Chapter 333: Caitlin: "Mammon Has Me In His Heart!" — The Interview Begins
Morning came again.
"Mammon, good morning~"
When Mammon woke up and came downstairs, Caitlin was already seated on the sofa in a long pink dress, legs together, leaning slightly to one side, a morning newspaper in hand.
Her long golden hair spilled across the sofa cushions, striking in its effortless elegance.
"Morning. Where are Dawn and Serena?" Mammon stifled a yawn.
"Training out back — both working hard as ever," Caitlin said with a faint smile.
"Well, they're both girls with dreams to chase — exactly the age to be putting in the work." Mammon chuckled.
"And you, Caitlin?"
"I'm planning to watch your interview once it's over. Mammon, why don't you try this outfit on?"
Caitlin rose slowly, her gorgeous golden hair flowing like liquid mercury, held aloft with a faint psychic touch that kept it from settling.
She walked over to the wall, picked up a black outfit, and brought it to Mammon.
"You bought this yesterday?" Mammon looked mildly surprised.
"Mm-hm~ today's your big interview, you'll be on television — a fresh outfit seemed like the right move." Caitlin said with a smile.
"Picked entirely to your measurements, and the style should suit your taste too."
"Sounds good."
Mammon didn't fuss over it — there was never any need for that kind of formality between him and Caitlin.
She really did know his style well; the outfit was a full black ensemble — a short-sleeved, casual button-down up top, paired with black slacks below.
Mammon undid the top button of the shirt collar, and instantly a loose, unrestrained charisma settled over him. A delicate silver necklace and a black Z-Ring completed the look.
"Mammon really does look good~"
Caitlin's beautiful eyes seemed to shimmer like a pool of autumn water as she walked slowly up to him. The man she'd chosen really was the most handsome man in the world.
She rose onto her toes, her slender, pale arms lifting to straighten his collar.
The Psychic-type girl's fair, delicate face was right there, close enough that Mammon could clearly see her long lashes trembling faintly, and beneath them, her lovely, striking eyes. Her elegant, refined nose. Her thin, soft, faintly pink lips. Her cheeks, so fair he could almost make out individual pores.
Caitlin really was beautiful.
Mammon simply gazed at her quietly, the girl's fragrance filling the air between them.
Caitlin seemed to notice his gaze too — her expression stayed outwardly unchanged.
But in truth, the tips of the Psychic-type girl's ears had already flushed a faint red.
Without warning, Mammon leaned down.
For an instant, the girl's eyes went utterly blank.
A warm, soft touch appeared, then vanished, just as quickly. Caitlin lifted a hand to her lips, touching them gently.
Brief as it had been, there was no mistaking it — Mammon had just kissed her!
Her first kiss.
Thump. Thump.
Her heart began racing instantly, her mind briefly short-circuiting — she genuinely had no idea what to do next.
Should she act bashful and cover her face? Wouldn't that seem too deliberate? Or pretend nothing had happened? But Mammon had just KISSED her! How was she supposed to just pretend that away?!
Aaaaahhh!!
Caitlin's emotions were, for once, entirely beyond her own control. Honestly, Mammon — why so sudden?! She hadn't had a moment to prepare herself at all. If she'd only leaned into it a little more herself, wouldn't that have been better?
She could feel herself completely losing her composure.
No, no — elegance. I have to stay elegant.
"Sorry, Caitlin — that was a little impulsive of me..."
"It's... it's fine."
Before Mammon could even finish, Caitlin blurted it out, her voice quick and nervous, unable to hide the note of genuine delight underneath it.
This was extraordinarily rare for her. Ever since her encounter with Mammon back in Alola, Caitlin had always carried herself as an elegant, composed young lady, in every circumstance, without exception — "elegance" had become the through-line in everything she did.
But right now, in this moment, that elegance had slipped away from her — because hearing Mammon's words had left her instinctively, helplessly flustered.
"I believe it wasn't intentional on Mammon's part, and besides..."
Caitlin bit her lip gently. She desperately wanted to seize this moment, with the mood exactly right, to confess to him properly.
Hadn't Mammon's own words — "a little impulsive" — just proven that she genuinely held a place in his heart?
But the moment she thought of his current girlfriend, the rush of excitement in Caitlin's mind cooled instantly.
No. Not now.
