly approached. Without a doubt, this old man was the Director Grandpa the Iron Cats Group respected so much.
In his youth, he had been a ranger, but an injury during an operation forced him into early retirement.
During the Conservation Base Project's heyday, he volunteered to become a trial trainer.
Through tireless effort, he eventually transformed Mist City into a paradise where humans and Pokémon coexisted.
"There, there."
The old man reached out peacefully. But Riolu wouldn't even let Li Xiang touch its head—there was no way it would let a complete stranger do so.
It decisively stepped back.
Incineroar had no such reservations and bent down slightly.
"Not fond of head pats? My apologies." The old man didn't get upset; instead, he offered a gentle apology.
Riolu shook its head.
"Cough, cough, cough. This old man won't keep you youngsters any longer."
The old man coughed twice. Seeing the cats' anxious expressions, he smiled. "Don't look at me like that. Just caught a chill last night. Nothing serious."
With that, he turned and went back inside the conservation base.
And then,a short figure emerged from the doorway.
"Yawn…"
This rather stout, humanoid big cat yawned, then smiled at the assembled cats.
The cats quickly returned to their positions.
"Welcome back, boss!"
They shouted—sounds that, to humans, were just meows—their faces bursting with excitement.
"Rrr! How are my brothers!"
Perrserker raised its paw, three long, dark claws extending and merging into a short sword of black steel.
The cats roared in response. The top executives moved to greet it.
But instead of acknowledging them, Perrserker bounded straight toward the dazed Galarian Meowth, retracting its claws and looking at it fondly. "Little Dai-Dai! Grandpa's out now!"
This creature, at least thirty years old, was even more lively than Galarian Meowth.
"Meow?"
Galarian Meowth tilted its head, as if not quite understanding.
"Heehee."
Perrserker rubbed its concealed nose, then addressed the executives behind it. "This isn't the place to talk! Back to the nest!"
Every group in the conservation base had its own nest, and the Iron Cats Group was no exception.
Riolu watched silently.
In terms of appearance, Perrserker was a brownish-black Pokémon with a great grayish-white beard, black bull-horn-like steel helmet, and a gleaming silver coin on its forehead.
It had gleaming white teeth, languid amber eyes as if it hadn't quite woken up, and a curled, fluffy tail like a Baumkuchen.
Not particularly handsome or good-looking—like a Viking.
But when it walked, it exuded an undeniable boss aura. Every gesture, every movement radiated domineering presence.
This was an aura, not an element.
Despite its short stature—nothing compared to Pangoro or Zangoose—it was the most attention-grabbing figure present. No one could ignore it.
Riolu and Incineroar followed behind it and exchanged glances.
Riolu sensed this boss was no simple character.
Incineroar envied its domineering presence because every time it tried to play the part of a gang boss, Li Xiang called it a reckless brute or an enforcer, completely lacking the essence of a true boss.
What is the essence of a boss?
You stand there, doing nothing at all, and yet every eye in the room is fixed on you.
Perrserker had that aura.
"You have no class."
Riolu rolled its eyes and muttered softly.
Incineroar grumbled discontentedly but, surprisingly, didn't argue.