Don't get involved with Damian in any way?
Watching Caitlin's back as she left, Cynthia fell into thought.
She felt like she got it now—Caitlin probably liked Damian, right?
But how on earth was she supposed to be "involved" with Damian?
Cynthia pondered. She was the Sinnoh Region Champion, and Damian was Team Rocket's boss. Their identities alone were worlds apart.
And as for how she felt about Damian… how to put it? It was complicated. But Cynthia was sure of one thing—it definitely wasn't the fluttery kind of love.
Given her naturally mature, steady personality, Cynthia had never really thought about romance at all. In fact, she wasn't even clear on what her own "type" would be.
Cynthia shook her head and walked back into the villa.
Caitlin was being ridiculous.
Acting like she was scared Cynthia would steal her man. Even though there was already a huge wall between them, blocking off a lot of that old "Sis" closeness.
Did Caitlin really think she'd just swoop in and steal her boyfriend? Was that seriously how she saw her now?
If Caitlin and Damian actually ended up together, Cynthia would honestly be happy for them.
Setting Damian's identity aside, he really was a very capable man.
Calling him the strongest in the world probably wouldn't be much of an exaggeration.
In the villa's lobby—
"That hunter organization base—Zinnia, you take Rosa and the others over and wipe it out. As long as nothing unexpected pops up, you don't need to fight. Just sit back and anchor the field."
Damian toyed with three shrunken Ultra Balls in his hand as he spoke through the video call.
That troublesome hunter organization base was just right to hand off to Rosa, Drayton, and the others. They'd definitely be happy to handle it anyway.
"Got it. Send me the location."
Zinnia nodded, looking bored. She hadn't had anything to do lately anyway.
"Okay. Gladion will contact you."
Damian hung up.
"You found the hunter organization's base?"
Cynthia had just walked in in time to hear that part.
"Yeah."
Damian didn't even look up, his eyes still on the Sinnoh Region map spread across the table.
"The hunter organization in your Sinnoh Region isn't small. And you've got way more high‑end hunters here than in Hoenn or Unova."
"Seems like you haven't exactly been doing a stellar job as Champion, Cynthia."
Damian threw the jab out casually.
"I've already done my best to eradicate them, but those hunters are slippery. And Team Galactic keeps interfering on top of that."
Cynthia walked over to the sofa on Damian's left, smoothed her hands elegantly over her hips, and sat down. Her tone carried a clear note of helplessness.
Of course she wanted to wipe out those nasty hunter organizations.
Hunters only cared about contracts. Say an employer wanted a rare Lucario, and some Trainer happened to own one and wandered into the hunters' sights.
Then the hunters would stop at nothing to snatch that Trainer's Lucario and hand it over.
They didn't care if the Lucario was wild or raised, didn't care about its mental state, didn't care whether it lived or died afterward. All they cared about was completing the mission and getting paid.
It was no wonder Cynthia loathed hunter organizations to her core.
But hunters were extremely cunning and never kept just one hideout. Trying to uproot them completely was way too hard.
"So yeah, you really do need Team Rocket. When it comes to how evil teams operate, we know that road inside and out."
Damian's lips curled into a faint smile.
He was right—because the Sinnoh League didn't understand how evil teams worked, it was much harder for them to track down the hunters' base locations.
Team Rocket, on the other hand, was one of the evil teams themselves. They understood the underworld's rules better than anyone.
Cynthia kept silent, but she had to admit he had a point.
"That's why letting Team Rocket control the underworld is the best option. We can keep the entire dark world stable. Too bad old man Goodshow still won't go for it."
Damian clicked his tongue.
He did understand Goodshow's ideology, though.
Team Rocket was too uncontrollable. From Goodshow's point of view, if a group like Team Rocket, holding the entire underworld in its hands, made one wrong move, it would be catastrophic.
"If you could give some guarantees—or put some kind of insurance card in Chairman Goodshow's hands—I think he'd at least consider it."
Cynthia didn't deny it.
If she were in Goodshow's position, she wouldn't agree either.
Team Rocket really was too dangerous, too uncontrollable.
Damian might not be a bloodthirsty monster, but he definitely was someone who acted without restraint and with plenty of arrogance.
If you let someone like that keep expanding his power until he became the undisputed King of the underworld, the law would mean nothing to him.
"Doesn't matter. Let them keep flailing around. I'm actually curious what kind of 'plan' they'll end up cooking up in the end."
Damian grinned wider.
Seeing him that confident, Cynthia's brows knit slightly.
"Damian, you're strong. But what if the League decides to go all‑out and have one final clash with you?"
Cynthia didn't think it was impossible. Sure, Damian was incredibly powerful right now.
But the League had ruled the world for over a hundred years. No one really knew how deep its foundations went, or what secret weapons it might have tucked away. Not even Cynthia did.
"Wouldn't that be perfect?"
Damian's smile grew brighter.
"It'd finally force the League to face reality. Otherwise they'll keep thinking they can go toe‑to‑toe with Team Rocket. As long as they're stuck in that fantasy, they'll never figure out where they really stand."
Just like Cynthia had said, the last negotiation with Goodshow had fallen apart purely because Goodshow still believed the Pokémon League held the advantage.
He'd been willing to back off a bit. But he refused to just stand by and watch Damian treat League law like nothing.
In Goodshow's eyes, the League's rules were the very foundation of peace and prosperity in this world. If someone—some organization—showed up that regarded those rules as meaningless, how terrifying would that be?
