For the remainder of the day, Icarus headed straight into Arbok's territory, specifically searching for Ordinary Level Arbok while completely ignoring any mid-stage ones.
After all, the mission only required low-stage Arbok. There was no point wasting energy fighting stronger snakes when their skins wouldn't provide any additional contribution points.
"Houndour, use Thunder Fang!"
"Weepinbell, bind it!"
…
Since there was no type advantage this time, the battle was much more troublesome. Still, by the time evening arrived, they had successfully completed the mission.
Of course, Houndour paid a price for it.
Several wounds had appeared across its body—some from Arbok's venomous bites, others from being constricted by its coils.
Icarus still vividly remembered how crafty that Arbok had been.
After getting hit by a surprise Paralyze Powder, it deliberately pretended to be paralyzed, tricking Houndour into charging in for a bite.
But before Houndour could sink its fangs in, the snake suddenly lashed out with its tail and tightly coiled around it instead.
The ambusher had instantly become the ambushed.
Fortunately, Pidgeotto had recently learned Fury Attack. Combining Quick Attack with Fury Attack, it immediately slammed into the Arbok, stunning it long enough for its constricting coils to loosen unconsciously.
Because of that, Houndour only suffered a single constriction before escaping and retaliating with a vicious Thunder Fang bite.
In the end, through the combined efforts of all three Pokémon, the cunning Arbok finally collapsed at their feet.
Its skin was peeled off for the mission reward, the meat was prepared to become an extra meal later, the poison sac was—as usual—fed to Weepinbell, and its remaining valuable materials were the fangs.
Three pairs of fangs alone could sell for 10,000 yuan.
Now that all three of them were practicing martial arts, their daily consumption had increased dramatically.
Because of this, both Trainers and Pokémon ate Pokémon meat almost every day.
Fortunately, the three of them didn't bother splitting things too precisely. Whenever someone hunted an Ordinary Level Pokémon, the meat would simply be stored together in the large freezer.
The freezer had actually been specially purchased by Airi.
As a chef, she simply couldn't tolerate seeing ingredients spoil because there was too much food to store properly.
So she bought a massive freezer with multiple compartments inside, separating ingredients for humans and Pokémon alike. That way, flavors wouldn't mix together, nor would there be any accidental poisoning from strange food combinations.
After returning to Team Rocket HQ, Icarus first submitted the two completed missions, earning 75 contribution points and raising his total to 135 points.
Afterward, he skillfully accepted two more missions before leaving the headquarters.
The moment he exited the Team Rocket gate, Icarus immediately hurried back toward town with his three Pokémon.
By the time he returned, it was already past 7 PM.
He first sold all the materials he had gathered, increasing his bank balance to 390,000 yuan.
Afterward, he stopped by a Pokémon Center, accepted a mission related to his current Team Rocket tasks, and then walked over to Lucy's service counter.
"Icarus-kun! Hello!"
The moment Lucy looked up and saw him, her body visibly stiffened. Instinctively, her hand moved toward her hip.
Ever since Icarus had first "used" her there, she had been called upon repeatedly.
She still remembered serving him there just last night, and even now, the soreness hadn't completely faded.
As for why she called him Icarus-kun instead of "Master"—
That was because Icarus had specifically instructed her that while inside the Pokémon Center, she only needed to address him by name.
Although she found the request strange, it perfectly aligned with her own hidden wishes.
If her coworkers ever learned she had become someone's servant, she would undoubtedly become the target of endless gossip.
So, Lucy had happily accepted Icarus's instruction.
"Mm. Same place tonight."
Seeing Lucy subconsciously covering her hip, Icarus smiled.
He had absolutely no intention of being gentle and directly informed her that they would continue tonight.
After all, it had been her own choice.
And besides… he didn't necessarily have to use the same method tonight.
"…Okay, Icarus-kun. I understand…"
Lucy's expression dimmed slightly, but in the end, she still lacked the courage to refuse and quietly nodded.
The comfortable life she currently enjoyed was only possible because Captain Sam had spoken on her behalf.
