With a red flash from the Luxury Ball, a light-blue Pokémon appeared, its wings resembling two puffs of white cotton clouds.
It was the Altaria Cain had captured—or rather, persuaded to join him.
She had agreed to follow Cain's orders on Mythical Island.
Inside her Pokéball, Altaria had heard Cain's command, so the moment she emerged, she unleashed her powerful Dragon-type move.
In the grand hall, flaming meteors suddenly appeared, raining down from above. Some blocked Regi and Glacius's escape route, others targeted the Charizard flying toward Cain, while the rest headed directly for Nidoking.
Altaria, upon appearing, sensed Nidoking's presence.
Despite the notable power gap, Nidoking still posed a threat to her.
Seeing Altaria's unexpected appearance, Regi and Glacius's expressions shifted drastically.
"How is this possible?!" Regi exclaimed.
They hadn't expected Cain to actually have a Pokémon capable of standing up to Nidoking—or rather, a Pokémon even stronger than Nidoking.
Because the moment Altaria appeared, Nidoking assumed a defensive posture.
Throughout all his time using Nidoking, Regi had never seen it react that way. This meant Altaria was incredibly powerful.
Moreover, the Draco Meteor move wasn't something every Dragon-type Pokémon could learn. At the very least, those without sufficient Dragon blood couldn't master it.
As a Dragon-type specialist, Ren immediately recognized Altaria and knew exactly which move she was using. His expression changed drastically, his gaze toward Altaria filled with greed.
This was an incredibly powerful Dragon-type Pokémon. If Ren could capture it, his status would skyrocket.
Charizard, who had been charging toward Cain, was intercepted by Altaria's Draco Meteor but didn't give up, engaging in battle with Slowking, who stood by Cain's side.
Being a Fire- and Flying-type, Charizard had no advantage against Slowking, a Water- and Psychic-type Pokémon. In fact, due to Slowking's ease in wielding psychic abilities, Charizard was quickly overwhelmed.
Altaria managed to block Regi and Glacius's escape route, while the remaining meteors directly struck Nidoking, who couldn't dodge in time.
Nidoking, who had recovered significantly thanks to Regi's treatment, was once again severely injured.
Nidoking's eyes showed fear as it looked at Altaria. With just one attack, it had been gravely wounded.
Both Pokémon were at the pseudo-elite level, but the power gap was massive. Altaria could compete with Pokémon at the initial elite level, while Nidoking was merely a pseudo-elite.
Regi and Glacius watched in disbelief. Initially, they thought Cain's Altaria could merely hold its own against Nidoking.
Now they realized it wasn't just holding its own—it was dominating!
With just two more attacks, Nidoking would lose its ability to fight entirely.
Glacius was the first to react. Normally calm and composed, he now looked a bit disheveled. The book he always carried was slightly scorched by Altaria's attack.
At that moment, Glacius grabbed Regi, forcing him to retreat.
Regi was stunned, but after being pulled by Glacius for a moment, he gritted his teeth, cast one last look at Nidoking, and ran toward the exit.
He had planned everything so carefully, even borrowing a pseudo-elite-level Nidoking at a high cost.
That Nidoking had been meticulously raised with great care, and though it was pseudo-elite, it had the potential to reach the elite level if properly nurtured. Now, having fallen to Altaria, Regi would have to bear full responsibility.
Furthermore, most of Regi's Pokémon were severely injured. Even if he managed to escape Mythical Island, it would take a long time to recover.
"Nidoking! Stop Altaria! Use Thunderbolt!" Regi ordered in a last-ditch effort before fleeing.
Nidoking hesitated. It knew it was no match for Altaria and that confronting her was a death sentence.
However, it had been instructed by its former trainer to obey Regi as though he were its own trainer.
Finally, Nidoking used Thunderbolt against Altaria.
The Electric-type attack would be highly damaging to a Flying-type Pokémon like Altaria.
Seeing Regi and Glacius about to disappear into the corridor, Cain frowned. "Gengar, follow them! Try to finish them off!"
Had it not been for Ren's Charizard keeping Slowking occupied, Cain would have immediately ordered Slowking to use Teleport to pursue them.
But with Slowking engaged, Cain could only rely on Gengar to handle them.
Those two were a significant risk, and Cain truly didn't want them to survive.
However, based on Aurelia's parting words before fleeing, Cain suspected Regi had an important identity. If he wanted to kill him, it would have to be swift and clean.
No witnesses could be left.
Aurelia had already fled, but if Gengar managed to eliminate Regi, Cain would deal with Aurelia as well. If that meant he would be the only survivor on Mythical Island, so be it—without witnesses, no one could blame him for Regi's death.
If Aurelia survived, Cain would face a complicated situation.
If Regi's identity was truly significant, his superiors would pressure Aurelia, and she might point to Cain as the culprit, putting him in a dangerous position.
Fortunately, Cain had planted a safeguard with Aurelia.
So, either he eliminated everyone or let everyone live.
If Regi managed to escape, Cain was confident Regi wouldn't be foolish enough to report him.
After all, Cain was someone close to Giovanni. Would Regi really dare to speak up?
Wouldn't that be tantamount to admitting he wasn't as capable as Cain?
After all, Regi had started with far greater advantages than Cain. Openly admitting he couldn't defeat Cain would be like admitting his own incompetence.
How could he remain influential in Team Rocket after that?
Who would support him then?
Now it all depended on whether Regi had an escape plan to evade Gengar's attack. In any case, Cain had the upper hand.
Even if Aurelia tried to hide, Cain could find her.
Because during their first encounter, when Cain had patted her on the shoulder, Slowking had left a psychic mark without her knowledge.
For now, this Dragon-type specialist would serve as "interest."