After carefully comforting Nurse Joy, who was currently clinging to him in fear, Aiden Flint finally learned the truth of what had happened.
Her kidnapping had been the work of Team Rocket.
And the masterminds were none other than Archer and Ariana—the very same two he had previously captured and handed over to Officer Jenny.
But weren't they supposed to be in custody?
How had they been released?
That could only mean one thing—
There were corrupt people inside the Pokémon League.
And when he thought about it, it made sense.
In the original storyline, Jessie and James had been arrested countless times, yet always escaped.
Team Rocket wouldn't have been able to place so many operatives across the world if the League itself weren't riddled with problems.
Even Giovanni could secretly be the Viridian Gym Leader.
So how could things be clean?
As for why they kidnapped Nurse Joy—
Archer and Ariana had devised a vicious plan.
They would make Nurse Joy "disappear", then have Ariana disguise herself as the new Nurse Joy sent by the League to run the Petalburg Pokémon Center.
After Trainers had gone for a while without healing, they would all rush to the Pokémon Center with their injured Pokémon.
That was when Team Rocket would strike.
They would steal every Pokémon entrusted to the Center, then escape with an enormous haul of Pokémon to send back to headquarters.
An effortless mass robbery.
Even Aiden had to admit—
It was a terrifyingly effective plan.
In the original story, it had been ruined by Jessie, James, and Meowth.
But this time?
It had been ruined by him.
"Since that's the case… it's time to make them pay for what they did to you."
He gently patted Nurse Joy's back, making her cheeks flush faintly.
The bond between them had clearly grown even closer.
Using Berries from his System Space, Aiden cooked a simple but nourishing meal and let Nurse Joy rest inside the cabin.
After one night of recovery, he carried her back toward Petalburg City.
Aiden's physique was excellent—hiking, adventuring, and long travels had made him strong.
Carrying Nurse Joy was no problem at all.
With her soft thighs against his arms and her warm breath brushing his neck, he walked step by step back to the city as her face grew redder and redder.
By the time they returned, it was already the next day.
Now recovered, Nurse Joy no longer dared stay in his arms.
When they arrived at the Pokémon Center, they saw an enormous line of Trainers stretching down the street.
Petalburg was a major Hoenn city—its traffic was immense.
Even just one day without healing support had caused chaos.
Seeing this, both Aiden and Nurse Joy understood—
Team Rocket's plan had been working frighteningly well.
"Kirlia—use Psychic. Strip the fake Nurse Joy inside of her uniform."
With that command, both Kirlia immediately acted.
A powerful wave of psychic energy surged through the Pokémon Center.
Ariana suddenly felt something wrong—
Her nurse uniform vanished.
In its place was her black Team Rocket suit, with a massive red "R" on her chest.
The Trainers instantly erupted.
"That's not Nurse Joy!"
"Black suit with a red R—that's Team Rocket!"
"So this was their scheme!"
"Give Nurse Joy back!"
At that moment, Archer appeared behind her.
"Ariana! The plan's exposed—retreat! We already got plenty of Pokémon!"
Ariana activated a remote.
A flying machine rose into the sky, loaded with stolen Poké Balls.
They teleported aboard and laughed down at the helpless Trainers.
"Fools! Your Pokémon belong to Team Rocket now!"
Then—
A crushing psychic force struck.
BOOM!
The aircraft exploded midair.
Archer, Ariana, and hundreds of Poké Balls rained down.
Covered in soot, the two staggered up—
And saw Aiden standing before them, Nurse Joy behind him.
"You again?!"
Aiden gave one simple order.
"Kirlia—Psychic. Blow them away."
A devastating psychic blast sent them flying.
"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!"
"Team Rocket's plot has been foiled! Nurse Joy has been rescued! Everyone, retrieve your Pokémon!"
At that moment—
Two blinding lights flared.
Both Kirlia evolved.
"Ding! Gardevoir data registered!"
Two tall, elegant Gardevoir—each about 1.7 meters tall—appeared and immediately took Aiden's arms, one on each side.
And just like that—
His psychic queens had arrived.
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