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"You can arrange this. If it really doesn't work, then let Silver take over."
Giovanni was noncommittal; his demands were not many anyway.
As long as the strength was good enough, and they were one of his own, that was fine.
His thoughts were consistent with Mammon's. This Viridian Gym was, after all, their 'family business,' and he wasn't at ease leaving it to outsiders.
"Silver is not suitable. His personality…"
Mammon raised an eyebrow. Was Silver suitable to be a Gym Leader?
Thinking of Silver's rather reclusive personality, Mammon still shook his head, fearing that those who came to challenge the Viridian Gym would have their mentality shattered by Silver.
Moreover, Silver had always been quite annoyed by the weak, and he also had a hidden sharp tongue.
"That's true. This matter is not urgent. How do you plan to proceed?"
Giovanni thought about it and it seemed to be true. He then smiled and skipped the topic, asking Mammon.
He was, of course, asking about the decisive battle with the League.
"Since it's a decisive battle with the League, of course, there must be an optimal battlefield."
Mammon leaned comfortably on the sofa, revealing a big, sunny smile.
A decisive battle with the League?
Upon hearing this, Serena and Alexa, who didn't understand, were startled. Did Team Rockets still have a battle to fight with the League??
"Oh?"
Giovanni paused, looking at Mammon.
"Dad, do you know? Previously, a collector actively approached Archer, wanting Team Rockets to accept his commission."
Mammon lightly tapped his thigh with his fingers, his smile very deep.
"He wants to capture Lugia as his collection, and he's willing to offer very generous compensation."
Upon hearing this, Serena couldn't help but widen her eyes. Huh?
Lugia was a Legendary Pokémon in the myths and legends of the Kanto region. Was that collector crazy?
"Human ambition and desire always exceed imagination." Giovanni, however, chuckled lightly, not surprised at all.
"Yes, I was quite surprised by that. I had Archer investigate his background. Guess whose person he is?"
"There aren't many people in Kanto who can afford the reward for capturing Lugia. Is it Silph Co.'s?"
Giovanni pondered for a moment. A collector, especially one who dared to set his sights on a Legendary Pokémon like Lugia.
It also meant that ordinary 'collectibles' could no longer satisfy him, and he even claimed he could give Team Rockets extremely generous compensation.
The only consortium with such wealth was probably Silph Co.
"That's right. After Archer's in-depth investigation, he found that guy is indeed the son of Silph Co.'s president. Tsk~"
Mammon clicked his tongue. This was a top-tier rich second generation, no wonder he was so bored he even dared to target Lugia.
But this was also good; it provided a very good reason, didn't it?
"You want to target Silph Co.?" Giovanni understood, his eyes flickering slightly.
And Mammon wanted to put the battlefield in Saffron City!
"Ah~ After all, since we're going to fight, we always have to give the League a reason, right?" Mammon grinned.
"Team Rockets, disregarding the law, kidnapped the son of Silph Co.'s president and broke into the Silph Co. building, threatening the president to demand a large ransom."
"Isn't this a very good reason for the League to launch a punitive expedition?"
Mammon said with a smile. Hmm, they could also genuinely extort a sum from the Silph Co. president.
Consider it payment for educating his son.
Otherwise, if that kid really went to the Orange Islands to mess with the Legendary Birds and Lugia, the incident he'd cause would be no small matter.
By taking down this collector, they had, in a way, saved the world again, hadn't they?
"Otherwise, we can't just agree on a location and start fighting, right? That would be too boring."
After all, this was a battle that would determine the future world order, and Mammon felt it needed some style.
Moreover, he could also use this incident to demonstrate the difference between Team Rockets and the League.
If the League were to handle this matter, at most it would probably be an educational warning, but would that affect that collector?
The League's approach was simply too 'gentle,' but Team Rockets was different!
You have too much money, so you're bored and want to collect Lugia? Then if you don't have money, you won't be able to do such dangerous things, will you?
Solve the problem from the root, and it can also provide funds for Team Rockets. Kill two birds with one stone, perfect.
"You, child…" Giovanni couldn't help but laugh.
"And Saffron City is the largest and most developed metropolis in the Kanto region. Using this city to witness Team Rockets's victory is also the most perfect."
Mammon made no secret of his confidence.
"Is that so, Mammon? The League's attitude this time is also very serious. Are you sure you can win?"
Giovanni reminded Mammon.
"Dad, you know nothing about Team Rockets's power."
Mammon sneered.
No matter how many Champion-level combatants the League assembled, it would be meaningless!
Because Team Rockets would only win! Never lose!
After chatting with Giovanni for a while, Mammon then naturally suggested that Giovanni accept Alexa's interview.
It's worth mentioning that after Mammon acquired Lumiose Press, it had been renamed Arceus Publishing House.
Giovanni had no objections. It would just add some traffic and topics to his son's business.
After all, Giovanni had just become a Champion, and his popularity was at its peak now.
This interview could significantly boost Arceus Publishing House's traffic and attention, and since Giovanni was Mammon's father, this was also a key public opinion point.
So, no matter how you looked at it, once this interview was released, it would definitely go viral!
Time flew by, and it was already the next day.
