After leaving the Breeder Association, Maki made his way back to the Pokémon Center.
The moment he returned, he received a call—one that was both expected yet still caught him off guard.
"You've arrived in Celadon City?" Sabrina's cool and composed voice came through the receiver.
"Yeah, I just got here today." Maki nodded in confirmation.
"And why didn't you call me via video today?" Normally, whenever Sabrina called, it was always a video call. This time, however, it was just voice, which felt a bit unusual to Maki.
Just as he finished speaking, he heard the sound of running water from the other end of the call, like a stream cascading down.
"I'm taking a bath. What? Do you want to watch?"
"If you're willing, I wouldn't mind..."
If Sabrina had been right next to him, not even ten times his courage would be enough for him to say that. But with the distance between them, Maki felt a little bolder.
There was a pause on the other end. It seemed even Sabrina hadn't expected him to flirt back like that.
From a certain perspective, though, maybe this was a good thing?
"Doesn't seem necessary anymore, does it? I heard you already made friends with Erika from Celadon Gym in just one day. She even invited you to visit often. Oh, and there's also that girl from Johto, right?"
As Maki listened to Sabrina's words, he felt a chill run down his spine. No way—how was it that when she spoke, it sounded so eerie? And that jealousy—wasn't it a bit too obvious?
"Ahem! W-where did you hear that from?"
Maki coughed to interrupt, thinking that if he let this continue, Sabrina might get into a mood.
For the sake of keeping her emotions stable—and definitely not because he was scared due to past experiences—he figured he should explain himself.
But then again, he hadn't done anything wrong. Why did he feel like he had to defend himself?
"Been away too long and lost your common sense? Of course, I heard it from Team Rocket members in Celadon City. Do you really think a place as important as Celadon Gym wouldn't be watched?"
Inside the Saffron City Gym, Sabrina lay in a steam-filled bathtub and rolled her eyes.
Maki sighed and rubbed his temples. It must have been when Leah called out to him as he was leaving that somehow ended up reaching Sabrina's ears.
"It was just a casual acquaintance, nothing more. Definitely not as close as my relationship with you."
"Oh? And what exactly is our relationship?"
"Uh… w-well… a… uhm… uniquely special one?"
Maki stammered, struggling for words. For some reason, Sabrina seemed particularly aggressive today, making it hard for someone like him—who had been single for two lifetimes—to keep up.
...
Team Rocket Base.
Giovanni sat at his desk, fingers interlaced beneath his chin. Across from him, on the sofa, sat a tall woman with striking red hair. She was dressed in a white researcher's coat, leisurely sipping coffee with a smile.
"What exactly have you been teaching Sabrina? She's still just a kid—don't lead her astray. The same goes for Maki."
Giovanni shot Ariana a glance. He wasn't sure what she had done, but ever since she called Sabrina a few days ago, the girl had stopped bothering him. He had actually been able to enjoy some peaceful days for once.
"Nothing much. That girl just isn't very honest with herself. She always acts like a proper lady in front of others. And as for the young master, well... both of them seem to have inherited your personality, Giovanni."
Giovanni's mouth twitched slightly. He lowered his head, using his hand to hide his changing expression.
"Weren't we discussing Sabrina?"
"Oh, fine. I didn't do much. Just gave her a little advice."
Ariana took another sip of coffee, looking rather pleased with herself. She had been busy with experiments lately, and it was rare for her to have time to relax.
"You? And what experience do you have in this?"
Giovanni eyed Ariana skeptically. When it came to Team Rocket's operations or scientific research, he had complete trust in her abilities. But romance?
Ariana's hand trembled slightly, and the coffee cup froze mid-air before reaching her lips.
"They say an outsider sees things more clearly."
She took a deep breath before downing the rest of the coffee in one gulp.
"Besides, anyone who knows Maki's true identity would have no doubts about his relationship with Sabrina. It's just those two who are too clueless to figure it out. Little Silver, on the other hand, really needs to work on his social skills. With his personality, no girl's going to like him."
"Let's put this topic aside. How's the progress on the experiments?"
Giovanni leaned back in his chair and waved his hand, signaling a change in discussion.
"Going very well. We've made some new breakthroughs recently."
As soon as the topic shifted to research, Ariana's casual demeanor disappeared, replaced by a serious expression. But soon, a small smile crept onto her face.
When the topic of the experiment was brought up, Ariana immediately shed her previously relaxed demeanor, her expression turning serious. However, hesitation quickly flickered across her face.
"Should we really keep this from Master Maki?"
"There's no need to tell him. The same goes for Silver—don't let either of them find out." Giovanni shook his head.
"But Master Maki must already be aware of the experiment, right? He's always been against it."
Silver, on the other hand, was completely unaware of the experiment they were discussing. After all, he had no interest in Team Rocket's operations, so he never bothered to look into such matters.
"That's exactly why we can't tell him. Let him focus on his own ambitions within the League. Besides, he simply doesn't support it—though he has advised me multiple times to shut it down..." Giovanni lifted his gaze to meet Ariana's, his deep eyes locked onto hers.
"But this experiment must succeed—no matter what! This is our only hope, our only real chance at standing against the Pokémon League, regardless of the cost!"
Though Team Rocket had grown powerful, its greatest weakness was its lack of solid foundations. Up until the past few years, the organization had been in a rapid expansion phase, making it nothing more than a minor threat compared to the League. The only reason they had managed to push the League to this extent was due to internal problems within the League itself.
"It's a shame that Mew escaped. If we had captured it, the experiment would have progressed much further."
The Mew that Maki had discovered had slipped away—a regret that still lingered in Giovanni's mind.
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