Although it was not as rare as Hydreigon, this Meganium had surpassed the first threshold of the champion level. In terms of strength, it was not inferior to Brad's Hydreigon, and could even be more powerful.
Its potential was not low at all, but Cain was not very fond of using other people's Pokémon. Since obtaining it, he had almost never sent it into battle, and it had been so idle that it had almost put on weight.
Giving it to Catherine would allow it to fulfill a greater purpose.
With this Meganium, Catherine's strength would not be inferior to Brad's, and when working for Cain in the future, it would also inspire greater confidence.
That was what Cain thought. However, both Brad and Catherine were completely stunned when they saw that Meganium. They had never imagined that Cain could take something like that out so casually.
First an extremely valuable Hydreigon, and now a Meganium that had surpassed the first threshold of the champion level.
Although Meganium was not as popular as Venusaur or Sceptile, it was still one of Johto's starter Pokémon, with by no means negligible potential.
Brad and Catherine did not know Cain's exact identity, but someone capable of producing two such Pokémon so easily was definitely not an ordinary person.
"This Meganium... really... is it for me?" Catherine asked, incredulous.
If she obtained that Meganium, her strength would practically double. With her experience, she could clearly see that it was trained much better than her Azumarill and her Arbok. Only Bellossom could compare a little, but it still fell short.
"You already use Bellossom, so you should adapt quickly to Meganium. Consider it a reward. I hope you work well for me. As for returning to the Pokémon world, I'll take care of that," Cain said with a smile.
Catherine took the Poké Ball in a daze. Even Brad showed an expression of envy.
But he understood that only with greater strength would he have the qualifications necessary to work alongside Cain.
Cain watched Catherine put away Meganium and nodded in satisfaction.
In this way, Brad and Catherine together would have no major problems dealing with a member of the Sacred Church.
Now that the members of the Sacred Church were scattered everywhere, it was time for them to stop acting so blatantly.
"Catherine, first familiarize yourself with Meganium and establish a solid foundation of coordination as soon as possible. Then, the two of you find a place to adjust your teamwork. When the time comes to act, I'll be the one to assign you tasks."
"Before that, come with me to a place. There may be something that requires your help."
After saying that, Cain disappeared in a flash, moving toward an unknown direction.
Catherine and Brad briefly looked at each other. Although they did not know what Cain was planning, now that they were subordinates, they only needed to obey.
Catherine put away Meganium and, together with Brad, rushed after Cain.
...
Not long after, Cain finished changing and once again disguised himself as a member of the Sacred Church.
His objective this time was very simple. If fighting Steven had been enough to deceive the others without arousing suspicion, even so, to put his mind at ease he needed to test himself against a real member of the Sacred Church and see if any imperfections remained.
Going directly to the Sacred Church's headquarters was still too risky. A small mistake could cost him his life.
Therefore, out of caution, he decided to first test himself against a member of the Sacred Church.
As for bringing Brad and Catherine along, it was simply because during the day he had seen the mark that Brad had left.
Moreover, with them by his side, he had two fairly decent helpers.
From Bartram's memories, Cain had obtained a great deal of information about the Sacred Church, including their current plan on the continent.
According to those memories, the dark-faced leader had divided the entire continent into twelve zones, numbered from one to twelve. The Aura Valley where they were located belonged to zone three.
To ensure operational efficiency and confirm results, the twelve active members had to return every seven days to report their situation.
Cain also knew that those twelve did not completely obey the dark-faced leader. Five of them followed the man who had been the first to enter the continent to pursue them.
Zone three—Bartram—and the member of zone four directly obeyed the dark-faced leader.
Among these members, there were differences in strength. Bartram was at a middle level. The one Lorelei had defeated earlier was among the weakest.
Cain's current target, Bartram's "partner," belonged to the upper-middle group.
Even so, Cain did not give it too much importance. Although there were differences, they were not that enormous.
Coincidentally, Bartram and the member of zone four knew each other's locations, since from time to time they maintained "friendly exchanges."
The competition and internal intrigues among the members of the Sacred Church were far more severe than Cain had imagined, even more so than within Team Rocket.
It was an organization purely oriented toward profit. Part of the reason they stayed together was interest, and the other part was intimidation from their superiors.
Bartram did not know how strong the dark-faced leader truly was. He only knew that since he entered the Sacred Church, everyone who opposed him—except the relaxed man—had died without exception.
That relaxed man possessed a psychic power that completely dominated the Sacred Church. Apart from the mysterious Bishop, his psychic power was the strongest among all of them.
There was no moon or stars on the continent at night, but thanks to some unknown method of Dialga and Palkia, the darkness was not total. From above, a faint glow could be seen.
If one observed carefully, it could be discovered that this light came from the summit of the continent's central mountain.
However, due to the distance, it was not possible to discern exactly what was shining.
Just like in the Pokémon world, wild Pokémon became much more active at night, so during the journey it was necessary to remain alert at all times and avoid ambushes.
Little by little, the three went from running on their own legs to traveling mounted on flying Pokémon.
Cain stood on Salamence's back, allowing the cold-laden night wind to lash against his face.
Brad and Catherine rode together on Hydreigon's back.
As he watched the Salamence flying rapidly ahead of them, Brad's eyes filled with deep surprise.
(End of chapter)