In short, Goodshow wanted everything both ways. He didn't want a full‑blown conflict with Damian's Team Rocket, but he also wanted to "recruit" them under the League's banner.
Damian, though, wanted none of that.
He wanted Team Rocket to become the true king of the underworld, standing on equal footing with the Pokémon League. And he wanted himself to stand above the League.
"…Damian, you're way too arrogant."
Cynthia couldn't help it; she let out a sigh as she spoke.
"You're the arrogant one, Cynthia. You've got no idea how strong I really am. You've got no idea how strong Team Rocket really is."
Damian's voice turned sharp, mocking.
"Power is the only thing that gives you the right to rule."
He lowered his gaze to the three shrunken Ultra Balls in his hand.
"If anything, you should all be grateful. Grateful that I'm not a schemer like Ghetsis who wants to rule the world. Grateful that I'm not a deranged 'superior being' like Cyrus. Grateful that I'm not a broken lunatic like Lysandre, pushed over the edge by reality."
Damian's tone dripped with mockery.
Cynthia stayed silent. She knew she wasn't going to talk him down.
"Forget it. Enough about that. Cynthia, I do genuinely want to invite you to join our organization. If you sign on, you can pick any one of these Pokémon for yourself. How about it?"
Seeing Cynthia fall quiet, Damian shifted the topic and gestured with the Ultra Balls in his hand.
"What are those?"
Cynthia tilted her head, puzzled.
"The legendary golems. Regirock, Regice, Registeel."
"…"
Cynthia's refined features froze with shock. Of course she knew who they were—Brandon had used Regirock and Registeel against Zinnia, after all.
"If those three don't impress you, there's always Zapdos, and the Legendary Incarnate Forces and so on. Honestly, I really do hold you in high regard, Cynthia."
Damian smiled, his eyes flicking over Cynthia's form.
If Sinnoh's Champion Cynthia became a Team Rocket Admin? Tsk~
That'd be way too fun.
Do you "value" me, or do you value my body?
Cynthia felt his gaze again and unconsciously shifted, scooting back a little on the sofa.
Caitlin, I think you gave that warning to the wrong person.
You should've told Damian, not me.
It's your man who's eyeing me up, not the other way around!
"I'm doing just fine in the Sinnoh League. I'm not exactly looking to switch sides."
Cynthia shook her head.
"That's a shame."
Damian didn't look surprised at all.
"So what's your next move? Going after Cyrus?"
"We still haven't located Cyrus yet. But I did turn up something pretty interesting."
Damian's gaze slid back to the Sinnoh map.
"Oh?"
"You'll find out tomorrow. It's finally here."
He glanced at the phone buzzing nearby, and a faint smile lifted his lips.
"?"
Cynthia blinked, confused.
Then she saw Damian stand and walk toward the door.
He opened it, and a woman stepped in—black tight top, hot pants, looking sharp and fashion‑forward.
That woman was… Unova's Nimbasa City Gym Leader, Elesa?
Cynthia recognized her at a glance—she'd been in Unova just a week ago, after all.
Elesa's looks were incredibly recognizable. In terms of beauty, she was absolutely top‑tier.
Especially those deadly long legs under the hot pants—there probably weren't many men who could keep a straight face around them.
The moment Elesa stepped inside and saw Damian, a cool smile curved her lips.
Her long, pale arms naturally slid around Damian's neck, her posture more than a little intimate.
"You really made me wait this time."
"Took me a lot of effort to shake off Rosa and the others. Did you miss me?"
Elesa hadn't had much choice.
It's not like she could've just walked off with Damian in front of Rosa—otherwise that girl would've shamelessly tagged along too.
"We literally just had a video call a couple days ago."
Damian chuckled.
"Mm‑hmm~"
Elesa stared at him without blinking.
But her sharp eyes soon caught sight of Cynthia sitting on the sofa.
"Champion Cynthia is here too."
Elesa quickly reined herself in, letting go of Damian with a slightly embarrassed look.
"I'm just staying here for a while. Gym Leader Elesa, you and Damian are…?"
Cynthia was honestly confused now. Damian and Elesa definitely seemed a little too close to be "just friends." It was hard not to suspect something.
But hadn't Caitlin said she liked Damian?
"Just friends."
Elesa's white‑as‑snow cheeks didn't even flush.
Excuse me??
Do you think I'm blind?
Cynthia's brain lagged for a second.
You two were one step away from making out the moment you walked in.
If this villa were empty, you'd probably already be going at it by the door, right?
And Damian's hand is on your ass. This is your idea of "just friends"?
"Cynthia, sit tight for a bit. Elesa and I have something important to discuss."
Damian took Elesa's hand and headed upstairs.
Yeah, he'd been missing her too.
Cynthia watched as their silhouettes vanished around the stairwell corner and slipped into deep thought.
What exactly were those two going upstairs to do?
But her gaze was dragged away a moment later—Caitlin had somehow appeared from who‑knows‑where.
Right now, Caitlin's face was completely blank, but anyone could see her mood was terrible.
"Caitlin, Damian and Elesa… are they…?"
Cynthia couldn't help asking.
Even if things between her and Caitlin were a bit awkward right now, she still cared about her.
"Just a shameless little homewrecker. Nothing worth worrying about."
Caitlin replied flatly.
You sure about that??
Cynthia's expression went strange.
Really not a problem?
They're probably already starting their "card game" up there.
Cynthia suddenly felt like her Sis might be… growing something green on her head.
~~
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