The journey from Cerulean City to Vermilion City was far from smooth. Ash was uncharacteristically downcast, and Mina watched him, her expression hovering somewhere between understanding and confusion.

  "Hey, Ash Ketchum."

  Ash didn't have the energy or strength to respond.

  "..."

  Seeing him steeped in despair because of that light, Mina offered him what she thought was comfort.

  "Listen well. The opponent you just faced is far beyond what you can handle right now."

  To Ash, however, Mina's words felt less like comfort and more like a path of thorns—the whisper of a monster devoid of empathy.

  "So what?"

  "What?"

  Ash gazed down at the ring on his left hand once more. Anger boiled within him at Mina's cold composure. Whether she knew how he felt or not, she spoke the hard truth once more.

  “Do you really think looking that miserable will bring Serena and your friends back? You know better, don't you?"

  Mina had provoked him out of nowhere. Ash couldn't say a word; he just stood there, trembling. Mina didn't look at his face nor wait for an answer as she continued.

  "Yeah, I can't do it either. So what? Does making that pathetic face bring a friend back?"

  "What!"

  Consumed by rage, Ash grabbed Mina by her clothes and spoke aggressively, completely unlike his usual self.

  "Say that again!"

  Mina instantly activated the Ditto choker around Ash's neck, neutralizing him in a split second. As the choker tightened around his throat, the strength drained from his body, and he crumbled to the ground.

  Mina whispered quietly into the ear of Ash, who was barely gasping for breath.

  "You'll forget this anyway, but remember this clearly, Ash Ketchum: Anger and sorrow will make you stronger! Now, shall I punish you for misbehaving?"

  Just as Mina was about to activate the choker more strongly, she noticed people heading towards Vermilion City.

  "Huh? What's that?"

  She released the choker. She intended to follow the crowd, who appeared to be reporters, but at that moment, Ash grabbed her ankle, gasping for air and looking fiercer than before. Mina looked down at him coldly.

  Did she see her past self struggling in a helpless situation? Or was she seeing her current self? Unbeknownst to her, her eyes turned red.

  Before her resolve could crumble, she put on her sunglasses and hurried toward Vermilion City.

  Vermilion City was noisier than expected. At the entrance, a woman who appeared to be a mother had collapsed and was wailing. A young girl beside her was crying along with her mom. Ash, following behind Mina, was dumbfounded by another truth he hadn't seen.

  "What is this...? What on earth is happening?"

  Unaware of Ash's despair, countless cameras and reporters were filming the mother and daughter.

  The protest involved a mother in her 30s and a girl not yet ten years old. Both were wearing placards around their necks.

  Upon closer inspection, the placard read: "We demand the truth about the victims of the Rubbish Island bombing caused by Lt. Surge!" Below that, it said how long they had been protesting.

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  "…?! 100 days?"

  Ash was shocked. No matter how strong a person is, protesting in one spot for 100 days is an extraordinary feat. He stared in silent admiration.

  Surprisingly, Professor Cerise was nearby, mediating the situation. Although Ash hadn't seen him yet, the professor spotted Ash and called out to him as if reliable reinforcements had arrived.

  "Ash! Thank goodness. Come here!"

  Ash felt heavyhearted seeing the mother and daughter who had been protesting for 100 days, but he tried not to show it. He changed his expression and approached Professor Cerise. Professor Cerise addressed the reporters and cameras surrounding him.

  “Everyone, this is Ash, the Pokémon World Champion. He is going to help with this case. Please stop spreading fake news and mocking the victims! We ask this of everyone watching!"

  Ash was swept up in the moment and stood there flustered for a second. The professor gave his arm a sharp pinch and whispered, "Help me." Ash smiled slightly at this. His throat still throbbed, making his voice raspy, but as the Pokémon World Champion, he spoke confidently.

  "Yes...yes! I will do my best to help uncover the injustice these victims have faced. Please, everyone, help us too!"