Otherwise, she likely would have already been "voluntarily dismissed" and sent home long ago.
And the reason Captain Sam had helped her in the first place…
Was ultimately because of Icarus.
So she understood clearly that she had no right to reject him.
Otherwise, the man before her would abandon her without hesitation.
She still vividly remembered that night—
The way Icarus ignored all her struggling and crying before forcibly taking her for the first time.
That experience made her realize something very clearly:
In front of this man, she was merely an ordinary little maid.
A maid without the right to refuse.
"Mm, there's one more thing. Go look up the registration data for the younger talents of the major families over the last three years. Initial registration records are enough. Your authority should allow you to access those. Make sure you record every single one."
Seeing Lucy obediently nod, Icarus smiled in satisfaction before casually bringing up another matter.
He quickly scribbled something onto a piece of paper and handed it to her before leaving directly.
After returning home, Icarus had no intention of disturbing Airi or Stone.
After feeding his three Pokémon, he began preparing dinner for himself.
It was worth mentioning that after Houndour's aptitude improved, there was very little honey left.
Icarus estimated the remaining amount would only be enough to raise the aptitude of two more Pokémon.
Moreover, honey of that level no longer provided any enhancement for Houndour, so now Houndour followed its cultivation manual's standard feeding plan just like Weepinbell and the others.
Its daily meals consisted of:
One mid-grade Fire-type energy cube
One low-grade Dark-type energy cube
One jin of Ordinary Level Pokémon meat
Altogether, Houndour's meals alone cost roughly 700 yuan per meal, totaling around 2,100 yuan every day.
After evolving into Houndoom, the energy cube requirements would remain the same, but the meat intake would increase from one jin to four jin.
Including the expenses for all three Pokémon, Icarus now spent nearly 8,000 yuan every single day.
After dinner, everyone entered their usual training routines.
The three Pokémon continuously practiced their moves.
After all, this wasn't a game world where stats automatically remained fixed forever.
If you stopped training, your combat ability would absolutely deteriorate.
For example, Weepinbell hadn't used Sand Attack for a long time, and now its casting speed had regressed to nearly the same level as when it was first tested at the novice stage.
Its energy level had increased, but its proficiency hadn't kept up.
That was the result.
Understanding this principle very well, Icarus never allowed his Pokémon's training to slack off for several consecutive days.
As for himself, he was even stricter.
Although he hadn't used throwing knives much recently, he still practiced them every single day.
After all, throwing knives were his signature skill.
How could he abandon his roots?
Sometimes, he even felt that replacing the Earth Fiend Fist with hidden weapon techniques might be better.
Close combat simply wasn't as safe as killing enemies from a distance.
"Whoosh whoosh~"
"Hey-ha! Ha!"
"Bang bang bang~"
Without realizing it, time quickly passed until 10 PM.
The three Pokémon wisely found places to sleep, while Icarus himself finished several full rounds of martial arts practice—including his throwing knife techniques.
By then, Lucy had already arrived in his room.
The agreed time had been 9:50 PM, meaning she had already waited there for over ten minutes.
"Master, welcome back."
The moment she saw Icarus enter the room, Lucy immediately stood up and bowed respectfully.
"Mm. Looks like you just got off work. Come to the bathroom with me—we'll shower together."
Looking at Lucy still dressed in her work uniform, Icarus carefully examined her figure.
It seemed she had developed a little more recently.
Nodding in satisfaction, he walked toward the bathroom.
"Splash splash~"
Water soon began running inside.
"Master… I'm coming in."
Biting her lower lip, Lucy finally removed her clothes and slowly entered the bathroom as well…
About an hour later, Icarus lay on the bed while holding Lucy in one arm and flipping through documents with the other hand.
"Master… shouldn't I be leaving soon?"
Remembering Icarus's usual habits, Lucy softly asked while leaning against his chest.
"No need. Stay here tonight and have breakfast with me tomorrow morning. The other two have been busy lately, so they won't be coming here."
Hearing her question, Icarus casually kneaded the softness in his left hand while replying with a smile.
