When Cain appeared again in the central plaza of the base, he was only accompanied by Murkrow.
Slowpoke had returned to his Poké Ball, while Gastly had hidden in Cain's shadow.
Because the third trial was about to begin, the plaza was gradually filling with more people.
In the previously empty plaza, besides the large test stone that still stood in the center of the elevated stage, there was now a smooth battle area next to it, marked with some lines.
This would likely be the place where the losers would have to challenge each other after the trial.
The terrain was quite simple; they had only pulled out the weeds and leveled the ground.
But for a battle, this was more than enough.
People gradually gathered in the plaza. Now, almost all the participants belonged to a small faction.
Cain positioned himself in the west corner of the plaza. It wasn't long before Skye arrived with his group. Seeing that Cain was already there, they quickly ran over to him.
"Mr. Cain!"
With a series of respectful greetings, they all lined up behind Cain, forming one of the few factions in the plaza.
Cain only nodded slightly and then closed his eyes to rest.
The plaza was now clearly divided. Cain's faction consisted of about twenty people, located in the west corner.
Xander had the largest group, with approximately forty people in the east, watching Cain from afar.
Then there was Jasmine, who in the last trial had ranked just behind Cain and Xander. She was accompanied by about twenty people in the north, most of whom were girls.
The few boys in her group seemed of little importance and were scolded by the girls.
Around thirty individuals stood in the south, forming a group of loners who had temporarily banded together. They all kept their distance from each other, without interacting.
They had probably grouped together to avoid being harassed by the three larger factions.
Amid scattered murmurs, Viper appeared with his group, though Umbra was not with him.
Following an almost unchanging process, they began the simplest yet most effective test: the attack power trial.
This time, Team Rocket, to avoid a repeat of the previous trial where no one wanted to go first, decided to follow the order of the identification numbers.
Although there were 300 numbers in total, the process was quick since many of the numbers no longer existed. This also allowed for effective tracking of those eliminated and the strength of those remaining.
Murkrow stood calmly beside Cain, ignoring the furtive glances of greed, envy, and fear surrounding him. He entertained himself by preening his feathers.
To Murkrow, this trial was incredibly boring. Hitting a hard, foul-smelling rock with all his strength—what was the point? It only measured a Pokémon's attack power, not its overall combat capability.
He had observed all the Pokémon present and, besides the dead-eyed snake in front of him, the large Zubat from the north, and the long-haired dog from the south, he saw no one worthy of his attention.
If it weren't for the immense pressure he felt from the people in the stands, Murkrow would likely have convinced Cain to skip this boring trial. It was a waste of time; training more would be better.
Cain, who knew Murkrow's character well, smiled and said, "Hold on a bit longer. After this trial, we probably won't have to do such boring things anymore. And who knows, maybe you'll have some battles today."
As he spoke, he cast a meaningful glance toward Xander and his Ekans on the opposite side.
Noticing Cain's gaze, Xander also looked in his direction. When their eyes met, Xander smirked, as if to say, "Just wait and see," before turning away with a slight grunt.
Cain's words lifted Murkrow's spirits. Following his gaze, he spotted the Ekans he was so interested in and began to get excited, raising his wings.
But just as he was about to take flight, he remembered where he was and reluctantly lowered his wings.
Cain was accustomed to Murkrow's combative nature, but today it seemed that his desire for a fight would be fulfilled.
Not only Xander, but also Jasmine, the trainer of the large Zubat from the north, and Alec, the strongest among the loners from the south, occasionally cast glances in his direction.
These glances carried a mix of emotions: excitement, envy, desire, and an insatiable thirst for battle.
A smile slowly formed on Cain's lips, his eyes reflecting his growing interest.
"This trial is quite intriguing. I wonder what deeper purpose lies behind Viper's modification of the rules," Cain thought silently. He was sure Umbra had influenced the rule changes, perhaps even led them.
Though Umbra wasn't present in the plaza, Cain constantly felt the presence of someone powerful watching him, especially focused on him.
After all, if he wanted to meet the requirements to leave the trial island, he needed to crush everyone present with overwhelming force. That was the true test of strength.
Not only did he have to lead in the attack power trial, but he also needed to dominate in battle.
Of course, as Umbra had mentioned, this trial was different from the previous ones. There was no need to hide the participants' talent, and the best way to assess talent was through real combat.
In a life-or-death arena, facing opponents of similar strength, no one would hide their true power if their life was on the line.
After all, what good would hiding your strength do if you didn't preserve your life?
Furthermore, some of the participants with good instincts, or those with hidden connections, had also sensed that this trial was different. That's why all those who were confident in themselves had set their sights on Cain as their primary target.
This was exactly what he needed to satisfy Murkrow's desire for battle and fulfill Umbra's intention to test Cain's capability.
Cain hoped that this battle would clearly establish his influence among the participants, subjecting everyone to his "will."
"Interesting..."
(End of Chapter)