  The reporters and cameramen murmured in response to the World Champion's words. Since this alone was a massive scoop, they began to turn away to report it.

  "Phew.... Huh?"

  Because the situation had passed so chaotically, Ash hadn't been paying attention. He looked around for Mina, but she had vanished in the blink of an eye. Professor Cerise sighed with relief, grabbed Ash's shoulder, and looked incredibly thankful.

  "I'm sorry, Ash. I dragged you into this so suddenly. I'll explain the details back at the lab."

  Ash couldn't hide his anxiety; he looked like cattle being led to slaughter because of the sudden situation. Eventually, he sighed deeply and headed to the lab with the troubled professor.

  Following them, a huge crowd swarmed like a giant wave, creating a sea of people.

  Meanwhile, where did Mina go?

  When the professor grabbed Ash for the interview, Mina slipped into the crowd, having heard that the world champion Ash had arrived. Unlike Ash or other trainers, Mina loathed contact with the media.

  Mina muttered as she gazed at the presence watching her from somewhere.

  "A true mercenary never exposes themselves to the press. That is the most important rule among them."

  Thanks to the massive crowd that Ash attracted to the quiet city, Mina escaped safely. With a grim expression, she took out her sunglasses and called Hex.

  "Hex, can you hear me?"

  Startled by Mina's sudden call, Hex, who had been sound asleep at his computer, woke up.

  "Gah! You scared me! What is it, boss? Let me get some sleep!"

  Before delivering the shocking truth she had to convey, Mina brought up another topic.

  "Did you get the data?"

  Hex started typing on his keyboard to check.

  "Got it, boss. Interestingly, it includes the DNA of the Cerulean Gym Leader. It'll fetch a good price. I'll send it soon. But this data is definitely from NB Entertainment, right?"

  "That's right. Is there a problem?"

  Hex tilted his head and showed Mina that some files were corrupted and wouldn't open properly on the computer.

  "No, well, some of the data is incomplete, corrupted, and unreadable. But there was strange text among them."

  "Strange text?"

  The text that Hex showed her was a document titled "Team Rocket Top Secret," which seemed to be unrelated to NB Entertainment. It was fragmented, as if the file had been intentionally damaged before being sent.

  “It’s data on an experiment. I thought there was only information on the Cerulean Gym and NB Entertainment, but this came with it. It's totally random, but I'll give you a brief summary."

  With a nervous tone and expression, Hex began to recite the "Team Rocket Top Secret" file to Mina.

  "We have found the Pokémon of God. These beings are gods in their own right, akin to Arceus—the creator of Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina. One is Light; the other is Darkness. We have begun an experiment to bring these beings into this world. We call this experiment: Project MissingNo."

  When Project MissingNo was mentioned, Mina was seized by immense terror and collapsed to the ground. Her breathing became rapid, and her body shook uncontrollably. Hex couldn't understand Mina's reaction, considering she was a powerful non-human entity.

  "I've only restored this much data so far. I'll let you know if I recover more. But, Boss, is there something you want to say? Your voice is trembling."

  Breathing heavily, Mina barely managed to suppress the overwhelming stress radiating from her. She spoke to Hex, forcing out one difficult word at a time.

  "Okay, Hex. Then, I'll say it. Do you remember a reporter named Chris who came to Rubbish Island about 100 days ago?"

  Hex jumped up involuntarily. Reporter Chris had been his savior, and Hex carried immense guilt for betraying him to survive. He asked urgently.

  "...! Boss? Did you find the reporter?"

  Mina couldn't wipe the darkness from her face. She answered painfully, looking like a condemned prisoner awaiting execution.

  "Yeah.... The thing is, he's inside my body."

  Hex's expression darkened instantly.

  "What?"

  Holding her trembling arm, Mina revealed the heavy truth to Hex, expecting him to be furious.

  "It's exactly as I said. To save me... Chris chose to be devoured. His family is protesting outside, begging for the truth. They don't know that the husband they’re searching for died to become part of me."

  Thank you for reading, everyone!