In the living room of the suite, Caitlin sat elegantly on the sofa while holding a book.
"Caitlin, aren't you asleep yet?"
Cynthia saw Caitlin immediately as she walked out of Damian's room.
"I still have half an hour. I'm going to wash up in a bit and then put on a face mask."
Caitlin looked at her watch. She closed the book in her hands, set it aside, and let out a lazy yawn.
It was already ten o'clock at night. It was almost time for her to rest.
Because she naturally liked to sleep a lot and kept a strict routine, she started to feel sleepy every night around ten.
"Team Galactic has been dealt with. If the Sinnoh League doesn't cause any trouble, we should be leaving Sinnoh very soon."
Caitlin looked toward Cynthia. Lately, she had been in a pretty good mood.
No more annoying women had shown up to let Damian "practice his skills." Cynthia really was reliable after all.
"I will go talk to the President tomorrow," Cynthia said. She had already made her decision.
"That would be for the best. Damian is the chosen one. No one in this world can stand in his way."
A faint smile appeared on Caitlin's face. Her tone was full of admiration for Damian.
"..."
Cynthia remained silent. At this moment, she actually thought the same thing. After all, Damian was truly too extraordinary.
Even the Creator, Arceus, thought so highly of Damian. Arceus had shown him kindness and even given him power.
It was no exaggeration to say that Damian was the main character of this era.
Who could possibly stop him?
"But Caitlin, don't you think Damian is a bit too excellent?"
Cynthia's eyes moved to Caitlin.
"How do you plan to make Damian love only you?"
"When did I ever say I would only let Damian love me?"
Caitlin asked back very naturally.
"?" Cynthia was stunned.
"You don't understand Damian, Cynthia. The things men like are nothing more than power, wealth, strength, and attractive women."
Caitlin's tone was very calm.
"And Damian is also a normal man. He will have these normal desires. I have been by his side for over half a year now. I understand him very well."
Well, Caitlin had seen many things with her own eyes and heard many things as well.
"In this area, Damian is not a very self-disciplined person. He is so outstanding that he naturally attracts attention. Those shameless women will always try to throw themselves at him."
Although she was very unhappy with the women who flirted with Damian at first, Caitlin had slowly started to get used to it.
She still disliked those women, but she had gradually adapted.
"Then you...?"
Cynthia looked at Caitlin, confused.
"But if Damian were truly a one-woman man, I wouldn't even have a chance, would I?"
Caitlin smiled gently. Her tone was still elegant and reserved.
However, the content of her words was not reserved at all.
"I never expected Damian to love only me after he becomes my man. That isn't realistic."
"But..."
At this point, Caitlin paused for a moment.
"I want to become Damian's wife. I want to raise our children with him."
Caitlin's voice was extremely firm. This was exactly what she wanted.
She didn't mind Damian being with other women right now. In Caitlin's view, those women were not real competition.
They were just there to let Damian practice his skills and experience different styles and charms.
"Even if he has more than one wife?" Cynthia felt her friend's logic was strange.
Why was she so confident?
Cynthia couldn't understand. Caitlin was excellent, but wasn't it possible that the world was full of geniuses?
For example, Platinum, or those "monster" girls and boys in the Unova region.
"I have the confidence to win Damian's favoritism."
Caitlin smiled, looking very calm and elegant.
Yes, why wouldn't she be confident?
In terms of looks, she didn't lose to any woman.
In terms of strength, she was a powerful psychic. She was a Champion-level Psychic-type master. She even had Baby Lugia that Damian had given her.
In terms of her relationship with Damian, she was his closest colleague. They were almost inseparable.
Why shouldn't she win?
"Caitlin, you are too arrogant," Cynthia thought, feeling quite speechless.
"Who is Damian's girlfriend?"
Cynthia asked as if she were just making casual conversation.
"She is a rookie trainer currently traveling. I heard she is over in Alola," Caitlin said after thinking for a moment.
It seemed Caitlin didn't know either.
Cynthia found it even harder to stay calm. My goodness, did Caitlin really not even know who her main rival was yet?
How was she going to win this battle?
Cynthia felt that her friend didn't have any advantage other than being patient, or maybe just being slow.
"I suggest you express your feelings to Damian as soon as possible, Caitlin. Things might not happen the way you expect."
Cynthia felt she should give Caitlin some advice.
They were close friends, after all. Since Caitlin had such big ambitions, Cynthia would support her.
As for herself...
Cynthia's feelings were complicated. Today, she had managed to hold her ground and not go all the way, but that was only for today.
It was the guilt she felt toward her friend that kept her standing firm.
But Cynthia didn't know if she could keep holding out forever. What if she ended up sleeping with Damian and even got pregnant while Caitlin still hadn't made any progress?
At that time, Cynthia really wouldn't know how to face Caitlin.
"I understand," Caitlin said, still wearing an elegant smile.
What do you actually understand?
Speaking of which, it was strange that Damian, with his flirtatious personality, had never touched Caitlin.
