Back at Caitlin's villa.
"Zinnia, come over to the villa."
After thinking it over, Damian gave Zinnia a call. Since Hoenn League had already called in help to settle things with him once and for all…
There was no reason for Damian to back down. It was the perfect chance to deal with Zinnia's business, too.
After all, if you were going to start a war, you needed some kind of trigger, didn't you?
Time slipped to the next day.
Ever Grande City airport.
Dressed in a black branded suit, Giovanni slowly walked out of the airport.
"Mr. Giovanni, hello." A young man in a suit walked up to him.
"Hello."
"Champion Wallace asked me to wait here for your arrival. Please come with me."
Giovanni got into the car and was taken to the Hoenn League building.
The corner of Giovanni's mouth curled into a faint, hidden smile. He really hadn't expected there would come a day he'd walk into another region's League building—
And do it as an honored guest.
A staffer led Giovanni upstairs. Before long, they reached the conference room.
The staffer knocked twice, then opened the door and bowed, gesturing for Giovanni to enter.
Giovanni stepped into the conference room and swept his gaze around. As expected, the place was already packed.
Hoenn's two Champions, Steven and Wallace. Hoenn's Elite Four. Jenny's commander. All present.
But Giovanni's gaze settled on two women.
The one in a black ladies' trench coat with beautiful golden hair was Sinnoh Region's Champion Cynthia.
The other one looked very young. Her long black hair was tied back in a ponytail, with a dyed green lock of bangs falling over her face. Her tanned skin made her look bright and lively.
This was Nemona, the Naranja Academy student who had blown through Paldea League last year.
Giovanni was studying everyone in the room—and everyone in the room was studying Giovanni right back.
Nemona's gaze was full of curiosity.
Steven and Cynthia's eyes were slightly complicated. This was Damian's father.
As for Wallace, he was giving Giovanni a very subtle once‑over. Maybe it was just psychological, but he felt this middle‑aged man in his "successful elite" suit had a strangely dark look in his eyes.
He really didn't look like a good person at all.
"Apologies. It seems I'm late."
Giovanni offered his apology in that low, magnetic voice of his.
"Not at all. There are still ten minutes before the time we agreed on. Please, have a seat, Gym Leader Giovanni."
Steven smiled and gestured to a chair.
He was the one seated at the head of the table this time.
Worth noting: last night, he and Wallace had done the handover ceremony again.
Wallace had formally handed the Hoenn Champion title back to him.
There hadn't been any Elite Four challenge involved—because there was no need. Hoenn League knew Steven's strength better than anyone. All he needed was to go through the motions.
As for this Champion switch, Hoenn League had put out the announcement that very morning, which had stirred up plenty of discussion.
Aside from Wallace's die‑hard fans, almost no one objected. And even if they had, Hoenn League wasn't in the habit of worrying about civilian opinions.
Giovanni gave everyone a polite smile and sat down.
"Now that Gym Leader Giovanni is here, let's get straight to the point."
Steven glanced around the table. His gaze naturally lingered a bit longer on the three who had come to help—Giovanni among them.
"First off, I want to thank Champion Cynthia, Gym Leader Giovanni, and Miss Nemona for coming to support us. We really appreciate it."
Steven spoke with genuine gratitude. Whatever Cynthia and the others' motivations, the fact that they had come in person to help was something to be thankful for.
"No need, Steven‑Champion. We're all members of the League—mutual assistance is only natural. Especially when it comes to fighting an evil organization."
Cynthia shook her head, her tone very calm and rational.
"Champion Cynthia is right. Evil Team Rocket must be wiped out. And I bear inescapable responsibility—that's why I should be the one apologizing to everyone here."
Giovanni's voice was low and heavy with self‑reproach.
"My unfilial son Damian has caused you all so much trouble. I can't dodge the blame for that."
Giovanni stood up and bowed slightly toward Steven and the others.
"Please don't, Gym Leader Giovanni."
Steven hurriedly rose as well. Giovanni was far older than he was; he couldn't accept that bow.
"Damian's actions aren't something you can be blamed for. There's no need to beat yourself up."
"Champion Steven is right. Gym Leader Giovanni, you didn't want things to turn out this way. You have nothing to feel guilty about."
Cynthia nodded in agreement.
"Still… this time I will definitely bring Damian down. And if he insists on clinging to the wrong path, I'll deliver him to cell with my own hands."
Giovanni took a long, steadying breath, his tone heavy.
