Team Rocket’s Second-in-Command! [483]

Luo Yuan and Sabrina looked in the direction of the commotion, only to see a waiter chasing after a ragged old teapot.

“A Polteageist?” Luo Yuan recognized the Pokémon at a glance.

As one of Galar’s better-designed regional species, Luo Yuan was quite familiar with Polteageist.

These Pokémon liked to hide among the crockery in restaurants and cafes, and they reproduced by pouring their special energy into ordinary teapots or cups—so it wasn’t all that unusual to see one in a place like this.

The one in front of them had clearly been discovered by the café staff.

Despite looking like it was one bump away from falling apart, Polteageist was surprisingly agile. The waiter chasing after it had already failed several times to catch it, and the cheeky ghost was even taunting him as it darted around.

Fuming, the waiter finally pulled a Poké Ball from his pocket and hurled it forward.

“Alcremie, use [Tackle]!”

Luo Yuan’s expression twitched slightly when he heard the command.

Clearly, this was just a regular café employee—he hadn’t even grasped the basics of type matchups.

Using a Normal-type Tackle against a Ghost-type Polteageist… Even Ash on his first day with Pikachu wouldn’t make that mistake.

Sure enough, the creamy-bodied Alcremie charged toward Polteageist, only to pass straight through it like mist. The attack had no effect whatsoever.

Delighted by the failed attempt, Polteageist circled the waiter mockingly, letting out a series of gleeful snickers.

The waiter was furious now. He kept barking out commands, and this time, he at least avoided using another Normal-type move.

But the difference in strength was obvious. Polteageist effortlessly dodged or blocked every attack, dancing circles around Alcremie like it was playing with a toy.

Luo Yuan and Sabrina sat there watching the spectacle for a full ten minutes, and the poor waiter still hadn’t made any progress.

In the end, Luo Yuan couldn’t take it anymore.

He snapped his fingers. A flash of blue light gleamed in his eyes—and in the very next instant, the gleefully bouncing Polteageist froze mid-air like it had been hit with Petrify.

Encased in a soft blue psychic glow, it floated gently down and landed in front of Luo Yuan.

“Oh! Thank you so much, sir!”

The waiter, clearly worn out after the long struggle, breathed a huge sigh of relief and rushed over, grateful beyond words.

“No problem. A coffee for my girlfriend, and a juice for me,” Luo Yuan said casually.

He had sometimes wondered if he should start drinking more “adult” beverages—but at the end of the day, soda and juice still suited his taste the best.

“Right away, sir!”

The waiter hurried off to fill the order, already far behind on his rounds because of the incident.

Luo Yuan turned to look at the Polteageist, which was now pinned to the tabletop by psychic force. Only its eyes could still move.

It looked like a completely worn-out antique teapot—except for the glowing purple ghost body pushing up the lid from within, and the two spindly legs peeking out from underneath.

“So this is one of Galar’s regional Pokémon? It’s… interesting,” Sabrina said, studying it curiously.

But the Polteageist—caught in the psychic grip and being inspected by two bipedal creatures—was absolutely terrified.

It was just playing a harmless prank… How did things go so wrong so fast?!

Then it heard the male biped speak again:

“I’ve heard there are two types of Polteageist. One evolves from an authentic antique teapot and becomes a ‘Genuine Form’ Polteageist. The other comes from a counterfeit teapot and becomes a ‘Phony Form.’ Apparently, you can tell which is which by the mark on the underside.”

Polteageist shuddered even harder.

Having lived among humans for a long time, it had heard rumors—some humans captured Genuine Polteageist just to sell them for profit. That kind of life… it didn’t want any part of it.

Desperately, it tried to fold its legs under its base to hide the identifying stamp. But under Luo Yuan’s psychic control, it was completely futile.

With a simple flick of his power, Luo Yuan flipped it over and revealed the stamp.

“Well, looks like we got lucky. This one’s genuine,” Luo Yuan said with a smile.

But to Polteageist, that smile looked more like the grin of a devil.

It trembled uncontrollably, bracing itself for a lifetime of being bought and sold like merchandise.

Yet… the expected punishment never came.

Instead, it felt a warm, gentle energy radiating from the human before it. A hand rested on its body, and a healing aura spread through every inch of it. The comfort was overwhelming—like sinking into a soft cloud made of cotton candy.

Then came a voice, soft but unforgettable:

“How would you like to be my Pokémon?”

Polteageist could no longer remember exactly what happened next. All it vaguely recalled was nodding its lid. And by the time it came to, it was already inside a Luxury Ball.

Luo Yuan retracted the greenish glow of the [Viridian Power], then tucked the Poké Ball containing Polteageist onto his belt.

Sabrina, who had watched the entire process, said, “Your method of capturing Pokémon really is foolproof.”

The [Viridian Power]’s aura was incredibly soothing to Pokémon—almost impossible to resist. Even legendary Pokémon couldn’t help but feel drawn to it.

As far as Sabrina knew, Luo Yuan had never failed to catch a Pokémon this way.

“You make it sound like I’m luring them into a trap,” Luo Yuan replied wryly. “It’s not just the [Viridian Power] that wins them over. It’s also that I treat Pokémon as equals.”

Sabrina thought about it for a moment—and found that it was true.

Even Slowpoke, probably the most hapless of all his Pokémon, received the same treatment. Though Luo Yuan often gave it ridiculous training tasks, he never looked down on it. He didn’t just see it as a Pokémon—he saw it as a life, equal to his own.

Each Pokémon on his estate had its own room. Their meals were nutritionally balanced, but they could still choose what they wanted to eat.

Maybe… that’s one of the reasons I like him, Sabrina thought quietly.

—

This is a fan translation of 我，火箭队二把手！ by 落唯 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!