Team Rocket's Second-in-Command!

Steven's decision to resign left Lance baffled.

Sure, losing to Luo Yuan had its consequences—okay, it was a significant blow—but resigning over it seemed extreme.

Unable to make sense of it, Lance chalked it up to cultural differences between Hoenn and Kanto.

After Steven formally confirmed his resignation, Lance, as the battle's witness, turned to the chairman of the Hoenn Pokémon League.

"With Luo Yuan's victory confirmed, I hope the Hoenn League ensures that Devon Corp honors the terms of the agreement," Lance said.

As Johto's Champion, Lance was naturally on Luo Yuan and Silph Co.'s side.

The Hoenn chairman glanced at the visibly distraught President Devon behind him and nodded. "Of course!"

While regionalism still existed in Hoenn to some extent, it wasn't a major issue. After all, they were all part of the Pokémon League.

As long as Silph Co. didn't engage in illegal activities, the chairman had no reason to block their entry into Hoenn's telecommunications market.

That said, having Hoenn's Champion defeated by a member of Johto's Elite Four was a bit humiliating. But the blame for this lay squarely on Devon Corp for instigating the situation in the first place.

Thus, the chairman had no objections.

---

With everything settled,

Steven was free to pursue his passion for treasure hunting and stone collecting. Luo Yuan had won, bolstering his reputation. President Silph had successfully opened the door to Hoenn's market.

The only loser in this scenario was President Devon—a surprisingly tidy outcome.

As for Wallace, Steven's chosen successor as Champion, surely the promotion from Gym Leader to Champion was something to celebrate, right?

Wallace, staring at the mess Steven had left him, could only think about how "grateful" he was to Steven.

---

"By the way, Lance, how'd you find the time to come here? Did you manage to wrap up all your work in Johto?" Luo Yuan asked curiously.

He'd only asked Lance to act as a witness on a whim and was surprised when Lance had agreed so readily.

The last time Luo Yuan had seen him, Lance had been buried under mountains of paperwork.

Hearing the question, Lance gave Luo Yuan a thumbs up. "I have you to thank for that."

"...Me?" Luo Yuan looked confused.

"After you left, Koga volunteered to take on a lot of the administrative workload. Right now, he's handling over half of Johto's League matters, which freed me up to come here."

Lance then glanced at Luo Yuan suspiciously. "Say, Luo Yuan, are you sure Koga doesn't know how to use Shadow Clones?"

As absurd as the idea sounded, considering Koga had somehow taken on an enormous workload, and after witnessing Luo Yuan's psychic abilities firsthand, it didn't seem entirely impossible.

"..." Luo Yuan's mouth twitched.

This was a question he didn't know how to answer. Claiming Koga could use Shadow Clones was ridiculous.

But if he told Lance that Team Rocket's administrative branch was helping manage Johto's League paperwork, Lance might lose his mind on the spot.

In the end, Luo Yuan gave a vague response and quickly changed the subject to Silph Co.'s plans to open a Poké Ball manufacturing plant in Johto, successfully diverting Lance's attention.

---

After seeing Lance off at the airport, Luo Yuan stayed in Hoenn, citing unfinished business with Silph Co.'s local branch.

"This success is all thanks to you, Luo Yuan," President Silph said, handing over a prepared stock transfer agreement.

From the initial creative spark to the decisive victory against Steven, Luo Yuan had cemented Silph Co.'s reputation in Hoenn.

When their holographic communication devices hit the market, they were certain to dominate the region.

"Still, don't underestimate Devon Corp.," Luo Yuan cautioned. "They've maintained a near-monopoly in Hoenn for years and have deep ties to many local companies and organizations. Our victory here is just a foothold in the communications sector."

Devon's influence extended far beyond telecommunications. They also held monopolies in Poké Ball manufacturing, mining, aerospace, and shipbuilding.

That was why, even after today's loss, President Devon had managed to keep his composure.

President Silph nodded in agreement.

Having been Devon's rival for so many years, he was well aware of their reach and power.

"But," Luo Yuan added with a sly smile, "we're not fighting alone."

President Silph raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

Luo Yuan continued, "In addition to support from the Kanto and Johto Leagues, we also have allies in the Kalos region's Lysandre Labs and Alola's Aether Foundation."

"Lysandre Labs' advanced technology far surpasses Devon's and will help us maintain our technological edge. Meanwhile, the Aether Foundation's extensive Pokémon research data can aid in the development of Pokémon-related products."

Reflecting on this, Luo Yuan felt a tinge of admiration.

Initially, he had thought the Aether Foundation's greatest assets were their research on Ultra Beasts and their abundant cash flow.

But after working closely with Lusamine, he realized their true treasure lay in the massive database of wild Pokémon data they had accumulated through years of conservation efforts.

The scale of this database was unimaginable. Its commercial potential, if properly utilized, was limitless.

Since the Aether Foundation lacked distribution channels, Luo Yuan planned to bring Silph Co. on board.

"When the time comes, just mention my name," Luo Yuan said confidently.

"Hmm..." President Silph nodded, now even more convinced that Luo Yuan had unusually close ties to both organizations.

After all, no one could finalize billion-dollar collaborations simply by dropping a name—unless their connections were far deeper than they appeared.

But Silph had already chosen to side with Luo Yuan and his mysterious backers.

So, for now, he decided to play dumb.

"What Team Rocket? I have no idea what you're talking about!"

--- 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

...

"GACHA!!"

"WOOOO you made it to the end! That's commitment! That's—wait—wait—are you F2P!? Disgusting. Fix it."

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