Next to a large truck, seven students were bound. Suddenly, their pores contracted, and their necks felt as though they were entwined by a cold, venomous snake, sending shivers down their spines.
“Leader—”
The poacher guarding the seven immediately addressed respectfully when he saw someone approaching.
Grey Feather, the highest leader of this group of poachers, and Sinnoh’s notorious hunter with the code name 16.
The students looked at this person with complex expressions. The young and spirited Tobias and Seiji even glared angrily and shouted at “Grey Feather.”
Their actions made Jinbe and Terrance, among others, anxious, but they could only try to signal them discreetly to stop.
Terrance sighed inwardly; they were making themselves so conspicuous in this situation, directly clashing with the leader of the opposing group. It was neither rational nor safe.
“Banette…”
What gave them a chilling feeling was something that looked like an ordinary ragdoll with a zipper on its mouth but was, in fact, a Pokémon. It had red eyes even more eerie and strange than Misdreavus, giving off a creepy feeling.
“You ba*tards, release us now!!!”
“Let go of me, or I’ll make you pay for this!!!”
Tobias’ shouting even annoyed Terrance, who has quite a good temper. He couldn’t see any point in this reckless shouting. Would the other side really release them because of these empty threats?
“You little brat….” Grey Feather didn’t get angry, but the poacher guarding the seven got annoyed first. He kicked Tobias’ body, causing him to fall to the ground, groaning in pain.
“Enough.” Grey Feather glanced coldly at Tobias, apparently not concerned about this little bug.
“Leader… How should we deal with these people?” The poacher asked cautiously.
“What do you think?” Grey Feather countered.
This question left the poacher stunned, unsure of how to respond.
“Keep an eye on them for now. We are poachers, not killers. As long as they behave themselves, we’ll release them later.”
“Yes…Leader!”
Grey Feather looked at the angry faces of the students with some amusement and shook his head. “To be honest, we rarely engage in the theft of other people’s Pokémon.”
“Despite being called poachers, our business mainly involves selling Pokémon with potential at low prices on the black market to people without trainer qualifications…or transferring ‘Preserved Pokémon’ captured by the League to new owners.”
“It’s precisely because of this that we rarely crossed the League’s bottom line, allowing us to escape through the cracks like rats, and then grow, leading us to where we are now.”
“Did we do wrong?”
“No… we didn’t!”
“Thanks to our existence, many people from humble backgrounds could find a path to change their lives.”
“Thanks to our existence, some Pokémon don’t have to worry about food in the wild and pointless competition. Instead, they can find shelter in the arms of wealthy families.”
“Thanks to our existence, those ‘Preserved Pokémon’ don’t have to be kept in captivity as mere ornaments. They can experience different lives. Isn’t that our contribution?”
“The system is what’s wrong here——Becoming a trainer requires money, obtaining Pokémon requires money, everything is legal in the hands of the League, but it becomes illegal in our hands. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer, and the weak have no chance to succeed whatsoever. Dreams are nothing but daydreams for those who enjoy comfort. This system is too corrupt…”
“Do you… understand?”
“No… people like you, born into privilege, will never comprehend.”
“Now, I’ve changed my mind. I want to try taking away the treasures of people like you who live in comfort… Pokémon, right? What will you do if you lose them? Anger… or indifference? Maybe you’ll just go out and catch another.”
Grey Feather’s pupils, like black holes, gazed at the seven students and smiled. Seeing these new-generation Trainers reminded him of his own childhood experiences, igniting an indescribable fury within him.
Resources always flow toward the wealthier and the more powerful people.
The weak, the poor, they only become weaker. Whether when dealing with the rich or the poor, it made him see through this corrupt system.
“This wrong thing… should be destroyed… and then built…anew….”
Terrance’s scalp tingled, and he struggled to swallow his saliva. He didn’t know how the others comprehended Grey Feather’s words, but to Terrance, Grey Feather was almost like a lunatic.
However, what worried him most at this moment wasn’t any astonishing scheme by this poaching organization but…. the words that came from this person’s mouth: they intended to take away their Pokémon.
“Beautifly… Swablu…” When he thought of them, Terrance couldn’t hold back. It was something he absolutely couldn’t accept.
Even though he knew that staying put might keep him out of harm’s way, he couldn’t tolerate the idea of Beautifly and Swablu being taken away.
Terrance trembled involuntarily.
Raising his head and looking at Grey Feather’s mocking expression, he suddenly had a realization.
“This guy… is doing this on purpose.”
His own safety… or having his Pokémon taken away? Which should he choose?
Terrance felt like he had fallen into an ice cave, feeling like he was being toyed with. Even if the other person was a lunatic,it was clear he wasn’t an idiot. Someone capable of controlling such an organization, his intelligence was definitely not in question… What set him apart was his peculiar personality and mindset, something beyond the ordinary, which normal people couldn’t comprehend, and that could only be formed after a series of events.
This Grey Feather was evidently such a person.
“Watch over them…” Grey Feather patted the poacher’s shoulder and left the area. Perhaps out of a twisted personality or perverse amusement, he had teased this group of students for reasons unknown.
Watching Grey Feather’s departing figure, Jinbe, Seiji, Orange, Yuko, and the others were left breathless, their eyes filled with confusion. For people of their age, this was a deeply traumatic experience.
“Just stay put!!” The poacher growled, and continued to watch over the students with his Ariados.
This poacher gang was systematically and quickly mining Water Stone vein. They had assigned just an ordinary poacher to guard these seemingly harmless students.
Terrance groaned inwardly. Ariados… and a poacher. If he relied on Misdreavus’s illusions for a surprise attack, he might just be able to escape.
But the key was that the opposing group had numerous members, and he had no idea where their Pokémon were being held. If he recklessly charged out without a plan, he’d only be wasting his efforts and potentially missing the most crucial opportunity.
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