"How dare you?!"
"Why did you kill Sylas?! Are you insane?!"
"For now, we can only lie low. I already got some inside information. Westin has left the Imperial Capital, but nobody knows where he went."
"He's probably coming after us. Everyone needs to stay quiet for a while."
"If you run into Westin, just consider yourself unlucky. And if you die, don't drag the rest of us down with you!"
No one in the God's Coffin Organization had expected Dante to be so bold — bold enough to kill Sylas without hesitation.
Sylas's death set off a chain reaction, and word that Westin had left the capital spread fear through the whole organization.
Even a group as powerful as God's Coffin had to go into hiding for a while. They all knew Westin's reputation. As one of the hardliners among the Champions, he was known for being unbending and merciless.
Running into an ordinary Champion still left some hope of walking away alive. But running into Westin meant only one outcome — a fight to the death. He never accepted surrender. Facing him meant facing a dead end.
They couldn't beat him, and they couldn't outrun him either. That was the most frightening part of all.
......
The fallout from Sylas's death kept spreading.
Even though Jacob had officially been cleared of any involvement, he could tell someone was still watching him, listening in on him. Because of this, Jacob kept a low profile, settling into a simple routine — training, battling, and research, day after day.
......
A week later.
Imperial Capital Giant Laboratory.
Jacob's office.
"Sigh." Jacob rubbed his aching head and stretched with a heavy sigh.
Only here, in a private, closed-off place like the Giant Laboratory, could Jacob really let his guard down. He had no idea when the surveillance would end, but he was sure it wouldn't be soon.
"Jacob." Sylvia looked over at him, her eyes flickering — she had already guessed why he was sighing. "If you're feeling worn out, come to the lab more often to rest," she said gently. "No one keeps watch on you in here."
"I'm fine, really. I've gotten used to it — it's just a little annoying." Jacob changed the subject. "By the way, how's the progress on the artificial Pokémon coming along?"
"It should be finished soon," Sylvia answered seriously. "Actually, Jacob, there's something I need to talk to you about."
"What is it?"
"It's about Lucia going to school," Sylvia said softly. "She's still young. She can't just stay shut up at home forever, cut off from the outside world."
"I already took care of it. I found a school — she can start after the New Year. Oh, and I also finished registering all of your household records. Lucia is listed under your name now. Karl and Eve are registered too." Jacob went on, "After the New Year, you'll be able to move around more freely. Just remember to still keep a low profile. Your appearances tend to draw attention…"
Speaking of appearances, Lucia stood out the least, being the tomboyish one of the group.
Sylvia, on the other hand, was a different story — golden hair, blue eyes, a striking foreign beauty with a figure that turned heads wherever she went. Blending into a crowd wasn't easy for her.
As for Karl and Eve, being half-human, half-Pokémon, their looks were even more unusual, almost like something out of a Legendary Pokémon myth. Their long, emerald-green hair seemed to shimmer faintly, catching everyone's eye.
That striking hair color reminded Jacob of a certain Fairy-type Pokémon often nicknamed the "bride Pokémon."
"Speaking of Karl and Eve, how have they been lately?" Jacob asked. It had been a while since he'd checked in on them.
Sylvia stepped behind him and began kneading his shoulders, working out the tension. "They're doing a bit better now. Still a little shy and withdrawn, but they've come a long way. They get along really well with Lucia, though. I think it's because all three of them can use Psychic-type abilities — they act just like siblings. They're very close."
Hearing that, Jacob smiled and teased, "If those three are siblings, then what does that make you? Their mother?"
"Honestly, it does feel like I'm their mother. I'm not even married, and somehow I already have three kids." Sylvia leaned down and murmured near his ear, "Which would make you their father, wouldn't it?"
"Uh… don't say things like that." Jacob felt her warm breath against his ear and quickly changed the subject.
Sylvia's expression fell slightly at his reaction, and she shot him a half-annoyed look before continuing, "Anyway, want to go see them? I set them up to help out in the lab. They should be in the back mountain right now, taking care of the Pokémon there."
"Sure, let's go. Nothing else to do anyway." Since he had free time, he figured he might as well see how they were doing.
"Oh, and Jacob — I have to tell you, Karl and Eve are both really sharp. I think it might be their Psychic abilities at work, because they pick things up incredibly fast. Even though they only started learning after me, their grasp of the language is already better than mine was at that stage. And they're learning scientific concepts so quickly, they might soon be on par with proper Pokémon researchers." Sylvia smiled proudly as she spoke.
"Really?" Jacob smiled too — that was a pleasant surprise. Then his tone turned more serious. "Make sure you also teach them basic everyday skills. They've been away from normal society for far too long. Do what you can to help them live like ordinary people again."
"I will."
As they talked, Jacob suddenly remembered something. "By the way — one of the people who attacked me was Priest-4. We actually fought."
"Priest-4?" Sylvia's smile vanished instantly. Her eyes went wide as she stared at him. "Didn't you say it was only Priest-10 who attacked you?"
"Given the situation, it was easier to just say I was attacked by one person. If I told everyone I'd survived facing Priest-4, Priest-10, and a reserve Priest-4 all at once, people would start wondering how I made it out alive." Jacob explained briefly, then asked, "Do you know anything about Latios? Has a Pokémon like that ever shown up overseas?"
"Latios?" Sylvia's brow furrowed as she thought hard. "I think I remember my father mentioning once that both Latios and Latias appeared somewhere before, but I can't recall the details."
"If we follow that lead, we might be able to track down Priest-4," Jacob said seriously.
"Wait — isn't Priest-4's signature Pokémon Deoxys?" Sylvia asked, confused.
"He's got more than one Legendary Pokémon. Besides Deoxys, he also has a Latios."
"Then I'll start looking into it right away." A spark lit up in Sylvia's eyes — she had finally found a lead worth chasing, and she could hardly wait to start.
"No rush. Let's go see Lucia and the others in the back mountain first."