Lysandre's expression froze for a moment.
In truth, by saying that, he was already tacitly accepting the proposal. What he really wanted was for Cain to give him an excuse—a dignified way to save face, especially considering they were surrounded by his subordinates.
If he let Cain sweep the whole incident under the rug in front of so many witnesses, his authority would be severely undermined.
However, Cain gave a faint smile and said, "Alright, here's one million Pokédollars. That should be enough to compensate for your losses."
As he spoke, he used his psychic power to float a bank card over to Lysandre.
With that, Lysandre's expression finally softened a little.
But even that gesture—the way Cain openly displayed his psychic power—made it clear he still had cards up his sleeve. It was an indirect warning.
"You can now tell me what kind of cooperation you're proposing," Lysandre asked.
Cain remained standing without responding right away.
Lysandre, for his part, waited in silence. His face showed no sign of impatience, demonstrating considerable composure.
Nodding slightly, Cain said, "First, let's be clear: this cooperation will not be led by you or your organization."
At those words, Lysandre frowned and asked, "It won't be led by us? Then by who? You? Though your strength is decent... that's all it is—decent."
As he spoke, he pulled out another Poké Ball.
He felt like he was being taken for a fool.
The Pyroar from earlier was already stronger than Cain's Gengar. Plus, he still had his real ace up his sleeve. And yet this guy kept trying to dictate the terms.
"That's right. I will lead this cooperation!" Cain raised his voice, a note of madness and recklessness bleeding through.
That statement ignited Lysandre's fury, and he threw his second Poké Ball, summoning his ace: a Gyarados!
"ROAAR!"
A Shiny Gyarados.
Its red scales gleamed intensely under the lights—dazzling.
But Cain ignored it entirely. Staring directly at Lysandre, he continued:
"A collapsing world, a corrupted humanity, maddened Pokémon, and ignorant people... This world is already tainted. It's not something that can be fixed with simple reforms. It's like a body with terminal cancer—the metastasis has already spread throughout the system, and cutting out the tumor won't help."
"A grave illness... requires drastic measures!"
His words made him sound like a fanatic willing to destroy the world.
However, as he spoke, Lysandre's furious expression began to soften. His hand, poised to activate his combat gear, slowly lowered.
"Lysandre, you won't save the world like this... It's not enough. It's not enough! What you're doing just won't cut it," Cain pressed on, his performance fervent.
As a professional con artist, Cain felt his acting so far had been more than convincing.
Midway through his speech, Cain pulled out a Poké Ball and tossed it forward.
A red flash revealed the form of a Pokémon resembling seaweed: Dragalge!
"Dragg..."
This Dragalge, who had once surpassed the Elite level, had already struck a deal with Cain. So as it appeared, it didn't hold back—unleashing its full pressure without restraint.
The surrounding Team Flare members were stunned.
The Pokémon beside them collapsed to the ground instantly.
The difference in level was simply overwhelming. And being a Dragon-type, Dragalge's presence was even more intimidating.
Most importantly, after years of imprisonment in the Prison Dragon Pillar, Dragalge had lost much of its Poison-type energy, but retained its Dragon energy intact.
Seeing it, Lysandre was visibly shaken.
His Pyroar and Gyarados instinctively backed up to his side, baring their teeth but not daring to attack.
Especially the Pyroar, who looked like a frightened child before a father figure—seething with suppressed rage but not daring to act.
"A Pokémon beyond Elite level...?" Lysandre muttered.
"Who the hell are you?" he asked, raising his voice.
Cain didn't answer.
He simply said, "Don't resist. I want to show you something."
Then he nodded toward his Mismagius.
"Miiis~" Mismagius, who had been ready, whispered softly.
Her eyes glowed with a red shimmer, and a faint energy enveloped both Cain and Lysandre.
Lysandre didn't resist. Cain had already warned him.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself and Cain floating in the air—above a ruined town.
"Is this... a dream?" Lysandre asked.
Cain didn't reply.
But yes, it was a dream world. With Mismagius's help, Cain had created this illusion and was now showing it to Lysandre.
This was exactly what Cain had asked Mismagius to do.
And it was what she did best.
Wild Misdreavus and Mismagius are experts in creating dreams. Drawing someone into an illusion is one of their basic skills.
If you run into one in the wild, you must be careful of everything you see. You might just be caught in their mental game.
Now, following Cain's instructions, Mismagius didn't need to weave a whole world—Cain had already structured everything. Her job was simply to make it feel real.
This world was a dream, yes—but an extremely vivid one!
"I want you to see the world," Cain said in a low voice.
In the dream, as its creator, Cain could do whatever he wished.
Though it was a fragile world: if Lysandre resisted, he could easily break it.
That's why Cain had asked him not to oppose it.
The scene below them flowed rapidly. Lysandre, standing midair, couldn't help but look down. Though the movement was fast, he recognized that what he was seeing was the Pokémon world—more specifically, the Kalos region.
The Tower of Mastery, the Prism Tower, the Parfum Palace...
All those familiar buildings passed beneath them quickly, all lying in ruins. Barely recognizable.
The entire Kalos region—and perhaps the entire Pokémon world—was in shambles. Remnants of buildings scattered everywhere.
And worst of all...
Piles of corpses. Humans and Pokémon alike. Stacked, scattered, indistinguishable.
A panorama of overwhelming horror.
Lysandre felt a tightness in his chest. Even though he knew this was a dream, he couldn't help feeling deeply disturbed.
"We're here," Cain said.
The motion stopped. They were now above a remote village.
"That's..." Lysandre saw the building at the center of the town, and his pupils contracted.
"The origin of the world's ruin," Cain declared.
Then the two slowly descended.
Once their feet touched the ground, the pressure lifted. Lysandre couldn't help but walk toward the village's center.
Cain, standing behind him, let out a faint smile.
He took the bait.
(End of chapter)