Inside the Casual Ruins.
The palace-shaped ruins stretched into the distance. The corridor ahead was cloaked in dim light.

“The explosions came from that direction.”
Cynthia frowned slightly and took out a Poké Ball. “Roserade, Flash.”

Puff! With a flash of white light, the masked Roserade appeared, its flowers swaying.
It brought its twin blossoms together, releasing a soft white glow from the petals that lit up the path ahead—oddly comforting.

Lu Ye glanced forward. Cynthia, dressed in black, also threw out a Poké Ball.
“Sylveon, light up the other side, please.”

“Sylv~”
Sylveon landed gracefully, its deep blue eyes proud and alert. The ribbon bows gathered dazzling light and shot it to the other side—
Boom!!
Like fireworks bursting, Dazzling Gleam lit up the ruins like it was broad daylight.

Lu Ye: Σ(°△°|||)︴
Well… Dazzling Gleam can be used for lighting, technically.

From deep within the ruins, came the chaotic flapping and crashing of Zubat and Golbat.

Lu Ye muttered, “Are we sure this won’t damage the ruins…”
“Sylv~ o(´^｀)o”
“On the contrary, it saves us the trouble of scheduled maintenance,” Cynthia smiled faintly. “That side doesn’t have any Unown, don’t worry.”

Fair point—what bad intentions could Sylveon possibly have?

Sylveon extended a ribbon and wrapped it around Lu Ye’s arm, walking alongside him.
Gengar stayed hidden in Lu Ye’s shadow, peeking out just its head and holding its eyelids open with both hands.
“Gengarr!” (I’m on full alert!)

As they went deeper, the passage narrowed, forcing them to walk closer together.
“This way.”
Cynthia sidestepped, took Lu Ye’s hand, and looked at the mural on the wall, frowning.

“What’s wrong?” Lu Ye asked.
Cynthia tilted her head, golden hair falling to the side, revealing a sharp jawline.
“There should be Unown inscriptions on this wall,” she said softly. “But now… it’s like they’ve come alive and disappeared.”

“Probably a stress reaction,” Lu Ye sighed. “Likely related to those three idiots.”
“They might be in danger.”
Cynthia’s expression tightened. “We need to get deeper into the ruins—fast.”

Meanwhile, in the depths of the ruins…

Explosions boomed one after another.
James, Jessie, and Meowth cowered behind Wobbuffet, trembling.

“Hunter J must’ve woken them up! Meowth, quick, translate!” James cried in despair.
Meowth muttered a bunch of gibberish, face pale.
“It’s no use, meow—they don’t seem to understand us at all!”

Hundreds of Unown, their eyes glowing red with menace, surrounded the trio like a mob with a collective case of morning rage.
Then, beams of red Hidden Power began forming at their singular eyes, aimed directly at the three!

Jessie gritted her teeth and shouted,
“Wobbuffet, use Counter!”

“Wobba!” Wobbuffet saluted—not blindly following the command, but instead activating Mirror Coat.

Bang bang bang!!
The red beams were reflected one by one, striking the Unown and knocking them out of the air!

“Nice work, Wobbuffet!” Jessie cheered—only to freeze.
The Unown grew even angrier. The glow in their eyes intensified!

“This feels awful!”
“Wob-wobba!”

The trio screamed, shut their eyes tight, and then—
“Eh? That didn’t hurt?”
“Are we… dead, meow?”

They opened their eyes to find Gengar floating in midair, wearing a twisted grin.
Its Psychic energy surged into a wave that blanketed the room, stopping all the beams midair!

“Boss!!” the trio shouted in unison.

Lu Ye’s eyelid twitched. He instinctively looked toward Cynthia.
D**n it! Can’t you idiots read the room?!

Fortunately, Cynthia’s attention was on the Unown. Her long hair billowed as she tossed out two Poké Balls.
“Spiritomb, Dark Pulse.” Cynthia calmly commanded. “Roserade, Psychic—wrap up the beams.”

Spiritomb fanned out into a dark ring, obliterating the beams frozen in the air.
The remaining beam energy was forcefully compressed into an orb by Roserade’s Psychic.

BOOM!!
The damage to the ruins was minimal, but the shockwave still whipped Cynthia’s black outfit violently.

She crossed her arms before her face and suddenly froze.
A silhouette appeared in front of her—Lu Ye’s back, shielding her from the wind.
The turbulence faded slightly.

Countless red-glowing Unown surrounded Lu Ye from all directions.
Hidden Power charged at full force—it was enough to make anyone’s blood run cold.

Lu Ye calmly cleared his throat.
Switching to ancient dialect, he called out:
“■■■■■ (My friends, hear me out!)”

In that instant, the murderous aura eased slightly.
The Unown stared at him with puzzled expressions, then swirled rapidly in the air to form words:
【???】

Unown could gain power by forming words.
Cynthia’s eyes sparkled—this was invaluable thesis material. She quickly pulled a notebook from her coat.

As she scribbled notes, she bit her lip.
With enough examples… this might just win me a top prize at the Summit—maybe even rival Professor Oak!

“What do those question marks even mean?”
Lu Ye stared at the message, then continued in dialect:
“She’s my sweetie. These guys are my underlings. Show a little respect?”

The Unown paused, then reformed into another message:
【??!】

You woke us up with explosions, then tried to sweet-talk us in your hometown accent? Respect? What respect?!

“Oh really?!”

Seeing that the Unown weren’t retreating, Lu Ye rolled up his sleeves.
He released a surge of Aura over the area—not enough to glow blue, but enough to feel like a deep tissue massage.

The Unown all wobbled midair like they were drunk. One by one, they floated lazily back to the wall, returning to their inscription forms.
Waking up and getting a full massage right after… not bad at all!

