Inside the police station's holding cell, Meng Hua sat with his hands cuffed, bruises still visible on his face from being crushed earlier.
"Uncle Wang… when can I get out?"
Hearing his question, the butler sighed helplessly.
"There's no way around it. That man refused to sign the settlement agreement. You'll have to stay here for a while, Young Master."
Annoyed, Meng Hua kicked the nearby chair hard.
The butler said nothing. Instead, he removed his coat and draped it over the surveillance camera. After confirming no one was watching, his expression turned serious.
"Young Master, what exactly did you find during your investigation?"
"The Meng family may be influential, but if we can't secure a Gym and enter the League's inner circle, we'll never truly rise."
Thinking of Red , Meng Hua's expression twisted slightly. But after a moment, he said:
"The intel is accurate. The old Gym Leader of Songzao Gym has indeed left—and most likely took his Pokémon with him."
"After all, I made such a scene, yet he never showed up. As for that new Gym Leader—when facing my challenge, the strongest Pokémon he used was just a Poliwrath that doesn't even qualify as Advanced-level!"
"I should've just sent out my ace and crushed him!"
"Damn it!"
Seeing Meng Hua's frustration, the butler remained calm.
"Young Master, one must endure small things to achieve great plans. Our goal is the entire Songzao Gym—not a single challenge victory."
"I know."
"And that Nurse Joy who interfered —what's her deal?" Meng Hua asked.
The butler frowned slightly.
"A Nurse Joy with that level of strength shouldn't be unknown. For now, we can only assume she was passing through. She'll likely leave soon."
"Sooner or later, I'll take back what's mine! And that useless Gym Leader—so weak, yet still occupying that position… damn him!"
...
While the two were discussing their plans—
They had no idea that everything had already been overheard.
Right inside the holding area—
Qiao Yixue stood openly beside them.
Their entire conversation was heard clearly.
Even she couldn't hide her shock.
She had suspected they had ulterior motives—
But she never imagined they intended to take over the entire Songzao Gym!
"This trip wasn't in vain…"
She gently patted Latias beside her.
With Latias's ability, the two of them remained completely invisible.
In this state, let alone ordinary people—even most Elite Four-level trainers wouldn't be able to detect them.
Once the conversation yielded no new information, Qiao Yixue lightly stroked Latias's smooth chin and thought:
Latias, let's go. We've got what we came for.
Latias nodded.
The two quickly left the holding area and entered the outer corridor.
But just as Qiao Yixue was about to leave—
At a corner, she suddenly collided with someone and fell heavily to the ground.
"Ow—my butt!"
Clutching her already sore backside, she cried out in pain.
Annoyed, she looked up—
And froze.
Because the person standing in front of her—
Was none other than Red , the Gym Leader of Songzao Gym.
At that moment, Red had been pressed against the wall, eavesdropping on the conversation inside. He was equally confused by her sudden appearance.
Both sides blurted out at the same time:
"Why are you here?!"
Especially Gary and Xiaowen—
The moment they saw the Pokémon beside Qiao Yixue, their eyes widened instantly.
"La—Latias?!"
"Am I seeing things?! Miss Joy… is that Latias next to you?!"
Looking at the chaotic situation, Red couldn't help but twitch his lips.
"Are we sure this is a police station and not some open zone? Why is everyone just walking in?"
Qiao Yixue shot back:
"And how did you get in here?"
But this was a police station, not some lawless area.
The noise quickly attracted attention.
"Who's there?!"
Hearing Officer Jenny's voice, Gary and Xiaowen immediately panicked.
Breaking into a police station was no small crime.
And there was no time left to escape through the tunnel.
Seeing this, Red quickly made a decision.
He grabbed Qiao Yixue's hand and pulled her up from the ground—
Too forcefully.
She fell straight into his arms.
Her face instantly flushed Red .
"W-what are you doing?!"
Holding her soft, pale hand, Red grinned.
"You came in using teleportation, right? Well… sorry, but now you'll have to take us out with you."
"After all—you wouldn't want people to find out you broke into a police station, would you?"
Hearing this, Qiao Yixue's chest rose and fell rapidly from how close they were. Her face grew even redder..
After taking a deep breath, she said:
"Latias—take all of us out."
Latias gathered energy briefly.
Blue light enveloped everyone.
Just one second before Officer Jenny arrived—
All four of them vanished, leaving the room empty.
Officer Jenny rushed in, looking around in confusion.
"…Did I hear wrong?"
———
In the next moment, Red and the others reappeared in the same alley.
After such a thrilling experience, both Gary and Xiaowen felt their hearts pounding in their throats.
But soon, they remembered something else.
They stared at the Red -and-white, jet-like Pokémon before them—
Their hearts racing even faster.
Latias.
Sensing their attention, Latias seemed a bit shy. Its body gradually turned transparent again and disappeared .
Gary looked full of regret.
"That was Latias… if only I could've taken a picture…"
Meanwhile—
Red and Qiao Yixue were still in each other's arms.
Feeling his firm chest and steady presence, Qiao Yixue's heartbeat somehow became even faster than it had been inside the police station.
Even her hand was still held tightly by him.
The atmosphere between them became… unmistakably intimate.
"I already got you out… can you let go now?"
She lowered her head and spoke softly.
Red , however, suddenly recalled something his unreliable father once said while drunk:
"Son, listen… the Joy family may all look alike, but there are actually differences… If they allowed outsiders to marry in, you might not even exist—haha…"
Red looked at Qiao Yixue—
Then slowly released his hand.
For some reason, Qiao Yixue felt a faint sense of reluctance.
Now, in the quiet alley, the four of them stood there, staring at each other awkwardly.
The atmosphere was… a bit strange.
Finally, Red broke the silence.
"How about we go to a nearby café and talk?"
He glanced at the empty air.
"Latias, you can come too."
But unexpectedly, Qiao Yixue shook her head.
"Sorry… I still have things to do at the Pokémon Center. I'll go first."
Watching her leave, Red felt a slight sense of regret.
Gary then asked:
"Master, are we still going to the café?"
Red rubbed his chin.
"I think there's instant coffee back at the Gym. That works too."
Three question marks appeared over Gary's head.
Xiaowen, meanwhile, looked at Red with a somewhat disdainful expression.
Red sighed helplessly.
"Can you not look at your Gym Leader with such dirty thoughts? I was just trying to avoid getting caught by Officer Jenny."
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