"Impressive. Elite Bertha truly lives up to her reputation as an Elite Four member transferred from the main League. To force Hunters M and R, two Elite-level trainers, into a situation where one was captured and the other fled..."
"No." Bertha seemed slightly uncomfortable. Lowering her head, she tugged at her scarf before replying in a muffled voice, "Neither of them was actually an Elite-level trainer. Only Hunter R had an Elite-level Pokémon, and that's why he managed to escape."
Shiro suddenly understood and nodded with a smile.
So it seemed Bertha's strength was roughly at the Elite-level. Compared to the ordinary Elite Four members of the Sinnoh League, she was still noticeably stronger.
"What about the other Sinnoh Elite Four members?" Shiro asked again.
Bertha hesitated for a moment and was about to answer when she suddenly realized something. "Champion Shiro, wasn't I supposed to be asking you about the details of the previous incident?"
How had she ended up answering questions the entire time?
Even though Bertha was already quite old, she still felt somewhat embarrassed. Her expression immediately turned serious as she said solemnly, "I need to report this matter to Chairman Goodshow… I won't hide the purpose from you. The Chairman is looking for the two Unown that were stolen from the main League before, F and Y. This is an extremely important matter. At the very least, I need to confirm whether those two Unown are still with Hunter A. And besides..."
Bertha stopped for a second and looked at Shiro with a scrutinizing gaze. "The only thing capable of making Hunter A leave his hiding place and take such a huge risk despite the surveillance is the Unown."
Shiro pondered for a moment before asking, "Unown? What exactly do these Pokémon do that makes both Hunter A and the Chairman value them so highly?"
Bertha did not explain. Instead, she continued questioning him, "Have you seen them before?"
She pulled out a composite photograph from her pocket. It was covered with images of various Unown forms. Each had a black, block-like body and looked exactly like its name suggested, taking the shape of the twenty-six letters of the alphabet.
"Yes," Shiro answered immediately. "Near Lake Verity, Hunter A released three Pokémon like these. It looked like they were searching for something."
"Searching for something..." Bertha quickly asked, "Did he find it?"
"I'm not sure." Shiro shook his head. "The moment he appeared, I ordered my Pokémon to attack him. He seemed pretty angry afterward and chased me around with a Champion-level Pokémon."
"...Alright."
Bertha set down her notebook and pen. Tearing off a sheet of paper, she handed it over before turning sideways and waving her hand. "If you remember anything else, contact me again."
"Okay."
Shiro nodded lightly as he watched her leave. Then he turned around as well, his expression becoming somewhat grave.
A total of twenty-eight Unown, and every four of them could unlock a portion of the world's source power?
And there was also what Hunter A had said before… that Arceus is dead.
As the highest-ranking god in the Pokémon world, the Creator God Arceus dying sounded impossible. Moreover, the Arceus of this world was very likely only an avatar of the true being. The real Arceus existed everywhere. Every parallel world had its own manifestation of Him.
Of course, whether any of this was true or false still depended on...
Shiro touched the three metal boxes inside his bag, along with the sleeping Unown A.
The answer to all of this would have to come from Unown A.
* * *
Sinnoh.
At the far end of Mt. Coronet.
Inside the conference room of the Sinnoh League headquarters.
Chairman George tapped the table. "The main League has already issued a warning! Why didn't any of you go support the operation to capture Hunter A?"
His voice was heavy with anger. Yet none of the Champion or Elite Four members in the room responded. Especially the plump woman, Sherry, who was still trimming her fingernails.
Click, click…
The sound echoed unusually clearly throughout the conference room.
Chairman George could no longer suppress his rising fury. Just as he stood up, an aged voice slowly spoke.
"It was Chairman Goodshow of the main League who warned you, wasn't it, Chairman George?"
Fredo chuckled mockingly. Compared to before, he looked even thinner and older.
George frowned and said sternly, "We're all tied to the same rope. If one prospers, we all prosper. If one falls, we all fa—"
Before he could finish, Sherry lazily interrupted him, "That was before, Chairman."
She blew away the nail clippings from her hand and carefully examined her nails from every angle before continuing, "I assume you've already contacted Galar and prepared yourself for the main League's investigation."
"As for Chairman Rose's conditions in Galar, we can't agree to those. Everyone has to find their own way out. It's just that we didn't help capture a hunter. I heard Hunter A is stronger than the Champions of most regions… that Galar Champion didn't die, did he?"
Chairman George's expression stiffened. Still, he did not deny it. He slowed his tone and sat back down. "Everyone, regardless of what preparations you've made, since we're all sitting here now..."
"You can personally go and apologize." Fredo grinned. "Besides, Team Rocket hasn't been very quiet lately. Chairman Goodshow of the main League must have quite a headache dealing with them."
Sherry blew a breath and added, "If they want to remove us in a short time, they'll probably have to rely on Sinnoh's local trainers to work hard."
Looking at his former colleagues, George slowly loosened his clenched fists and let out a weary sigh.
"If that's how it is, then this meeting is adjourned."
With that, he pushed open the door and left without another word.
Champion Allen remained silent. He stood up and left as well.
The only person who seemed like an outsider, Vince, glanced around the room. After hesitating for a long time, he eventually followed the Champion and left the conference room.
* * *
Kanto League.
In his top-floor office, holding a communication device, Goodshow slowly asked, "Was Hunter A captured?"
"No."
On the other end of the call, Bertha shook her head as she answered.
"Then... is he dead?"
"No."
"What about the Unown?"
"They've disappeared without a trace."
"..."
Goodshow forcefully calmed himself and stroked his white beard. In the end, he sighed. "Then are the two stolen Unown from the League in that kid Shiro's hands?"
"Not certain." Bertha shook her head again.
"Then..." Goodshow stopped halfway through his sentence. Rubbing his temples in frustration, he continued, "Never mind. Continue monitoring those people in Sinnoh for now. Focus especially on Champion Allen. He is suspected of having reached some sort of agreement with the Galar region..."
"I understand."
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