Why was she here?
When Erika walked up from behind them, Ash and his friends were all stunned.
Erika wore a kimono with a maple leaf pattern. She wore a red headband. She walked up calmly.
"Gym Leader Erika?"
Ash was beyond shocked. Why would Erika appear here?
One had to know that the area they were in was located in the northern part of the Kanto region. It was quite far from Celadon City.
Green's eyes slowly narrowed. She glanced at Landorus in its Therian Forme, which had already stopped attacking.
"Wait a moment."
Erika gave Ash and the others a small smile. Then, she walked in front of them and looked up at Landorus.
"I am sorry. They are all my friends. They have disturbed you. I will convince them not to enter the World Tree," Erika said with a polite smile, giving Landorus a bow.
"Tu~"
Landorus nodded. It glanced at Ash and the others before turning around and leaving.
Seeing this scene, everyone felt confused.
"Phew~ I'm glad it was Landorus. If it were Thundurus or the others, they're harder to talk to. Even I might not have been able to make them listen," Erika patted her chest and let out a sigh of relief. She turned back to look at Ash and his friends.
"Ash, why did you come to the World Tree Paradise?"
"World Tree Paradise?"
"Ah~ did you not know? That is the name of this private property," Erika tilted her head, her finger touching her lip.
"It is indeed very strange. Outsiders are not allowed to enter here. Did you sneak in?"
"..."
Ash felt awkward and turned his head to look into the distance. To hide his guilt, he even started whistling.
Seeing Ash like this, Erika smiled gently.
"It seems I need to go and have a talk with those guards. Such carelessness is not good."
"Also, Ash, it would be best if you all left quickly. There are many powerful Pokémon in this place. Some of them have rough tempers. I can talk to them, but they might not hold back with outsiders like you," Erika reminded Ash. She had a very good impression of him.
This boy was passionate, kind, and full of a sense of justice. He was easy to like.
"Gym Leader Erika, may I ask why you are here? And from your tone, you seem very familiar with this place," Green asked, pretending to be confused.
"Ah~ strictly speaking, I am the manager of the World Tree Paradise," Erika blinked her eyes.
"What?"
"The manager? Are you in charge here?"
"But isn't this place..."
Ash and the other two were shocked.
"That's right. Usually, besides dealing with Gym challengers, I come here to train when I am free. The Pokémon here are all very strong and excellent. They are great partners for training," Erika answered with a smile.
"But Gym Leader Erika, isn't this... Team Rocket's private property?"
Ash's face wrinkled up. He hesitated for a moment but still asked Erika.
Hearing this, Erika's expression changed slightly, but it quickly returned to normal.
Seeing this, the clever Green took Silver and moved a bit further away from Erika. From the moment Erika appeared, she felt something was off.
This Gym Leader of the Celadon Gym definitely had a close connection to Team Rocket.
It was shocking. The Celadon Gym was an official Gym, yet she had an unclear relationship with Team Rocket.
"So, Ash, you knew. Yes, the World Tree Paradise does belong to Team Rocket," Erika sighed softly.
"Then you..."
"Ash, do you remember the time I was with Damian?" Erika regained her proper, reserved smile.
Silver's expression shifted when he heard that. This Erika had a relationship with his brother?
"I remember," Ash said, his brow furrowed. Of course he remembered; Damian had taken Erika away.
"Perhaps the things Damian said that time caused a misunderstanding. He is a person who always has a twisted sense of humor. Actually, I was not kidnapped by him."
Erika lowered her head slightly in embarrassment. She brushed her black hair away from her forehead with her right hand.
"At that time, Damian and I were on a date."
Silence.
After Erika finished speaking, the atmosphere instantly became quiet.
Ash and Misty looked at Erika with their mouths hanging open. Brock's eyes were also twitching.
Green was also incredibly shocked. A date?
Silver's thoughts were completely different from the other four. First, he was surprised, and then he looked at Erika thoughtfully.
If Erika was dating his brother, then shouldn't he call Erika "Sister-in-law"?
Silver thought to himself. His brother actually found a girlfriend; that was a good thing. Should he notify their father?
Wait, come to think of it, when they were in the Johto region, wasn't his brother traveling with several girls? And the relationships seemed unusual.
If that was the case...
Could his brother be a total playboy?
Silver's eyes looked a bit blank. No, no, his brother wasn't that kind of person. Maybe his brother was just passionate.
Yes, it must be that.
"But... but Damian is the leader of Team Rocket," Ash finally snapped out of it. His tone was very complicated.
"Ash, the current Team Rocket is completely different from the old Team Rocket. Also, I want to tell you something," Erika shook her head.
