The mont Roy stepped into this place, his guard went up imdiately. The area appeared empty — not a single person visible anywhere — but he didn't let that fool him. Without hesitation, he quietly expanded his Aura, letting it spread outward and sweep across every corner of the space around him.
On the surface, there was nothing. But Aura didn't lie.
Less than ten ters away, it found sothing. To the naked eye, that spot looked completely normal — just open air. But through the lens of his Aura sense, Roy could clearly make out the shape of a person standing there, perfectly still. Invisible. A human using an invisibility technique, most likely borrowed from a Pokémon's ability. It wasn't surprising. In a world where humans could channel Pokémon moves and abilities, sothing like that was entirely possible.
That wasn't all. His Aura continued to reach further — across the rooftops of the nearby structures, along the slope of the hillside behind them — and found more. Many more. Eyes, all of them fixed on Roy the mont he had appeared. A stranger walking in with one of their own was cause enough for suspicion. Anyone even slightly perceptive would sense they were being watched. Roy didn't just sense it. He counted them.
There were far more observers than he had expected, and every single one of them was on edge. It made sense. The power these people held hadn't been obtained through any official or legal ans. Exposure would an everything they had built here coming apart. Of course they were cautious.
Sima Yi, too, had shifted. The humble, almost servile manner he had worn outside the cave was gone. Here, on familiar ground and in front of people who knew him, he carried himself differently — with confidence, even a touch of arrogance. Roy had expected sothing like this. Even so, Sima Yi was playing a role, just as Roy was. Sima Yi needed to look like a senior mber bringing in a promising new recruit, not soone being led around by a stranger. The act made it easier for everyone around them to lower their guard.
"I finished the mission," Sima Yi announced, his voice carrying just a little louder than necessary — as if making sure the people nearby could hear every word. "The boss will definitely reward well for this. But given our friendship, I'd rather use that reward as a chance to bring you into the Black Moon Organization. As long as nothing unexpected cos up, I don't see why it would be a problem."
Roy matched the energy. He gave a grateful nod, just sincere enough to sell the act, and followed Sima Yi toward the main building.
Their arrival had already been reported. By the ti they stepped inside, every move they made was under the boss's watch. Whether it was all theater or sothing more, the course had already been set.
The boss himself stood at the window of the building, looking down at them with cold, steady eyes. He had no warmth for strangers — not for any outsider who wasn't one of his own. Since gaining access to Pokémon abilities, he had long since placed himself above ordinary people in his own mind. To him, a regular human with no power was little more than an ant. Alive or dead, they held no real value. The only thing worth extracting from such a person was information.
Sima Yi led Roy inside. The exterior of the building was plain and unremarkable, but the interior told a completely different story. The furnishings were rich — fine materials, expensive decorations, jewelry and treasures arranged without any particular care, as though wealth had simply accumulated here and no one had bothered to move it.
The boss was a broad, heavyset man with a square jaw and sharp, watchful eyes. The fierceness in his gaze was real, but beneath it sat a calm that suggested he was pleased — likely because the mission target had been successfully retrieved.
Without any ceremony, Sima Yi reached into his coat and produced the Pokémon core taken from Guzzlord, holding it out with both hands.
"Boss. This is the Pokémon core recovered from the mission target."
The boss took it. The core was a deep, vivid blue — striking against his large palm, which it barely filled. For sothing pulled from such a massive Pokémon, it was surprisingly compact.
"Good," the boss said, turning the core over slowly in his hand. "This is consistent with the other cores we've collected. The energy signature is right." He set it down and looked at Sima Yi. "You've done well. Na your reward. If it's within my power to grant, I'll give it to you."
Sima Yi glanced briefly at Roy, and sothing shifted in the boss's expression — just a flicker of curiosity, or perhaps caution. Sima Yi took a breath, then spoke carefully.
"Boss, I'd like to use the full credit for this mission on a single request. I want my friend here to be allowed into the organization."
He paused, then continued before the boss could respond.
"We've had the sa kind of start — no Pokémon ever chose either of us. But this mission only succeeded because of him. Without his help, I never would have gotten that core back. I think soone like that deserves a place with us. And honestly, with my brother gone..." Sima Yi's voice caught slightly, his eyes glistening. "I could use soone I trust at my side."
The emotion looked convincing. Whether any of it was genuine was another question entirely.
From a purely practical standpoint, the trade made sense. Letting one ordinary person join the organization — granting them the sa basic level of Pokémon-derived power as any other new mber — wasn't a significant cost. If Sima Yi was willing to burn his entire reward for it, that was his choice to make.
The boss said nothing yet, but he hadn't said no.
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