“Looks like the Unown can understand ancient language.”
Cynthia pondered aloud. “Or perhaps… Unown are the components of ancient script itself.”

“It’s over?”
The trio peeked out from behind Wobbuffet.

“Yeah, all settled,” Lu Ye replied casually. “They even invited me back for another massage sometime.”

The trio blinked, then suddenly lunged at Lu Ye, bawling:
“(இωஇ) F—”
Lu Ye shot them a cold glare.
“F—” Meowth broke out in cold sweat and raised a fist. “F-for the boss, hooray!”

James and Jessie turned solemnly and said,
“Kids shouldn’t use foul language.”
“Yeah, think of poor little Togepi!”

“Gengarr~ (ノ￣▽￣)” Gengar warmly slung an arm around Meowth, giving it a noogie.

“Gengar says,” Meowth translated, “how did you guys end up here?”
No one knew Lu Ye better than Gengar.
Lu Ye nodded. “That’s what I want to know too.”

The trio slumped. “It’s a long story…”
Basically, a poaching gang targeted the ruins. As classic Team Rocket troublemakers, the trio got caught up in it—and everything spiraled out of control.

Just then, Cynthia returned her Pokémon to their balls and walked over gracefully.
“Hello again,” she greeted with a smile.

The trio had long since realized Lu Ye and Sinnoh’s Champion had a “close” relationship.
Not only were they not surprised, Meowth even wanted to give a thumbs-up.
As expected of our boss—always doing the impossible!

Lu Ye turned to Cynthia and said,
“Looks like it’s related to that Pokémon hunter in Sinnoh…”
“They’re targeting the Casual Ruins?” Cynthia folded her arms and tapped her chin.
Lu Ye nodded.
“Also… Team Rocket’s been focusing on taking down the poaching gang. Letting them operate in Sinnoh might be for the best.”
“Exactly!” The trio stood behind Lu Ye, nodding vigorously.

Cynthia’s gray eyes locked onto Lu Ye’s, then slowly softened into a smile.
“To be honest… I kind of like Team Rocket.”
“Huh?” Lu Ye, just moments ago a bundle of nerves, blinked. “Why?”

“Well,” Cynthia pondered, “Compared to Team Galactic, maybe Team Rocket’s mission is a bit more… noble.”

Noble, my a*,* Lu Ye thought silently.
It’s just Giovanni’s live-action show Where’s My Son Now?!

“Also,” Cynthia glanced at the trio with a gentle smile, “With you three around, Sinnoh might just become a little more peaceful.”

The trio froze for a moment—then suddenly blushed bright red and saluted.
“Y-you’re right! That’s exactly it!”

Lu Ye still suspected Cynthia just wanted to slack off more.
But he still asked, “So… what about the Pokémon hunter?”

“I’ll take care of it.”
Cynthia’s tone turned cold, her eyes sharp. “Anyone who harms Pokémon for personal gain… is unforgivable.”

Lu Ye fell into thought.
Sinnoh’s poaching ring was led by the infamous Hunter J.
She was formidable—her Salamence could even take on an Elite Four member.

Lu Ye had always avoided trouble.
But not leaving regrets behind… was also one of his life’s creeds.

“Giovanni gave me command authority over Team Rocket’s Sinnoh operations.”
Lu Ye muttered, “Maybe… this is the time to use it.”

Cynthia gently tapped her forehead, smiling again.
She asked the trio, “So what are your plans next?”
“Don’t really have any,” Meowth replied, scratching his head and sneaking a glance at Lu Ye.

If they could catch Pikachu, maybe the boss would give them more credit.
But they’d burned through their budget in the fight with Hunter J.
Time to find part-time jobs and earn new startup capital…

“How about coming with us to Celestic Town?” Cynthia suggested with a gentle smile, raising a finger.

“Eh?!” Everyone was shocked.
“What’s wrong?” Cynthia blinked innocently.

“I-it might not be appropriate, meow…” Meowth was drenched in sweat.
Being third wheels? Boss might bury us in concrete!

Cynthia explained,
“The museum in Celestic Town is hiring temporary helpers right now.”
“High hourly pay. Just two or three days if you're okay with it.”
She put her hands together, apologetic.
“Professor Mustardseed’s asked me several times… if it’s alright, I’d really appreciate your help!”

The trio exchanged glances—then looked to Lu Ye.
Lu Ye blinked.

Alright, what evil intentions could Sinnoh’s Champion possibly have?
Clearly, she just wanted three strong laborers.
Having them work at the museum wouldn’t interfere with the “meet-the-parents” moment.
And with Professor Mustardseed covering room and board—Lu Ye wouldn’t even need to pay them.

Hmm? This is a win-win!

Lu Ye’s eyes sparkled, and he nodded.
The trio wiped away tears, overwhelmed with emotion.
This Champion couple… is just too kind to us!
With this, we can save up again—for another giant robot!
“What a wonderful feeling~!! (இωஇ)”

Cynthia looked at the trio, lost in their fantasies, then turned to Lu Ye in confusion.
“They’re just like that,” Lu Ye shrugged.
“Wobba~!” (Exactly!) Wobbuffet suddenly leapt forward.
“Whoa, where’d you come from?!”
Lu Ye patted Wobbuffet’s shiny head and sighed.

Even though Jessie only ever shouted Counter, Wobbuffet always knew whether to use Counter or Mirror Coat based on the situation.
Smarter than Ash, honestly.

When it came to peak performance, Jessie’s Wobbuffet had even fought Giratina one-on-one before…
Arceus? Ho-Oh? Child’s play.
In the Pokémon world, only Wobbu-god and Pika-god are worthy of divinity!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read