She was Caitlin — an elegant young lady of a noble Sinnoh family — and there was absolutely no way she was going to become some opportunistic mistress, stealing someone else's boyfriend the moment his back was turned.
She would win, fair and square, with elegance and dignity, against Mammon's current girlfriend, and claim her rightful place as his primary wife!
Caitlin had no intention of letting her relationship with Mammon become something people could criticize or attack down the road. That, absolutely, would not do.
Things had already come this far, through so much time and so many events — there was no need to rush things now, of all moments.
Caitlin trusted herself. She, and no one else, was the perfect wife for Mammon.
"Let's have breakfast first. Miss Viola isn't due until this afternoon."
Caitlin composed herself, letting her light, elegant smile settle back over her face as she looked at Mammon, her voice soft once more.
Her lovely eyes curved slightly, both charming and adorable.
Clearly, our elegant Psychic-type young lady was in a genuinely wonderful mood right now.
"Sounds good."
Mammon looked into her beautiful eyes and offered a smile of his own.
—
Half past noon.
The villa's doorbell rang.
"Miss Viola."
Platinum walked over and opened the door, revealing Viola standing there — behind her, a cameraman with equipment slung over his shoulder, and a blonde-haired Violet.
"Dawn, is Mr. Mammon here?"
"Yes, please, come in."
After changing out of their shoes and heading into the living room, Viola caught sight of Mammon seated on the sofa.
Honestly, Viola felt a mix of excitement and genuine nervousness right now.
This young man was the leader of Kanto's single most powerful underground force!
Violet felt just as tense — if anything, more cautious than her sister right now. Only the cameraman, oblivious to any of it, gazed with curiosity at this group of striking, youthful faces.
"Well, well — Miss Viola's here, and our camera guy too. This must be Gym Leader Violet, right? Pleasure to finally meet you."
Mammon greeted the three of them warmly, his smile bright and easygoing.
"Come on, sit down first. Tea? Juice? Or coffee?"
He ushered the three of them to sit, his manner genuinely gracious.
"Coffee's fine for us, Mr. Mammon, you're very kind."
Viola felt considerably more at ease now — at least for the moment, Mammon seemed genuinely friendly. Violet felt much the same, and regardless of what came next, she at least felt herself relax a little — this didn't seem as dangerous as she'd imagined.
"Alright — Tapu Fini."
Mammon called over to Tapu Fini, who'd been watching TV nearby.
No way around it — Jirachi, Victini, and Mesprit were all just too small for this job.
Tapu Fini gave a distinctly human-like little pout, floated over to the coffee machine, and poured three cups of coffee, then used its psychic power to guide the three cups over to the coffee table.
"What Pokémon is that?"
Violet asked, thoroughly curious. As a trainer herself, she'd never actually seen a Tapu Fini in person before, though the silhouette rang a faint bell.
"Tapu Fini — one of the guardian deities of the Alola islands. Caught it myself," Mammon answered.
A genuine Land Spirit Pokémon!
Violet perked up with excitement — all four Tapu were classified in the Pokédex as "Land Spirit Pokémon."
"Could I take a photo of it?" Violet asked. Beyond being Santalune City's Gym Leader, she was also a Pokémon photographer — yes, a photographer too, known to some as "the girl who never misses a smile."
"You'll have to ask Tapu Fini herself. If she's willing to be photographed, go right ahead."
Mammon didn't simply grant permission outright, and that response alone shifted Violet's impression of him further still. A man who respected a Pokémon's own wishes this thoroughly — how could he possibly be part of the ruthless, remorseless Team Rocket she'd read about?
Violet moved closer to Tapu Fini, hoping to get a few good shots, but Tapu Fini's whole attention was clearly locked on the TV, coolly ignoring her entirely. The girl didn't give up, though, continuing to try and win her over — genuinely amusing to watch unfold.
"Mr. Mammon, I might ask a few fairly pointed questions during the interview — you wouldn't mind that, would you?"
Viola, ignoring her sister's antics for the moment, tested the waters carefully with Mammon.
"Oh? Not at all — I've got nothing to hide. Though, could I get a look at the finished cut before it airs?"
Mammon raised an eyebrow at that, giving Viola a knowing half-smile.
