Seeing the situation reach a stalemate again, Cynthia was powerless against Team Galactic. The pressure on her shoulders was immense.
If this rescue failed and resulted in mass casualties, it would not only damage her reputation but also bury her in work for the foreseeable future. That would be terrible for Li Yuan's dating plans.
Li Yuan wasn't going to let his date be ruined, nor was he going to let his "white moonlight" suffer. If Cynthia lost face, her perfect image in his heart would be tarnished.
So, unable to watch any longer, Li Yuan acted. It was just a few terrorists; why make it so complicated?
Just because Ghost-type Pokémon couldn't infiltrate didn't mean he couldn't. With Teleport, there was nowhere in the world he couldn't go.
And so, Li Yuan materialized inside the bank. The moment he appeared, he grabbed the hostage lying in a pool of blood and teleported out without looking back.
The Team Galactic grunts guarding the hostages didn't even register what had happened. They felt a blur, and then nothing. It wasn't until Li Yuan reappeared next to Cynthia with the injured man that they realized a hostage was missing!
Even the police were stunned. They were about to shout at the kid for crossing the cordon when he spoke.
"What are you staring at? Save him!" Li Yuan glared at the dazed officers, shoving the wounded man into their arms.
"Huh? Is that... a Gardevoir?" Only then did the police realize what had happened. The hostage was gone from the blood pool, and Li Yuan had reappeared with him.
Gardevoir—the dream Pokémon of countless men. Everyone knew they could Teleport, making them incredibly hard to catch. So, the Gardevoir must have teleported the man out?
But what shocked the police and the crowd even more was that this Gardevoir was Shiny.
Impossible. Regular Gardevoir are rare enough. Who has the luck to catch a Shiny one?! Why do good things never happen to us?!
"Quick! Get him to the hospital!" The police snapped out of it, rushing the victim away. With initial treatment from healing Pokémon, his life was saved. The pressure on Cynthia and the police lifted significantly. As long as no one died, there was room to maneuver.
"Why are you here? Do you know how dangerous that was?" Cynthia looked at Li Yuan with complex eyes. He had saved her again. Was he her lucky star or her nemesis?
Every time he helped her, he demanded something outrageous. First, it was holding hands on a date. Then, it was a hug. Was he going to stack another buff? If he kept stacking, would he demand a kiss next?
No, I have to scold him. Can't let him get too smug.
"Dangerous? They should be glad they have hostages. Otherwise, they would be the ones in danger," Li Yuan shook his head.
With his Aura shield, normal bullets couldn't hurt him. Pokémon below Senior rank were no match for him. With Teleport, he could take their lives anytime. If he wasn't worried about them killing hostages in a panic, they would already be dead.
"You... don't be reckless next time," Cynthia sighed helplessly. She knew he had "cheats," but risking hostages was too much.
"Who are you?"
Jupiter, who had been guarding the door, frowned. She saw the hostage disappear and reappear outside. Her expression darkened.
"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is that I'm here, so your chances are zero," Li Yuan sized up Jupiter.
As an older, villainous beauty, Jupiter had a certain charm. She exuded a "bad woman" vibe that was quite appealing. Plus, she was a significant character in the anime. Conquering her might light up another entry in his Encyclopedia.
For that reason alone, Li Yuan had already marked her.
"Kid, you think highly of yourself. You saved one hostage. So what? We have plenty more. If we kill a few now, what can you do?" Jupiter sneered, looking ready to execute someone just for fun. The police tensed up again. Criminals were unstable; provoking them was dangerous.
"Heh. I advise you not to give that order. Your subordinates won't dare," Li Yuan said, expressionless.
"Oh? Want to test that?" Jupiter laughed coldly. Did they think she was bluffing?
"Go ahead. But I'll say this first: for every hostage that dies, two of you die. Whoever shoots first, dies first." Li Yuan snapped his fingers.
Instantly, Gardevoir and Huanhuan vanished. Two screams echoed from inside the bank. Two "lucky" grunts had just lost an ear each.
The Pokémon reappeared beside Li Yuan unscathed, as casual as if they had just gone to the bathroom. The message was clear: Li Yuan could take a life whenever he wanted.
Even criminals feared death. Under the threat of instant execution, who would dare move?
Now, Li Yuan was the one threatening Jupiter.
"You... you have some skill," Jupiter's face turned green. For a moment, she wanted to call his bluff and trade lives. But she saw the fear in her team's eyes. No one would obey an order that guaranteed their death.
Unless she did it herself. But even with her Skuntank, she wasn't sure she could survive an assassination attempt by two Teleporting Pokémon. Attacking the trainer directly was cheating! Where was his professional ethics?
"Thanks for the compliment. Since neither of us can do anything to the other, why don't you just leave? You've stalled long enough, haven't you?" Li Yuan smirked.
"What do you mean?" Jupiter's heart sank. How did he know they were stalling?
"Heh. You shouldn't have chosen a bank. Sure, it draws police attention. But think about it: you're an Elite Four-level trainer. Have you ever seen an Elite Four trainer so broke they needed to rob a bank?" Li Yuan looked at her like she was an idiot.
Jupiter was speechless. His analysis was spot on.
"What do you mean? Li Yuan, what did you find?" Cynthia realized something was wrong. In her tension, she had missed the obvious.
"It means you all fell for her diversion. They lured you here on purpose. Their real target is somewhere else," Li Yuan explained.
"Somewhere else? Can you guess where?" Cynthia grew anxious. What operation required such a massive cover-up?
"It's not hard to guess. Sister, has anything noteworthy happened in Eterna City recently?" Li Yuan smiled.
"Noteworthy... you mean the Adamant Orb?" Cynthia realized with a start.
She was here because an artifact related to Dialga had been excavated. The Adamant Orb.
If the legends were true, Team Galactic wanted the Orb to summon the God of Time. It explained their theft of meteorites in Veilstone City—remnants of the creation of Sinnoh.
Their ambition was terrifying. They dared to target the gods!