With August’s sheer financial prowess, Magikarp ultimately became part of his team.

  Since they had to wait for the exchange conference to begin—and also y low to avoid Team Rocket’s attention—August and Blue spent the past few days training their Pokémon at the hotel.

  Now that she had officially joined the International Police and knew she would soon face Team Rocket head-on, Blue felt a newfound sense of urgency.

  As a result, she had been pestering August non-stop for tutoring.

  ---

  The long-anticipated Kanto-Hoenn Exchange Conference had officially begun.

  Though this was merely a self-organized event between the two regions and not something officially hosted by the League, it still drew in an overwhelming number of participants.

  “So many people…”

  Assistant Blue, carrying a briefcase, followed beside August, gncing around at the crowd.

  She had originally thought that there wouldn’t be too many attendees, but the sheer scale of the event had far exceeded her expectations.

  August, however, wasn’t surprised at all—he had already gotten the details from Lance in advance.

  “That’s because there’s going to be a friendly Pokémon battle between trainers from both regions at the conference. I heard the championship prize is quite generous, so it’s attracted a lot of competitors.”

  Blue’s curiosity was piqued. “Then, are you pnning to participate?”

  August thought for a moment, then shook his head. “Nah, that’d be unfair.”

  To be honest, he was tempted to join, but the main reason he had come here was to negotiate a deal with Steven. Wasting time on the tournament would be putting the cart before the horse.

  Hearing this, Blue let out a sigh of relief before grinning with excitement. “In that case, I’ll go sign up!”

  “…?”

  So, the real reason she asked was to decide whether or not she should participate based on my answer?

  August gave her an exasperated look, to which Blue stuck out her tongue sheepishly.

  He motioned for her to go ahead with the registration while he wandered off to explore the venue.

  Since the event had drawn in many trainers, vendors selling items and snacks had gathered as well. Many trainers had even set up stalls to trade Pokémon.

  Some were offering a Taillow in exchange for a Pidgey, while others were trading a Wurmple for a Caterpie.

  Overall, it was a lively marketpce for trainers from both regions to exchange resources. August figured that this year’s Indigo League would likely see a surge of trainers using Hoenn-region Pokémon.

  However, he wasn’t interested in trading Pokémon. He had already formed strong bonds with his own team and had no intention of exchanging them.

  Instead, he found a coffee stand, took a seat, and ordered a cup of coffee.

  Just as he was about to call Lance, an unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke up behind him.

  “Excuse me, are you Mr. August?”

  Hearing this, August turned around to see a middle-aged man in an expensive suit, accompanied by an assistant.

  “…And you are?” August asked, puzzled.

  “My apologies, I forgot to introduce myself,” the man said politely.

  His assistant quickly pulled out a business card and handed it over with both hands.

  August took the card and gnced at it, raising an eyebrow. “Silph Co., Pokémon Food Research Department, Minister Ishida Kōsei?”

  He was certain he had never met anyone from Silph Co. before.

  And yet, here they were, seeking him out.

  Considering the title “Pokémon Food Research Department” on the business card—and his own reason for attending this event—August quickly formed a guess.

  “You’re here for my Pokéblock formu, aren’t you?” August asked bluntly.

  Ishida Kōsei, who had pnned to exchange a few pleasantries before getting to the point, was momentarily stunned. It seemed he hadn’t expected August to cut straight to the chase.

  However, as someone who had worked his way up to a ministerial position, he recovered quickly.

  “That’s right. Since you already know why we’re here, Mr. August, please name your price. Silph Co. has ample financial resources—I’m sure we can offer a sum that will satisfy you.”

  A week ago, Ishida had received a report from his subordinates about a research paper they found in the League’s academic database.

  The paper didn’t disclose a detailed formu, but it cimed that adjusting the combination of different Berries could enhance the effectiveness of Pokéblocks by 50%.

  At first, Ishida hadn’t taken it seriously. After all, fraudulent research papers were nothing new, and it wasn’t worth his attention without confirmation of its legitimacy.

  But just yesterday, one of Silph Co.’s corporate spies embedded in Devon Corporation had leaked a crucial piece of information—

  Steven Stone, the heir to Devon Corporation and the current Hoenn Champion, was traveling to Kanto to participate in the exchange conference.

  One of his key objectives was to negotiate a deal involving an important breakthrough in Pokéblock research.

  That was when Ishida could no longer sit still.

  If Steven himself was making the trip, that meant the research was real.

  Without hesitation, Ishida rushed from Saffron City to Cedon overnight to get ahead of Devon Corporation—determined to steal this opportunity right out from under them.

  However, as he waited eagerly for August’s response, he was met with a shake of the head.

  “If that’s what this is about, then you may as well leave. This isn’t about money.”

  As much as he was curious about Silph Co.’s so-called “satisfactory offer,” August had already reached a preliminary agreement with Steven through Lance.

  Hearing this, Ishida was visibly disappointed but refused to give up.

  “Is it because of Devon Corporation? If so, may I ask what price they’ve offered? Whatever it is, Silph Co. is willing to increase it by 20%.”

  “If you’ve already signed an agreement with them, we’ll cover all breach-of-contract fees.”

  In other words—more money!

  Ishida was willing to pay any price to secure this breakthrough for Silph Co., allowing them to leap ahead in the Pokéblock industry.

  August clicked his tongue in amusement.

  They didn’t even know Devon’s offer, yet they were already promising to raise it by 20% and cover the penalties?

  Silph Co. truly lived up to its reputation as Kanto’s powerhouse corporation—deep pockets, and plenty of sincerity.

  Honestly, if he didn’t already know that Team Rocket had its eyes on Silph Co. and that the company was about to suffer a major downfall, he might have actually been tempted.

  But unfortunately for them, that wasn’t an option.

  Just as he was about to firmly reject the offer, a small commotion nearby caught his attention.

  Looking over, he spotted Lance, looking slightly flustered, surrounded by a crowd of trainers eagerly asking for his autograph.

  August gnced at Lance, then at Ishida, whose face screamed “I won’t leave until I get what I want.”

  After a brief moment of thought, he decided to push this problem onto someone else.

  Smirking, he said, “To be honest, I’m not the only one making this decision. If you really want me to abandon Devon and choose Silph Co., you’ll have to convince someone else first.”

  Ishida’s eyes lit up—this sounded like a breakthrough.

  “Who?” he asked, his enthusiasm reignited.

  August casually pointed behind him. “Over there.”

  Ishida turned around—

  And saw Lance, having just finished signing autographs, now making his way toward them.

  “…”