Judging by that question, this woman had clearly already learned exactly who he was. Which suited him just fine, honestly — the corner of Mammon's mouth curled up further.
"Of course," Viola said, her eyes flickering with interest.
"Well then, Mr. Mammon — after a short break, shall we get started?"
"Sure, no problem."
Mammon had no objections. The cameraman began adjusting lighting and angles; makeup wasn't really necessary, and Mammon didn't much care about it anyway.
At exactly one o'clock, the interview officially began. Caitlin and the others sat on a separate sofa off to the side, out of frame.
Viola held a microphone, seated directly across from Mammon.
"Welcome to our special feature segment. I'm your host, Viola, and today's guest is Mr. Mammon, visiting us from the Kanto region. Mr. Mammon, please say hello to our viewers."
Viola's smile was warm and engaging, her delivery crisp and clear.
"Hi everyone, I'm Mammon."
Mammon played along easily, smiling pleasantly.
"Many of you may not be familiar with Mr. Mammon yet. From what I've gathered, Mr. Mammon is the eldest son of Kanto's Viridian Gym Leader, Giovanni, and just began his career as a trainer last year."
"Last year, you also competed in Kanto's own Indigo Conference, where you posted an absolutely unprecedented result — defeating every single opponent using only one Pokémon, from start to finish."
"And in the Indigo Conference's final match, you completed the sweep using nothing but an Incineroar, claiming the Conference title outright."
"Could I ask, Mr. Mammon — what was going through your mind at the time?"
Viola asked, genuinely curious.
This was information she'd specifically dug up — Mammon's entire trainer career had opened with him single-handedly dominating the Indigo Conference.
"My mindset? Nothing particularly special, honestly." Mammon crossed his legs, mulling it over.
"I entered the Indigo Conference hoping to fight some genuinely strong opponents. Honestly, though, I was pretty disappointed — because once I actually got in there, I realized..."
"That particular Conference's field of competitors was, frankly, pretty low quality. Third-rate trainers running fourth-rate Pokémon — not a single one worth fighting. Way too weak. Genuinely boring."
Mammon spread his hands, the picture of blameless innocence.
Dude. Could you maybe be a LITTLE more tactful?
Viola nearly lost her composure entirely. This was going to air on TELEVISION. You couldn't lead with a scorched-earth insult to every other trainer in the field as your FIRST answer! The other Indigo Conference competitors from that year were going to be devastated watching this!
The cameraman was suppressing a laugh, but professional discipline kept him from actually cracking up — instead, he gave Mammon a discreet thumbs-up. Absolutely savage. Love it.
Over on the other sofa, Caitlin was still smiling faintly, while Platinum and Serena looked thoughtful. Mr. Mammon really cleared out the entire Indigo Conference with just one Pokémon, back then?
Violet, meanwhile, just watched Mammon with wide, blinking eyes — honestly, setting aside any preconceptions, she genuinely found him handsome. The young man's brash confidence and swagger came through so vividly in every word he said.
"Ha... well, sounds like Mr. Mammon wasn't especially satisfied with his tournament run. I actually watched footage of that Conference's final match, and a lot of viewers at the time felt it was a shame you didn't go on to challenge the Elite Four afterward."
"Why didn't you take up that challenge at the time? Was it a lack of confidence?"
Viola quickly moved past that particular topic, pivoting to a new question.
"I just wasn't especially interested in becoming Kanto's Champion," Mammon answered plainly.
"Whoa~ 'not interested,' not 'not confident'? You really don't lack for self-assurance, Mr. Mammon."
Viola let out an exaggerated, playful gasp.
"Well then — after the year ended, you joined Team Rocket right at the start of this year. Could you tell us why you decided to join this evil organization?"
Viola pressed her lips together, her tone carrying a note of careful hesitation mixed with barely-restrained excitement, laying out her third question.
Wait — evil organization?!
The cameraman froze, stunned, still holding the camera on autopilot.
Violet's whole body went rigid instantly, staring at Mammon with unmistakable tension.
That question — it had just openly exposed Mammon's true identity!
Mammon, for his part, didn't look remotely surprised. He leaned back into the sofa, resting his chin on one hand, his smile taking on a faintly wicked edge.
"Why did I join Team Rocket, huh?"
Mammon repeated the question slowly, mulling it over. Now, how should I spin this one?
(End of chapter)
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