The young man was about to lift the woman's pant leg when she suddenly pressed down on his hand.
He looked up, a bit puzzled. "Ma'am, what's wrong?"
He looked down closely and, by the faint light filtering from the glowing rocks in the cave, discovered that the skin on the woman's ankle was smooth; let alone swelling from a sprain, there wasn't even a single scratch.
"Your foot... doesn't seem to be injured?" The young man's mind finally, albeit slowly, began to piece things together.
"Idiot."
The woman's voice was as cold as the wind in the cave.
Before she had even finished speaking, a dark shadow lunged out from the darkness behind her!
It was a robust Mightyena, its level far exceeding any wild pokémon the young man knew. From its wide-open maw, fangs gleamed with a cold, white light in the dimness.
"Awoo!"
Before the young man could even react, the Mightyena had already clamped its jaws firmly onto his shoulder in a Bite!
"Ah—!"
Intense pain instantly contorted the young man's face as he looked at the woman in disbelief. "W-Why?"
He couldn't understand why the girl, who had seemed so weak and helpless just a second ago, would strike such a cruel blow.
His other hand instinctively reached for the Poké Ball at his waist; it was his last hope.
However, a flash of silver light streaked by.
The woman had stood up at some unknown point, a sharp dagger in her hand, and slashed it across the back of the young man's hand without hesitation.
"Squelch!"
Blood splattered. The young man cried out in pain, and his hand reaching for the Poké Ball went limp. The last light in his eyes faded, replaced by confusion and resentment.
The woman simply cursed coldly, "You're too stupid."
Having finished, she acted as if she were merely brushing dust off her clothes. She skillfully unhooked the Poké Balls from the young man's waist, weighed them in her hand, and a look of blatant disgust crossed her face.
The young man's eyes remained wide open even in death.
Above on the rock wall, Jiang Han's expression didn't flicker in the slightest.
He looked beside him; Sandile was already unable to restrain itself, letting out low growls from its throat, eager to strike.
A Level 25 Mightyena was indeed strong, but his Sandile was now Level 22. With the support of Sneasel and Inkay, taking it down would be easy.
The only uncertainty was whether the woman had a second Pokémon on her.
Looking at the dark surroundings, Jiang Han gradually formulated an attack plan in his mind.
As long as Sneasel struck first, coordinated with Sandile's Dig and Inkay's Psycho Cut...
In such a dark environment, as long as he could seize the initiative, Jiang Han could ensure the woman wouldn't have the chance to release a second pokémon.
Just as Jiang Han was about to give the signal to attack, another set of footsteps echoed from the other end of the cave.
"Is another Trainer here to die?"
Jiang Han's movements ceased instantly. He blended back into the shadows of the rock wall like a sculpture, slowing his breathing to the minimum.
The newcomer was not another victim as he had guessed.
It was a tall, thin man who walked straight to the woman's side with an intimate demeanor, clearly an accomplice.
"How's it going? What's the haul?" The man took the Poké Balls from the woman's hand, weighing them with a hint of anticipation in his voice.
The woman disdainfully kicked the warm corpse on the ground. "Unlucky! After all that work, it's just a Level 10-something Shellder. Trash with that kind of strength dares to come to Meteor Falls? He was practically begging to be killed."
Her tone was full of irritation.
"By the way, there was another man just now. That guy was very alert; I couldn't trick him, so I let him go."
The man's movements paused, and his previously relaxed gaze instantly turned sinister. "Oh? Then doesn't that mean he's seen your face?"
The woman nodded.
"Then we can't let him leave this cave alive." Killing intent seeped into the man's voice. "What does he look like?"
"I don't know the specifics, but he has black hair and black eyes."
"Got it."
"You handle things here. I'll go find him, hehe."
"Anyway, we'll just pin the blame on those Team Magma lunatics in the end. No one will suspect us."
The woman added casually, as if speaking of a trivial matter.
Hiding in the dark, Jiang Han understood.
So the rumors of Team Magma activity in Meteor Falls were intentionally spread by these two scumbags to cover their tracks.
They hunted Trainers, stole pokémon, and then faked the scene to frame the already notorious Team Magma. It was a perfect plan to escape justice.
Want to kill me?
In the unseen darkness, the corners of Jiang Han's mouth slowly curled into a cold arc.
He had originally intended to be the mantis stalking the cicada, but now it seemed the other party had made him their next prey.
This is getting interesting.
The man instructed the woman, "Set up the scene to look like the Team Magma's handiwork. I'll be right back."
With that, he chased after the direction Jiang Han had "left" in.
Inside the cave, only the woman, the corpse on the ground, and the Mightyena licking the blood off its claws remained.
The woman took out a uniform very similar to the Team Magma's from her bag, seemingly preparing to tear it up and throw it next to the corpse.
The opportunity had arrived.
Jiang Han's gaze moved back and forth between the woman and the Level 25 Mightyena.
One-on-one, the odds were heavily in his favor.
His gaze fell on the Sneasel beside him.
Sneasel understood perfectly. Its black form flickered and completely vanished into the dark corners without making a single sound.
Next, Jiang Han turned his gaze toward the Inkay on his other side.
His plan wasn't just as simple as defeating her.
What he wanted was an instant kill!
While the woman was focused on setting the scene, a soft "clack," like a small pebble rolling, suddenly came from deep within the cave—the opposite direction from where the man had gone.
The sound wasn't loud, but in the silence of the cave where only the dripping of water could be heard, it was exceptionally clear.
The woman froze and snapped her head up, looking warily toward the source of the sound.
"Who's there?!"
The Mightyena also stopped, pricking up its ears and letting out a threatening low growl, baring its teeth in that direction.
There, it was pitch black, so dark one couldn't see their own hand.
No hesitation, no extra instructions, just one cold word.
"Do it!"
Almost the instant Jiang Han gave the command in his mind, a black shadow moved!
It was Sneasel!
Like a streak of elongated ink, it glided silently along the shadows of the cave wall.
Its target was terrifyingly clear: the woman!
Agility!
Sneasel's speed was pushed to its limit in an instant, leaving only a faint afterimage in the air.
The woman was still calculating with her partner how to find and kill Jiang Han, completely unaware that the Grim Reaper was already pressing against the back of her neck.
Assurance!
A Dark-type move with a power of sixty—it's guaranteed to hit!
This was a lethal strike from behind!
The woman was, after all, a villain who lived on the edge. The moment Sneasel's claws were about to touch her skin, an instinct honed through countless life-and-death encounters made the hair on her body stand on end!
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