"As expected of you, Caitlin. Nicely done."
After listening to Caitlin describe how she caught Tapu Lele, Damian couldn't help but smile in satisfaction.
He'd always felt that Trainers in this world were a little too "pure."
Catching Pokémon in the wild or whatever, they still insisted on a righteous one‑on‑one. Would it kill them to use some tricks?
And when it came to Trainer battles, people here didn't seem to value buffs all that much—especially low‑ to mid‑tier Trainers.
But stat boosts were a very straightforward way to power up a Pokémon, especially moves like Swords Dance and Nasty Plot, which directly raise physical Attack or Special Attack by two stages.
In an evenly matched fight, if one side manages to pull off a boost, the advantage in trading blows becomes ridiculously obvious.
Of course, in a fast, intense battle, finding the right timing to safely use a boosting move isn't easy.
But there are ways around that—especially in wild capture battles. You can, for example, use Light Screen or Reflect to cut damage, tank the opponent's hits, sacrifice some HP in exchange for boosts, and then seize control of the fight.
Naturally, that also depends on who you're up against. If the other side just throws out a Brick Break, you're in trouble.
(Brick Break can shatter "walls" like Light Screen and Reflect.)
"That's all stuff you taught me, Damian." Caitlin was clearly in a great mood—after all, she'd successfully caught Tapu Lele.
A legendary Pokémon! And a Psychic‑type that fit her perfectly, at that.
"But Lele actually agreed that quickly to have you as its Trainer?"
Propping his chin in his hand, Damian curiously sized up the mentally exhausted Tapu Lele.
Even though it looked like it was questioning its entire existence, Tapu Lele did seem to have accepted Caitlin as its Trainer.
That was way different from Tapu Fini. Back then, after being caught, Tapu Fini had still been muttering about wanting Damian to let it go.
Saying stuff like it still had to protect Poni Island and so on.
Tapu Lele: "…"
"Because we agreed from the start. If I could defeat it, it would follow me."
Caitlin wore a slightly awkward but still polite smile as she explained.
How was that the same?
Damian, do you seriously have no self‑awareness about how you forced Tapu Fini?
Tapu Fini never even wanted to battle you. It was trying to leave, and you had Gengar use Mean Look to pin it down and force it to fight, remember?
Tapu Lele felt even worse now. It already regretted everything. Please, just stop talking.
But actually going back on its word? Tapu Lele didn't have a thick enough skin for that. It was an island guardian deity, after all.
Besides, it didn't actually dislike this psychic human girl.
Still, if it followed this girl, what would happen to Akala Island?
All in all, Tapu Lele was extremely stressed and conflicted at the moment.
"I see. Looks like Tapu Lele's a very honorable kid—keeps its promises. Unlike Fini, who…"
Damian sighed theatrically, but before he could finish the sentence, a Poké Ball on his belt popped open. With a flash of white light—
The shell miss drifted up beside him, silently staring right at Damian with an expression that could only be described as… complicated.
"Lele??" Tapu Lele snapped out of its daze, eyes going wide as it stared at Tapu Fini.
Wait, Sis, you're here too? When did you get caught? How did I not know about this?
Tapu Fini responded with pure, heavy silence.
"Hey now, Fini, you're looking adorable as always. Here, have an apple."
Seeing Tapu Fini pop out on her own, Damian felt a little awkward. He quickly pulled a big, shiny red apple from his bag and offered it to her.
"Fini!!"
The shell miss was not happy. She'd heard everything just now!
How dare this bastard who toyed with her feelings do this to her? He'd obviously told her things like "Even if you don't have Poni Island anymore, you still have me." And now, just a few days later?
He was badmouthing her right in front of her former colleague! And Tapu Lele of all people—this cute‑on‑the‑outside, black‑hearted‑on‑the‑inside one!
"Hey, I was just joking, don't be mad. I'll buy you extra little cakes tonight, okay?"
"Fini!"
"Five's too many, come on. That's not how bargaining works. And you've been getting kinda round lately, maybe cut back on the sweets?"
"Fini?"
Tapu Fini fell into deep contemplation, looking down at her own belly.
…It did seem a bit more rounded.
Tapu Lele: (⊙.⊙)
From the looks of it, Fini actually got along pretty well with this human, Tapu Lele thought.
Come to think of it, if Tapu Fini could just up and go with a human, then it was fine if it did too, right? It wasn't like it was the one who left first.
Besides, Akala Island's Island Queen, Olivia, was still young. She probably wouldn't drop dead for a few decades, so there was no rush to pick the next Island Kahuna.
Worst case, it could just have Caitlin bring it back to Akala Island sometime, pick a new Island Kahuna, and call it a day.
In Tapu Lele's mind, this logic was flawless. It had been an island guardian deity for so long—what was wrong with taking a few decades off to relax?
Humans only lived about a hundred years anyway. So what if it skipped "work" for a hundred years?
Once Caitlin died of old age, it could just come back to Akala Island. Yeah. That sounded perfect.
Surely Tapu Fini was thinking the same thing, right?
Tapu Lele had completely convinced itself. It was a beautiful plan.
With Caitlin capturing Tapu Lele, her strength had skyrocketed, no question.
Damian was honestly happy about that. He figured it wouldn't be long before Caitlin officially became a Champion‑tier Trainer.
Strictly speaking, since Tapu Lele had acknowledged her, and with Metagross amped by all those buffs, Caitlin could already barely be considered Champion‑tier.
But right now, it was basically just Tapu Lele and a heavily boosted Metagross dragging her ceiling up.
Only when Caitlin had a full main roster of Champion‑tier Pokémon would she truly have stepped into that realm.
Team Rocket was about to welcome its third Champion‑tier. Damian was in a very good mood.
That afternoon, he headed for Aether Paradise.
"Why are you here again?"
Lusamine had just barely recovered, and seeing Damian show up in the manor completely threw her off balance.
Her emotions were a mix of shame and anger and a flicker of fear. She was starting to feel like Damian's stamina was… a bit much.
"I missed you." Damian didn't even hesitate. He stepped forward, wrapped his arms around the Aether Foundation's Chairman, and very naturally cupped her breast.
Lusamine's chest wasn't exactly huge—just enough to fill one hand.
A faint blush spread across her cold, beautiful face. She gave him a token push, then let him do as he pleased.
"Damian, stop… I haven't even eaten yet…"
Lusamine was thoroughly flustered. The main problem was that she really couldn't handle him.
By all rights, at her age she should've been the one with the stronger stamina—but Damian was on a whole different level.
"It's fine, we'll eat in a bit. I brought you some new clothes."
And then…
"Call me Daddy."
The boy tugged on golden reins and charged forward at full speed, momentum like a tidal wave.
"D… Dad…"