Cynthia felt she should find a chance to ask Damian. Caitlin had a delicate face, a slender figure, and a noble aura. It didn't make sense.
Time passed quickly, and the next day arrived.
Cynthia left early in the morning. She headed back to Lily of the Valley Island to talk with the Sinnoh League President.
As for Damian, after he woke up, he went for a walk around Hearthome City with Caitlin.
The business in Sinnoh was mostly finished. There was no more trouble to find.
In the original story, the Sinnoh movies were connected. All three movies started because of Arceus.
Because Arceus was waking up after recovering from injuries, it caused space-time ripples. This led Dialga and Palkia to meet in a rift. Both thought the other was invading their territory, so they started a war.
The second movie with Giratina happened because the battle between Dialga and Palkia in the first movie damaged the Distortion World. Giratina then came out to hunt Dialga in the real world.
The third movie was about Arceus fully waking up and coming to Michina Town to release a thousand years of anger.
However, in this world, that misunderstanding from a thousand years ago never happened. Therefore, there would be no space-time war or similar events.
One had to admit, things were a bit less fun this way.
But it didn't matter. Damian was in a relaxed mood and accompanied Caitlin as they toured Hearthome City.
On the other side, Lily of the Valley Island.
Garchomp landed. Cynthia looked at the towering League building in front of her. Her thoughts were tangled.
How should she put it? Even though she had only been gone for about half a month, it felt much longer.
Well, as the Sinnoh League Champion, she had stayed with the leader of Team Rocket for so long. And every night, they were getting closer.
Cynthia gathered herself. She recalled Garchomp and walked into the League building.
She took the elevator to the top floor and knocked on the President's door.
"President Goodshow, it's me, Cynthia."
"Cynthia, welcome back."
The President of the Sinnoh League was a man over sixty years old. He gave a gentle smile when he saw Cynthia walk in.
"Yes. I am sorry for making you worry."
Cynthia nodded to President Goodshow.
"Sit down. Tell me about what happened during this time."
Cynthia had only told him about her recent plans. Although President Goodshow was old, he was not narrow-minded.
He had been worried about Cynthia's safety. After all, in his eyes, Cynthia was the hope of Sinnoh.
"Well, Team Galactic has been destroyed by Team Rocket. The leader, Cyrus, and the Commanders—Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Charon—have all been captured by Team Rocket."
"So fast?"
President Goodshow pushed up his glasses. Although he expected something to happen, wasn't this too quick?
Cyrus was a strong trainer, after all.
"The gap in strength between the two sides is too large. Damian didn't even have to step in."
Cynthia said quietly. If Charon wasn't counted, Team Galactic was no match for Team Rocket at all.
Even Damian, Zinnia, and Caitlin barely had to do anything.
"So, Cynthia, how should we deal with Team Rocket now?"
Goodshow asked Cynthia for her opinion. He was good at handling the League's internal affairs, but when it came to dealing with Team Rocket, he trusted Cynthia's judgment.
"Although I don't want to say this, with our Sinnoh League's strength, it is impossible to defeat Team Rocket."
"President, I suggest we follow the examples of Hoenn and Unova. We should make peace with Team Rocket. As long as we recognize the legality of Team Rocket's businesses, they won't have a conflict with us."
"Is that really okay?"
Goodshow knitted his white eyebrows.
"We have no choice," Cynthia said seriously. "If we insist on fighting Team Rocket to drive them out, the Sinnoh League will only suffer a complete defeat."
"Team Rocket is not something we can handle. If we want a final battle, only an official call to arms from the Kanto League would give us a chance."
Cynthia told President Goodshow.
"I understand. But just yesterday, a Team Rocket Senior Executive forcibly broke into the prison. That was a very bad act. The councilors probably won't agree to this."
"If they don't agree, let them go find Zinnia themselves. The Sinnoh League cannot pay the price for their stupidity and impulsiveness."
Cynthia said coldly.
Those League councilors usually acted high and mighty. But when real trouble happened, every single one of them stayed quiet.
Fight Team Rocket? Are they going to fight?
They only knew how to give orders from the back. Once they couldn't win, they would just change their faces again.
"???"
President Goodshow looked at Cynthia in shock.
This... was this something Cynthia would say?
In his memory, although Cynthia wasn't very old, she had always been an calm, woman.
Even when she was unhappy, she would express it with subtle hints. She had never been this direct, and she had certainly never called the League councilors stupid.
President Goodshow thought for a moment and finally spoke.
"Cynthia, you seem to have become a bit... different?"
------------------
NOTE
I want to explain why I stopped updating daily for a while.
I had some health problems, and I also had to deal with a few work-related matters. Because of that, I couldn't keep the daily update schedule like before.
But that ends today.
Starting today, chapters will be published every day again.
Also, all the novels that were abandoned or left on hold will be coming back as well.
I'm truly sorry to everyone who kept waiting, and I want to thank all of you who still came back day after day to check for new chapters.
Really, thank you for your patience and support.