"We've been discovered!"

  The man in the suit felt a wave of shock and uncertainty.

  He and his subordinates had been tracking their target through the signal of a hidden tracker, following it all the way to this secluded alley. Initially, he had been pleased—his prey had unwittingly led themselves into an isoted area, saving them the trouble of avoiding prying eyes.

  But the moment they stepped into the alley, they were exposed.

  Their target wasn’t some clueless tourist.

  Not only did he know about Team Rocket’s identity, but after discovering the tracker on himself, he had deliberately chosen this remote location and waited for them to arrive.

  It was a trap.

  "Who the hell are you!?"

  Knowing that there was no longer any point in hiding, the suited man stepped forward with his subordinates, his voice cold as he questioned them.

  At the same time, he discreetly activated his communicator, sending a distress signal back to base while also turning on the recording function.

  August noticed the small movement but made no effort to stop him. Instead, he smiled slightly.

  "Since you’ve sincerely asked, I’ll be merciful and tell you."

  "Darling, tell them who we are."

  Though August and Blue hadn't been together for long, they had an uncanny synergy. The moment she heard August's words, she instantly understood what he was up to. A glint of mischief fshed in her eyes.

  "Why, we’re the Masked Corps, of course!"

  "Masked Corps? Some third-rate gang? Never heard of you! Do you have any idea what happens to those who oppose Team Rocket?"

  The suited man scoffed, trying to use Team Rocket’s name to intimidate them.

  But all he got in response was August’s unrestrained ughter.

  "Team Rocket? Just a local gang, nothing special. If you’re already this rattled over a little money, no wonder you’ll end up being swallowed whole by the Masked Corps sooner or ter!"

  "…..!"

  Hearing August insult Team Rocket, the man clenched his teeth so hard he nearly shattered them, branding the name Masked Corps into his mind.

  "A little money? That was an entire quarter's profit from our game corner!"

  It finally clicked—these two had come looking for trouble from the very start. There was no way this could end peacefully.

  Since that was the case, he might as well strike first and buy time for reinforcements to arrive.

  "Die!"

  The man in the suit hurled the two Poké Balls he had been holding.

  Pop!

  Two purple fshes burst forth in midair.

  Ssss!

  Two figures emerged in the alley—one was an Arbok, the same one August had seen back at the game corner, and the other was a Golbat. The two Pokémon lunged at August and Blue from opposite sides.

  It was clear they intended to attack the Trainers directly!

  Yet August's smile didn’t waver. He merely snapped his fingers.

  Gardevoir gracefully stepped out from behind him.

  Vwoom!

  An invisible yet overwhelming force of psychic energy radiated outward.

  Neither the menacing Arbok, flicking its forked tongue, nor the Golbat with its gaping maw stood a chance. The moment they were hit by the powerful Psychic attack, they both colpsed onto the ground.

  "Wha—!"

  The sight sent a cold sweat down the suited man's back.

  But before he could react, August flicked his wrist again.

  Gardevoir’s eyes fshed blue, and another surge of psychic energy swept forth.

  This time, the target wasn’t the Pokémon.

  Before they could even process what was happening, the suited man and his two subordinates felt their minds go bnk as they colpsed onto the pavement.

  "Idiots. Did you really think I wouldn’t see through your usual tricks?" August cpped the dust off his hands.

  When he had called these three "disposable grunts," it wasn’t just to provoke them.

  It was the truth.

  Even the strongest among them—the man in the suit—was a far cry from the squad captain Hayato whom August had taken care of back in Mt. Moon.

  That much was obvious just from the fact that his Golbat hadn’t evolved into a Crobat yet.

  Taking them down was effortless.

  August stepped forward, gncing at the communicator in the suited man's hand. The screen dispyed a sent recording file.

  Satisfied, he crushed the device underfoot and turned to Blue.

  "What do you think Team Rocket’s reaction will be when they find out the Masked Corps was behind this?"

  "Who knows? But I bet it'll be fun!" Blue brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, a smirk pying at her lips.

  Messing with the Masked Corps? Now that was satisfying.

  August motioned to the unconscious trio and signaled Gardevoir.

  "Let's go. Take these three and their Pokémon—teleport us back. I can’t wait to share this delightful news with my dear superior."

  ---

  Ten minutes ter…

  A group of bck-cd Trainers arrived at the scene under the command of a minor Team Rocket officer.

  But aside from some faint traces of battle, all they found was a communicator crushed beyond repair.

  The officer smmed his fist against the alley wall.

  "Damn it! They dared to target Team Rocket!? Print out their images and alert all members in Cedon City—find them!"

  "Gather the communicator’s fragments and hand them over to tech. See if we can extract any useful data."

  "Report this to higher-ups!"

  ...

  The attack on Team Rocket was beginning to stir unrest.

  But August? He remained perfectly calm.

  After all, this was the work of the Masked Corps. What did it have to do with August?

  ...

  "…And that's how it went. With Blue and me working together fwlessly, we uncovered that Cedon Game Corner is actually owned by Team Rocket—and we captured three of their members as proof!"

  During a video call with Lance, August gestured toward three rge sacks piled in the corner of the room.

  Lance's expression turned a little odd.

  Why did stuffing them into sacks seem… off?

  Wasn’t it standard procedure to just cuff them?

  But, well, that didn’t matter.

  "The Cedon Game Corner is actually owned by Team Rocket… What a revetion. No wonder the League gets flooded with compints about them every year." Lance sighed.

  "Huh? If the League's been receiving compints, why hasn’t there been an investigation?" Blue asked, puzzled.

  From what she had seen in the Game Corner, Team Rocket wasn’t exactly subtle. Even a minor probe should have uncovered something.

  Lance didn’t answer.

  Instead, he gave them that look—the kind where if you understood, you understood.

  Blue was still trying to decipher it, but August had already caught on. Without missing a beat, he smoothly changed the topic.

  "Forget about that. Lance, do you know a secure location? My Gardevoir was exposed in front of them. I need to ensure my information doesn’t leak—at least not immediately."

  "Once I get to Cedon, leave them to me."

  Lance took the matter upon himself, then asked, "What do you suggest we do about the Cedon Game Corner?"

  "My advice? Don't act until you're absolutely sure. Because I suspect the Game Corner isn’t just a Team Rocket business—it might actually be their base of operations in Cedon City."

  Casually slipping in the information he already knew, August framed it as a calcuted guess.