Cain, who had been watching their movements, let out a cold laugh and murmured to himself, "Trying to run now? It's too late."
"Gastly, handle the one who's trying to escape! Slowpoke, use Psyshock on the Koffing that's fighting Murkrow! Miltank, use Milk Drink!"
Gastly, who had been hiding in the shadows, was waiting for the right moment to strike. However, those two were always on guard, and the Koffings stayed close to them. Gastly didn't have the chance to confront the Koffings; sometimes, the invisible enemy is the most terrifying.
When Kevin turned around to flee, Gastly saw the opportunity and, under Cain's order, moved quickly through the shadows and appeared in front of Kevin. With surprise in his eyes, Kevin was hypnotized and fell into a deep sleep.
The moves Pokémon use have a significant effect on humans with low resistance. An ordinary person might sleep for over three hours under the effects of the Hypnosis move.
In the battle between Slowpoke and Murkrow, Kevin's last Koffing couldn't escape its fate and was mercilessly taken down by Murkrow.
The other young man, upon seeing Kevin's fate, chose not to flee. He knew that running would only lead to a quicker death.
His only Pokémon was like his last hope for salvation, and he wouldn't let it leave his side for even a moment.
His eyes, full of fear, occasionally glanced at Cain, but he didn't dare look directly at him.
The original plan was simple. The young man before them wore a standard League training uniform, and they thought he would, at most, be as strong as one of them.
Additionally, in their experience, League trainers were like hothouse flowers, inexperienced in real battles. Even if they were a bit stronger, they were sure they could toy with him.
But now, they couldn't believe that this seemingly harmless and even slightly clumsy young man could act with such decisiveness and ruthlessness.
Had Gastly not taken Kevin's Golbat by surprise at the start, they wouldn't have fallen into such a disadvantageous position so quickly.
Cain looked at the young man, who seemed uneasy and nervous, and slowly approached him, refraining from ordering Slowpoke and the others to continue attacking.
The young Rocket member noticed Cain approaching from the corner of his eye, feeling panic but also a small spark of hope. As long as they didn't kill him immediately, there was still a chance to turn the tables. If given the opportunity, he would make this League trainer understand what a true battle was.
A true battle wasn't limited to Pokémon alone.
Slowly, he moved his hand toward the storage compartment on his Team Rocket belt. If he could get close enough, he could pull out a dagger and eliminate the trainer in front of him.
If he reacted quickly enough, he could take the Pokéballs from the trainer's belt and trap Slowpoke and Murkrow. Then, he could turn the tables and claim a great reward.
With this thought, he felt a little excitement, although he dared not show it.
Cain stopped two steps away, a smile on his face as he looked at the young man who seemed to have accepted his fate.
"I'm going to ask you some questions. If you give me the answers I want, I'll let you go."
Upon hearing Cain's words, the young man's eyes lit up for an instant, but he quickly lowered his head, fearing Cain might notice something. He feigned submission and timidly replied, "Ask whatever you want."
The young man was a master at pretending to be weak.
Cain didn't expose him and continued, "Who's in command at the Team Rocket base in Mahogany Town?"
The young Rocket member was slightly taken aback.
That question?
"Uh, the current supreme commander at the base is Lady Ariana. Only Dr. Sebastian is at her level," he replied. Anyone with basic internal knowledge would know this.
"Ariana?" Cain thought. "Ariana is one of Team Rocket's Four Executives. In terms of rank, she's at the level of Sabrina."
Cain also knew something about Dr. Sebastian, a high-ranking scientist in Team Rocket specializing in Pokémon evolution. Soon, he would begin an experiment at the Lake of Rage base, eventually leading to the Red Gyarados, a priceless asset.
"How far along are the experiments at the Lake of Rage base?" Cain asked another question.
"Uh?" The young Rocket member was stunned.
The difficulty of the questions had gone from novice to master level. How could he possibly know such confidential information?
But he also knew the consequences of not answering. He began to sweat profusely.
After three seconds of silence, he fell to his knees and repeatedly cried, "I don't know! I really don't know!"
He wasn't foolish enough to make something up and try to deceive Cain. Anyone who knew that Team Rocket had a research base at the Lake of Rage was no ordinary person, so the first question was likely just bait.
In fact, the young man misunderstood Cain. Cain actually didn't know who the supreme commander at the Mahogany Town base was in this life.
In his previous life, when he arrived at that place, the supreme commander had already disappeared, leaving a few Officers in charge. Although an executive came later, Cain didn't actually know who was in charge before.
He had only asked to confirm whether the Team Rocket base in Mahogany Town had been attacked by the League.
In his previous life, he had been assigned to that base after the League, led by Pryce, could no longer tolerate Team Rocket's arrogance in Mahogany Town and launched a surprise attack.
That attack inflicted heavy losses on Team Rocket. Although the League suffered as well, Team Rocket had to quiet down for a while.
It was then that Cain was assigned to the base.
Knowing that the supreme commander was still in place meant that a League surprise attack could happen at any moment, so Cain needed to act quickly.
As for the second question, Cain had no intention of keeping his promise to let him go.
The young Rocket member, now on his knees, hadn't given up resisting. Under Cain's mocking gaze, he drew a dagger from his belt and lunged with a furious expression at Cain, who was only a step away.
But as he lunged, he realized his body was suspended in the air.
The eyes of Slowpoke, who was beside Cain, glowed with a blue light. It used its psychic powers to lift the young man, having anticipated his every move.
Under his terrified gaze, Murkrow didn't hesitate to slash his throat with its claws, and the last Koffing had already been hypnotized by Gastly.
The entire battle lasted only a few minutes. The two Team Rocket members, who had been full of confidence, now lay before Cain.
Probably, even up to the moment of their deaths, they couldn't understand how a young man who looked like a typical League trainer, with his awkward and reserved demeanor, could be so ruthless and handle the battle with such calm.
Kevin, who had been hypnotized by Gastly, also lost his life in his sleep, and the last Koffing was quickly taken down by Slowpoke and Murkrow.
As for the Golbat and Arbok from earlier, Cain thought they still had some value, so he let them live.
(End of Chapter)