"My relationship with Damian was approved by President Goodshow," Erika said with a smile.
"???"
Green was shocked once again. No, was something wrong with Goodshow's head?
An official Gym Leader of his own region is dating the boss of Team Rocket, and you actually approve?
Is he really not afraid that Erika will be pulled into Team Rocket?
Ash's brain couldn't process this information either.
"In short, Damian and the current Team Rocket are not what you imagine. You will slowly understand in the future."
"For now, I will escort you out of the World Tree Paradise," Erika said, laughing as she saw them struggling to digest the information.
"Wait! Gym Leader Erika, I have business inside that World Tree," Ash said quickly.
"Enter the World Tree? Humans cannot go inside the World Tree," Erika tilted her head in confusion.
"Huh?" Ash was stunned.
"The World Tree is not a normal tree. It is a different kind of living life form. It has a unique defense mechanism. Pokémon can enter, but humans cannot. Once a human enters the World Tree, they will be swallowed by it," Erika explained in detail.
"Even Damian cannot go inside."
"But..."
Ash felt his head grow twice as large. How could there be such a thing?
He believed Erika's words. Erika had no reason to lie to him.
"And even if I didn't stop you, you wouldn't be able to get in. There are many Pokémon guarding the World Tree now. The Landorus you just met is only one of them. There are also Tornadus, Thundurus, Zapdos, and so on."
"There is also an even stronger guardian sleeping underground near the World Tree. If you continue to approach the World Tree, you will wake it up. That would be very dangerous," Erika's tone was calm as she described the dangers of the World Tree.
The guardian Erika mentioned was Regigigas.
And besides Regigigas, there was also Mew inside the World Tree. Trying to force a way in?
Unless it was Damian or that old monster in Johto, it was simply impossible.
"Sss~" Green couldn't help but suck in a breath.
Wow, no wonder.
Green had always been confused. As Team Rocket's largest private property in Kanto, the security outside was strict, but in Green's opinion, it still wasn't enough for a place as important as the World Tree Paradise.
It turned out the outer security was only part of it. The real "security" was inside.
"..."
Ash felt numb.
"This..."
Silver spoke for the first time. For a moment, he didn't know what to call Erika.
"What is it, sir?" Erika turned her gaze toward Silver with confusion.
"...Sister-in-law, I want to know where my brother is."
"?"
Erika looked at Silver in shock. Then, her eyebrows narrowed, and her face looked a bit unhappy.
Who are you calling sister-in-law?
"Sir, even for me, if you make such a joke, I will get angry."
"No, this is a misunderstanding. Gym Leader Erika, Silver is Damian's brother. His biological brother," Green explained quickly.
Damian's biological brother?
Erika was shocked. That didn't seem right; she had never heard that Damian had a brother.
"Silver was kidnapped when he was little. He only recently reunited with Damian and Gym Leader Giovanni, so you don't know yet."
Green roughly understood why Erika reacted that way.
"..."
Erika understood. However, she still sent a message to Giovanni to confirm. Since they were both official Gym Leaders, Erika had Giovanni's contact information.
Giovanni quickly gave her a definite answer.
"I am sorry. I was not aware of this," Erika said, her face turning a bit red. After all, Silver had just called her "Sister-in-law."
"It's okay, Sister-in-law. I want to know where my brother is," Silver repeated.
"Do you not have Damian's contact information?" Erika was quite puzzled.
"Ever since I found out he joined Team Rocket, my brother has not replied to my messages for a long time," Silver said in a low voice.
"I understand."
Erika sighed in her heart. So it was similar to Gym Leader Giovanni. But it seemed that Silver really cared about the bond between him and Damian.
"As for Damian, he will return to Kanto soon. But as for exactly where he is, I am not sure," Erika replied.
In fact, Damian would return to Kanto today.
But Erika was saying this on purpose. Since Damian was intentionally avoiding Silver, she certainly wouldn't tell him.
Silver remained silent.
Afterward, Ash and the others were escorted out of the World Tree Paradise by Erika.
"I can't believe Gym Leader Erika is so close to Team Rocket," Misty said. She turned her head and saw Erika standing in front of several muscular men, seemingly lecturing them.
Erika was small, but those big men didn't even dare to lift their heads. They were probably getting a scolding from her.
"The most important thing is that the League's current attitude toward Team Rocket is indeed subtle," Brock said thoughtfully. He had been paying attention to this.
"Because the leader is different now. The current Team Rocket seems to be trying to change," Green said while sucking on a lollipop. Then she looked at Silver.
"Silver, what do you plan to do now?"