"All my life I've never wronged anyone, never done a single thing against my conscience—and yet I've ended up such a failure of a father."
Hearing that, Steven and the others fell silent.
They couldn't quite empathize—they didn't have children of their own.
But seeing Giovanni's dejected, pained expression still weighed on their hearts.
Just as Giovanni himself had said, his record was spotless. He'd always been a diligent, responsible Gym Leader. But Damian joining Team Rocket was a shadow he couldn't erase.
And worst of all—Damian was this strong.
Wallace's eyes flickered thoughtfully.
Looked like he'd misjudged Giovanni. So it really had been those tinted glasses, huh?
"As long as we can defeat Damian, I think there's a chance to talk him back onto the right path." Steven offered a bit of comfort.
Giovanni nodded gravely and sat back down.
"The reason we've invited you three here is already clear—we're asking for your help against the evil organization Team Rocket."
Steven's voice dropped as a large screen lit up, displaying a composite image: the Team Rocket executives they knew about so far.
Nemona studied the images with great interest.
Paldea didn't have any evil organizations.
For her, this "legendary" evil organization was fascinating—especially one that had forced Hoenn League to the point of asking other regions for help.
So Nemona listened very carefully as Steven introduced Hoenn's Team Rocket.
"Champion Steven, I'd like to know—have you already pinned down Team Rocket's actual base location?"
Once Steven finished, Cynthia was the first to ask.
"We haven't confirmed it yet—but we have a few leads."
Steven shook his head.
"We think Damian and the others are temporarily based in Lilycove City. According to intel collected by Officer Jenny, Damian, Caitlin, Zinnia and the rest have all been sighted in Lilycove City multiple times."
Steven's tone turned grim. And he and Wallace had run into Damian in Lilycove City too, just the other day.
Cynthia's fine, sharp brows drew together slightly.
This was exactly what she'd been worried about—not having a confirmed location on Damian and the others.
Still, this situation wasn't the same as the one back in Alola.
Hoenn League was ready for war.
Once they spotted any trace of Team Rocket, they'd be ready to go all in—even if that meant fighting in a city.
One way or another, they had to drive Team Rocket out of Hoenn.
Rustboro City—a city that prided itself on the fusion of nature and science.
It was also home to Devon Corporation, the company behind many of Hoenn's industries.
Worth noting: just north of Rustboro City lay Meteor Falls.
Right now, Damian and the other two had arrived in Rustboro City.
"We're this close to your hometown, Zinnia. Not gonna go back and take a look? We can wait for you, you know."
Damian smiled as he spoke to Zinnia.
"My duty isn't finished yet. I can't go home."
Zinnia shook her head.
"Damian, now that Team Magma and Team Aqua have both been swallowed up by us, and you've caught Kyogre… what am I supposed to do?"
Zinnia turned to Damian. Her original plans had been completely wrecked.
"Just go make your wish."
"Wishing isn't guaranteed to work. I don't have Grand Meteor Delta—and without Kyogre and Groudon fighting, the success rate gets even worse."
Zinnia replied irritably.
Otherwise, why would she have joined Team Magma in the first place?
Her aim had always been to guide both organizations into awakening Groudon and Kyogre and making them fight, to increase the odds of summoning Rayquaza.
"Relax. As for Rayquaza—your chance will come." Damian smiled.
The timing just wasn't right yet.
Zinnia rolled her eyes. Damian sure made it sound easy.
The three of them came to Devon Corporation's headquarters building.
"Hello, how can I help you?"
The front‑desk receptionist greeted them with a professional smile as soon as they stepped inside.
"Hi. We're here to see Mr. Stone. Could you contact him for us?" Damian smiled back.
"You're here for the president? Do you have an appointment?"
The receptionist asked again.
As Devon Corporation's president, Joseph Stone was one of the richest people in the world. Naturally, getting a meeting with him wasn't easy.
"No, but you can try calling him. Just tell him an old acquaintance from Johto's Embedded Tower is here to see him about some business."
"Please wait a moment."
The receptionist hesitated, but seeing the three's distinct, extraordinary bearing, she chose to trust her instincts and dial the number.
At a company like Devon, sharp eyes were a basic requirement.
Compared to being blamed after the fact, the receptionist would rather bet on her own judgment.
After only a few words, the receptionist glanced over at Damian and the others.
"The president is waiting for you in his office."
"Thank you."
Damian gave another polite smile. Under a staffer's lead, they took the elevator up to the top floor.
