Maxie lowered the hand that had been covering his neck.
A red, blood-stained mark was visible beneath it.
By now, it had already clotted into a scar; his recovery ability was truly extraordinary.
But Maxie's face was as dark as the deepest water.
That they had rescued Erick, that he had been ambushed—those were things he could still accept. The only thing he could not stomach was that the metal box had been taken from him.
It had been a long time since he had shown that box to anyone.
Because he knew very well how important it was to him.
However, when Courtney suggested revealing something no infiltrator could possibly resist, the only thing Maxie could think of was that box.
And indeed, everything had gone just as he expected: by displaying it and explaining the value of what it contained, he managed to expose the mole.
Though the surprise had shocked him, he also felt a certain sense of pride.
He thought that in the game of chess he was playing against the League, he had just scored a point.
But right at the peak of satisfaction, someone poured a bucket of cold water over him.
He had lost both the man and the treasure — that was exactly his situation now.
Hence, his expression was as grim as it was.
"That so-called Sacred Church..." he muttered through clenched teeth.
However, with Maxie's intelligence, there was no way he would believe Cain's excuse so easily.
Besides, he had never even heard of such a "Sacred Church." How could he believe such an organization existed?
In his mind, it was nothing more than an improvised lie made up by the enemy.
Cain, of course, never expected Maxie to believe him right away.
But if Maxie ever happened to encounter genuine members of the Sacred Church, he would have no doubts about the truth of what Cain had said.
Psychic power, mastery of alternate space, the ability to hide in complete silence...
Even if the Sacred Church dove into the River Styx itself to cleanse their sins, they would never wash away suspicion.
And even more so considering that such a river didn't even exist in the Pokémon world.
The last words Cain had improvised served as the perfect trap to divert blame; his talent for incriminating others was already well-honed.
Not long after the explosion in Maxie's tent,
Archie arrived with his men.
When he saw Maxie's expression and the state of the camp, he couldn't help but be surprised.
"What happened here?" he asked, frowning.
At that time, Team Aqua and Team Magma were still cooperating; if something bad happened to Team Magma, it brought no benefit to Team Aqua.
Especially since neither of the two artifacts had yet been found.
Maxie shot him a glance and immediately struck him off his list of suspects.
With Archie's intelligence, there was no way he would do something like this.
He shook his head slowly; right now, he was like a mute forced to swallow bitter grass, unable to explain a thing.
To tell Archie that what had been stolen was something he had taken from his home village?
He'd only laugh at his misfortune and mock him cruelly.
There was no benefit in saying a word.
Since Maxie said nothing, none of his subordinates dared to speak either.
With an icy face, he stepped back into his tent.
Beside him, three Pokémon radiated such a menacing aura that no one dared underestimate them.
As he passed by Archie, he suddenly stopped.
"Have you ever heard... of the Sacred Church?" Maxie asked.
"The Sacred Church?" Archie frowned, thought for a moment, then, certain, shook his head.
"No, never," he said flatly.
Just as Maxie expected.
He knew Archie wasn't lying.
But precisely because of that, his face grew even darker.
With no clues to avenge himself or recover what was lost, the rage in his chest was indescribable.
When he returned to his tent, he looked at the table—where six Poké Balls had once been neatly arranged.
They were gone too.
Instantly, fury exploded within him.
Bang!
He slammed his palm violently on the table.
"Useless! Useless! All of you damned useless fools!"
His roar echoed throughout the cavern.
Archie heard it; although he didn't know why someone as composed as Maxie had lost his temper, deep down, he was delighted to see him lose control.
What a great day!
Misery loves company—while Maxie raged with fury, Archie was secretly pleased.
"Come on, everyone! Work harder! Find those things as soon as possible! When this mission's over, you'll all get a big reward!" Archie shouted.
"Yes, sir!" his men replied.
Two clear contrasts emerged at once: Team Aqua's members wore barely concealed smiles, while Team Magma's faces were tense and grim.
With Maxie in such a rage, no one dared provoke him again.
...
The moment the alternate-space portal fully closed,
Cain collapsed heavily to the ground.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead.
That was close...
So close...
If not for Slowking's psychic support, he wouldn't have lasted even a second after Mightyena reacted.
Luckily, he managed to hold on until the end, though it slightly delayed the teleportation, preventing an immediate escape.
Still, Cain already had a backup plan.
If he couldn't run, the best option was to remain in the alternate space for a while.
He didn't believe Maxie could possibly guess which dimension he had entered, much less keep watch on the exit twenty-four hours a day.
He exhaled a long sigh.
Gengar emerged from his shadow, carrying the gravely injured Erick in his arms.
The shadow Gengar inhabited could also be considered a form of alternate space.
Erick had lost consciousness long before being rescued.
He probably wouldn't even know that someone had saved him.
Cain glanced at the body lying on the ground.
In truth, what had driven him to attack first wasn't rescuing Erick, but the contents of the metal box in Maxie's possession.
Erick was little more than an "extra bonus."
Though admittedly, quite a useful one.
"Mismagius," Cain called softly.
"Miiis~~" the Pokémon floated out from his shadow.
It brushed gently against his cheek.
Cain had summoned it to create a dream.
And what kind of dream?
Very simple.
To recreate all the experiences he himself had gone through before being taken to Trial Island by Team Rocket: to show Erick, a member of the League elite, the suffering and misery of those struggling to survive at the very bottom of the world.
For that, Cain didn't even need to invent scenarios.
Every night, when he closed his eyes, the first things he saw were memories of his childhood—scavenging for food in dumpsters, fighting to survive in the slums.
Now, he would let Erick live it firsthand.
As Mismagius received the memories projected by Cain, her red eyes gleamed.
She cast her spell on Erick and pulled him into the dream realm.
Then, Cain drew from his storage the metal box he had taken from Maxie, made of some unknown material.
He slowly opened it—inside was an object marked with black, yellow, and red stripes, upon which the symbol "Ω" could be faintly seen.
"If I'm not mistaken... this should be the key to awakening Groudon's primal form," Cain thought silently.
(End of chapter)