"I want to find my brother. No matter what, I want to ask him some things in person," Silver said in a low voice.
"Fine, fine. Then I can only help you," Green said, spreading her hands helplessly.
Ash was also feeling very troubled. He couldn't get into the World Tree, so how could he help Lucario understand what happened back then?
Originally, Ash wanted to help Lucario settle this obsession, and then he could catch it.
After all, he really liked this Lucario.
"Well, let's stop here for now. Ash, Misty, Brock—bye-bye! We need to go to Viridian City first."
Green waved goodbye to Ash's group.
"See you."
They watched Green and Silver's figures disappear from their sight.
"Damian's brother... he looks like a strong rival, Ash," Brock reminded Ash. Silver's strength was definitely very high. He just didn't know if Silver would participate in the Indigo Conference.
"Yeah~ but I won't lose to him!"
Ash had a lot of confidence in himself. He must win the championship at this Indigo Conference!
Even if it was his brother Red, he would definitely defeat him! Not to mention this Silver.
It just so happened that he couldn't beat Damian yet, but was it possible he couldn't even beat Damian's brother?
"Oh? It seems you are very confident, Ash."
Suddenly, a laughing voice sounded behind Ash and the other two.
"Of course... wait, this voice. Damian?!"
Ash instinctively replied before realizing that the voice didn't belong to Misty or Brock.
He turned his head to look, and sure enough!
"Yo~ it's been a while, Ash. And Misty and Brock. You all look quite well."
The corners of Damian's mouth curled up as he looked at Ash with a smile.
Behind Damian followed Caitlin, Platinum, and Paul.
"Damian! When did you get here?"
Ash was very cautious. He completely couldn't trust Damian, especially after what happened last time.
Although Erika said it was a date between her and Damian, didn't that make it even more annoying?
Damian had completely played him back then! How hateful!
"Probably right when you guys came out. I saw you were with Silver."
"Then why didn't you come out? Your brother has been looking for you."
Ash couldn't help but frown.
"It's not the right time yet," Damian laughed softly.
He wasn't ready to meet Silver yet. The timing wasn't right, so when he saw Ash and the others, he didn't appear.
"Speaking of which, Ash, you were very impolite today. Intruding into my private property without permission—that isn't very good, is it?"
Then, the corners of Damian's mouth curled up slightly. Erika had just sent him a message.
"It's not like I did it on purpose. When we went in, we clearly didn't see anyone."
Ash's face immediately looked embarrassed. For a simple person like him, this was indeed a bit awkward.
Especially since this was Damian's private property.
"And, if it wasn't to help Lucario find the truth about what happened back then, I wouldn't have come to this place."
"Oh?" Damian raised an eyebrow.
"That Lucario from Cameran Palace?"
"How did you know?" Ash looked at Damian in confusion.
"I happened to see records about it. After all, it's not very far from Rota Street."
The plot had completely changed. Normally, the plot of the Lucario and the Mystery of Mew movie should have happened after Ash came back from his travels in Hoenn.
But that didn't matter.
"Ash, I can help you once. You must be very troubled," Damian thought for a moment and said to Ash with a smile.
He suddenly had a good idea.
"What scheme do you have now?"
However, Ash had learned to be smart this time. He looked at Damian with caution.
"Tsk~ you really are... do I look like some kind of bad person?" Damian couldn't help but click his tongue.
If you aren't a bad person, does that make you a good one?
Misty couldn't help but complain in her mind, though she only dared to do it internally.
Ash remained silent, and this deafening silence undoubtedly showed what he was thinking.
"Don't worry. I am a person who never lies. But if you want me to help you, you have to pass a test first."
"What test?"
Perhaps Erika's words from earlier had caused a subtle change in Ash's mindset. His resistance to Damian wasn't actually that heavy anymore.
"These two are Platinum and Paul," Damian grinned, introducing Platinum and Paul behind him to Ash.
Platinum looked at Ash and the others with curiosity and gave them a friendly nod, while Paul remained expressionless.
"They are both from Sinnoh and are new members who just joined Team Rocket. Also, they are rookie Trainers of the same age as you."
"Just like you, they are very talented rookies, Ash."
Damian smiled and held up one finger.
"Pick one of them as an opponent for a friendly battle. If you can win, I will help you with one favor."
"But I am a person who likes fairness. So, if you lose, you must promise to do one thing for me. How about it?"
That was right. Whether it was Platinum or Paul, seeing Ash fight them would be very interesting.
And no matter who won or lost, there was no loss for Damian.
Hearing this, Ash looked at Platinum and Paul and fell into deep thought.
Should he agree? Or rather, which one should he pick as an opponent?
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