Buzz!
At last, under Unown G's eager gaze, the teleportation device activated.
Its boring and nerve-racking acting mission was finally over. It could go back to hiding in some quiet corner and sleep all day again.
Tap.
A pair of boots struck the ground, the sound echoing clearly through the silent meeting hall.
The moment Shiro stepped out of the passage, several League trainers turned to look at him. The hunters, on the other hand, were still somewhat caught off guard.
"Everyone, you may leave. Our cooperation has been finalized."
As soon as those words fell, Vince lowered his clasped hands. His eyes were practically filled with tears.
In those short ten minutes, his emotions had been tossed around harder than a roller coaster. At one point, he had truly thought he was going to die here.
He was still young. He was still one of the League's Elite Four. He had not even had the chance to properly enjoy life while relying on someone stronger. He definitely did not want to die yet.
Slipping past Allen, the chubby man hurried over to the black-robed Shiro first.
"Mr. W, let's go. Let's go already," Vince urged.
Shiro gave a slight shake of his head before waving toward his subordinates. "Don't rush. Our people leave first."
The nine hunters all looked pleased as they walked past Vince one after another. If Hunter W had not been standing right there, they would have openly mocked the timid Sinnoh Elite Four member.
Buzz!
The teleportation device activated once more before falling silent again.
After having the hunters wait inside the black market for a while, Shiro returned through the device.
The moment he appeared, he saw Vince waiting anxiously. It looked like he was afraid of being abandoned there.
Only after Allen and Bertha arrived as well, with Unown G quietly slipping into the teleportation device behind them, did Shiro step inside and activate it, taking the four League trainers out together.
Amid the ruins of the black market, Shiro stood with the hunters behind him and calmly addressed Blaine and the others.
"Everyone, until next time."
"Let's go."
Blaine gave Hunter W one long look before turning away.
He could tell that the new Hunters Guild leader, W, was far more dangerous than the previous leader, A. He was more mysterious, stronger, and even smarter.
He was the kind of terrifying criminal who could be compared to the leader of Team Rocket.
Fortunately, he would be retiring soon. Hopefully, he would never cross paths with Hunter W again.
* * *
"The mission is over. All League trainers and investigators may withdraw and collect your contribution rewards."
Standing beneath a streetlight at the intersection of Third Street in Jubilife City, Blaine gave his final order.
"Let's go. Everything turned out fine in the end." Allen looked calm as he spoke.
Vince still wore a miserable expression, looking as if he might burst into tears at any moment.
Bertha gave a slight nod before turning toward the silent Galar Champion beside her. "Shiro, until next time."
Unown G smiled. "Mm."
"See you next time, colleague." Allen reached out to shake its hand before turning and jumping onto a helicopter descending from above.
"Hey! I'm not on yet! Allen!"
Vince barely managed to grab the rope ladder hanging from the helicopter before he was pulled aboard.
Unown G's figure disappeared into the shadows of Third Street. It walked into a nearby shop and vanished from sight.
A few minutes later, Blaine casually strolled past as though nothing was unusual.
"Where did he go?"
With his hands behind his back, he adjusted his glasses and scratched his head while standing in front of an upscale women's clothing store.
"Did he even use Teleport for this?"
He let out a disappointed sigh. He had wanted to have a proper chat with the newly promoted professor.
Maybe their conversation would have given him some inspiration for his research.
* * *
Inside the black market.
Shiro handed out all the magnetic keycards and the Hunters Guild's communication devices one by one.
"They don't match your current symbols for now, but that won't affect how you use them."
The manufacturing process for the keycards and communication devices was not actually complicated. The important parts were keeping them secure and making each one unique.
Since Shiro already had access to a research institute, once he reached Hoenn he could have a proper team develop a dedicated communication device for the guild.
Aside from Hunter Y, everyone else curiously examined the items in their hands.
Shiro then called Hunter Y over to review the guild's assets across the three League regions.
"Y, these are all the old guild bases in Hoenn, Unova, and Kalos?"He spread a map across a worn wooden table nearby and pointed at the marked locations.
"Yes, Leader," Hunter Y replied somewhat nervously.
According to the map, the Hunters Guild only had two bases in Hoenn. One was in Rustboro City and the other in Lilycove City.
Rustboro was a modern city centered around the Devon Corporation, which controlled much of the region's scientific industry. It was Hoenn's second-largest city, and since the Devon Corporation did not deliberately target the Hunters Guild, it had managed to survive there.
Lilycove, meanwhile, was Hoenn's largest city. Many different forces operated there. Team Aqua and Team Magma both had businesses in the city, leaving enough room for the Hunters Guild to exist as well.
"That's way too shabby." Shiro shook his head with obvious dissatisfaction.
No wonder everyone had rushed to Sinnoh as soon as they heard something had happened to Hunter A. Nearly every city in Sinnoh had a Hunters Guild base. Jubilife City and Sunyshore City were the two largest hubs, each guarded by a seated hunter.
Sinnoh alone had previously been home to four seated hunters. Including Shiro, there were five.
The other regions were much weaker. Hoenn only had one seated hunter. Unova had a slightly larger presence, with guild bases in five cities and two hunters stationed there. Kalos had bases in three cities with two hunters assigned.
"You all know the details of our cooperation with the League," Shiro said as he looked around the group. "From now on, every city across those three regions must have a Hunters Guild."
"Every... every city?"
The others only looked surprised, but Hunter Y was so shocked that he stammered.
They had already worked as hard as they could to build what they had, competing with numerous local organizations across those regions.
If every city had a Hunters Guild, then organizations like Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Plasma, and the others would end up fighting each other nonstop.
"What's so surprising about that?" Shiro asked, raising his voice slightly. "You all need to change the way you think. Once the League's policies for those three regions are announced, we won't be a gray organization anymore."
"The Hunters Guild will openly establish branches inside cities, and we will be League trainers as well."
What right would criminal organizations like Team Aqua have to compete against official League trainers?
Hunter Y felt a chill shoot up from the base of his spine to the back of his head, making him shiver.
The other eight hunters were equally shaken. Their expressions shifted between confusion and realization. A couple of them had secretly been thinking about finding a chance to run away, but now they hesitated.
Seeing the opportunity, Shiro continued, "When that time comes, as senior members of the Hunters Guild, your rewards will be far greater than the little profit you see here in Sinnoh."
"I've already completed the hardest part by opening the path for us."
"We all came from the bottom. Surely none of you want to spend your whole lives with only one or two Gym-level Pokémon."
"However, time is short. Your top priority now is to reach these bases as quickly as possible. Take control of every former Hunters Guild branch and bring them all under our command as fast as you can."
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