Alexa went to prepare for the interview. Time was quite tight because Giovanni, having just become the Kanto Champion, had many things to attend to.
Mammon, on the other hand, was preparing to take Caitlin and the other two girls on a good tour of Kanto.
"Ash!!"
"Pika~ Chu!"
As soon as they arrived in the wild, Mammon heard a 'deeply affectionate' call, and the Growl of an electric mouse.
Mammon raised an eyebrow, turned his head, and sure enough, it was Ash's trio.
"Yo~ Ash, Misty, and Brock, what a coincidence."
Mammon greeted Ash's trio.
"Ha~ It really is you, Mammon. I knew the back looked like you."
Ash was very happy.
"Mammon, I saw your interview, and you guys even helped the Kalos League defeat Team Flare. That's amazing!"
Ash spoke excitedly. He had later seen Mammon's exclusive interview video.
Misty had stumbled upon discussions about Mammon out of boredom and then specifically searched for it. They really hadn't expected Mammon to have such a past.
"Thanks to Dawn and the others, I didn't really do much. Speaking of which, Ash, why didn't you guys come to participate in that Miare mission back then?"
Mammon asked curiously.
For such large-scale inter-regional missions, the organization would reimburse airfare and accommodation, so they naturally wouldn't miss such a mission due to a lack of funds.
"It's all because of this guy, Ash. At that time, he happened to take on a mission in a remote mountain forest. That place was so isolated there was hardly any signal. It took us two days to find that wild Totem Pokémon, and by the time we came out, the mission registration period had already passed."
Misty rolled her eyes and said faintly.
"So we could only give up." Brock was also helpless. Kalos region, publicly funded travel!!
"I couldn't help it either. Who knew it would be such a coincidence?" Ash was very wronged.
"It's alright. There should be other large-scale missions in the future."
Mammon smiled, comforting the trio.
"Speaking of which, Ash, have you had any new gains recently?"
"Yes! Mammon, look, I exchanged for a new Pokémon!"
Ash's mood instantly soared upon hearing this. He took out a Poké Ball and opened it. With a flash of white light, a small green creature landed in front of Ash.
It was still holding a blade of grass in its mouth, looking around.
This was none other than Treecko, the Grass-type starter from the Hoenn region.
"Treecko? Not bad. If Treecko's final evolution, Sceptile, can be trained, it will also be very strong."
Mammon chuckled lightly, praising it.
Is it really fate?
Mammon glanced at Treecko, then at the cheerful Ash. It seemed Ash had really taken his previous words to heart.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have specifically chosen a Grass-type Treecko to strengthen his team. After all, Bulbasaur refused to evolve, and Ash indeed needed a new Grass-type ace.
Among Ash's past Grass-type aces, Sceptile was indeed the most outstanding. In the Sinnoh Lily of the Valley Conference, it even helped Ash defeat Tobias's Darkrai.
"Hehe~ I don't know why, but I instantly took a liking to Treecko. I really like it." Ash was obviously very happy too.
"Keep up the good work~" Mammon encouraged Ash. He also thought highly of Ash.
"Mm-hmm~ Dawn, it's rare to meet you, do you want to battle again! I've gotten stronger now!"
Then Ash clenched his fist and looked at Platinum with burning fighting spirit.
Actually, he wanted to challenge Shinji even more, but unfortunately, Shinji wasn't here.
Platinum blinked.
"Sure, but…"
Platinum looked at Mammon. She didn't really have any objections, but she was afraid it would affect their schedule.
"It's alright, no rush." Mammon chuckled lightly.
"Ash, this is Serena from Kalos. She's also a Trainer your age, and her strength is also very good. You two can spar more."
Mammon then introduced Serena to Ash.
"Serena, this is Ash, and these two are his travel companions, Misty and Brock. Ash is a very excellent Trainer."
Upon hearing this, Ash's eyes immediately brightened quite a bit.
"Hello! I'm Ash from Pallet Town."
"Hello, I'm Serena."
Serena looked at Ash curiously. She didn't need to be told, she understood. Another 'monster' her age.
Then Ash and Platinum engaged in a sparring battle, but the result remained unchanged.
However, compared to the last time, Ash's strength had indeed improved a lot.
"Hmph~ Dawn is still super strong. I lost again."
Although he lost, Ash wasn't too disappointed. Instead, he was surprisingly quite satisfied.
After all, such a powerful opponent really made him incredibly excited!
In fact, because he joined Team Rockets, Ash could often spar with his colleagues who were also High-ranking Officers.
However, High-ranking Officers like Archer, how should one put it? Although they were indeed strong, Ash felt the pressure wasn't quite enough.
The only one who made Ash feel a strong sense of pressure was Sird of the Three Beasts.
Hmm, he couldn't beat Sird.
But after one battle, Sird ran off to Johto again. According to her, she went to fight Carr.
Ash didn't quite understand, he could only say that the relationship between these local Team Rockets High-ranking Officers was a bit subtle.
But Ash was regretful, because after Sird went to Johto, the local High-ranking Officers in Kanto were no longer his match.
"Actually, Ash, if you really want challenging opponents, you can find N to battle."
Mammon said to Ash. He estimated that N and Ash would have a lot in common.