August spread his hands innocently. “Isn’t Team Rocket already at war with the Masked Army? I just gave you a little push.”
Matori remained silent.
If it were the Team Rocket of the past, fighting the Masked Army wouldn’t have been a problem.
In fact, Matori had once believed that, with Mewtwo under their control, they could have easily crushed the Masked Army.
But now, the Mewtwo Project had failed, Giovanni was severely injured, and their forces were weakened. Even if they could win, it would come at a heavy cost.
Then again… none of that was her concern at the moment.
She was still a prisoner.
Matori asked, “So, are you planning to hand me over to the League?”
She had personally arranged the release of many Team Rocket members captured by the League. As long as she made it to a League prison, she had countless ways to escape.
“Hand you over to the League?” August gave her a baffled look. “What gave you that naive idea? Do I look like an idiot? If I hand you over, you’ll just use Team Rocket’s network to stage a jailbreak.”
“Lt. Surge and Koga were sent to League custody because they were Gym Leaders—the League had to handle them. But you? You’re just a Team Rocket secretary. You don’t get that privilege.”
“So, just sit tight and behave yourself.”
With that, he waved a hand, and the Indeedees escorted Matori back to her cell despite the unwilling glare she shot at him.
Now, only August, Blue, and Sabrina remained in the interrogation room.
Blue finally spoke up. “August, what you said about Silver earlier…”
August knew what she wanted to ask and nodded. “It’s true. He really is Giovanni’s son.”
Blue had already suspected as much based on Matori’s reaction, but she needed to hear it confirmed.
She hesitated. “Then… about inviting him to join Interpol…”
Even after learning the truth, Blue still saw Silver as her younger brother. But with this revelation, August’s plan to recruit him into Interpol seemed impossible now.
“So what if he’s Giovanni’s son?” August said matter-of-factly. “As long as he stands for justice, even Giovanni himself could join. Weren’t you all former enemies too? Sabrina used to be one of Team Rocket’s Three Executives.”
“?”
Sabrina stared at him, completely dumbfounded.
Blaine was also an ex-Team Rocket executive, yet August only called her out.
Blue thought for a moment and found his words surprisingly reasonable.
Aside from August and Gary, nearly everyone in their department had some questionable history.
She had once been part of the Masked Army.
Sabrina and Blaine had been Team Rocket executives.
Yet here they were, dealing a serious blow to Team Rocket together.
At that moment, August picked up the tablet Matori had used to send her message to Giovanni.
He copied the email records and sent them to Bill, hoping to trace the source.
Then he stretched. “It’s getting late. We’ve all had a long day. Let’s get some rest.”
—
In a dimly lit medical room, Giovanni lay on a hospital bed, his body wrapped in bandages.
Two Chansey stood beside him, continuously channeling [Heal Pulse] to stabilize his condition.
Standing nearby, Sird watched the scene in silence.
She had received Giovanni’s distress signal while in the Sevii Islands.
By the time she arrived, their leader was already in this state.
What kind of battle took place on New Island…?
Even Giovanni had been gravely injured.
His strength was unquestionable.
In an all-out fight, even if she combined forces with the other two Beasts, they might not be able to take him down.
Yet here he was—reduced to this condition.
Just as Sird was lost in thought, Giovanni’s eyes slowly opened.
“Boss!” Sird immediately stepped forward and greeted him respectfully.
Giovanni acknowledged her with a slight nod before looking down at his own hands, his gaze deep and unreadable.
“Mewtwo…”
To think that he, the one who created it, had been overpowered by his own Pokémon.
…Cough cough…
A sudden, violent cough wracked his body.
The Chansey quickly increased the intensity of their [Heal Pulse], gradually soothing him.
“How long was I unconscious? What happened while I was out?” Giovanni’s voice was weak, but his tone was urgent.
Sird bowed slightly. “The League has revoked your Gym Leader status and issued a warrant for your arrest.”
“The Viridian Gym’s underground base was destroyed by Lance. Most of our members were captured—only a few managed to escape.”
“Based on reports from the agents who evacuated New Island, Sabrina has betrayed us. She teamed up with Lorelei and captured Matori…”
“…All bad news, then.”
The losses at Viridian Gym didn’t faze Giovanni.
What truly stung was Sabrina’s betrayal and Matori’s capture.
For years, Team Rocket had been the ones infiltrating the League.
Now the tables had turned.
The sheer humiliation of it made his blood boil.
Thinking back, the subordinate Sabrina had brought along back then must have been August.
“…I was completely deceived… cough cough.”
Another fit of coughing.
Sird, concerned for his health, spoke up. “While you were recovering, Matori managed to send us a message through a secure channel…”
Giovanni frowned.
Matori was captured.
How did she manage to send a message?
“What did it say?”
Sird’s expression turned serious. “She claims to have found information about Silver.”
Giovanni’s pupils shrank.
“…Is the information reliable?”
“The message states that twelve years ago, Silver was kidnapped by the Masked Man, leader of the Masked Army. I verified the description against our records—it matches Silver’s features.”
As she spoke, Sird handed Giovanni a tablet.
He took it and read the message carefully.
His brows furrowed.
Not because he doubted Silver’s identity.
But because of the source of the intel…
“This came from August?”
Even though he had only crossed paths with August a handful of times, Giovanni had already come to understand his nature.
No matter how loyal Matori was, Giovanni couldn’t fully trust information that originated from that man.
And even if it was true, it was obvious what August was trying to do—stoking the flames of war between Team Rocket and the Masked Army.
Sird asked cautiously, “What should we do, Boss?”
As one of the few Team Rocket officers who knew about Silver’s existence, she had a feeling she already knew the answer.
Giovanni remained silent for a long time.
Then, his eyes sharpened with determination.
“…Send Domino to investigate in secret. Meanwhile, notify the Four Admins—tell them to prepare for all-out war against the Masked Army.”
August’s ploy was obvious.
Even knowing it was a trap, Giovanni had no choice but to step into it.
From his pocket, he pulled out an old, water-damaged photograph.
It was slightly wrinkled from years of wear, but the image was still clear.
A young red-haired boy clutching a Sneasel.
Silver…
—
T/N: …I mean Giovanni isnt even that bad of a guy haha…
This is a fan translation of 人在实教，一之濑你会后悔的 by 作者：白良. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!
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