At this moment, Lorelei, Morty, Officer Jenny, and the others were retreating while fighting.
However—
Faced with the might of a Legendary Pokémon, their resistance was steadily crumbling.
Not to mention Apollo himself.
A Champion Peak-level powerhouse who stood only a step away from entering the Master tier.
The overwhelming pressure left Lorelei unable to fully utilize her strength.
Meanwhile, Will's Psychic-type Pokémon continuously disrupted the League forces.
Their powerful support abilities prevented Lorelei's group from escaping while simultaneously creating opportunities for Apollo and Moltres to launch devastating attacks.
"Lorelei!"
"Stop struggling."
"This time, you're definitely falling into Team Rocket's hands!"
"Jynx, use Psychic at full power!"
"Xatu!"
"Wobbuffet!"
"Alakazam!"
"All of you use Psychic!"
As the Psychic attacks of three Pokémon collided head-on with Jynx's attack, the exhausted Pokémon finally reached its limit.
Unable to continue resisting—
Jynx was overwhelmed.
Apollo immediately seized the opportunity.
"Moltres!"
"Fire Blast!"
A massive flaming symbol crashed directly into Jynx.
Boom!
The explosion echoed across the battlefield.
Lorelei lost her first Pokémon.
At this point—
The outcome seemed all but decided.
…
Elsewhere—
Although Bruno was unable to defeat Zapdos, his own strength still allowed him to hold his ground against Ariana.
For now, he was merely at a disadvantage.
However—
If another Team Rocket executive or hidden infiltrator appeared, just like Will had joined Apollo—
Bruno would undoubtedly be unable to withstand the pressure.
"Looks like…"
"I'll have to retreat if this continues."
Understanding that the Gym Leaders were unable to participate in battles at the Champion level, Bruno had already begun preparing to withdraw.
…
Meanwhile—
After receiving distress signals from both Bruno and Lorelei, Aiden Flint finally made his decision.
Lorelei had previously helped save the Sinnoh League.
Because of that, Cynthia owed her a favor.
As for Bruno—
Aiden had no particular connection with him.
Naturally—
He chose to rescue Lorelei first.
After making up his mind, Aiden's Psychic power merged with Deoxys's own overwhelming psychic energy.
Locking onto the Psychic marker on Lorelei's body—
The next moment—
Aiden and Deoxys vanished.
Instantaneously.
They appeared beside Lorelei.
At this exact moment, Lorelei had already lost three Pokémon.
Meanwhile, Moltres remained in excellent condition.
"Moltres!"
"One more time!"
"Burn Up!"
Apollo roared furiously.
Moltres spread its blazing wings.
An inferno capable of burning everything erupted from its beak.
As the massive pillar of fire descended—
A trace of unwillingness appeared in Lorelei's eyes.
"Am I…"
"Really going to fall here?"
At the very last second—
A figure appeared before her.
Aiden Flint.
Feeling the scorching heat approaching from the front, purple light flashed through Aiden's eyes.
An overwhelmingly powerful force erupted.
The incoming flames froze in midair.
Completely motionless.
Even Moltres itself was locked in place.
Unable to move.
For the first time, fear appeared in the Legendary Bird's eyes.
It was as though it had encountered an existence it could never overcome.
"Hm?"
"Who are you?"
When Apollo and Will saw the young man suddenly appear and casually stop Moltres's attack using nothing but Psychic power, disbelief filled their faces.
This was a Legendary Pokémon.
A true Legendary.
The reason Legendary Pokémon were called Legendary Pokémon was because they possessed power beyond ordinary comprehension.
Yet now—
A human had blocked Moltres's attack with Psychic power alone.
How was that possible?
Even Sabrina, known as the Psychic Queen, could never accomplish such a thing.
Meanwhile—
Lorelei slowly opened her eyes.
The expected flames never arrived.
Ignoring the fact that the fierce battle had left portions of her clothes torn and damaged—
Revealing far more skin than she normally would—
She stared blankly at the figure standing before her.
"Aiden…?"
"So it was him."
"He saved me."
"That's… unexpected."
Initially, Lorelei's feelings toward Aiden had been little more than curiosity and interest.
She wanted to know how a mere eighteen-year-old—well, now nineteen-year-old—Trainer had managed to obtain a top-tier Legendary Pokémon like Rayquaza.
Later, after meeting him in Sinnoh, she had become even more surprised.
But after he resolved the Sinnoh League crisis—
She had watched Cynthia throw herself directly into his arms like a lovestruck girl.
The two had then disappeared together.
What they went off to do was obvious enough.
Because of that, Lorelei had gradually lost interest.
Yet now—
After being saved by him—
Her heart began to waver once again.
Perhaps her previous indifference had only existed because such an outstanding man had already been claimed by another woman.
After all—
Women like Lorelei, Cynthia, and Diantha were among the strongest Trainers in the world.
If they were going to choose a man—
He would naturally need to be stronger than they were.
The problem was that Lorelei herself was incredibly powerful.
Even Lance couldn't completely suppress her.
Champions from other regions rarely interacted with her.
Only Aiden—
Because of the constant missions and League operations—
Had gradually become entangled with her life.
At this moment, Aiden also noticed the damage to Lorelei's clothes.
The torn fabric revealed glimpses of black lace beneath.
Even the curves that her clothing normally concealed were impossible to ignore.
Aiden swallowed unconsciously.
"Ahem…"
Letting out a light cough, he quickly pulled a jacket from his System Space and draped it over Lorelei's shoulders.
"Leave the rest to me."
Seeing his reaction, Lorelei suddenly laughed softly.
Although Aiden was incredibly powerful—
He was still a young man after all.
The way he struggled to keep his composure was unexpectedly amusing.
Interesting.
"Apollo."
Will's expression darkened.
"That's Aiden Flint."
"The Champion of the Hoenn League."
"Be careful."
"He's incredibly strong."
"And he has Legendary Pokémon."
However, Apollo merely snorted.
"A Legendary Pokémon?"
"Hmph."
"I have one too!"
"Moltres!"
"Break free from his restraint!"
"Now!"
Hearing Apollo's command, Moltres's gaze sharpened.
Its wings began beating faster and faster.
At that moment—
Aiden activated the system.
"Ding! Moltres's current attributes are as follows:"
Pokémon: Moltres (Clone)
Divine Authority: None
Level: 80
Ability: Flame Body
Type: Fire / Flying
Potential: Red
Bond Evolution: Not unlocked
Mega Evolution: Not unlocked
Moves: Gust, Ancient Power, Defog, Air Slash, Roost, Heat Wave, Sunny Day, Hurricane, Burn Up, Brave Bird…
Friendship: 0
Background: Created by Team Rocket through cloning technology using Moltres's blood. Possesses tremendous power, but its lifespan has been drastically reduced and it can only survive for three to five years.
Preference: Slaughter
After reading the information—
Aiden's expression changed.
A clone.
A cloned Moltres.
Team Rocket had once again exceeded his expectations.
…
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