"Y-You… who are you?"
One of the men in black looked at Chen Shi and spoke with a trembling voice.
Logically speaking, their own Pokémon were right there inside the Poké Balls hanging at their waists, and the Poké Balls weren't even locked.
If they encountered danger, their Pokémon should have been able to break free from the Poké Balls automatically and protect their Trainers.
Yet ever since Jirachi captured them until now, neither of their Pokémon had shown the slightest reaction.
There was only one explanation for this outcome—
The person who captured them was overwhelmingly stronger than they were, to the point that even their Pokémon didn't dare show themselves.
Chen Shi sounded impatient.
"I don't have the patience to explain things to you."
"You only need to answer my two questions. Understand?"
After all, this was Lumiose City, the largest city in Kalos.
Public security here was extremely strict.
He simply wanted answers as quickly as possible and had no interest in wasting time with them.
"O-Okay, okay, understood!"
The black-clothed man seemed to instinctively realize Chen Shi was someone he absolutely could not afford to provoke.
So he nodded repeatedly with remarkable decisiveness, completely abandoning any previous arrogance.
Chen Shi asked directly:
"You're Pokémon Hunters?"
The moment those words came out, both men fell silent.
They didn't know how to answer.
But silence itself was already the best answer.
Diantha, who had originally been confused about why Chen Shi suddenly captured them, now looked at the two men with undisguised disgust.
Pokémon Hunters.
To put it nicely, they were called Pokémon Hunters.
To put it bluntly—
They were poachers.
Criminals guilty of countless crimes.
Their purpose was to capture rare wild Pokémon in large numbers before selling them for profit.
No one knew how many Pokémon had lost their homes because of people like them.
Even Chen Shi's own Lady Florges had originally been captured in Kalos by Pokémon Hunters before being trafficked to Sinnoh for sale.
Chen Shi continued questioning them.
"What kind of Pokémon did you recently capture?"
The black-clothed man hesitated for a moment before answering honestly:
"We don't know what that Pokémon species is called either."
"We only know they can continuously produce diamonds."
"Continuously produce diamonds?"
Chen Shi narrowed his eyes slightly.
At this point, he had already roughly guessed what Pokémon they were talking about.
In this world, there was only one kind of Pokémon capable of endlessly creating diamonds—
Carbink.
And Carbink lived precisely within the Kalos Region.
"Old Chen, Pokémon like that really exist?"
Steven sounded doubtful.
"Producing diamonds sounds ridiculous."
After all, even in this world, diamonds were extremely popular among wealthy noblewomen and young ladies.
Their value was incredibly high.
Cynthia and Diantha also looked skeptical.
Clearly, neither of them fully believed it either.
Chen Shi didn't answer them.
Instead, he continued interrogating the man.
"Where are those Pokémon being held now?"
"And who exactly is this 'Boss J'?"
The black-clothed man swallowed nervously before replying:
"We locked those Pokémon inside an abandoned hotel outside Lumiose City."
"That place is one of our temporary bases."
"As for Boss J…"
"She's one of the twenty-six Supreme Seats of the Hunter Guild."
"We work under her command."
Chen Shi immediately understood.
He had basically already guessed who this "Boss J" was.
If he wasn't mistaken—
This was none other than the infamous Hunter J from the anime.
He truly hadn't expected them to have captured a group of Carbink.
Chen Shi thought for a moment before turning toward the others with a grin.
"How about we go on a temporary adventure tonight?"
Steven's eyes immediately lit up.
He had already guessed what Chen Shi planned to do.
And honestly—
That suited him perfectly.
"Sounds good."
Cynthia and Diantha exchanged glances before nodding firmly as well.
"Alright then, it's decided."
Seeing everyone agree so readily, Chen Shi nodded in satisfaction.
Then his expression instantly turned cold.
His sharp gaze shot toward the two black-clothed men as he asked sternly:
"Where exactly is your temporary base?"
"Point the direction."
The black-clothed man was startled by Chen Shi's suddenly icy aura.
Since Jirachi's psychic power completely restrained his body, he couldn't even move his hands.
So he could only tilt his head toward a certain direction unwillingly.
"O-Over there…"
"Very good."
"Jirachi, I'll leave it to you."
After obtaining the direction, Chen Shi gently rubbed Jirachi's little head.
"Okaaay!"
Understanding Chen Shi's intentions immediately, Jirachi waved its tiny hand.
The next instant—
Everyone vanished from the spot through teleportation.
...…
"Chief, according to our informant's intel, Hunter J and part of her subordinates are currently inside."
A police officer lowered his voice as he reported solemnly to the woman standing in front of him.
Outside the gloomy abandoned hotel, a group of International Police officers and Officer Jennys had already quietly hidden themselves throughout the surrounding darkness.
Dressed in uniform, each of them blended almost perfectly into the night.
Their hands tightly gripped either their Poké Balls or weapons while their eyes remained fixed on the abandoned hotel's entrance and surrounding area.
Everyone was fully prepared for combat at any moment.
Officer Jenny Yoko nodded slightly before coldly ordering:
"Good."
"Tell everyone to prepare to move."
"This time, we must capture Hunter J."
"We absolutely cannot allow her to continue roaming free."
"Yes, ma'am!"
The male officer immediately responded seriously before retreating to relay the orders.
Officer Jenny Yoko stared coldly at the abandoned hotel in the distance.
Hunter J.
A top-tier Alliance wanted criminal.
She had committed countless crimes across multiple regions.
Whether it was the International Police, the Alliance's elite investigators, or the prestigious Jenny family—
All of them had been relentlessly hunting her for years.
Originally, there had already been several opportunities to capture Hunter J.
But every single time, her terrifying strength had allowed her to escape at the final moment.
This time, however—
Hunter J had actually entered the Kalos Region.
And she had become even more reckless than before.
Just to capture a group of Pokémon, she had caused massive disturbances and panic throughout the area.
Fortunately, combined with the accurate intel provided by their informant, they had finally managed to pinpoint her location.
Thus, this joint operation between the Alliance investigators and the Jenny family was launched.
And the leader of this operation—
Was none other than Officer Jenny Yoko herself, one of the Alliance's top investigators.
That alone showed how seriously the Alliance viewed this mission.
However—
Just as the investigators and Officer Jennys were preparing to rush forward and surround the abandoned hotel—
Several figures suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the sky above the building.
"So it's this place?"
"Y-Yes, sir! This is the place!"
...…
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