Just then, the nearby bushes shook violently, and a thin figure stumbled out, legs buckling as they nearly collapsed to the ground.
It was a boy, looking no more than thirteen or fourteen years old. His clothes had long been torn into rags by thorns, barely hanging onto his frame.
His exposed skin was covered in scratches of varying depths and dried blood scabs, mixed with mud and grime, making his original skin tone almost unrecognizable.
He looked like a small tree ravaged by a gale, teetering as if he might fall apart at any second.
"Oh?"
Layla raised an eyebrow and walked over with interest, using the tip of her foot to give the boy's shin a light kick.
"Isn't this our little logistics boy we left behind at Mt. Pyre? You've certainly got a stubborn life."
There wasn't a hint of sympathy in her tone, only the playful curiosity one might have toward a rare plaything.
She was more curious about how this weakling of a kid managed to come out of that ghost mountain alive.
And how had he managed to follow behind them so stealthily without being noticed?
Alex didn't even bother to look up. He leaned against a thick tree trunk, methodically trimming his fingernails with a small knife.
Without raising his head, his voice carried an impatience akin to driving away a stray dog.
"We don't have any logistics fees here. Scram."
To their surprise, instead of scrambling away, the boy's legs gave out and he fell with a heavy thud, kneeling in the mud before Alex.
His knees hit the ground with a dull sound.
"Boss!"
The boy's voice was as raspy as if it had been rubbed with sandpaper, yet it carried a stubbornness that didn't match his frail appearance.
"I don't want logistics fees! I don't want anything! I just... I just want to get ahead! Please, please help me!"
Alex's movement of trimming his nails stopped.
He finally looked up, his sinister eyes scanning the boy kneeling on the ground as if evaluating the worth of a piece of cargo.
After a moment, his lips curled into a mocking arc.
"Help you?"
He slowly sat up straight, and then, in front of everyone, he began to take off his mud-splattered hiking boot.
The shoe was tossed aside, and a thick, sour, rotten smell instantly permeated the damp air, causing the two team members nearby to subconsciously frown.
Alex didn't care at all. He stretched out his foot, gave it a shake, and then methodically peeled off the sock that was no longer its original color.
He pinched the top of the sock as if holding something filthy and tossed it aside. The ball of foul-smelling fabric rolled into the grass a few meters away.
"You want to get ahead?"
Alex's voice was thick with mockery.
"Sure. Use your mouth to fetch it back for me. If I'm in a good mood, I'll consider it."
The air seemed to freeze.
Everyone's gaze focused on the kneeling boy.
The boy's body stiffened, and his nostrils twitched almost imperceptibly, clearly smelling the nauseating odor.
A flash of struggle crossed his face, but it lasted for less than a second before being replaced by a near-manic determination.
He didn't hesitate for a moment.
He lowered his head, pressed his hands against the ground, and flattened his body.
On all fours, like a real stray dog, he crawled toward the sock.
His movements weren't fast—they were even a bit clumsy—as if every move required his full strength.
Finally, he stopped before the ball of filthy fabric.
He opened his mouth and, with his teeth, precisely bit onto the damp, foul-smelling thing. Then he turned around and crawled back to Alex's feet, step by step.
He looked up, the sock still in his mouth, gazing at Alex with dark, bright eyes. There was no humiliation in his gaze, only a near-pathological longing and expectation.
"Haha... Hahahaha!"
Alex was stunned for a moment before bursting into a loud laugh, his voice raspy and piercing, echoing through the silent forest.
Layla also started laughing, her body shaking with mirth. She walked over to Alex and stepped on the boy's back, forcing his already hunched body even lower.
"Boss, it's not bad to keep a thing like this around. Just think of it as... a little puppy by your side."
Alex's laughter gradually died down. He looked down at the boy who could even discard his dignity, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.
"I suppose that works."
He used the tip of his foot to lift the boy's chin, forcing him to look up.
"What's your name?"
The boy squeezed two words out from between his teeth, his voice muffled.
"Amal..."
"Amal?"
Alex scoffed, applying pressure with his foot until the boy's cheek was distorted.
"That's a bad name. From today on, your name is Adog."
He paused, withdrew his foot, and gave an order from on high.
"From now on, stay by my side."
The boy struggled to spit the object in his mouth aside and kowtowed heavily, his voice raspy but clear.
"Yes, Boss."
...
Team Evil temporary base.
The cavern was damp and cold.
Ariel sat casually on a smoothed-out boulder, his back straight like an unsheathed sword. Even in this dim environment, his sharp presence was hard to hide.
His shadow was stretched long by the light of the ore, projected onto the uneven rock wall behind him, flickering gently with the weak light like a silent behemoth.
Yuki stood by his side, her voice kept very low as she reported the recent hot news from Hoenn.
"An Elite Four Level Pokémon went berserk at Mt. Pyre, resulting in a large number of Trainer deaths. Elite Four Phoebe has already resolved the situation..."
Ariel knew that for the entire Hoenn League, this was no different from having a large piece of flesh cruelly gouged out; it was a heart-wrenching loss.
After all, the Trainers who died were basically high-end combat forces!
Most were Elite Level, and among them were many Gym Leader Level Trainers!
Yuki's voice didn't pause as she continued the report.
"Currently, the organization known as the Black Fire Exploration Team has been charged with multiple crimes, and a wanted warrant has been issued across the entire League..."
Ariel's fingertips tapped gently on the cold surface of the stone, making a rhythmic, light sound.
This was also within his expectations.
"Shocking! A man wearing women's underwear and tied up was found in a residential area of Sootopolis City. He is currently under the control of Officer Jenny..."
Hearing this news, Ariel's finger tapping the stone surface paused.
Why did that sound somewhat familiar??
Just then, a powerful aura mixed with the scents of several Pokémon suddenly pressed in from outside the cavern!
It wasn't a simple power, but a torrent formed by the convergence of countless wills and strengths, carrying a murderous aura of iron and blood.
The echoing 'drip-drop' sounds inside the cave seemed to be completely swallowed by this aura at this moment, and the surroundings fell into a dead silence.
Ariel finally raised his head, his gaze piercing through the darkness of the cave entrance to look at the open ground outside.
Forty-nine figures stood there.
They stood straight, like javelins, motionless.
At this moment, every one of them exuded an aura as if they had been reborn.
Their eyes were sharp and their faces cold, as if they had undergone the most brutal baptism.
And the most eye-catching thing was the Pokémon beside them!
Now, every team member was accompanied by two to three Pokémon.
From every Pokémon's body surged the powerful energy fluctuations of the Elite Level!
Nearly a hundred Elite Level Pokémon stood quietly on the open ground, forming a forest of steel composed of powerful Pokémon!
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