"Oh my… Then, Master, are these documents for preparing for the year-end competition?"
"But these records are very basic. They only show the initial Pokémon and aptitude. They aren't very useful, right? Some people even changed their starter Pokémon later."
Feeling his wandering hand continuing to move across her body, Lucy's face flushed red again as she curiously asked.
"Mm, that's right. Your Master plans to take advantage of his little maid's abilities. Besides, the rewards for the top three places are quite valuable."
"These records still reveal Pokémon attributes, which is useful enough. You did very well, Lucy."
Realizing she had misunderstood his true purpose, Icarus simply went along with it instead of explaining further.
Still, he wasn't entirely lying.
He genuinely did intend to prepare somewhat for the year-end competition.
In his opinion, these documents held significant value.
Although some people changed their starter Pokémon later for various reasons, he believed most Trainers would still keep their original Pokémon as their main partner.
And for ordinary Trainers, their starter Pokémon was almost always their strongest one.
Knowing the attributes and aptitude of those Pokémon in advance could slightly increase his chances of victory if they encountered each other during the competition.
Of course, his real purpose remained exchanging the information for Team Rocket contribution points.
The year-end competition was still far away.
"Mm It's all… all something I should do… Ah Thank you for your praise, Master…"
As Lucy felt the hand roaming across her body becoming increasingly restless, her voice became fragmented and shaky.
The next morning, thanks to Lucy's personal service, the two enjoyed an exceptionally luxurious breakfast.
Besides porridge, Icarus ate two large steamed buns, while Lucy also had porridge—along with an added sausage.
After eating his fill, Icarus parted ways with Lucy and headed alone toward Team Rocket HQ with his three Pokémon and a USB drive.
Earlier that morning, he had scanned all his handwritten notes into digital files and transferred everything onto the USB drive.
After swiftly crossing the forest, he soon arrived at Team Rocket HQ.
"Hello, I'm here to submit a mission. This contains the information I collected regarding the major families' younger generation."
At the mission counter, Icarus handed over the USB drive.
"Understood. Since this is a special mission, please wait about ten minutes while we verify the contents.
You can check the result yourself at the self-service computer afterward. If the mission passes, your contribution points will be updated automatically.
If it fails, the mission page will display a failed notice. However, you may still accept the mission again later."
The staff member politely explained everything before handing the USB drive to another employee.
"Alright. Thank you."
Icarus nodded and immediately headed toward the self-service computer.
Fifteen minutes later, he nervously placed his black ID card onto the sensor platform.
"Beep~"
The moment the system loaded, he immediately opened the contribution point section.
"260 points!"
The number displayed before his eyes had nearly doubled.
He clearly remembered having only 135 points yesterday.
Now he had 260.
That meant he had gained 125 contribution points in a single transaction.
"So it really was useful…"
"I submitted information on thirty-two people. Since the minimum reward is five points each, that means only twenty-five profiles were accepted."
"Forget it. As long as I got the points, that's enough."
"Although… if Lucy could access treatment records too, I could probably determine these family members' current strength levels through their healing history."
Looking at his dramatically increased contribution points, Icarus greedily considered the possibility.
Unfortunately, he also knew it was unrealistic.
Even after becoming his servant, Lucy could never be transferred into the treatment department.
And even if she somehow did, she still wouldn't gain access to high-level treatment records.
After all, that information was extremely important.
A skilled person could infer a Trainer's current strength level and even the growth progress of their Pokémon purely from healing records.
As far as Icarus knew, only the Joy family could freely access such information.
Anyone else required direct permission from Nurse Joy herself.
That system essentially allowed the Joy family to guarantee complete privacy to every Trainer.
At the same time, it also benefited the Joy family immensely.
They were always the first to discover talented Trainers.
Whenever a gifted commoner or small-family Trainer appeared, the Joy family would notice immediately through the healing records.
Compared to the Jenny family, the Joy family might appear to the outside world as simple doctors—
But in reality, their hidden influence and armed strength were powerful enough to rival the Jenny family itself.
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