Stepping into Joseph Stone's office, Damian looked around and let out a low whistle.
"In just a few short years, you built a little iron‑mining and steel‑refining company up into a giant that can go toe‑to‑toe with Silph Co. Mr. Stone, you really are one hell of a businessman."
Damian turned his gaze to the middle‑aged man in a purple suit with silver‑gray hair sitting behind the desk and spoke with genuine admiration.
You really couldn't call Joseph Stone's growth story anything less than legendary.
If this weren't a world centered on Pokémon, his life alone would've made for an epic legend.
Even now, it wasn't that different. Joseph Stone was the idol of countless businesspeople. You couldn't even begin to count them.
"You flatter me. And you three young people are…?"
Joseph Stone's voice was low. His shrewd, sharp eyes fixated on the three visitors.
"Us? Mr. Stone, everyone has to pay for what they've done. You haven't forgotten what happened back then, have you? That girl on Rayquaza's back."
Damian tilted his head slightly, the expression on his face slowly filling with malice.
Zinnia's gaze on Joseph Stone was ice‑cold, and her expression was truly ugly.
"You—"
Joseph Stone's brows knit tightly. At those words, his expression kept shifting—guilt, shame, shock.
This person actually knew?
"That girl back then—"
"Ah～ Aster was Zinnia's older sister, Mr. Stone."
...
Joseph Stone's whole body went rigid. He looked at Zinnia's aura, cold and dangerous as a blade—
Then slumped back in his chair like the strength had been drained right out of him.
"I've never forgotten. My greatest regret in this life is taking part in that incident."
Joseph Stone's exhausted, powerless voice floated out into the room.
"Back then, the Pokémon Association invited me to provide tech support for the 'Rayquaza Capture Plan,' so I took a small operations team and headed for Embedded Tower.
"But after the operation started, that was when I learned there was also a girl on Rayquaza's back. And at that point, it was already too late to stop… I am truly sorry. I'm so sorry."
Joseph Stone apologized to Zinnia.
"Heh～ and you think one apology covers it?"
Zinnia laughed coldly, glaring at Joseph Stone with utter hatred.
"You selfish people have no idea why my sister went to find Rayquaza. You don't know what she was carrying on her back!"
Zinnia's voice grew more and more furious.
The Draconid people had gone looking for Rayquaza for the sake of all Hoenn—
Yet Aster had died at the hands of the very people she'd wanted to protect.
How tragic was that?
Joseph Stone gave a bitter little smile.
"What's done is done. Whatever you want to do to me, I'll accept it."
Joseph Stone sighed.
He knew full well it was his fault. He was the one who'd left this girl in front of him without a sister, forever.
In the office, only Zinnia's increasingly heavy breathing broke the silence.
Bloodshot lines crept through her eyes. Her knuckles creaked as she clenched her fists.
She wanted badly to pull out Salamence's Poké Ball right then—
But Zinnia forced herself to calm down.
"I'm not letting you die that easily, Joseph Stone."
Zinnia's voice was frigid. It was precisely because Joseph Stone was sitting there, ready to accept his punishment, that she had no intention of "letting him off" with a clean death.
Since when did the world work that easily?
...
Joseph Stone looked at Zinnia and let out a deep sigh.
"In that case, Mr. Stone, could I ask you to give your son Steven a call?"
Seeing that Zinnia wasn't speaking anymore, Damian smiled and addressed Joseph Stone himself.
"This has nothing to do with Steven."
Joseph Stone's tone dropped even lower.
Steven was his most pride and joy of a son. He really didn't want Steven dragged into this.
Because of his own selfishness, he'd helped cause the death of an innocent girl.
If Steven ever found out about that, he'd be bitterly disappointed in his father, wouldn't he?
Joseph Stone didn't want that—though he knew the final decision wasn't up to him.
"Relax. It's not about this." Damian shrugged.
"… "
Silent, Joseph Stone took out his phone and dialed Steven.
The call only rang a few times before it was picked up.
"Father, what is it?" Steven's puzzled voice came through.
"Hello hello～ Steven‑sensei, surprised?"
Damian took Joseph Stone's phone with a cheerful smile and greeted Steven.
"Damian!!"
Steven's voice spiked, full of shock and fury.
He couldn't help it. This number belonged to his father!
"Damian! Why do you have my father's phone?!"
"Take a guess."
Damian bared his teeth in a grin, the thick malice in his tone making Steven's breath catch for a moment.
~~~
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