There's no need to ntion the usefulness of points; they are the common currency within Team Rocket, far more practical than the League's currency.
As for Pokémon, Skye, who is now Cain's administrator, holds his position today because he received a Koffing as a reward from Cain. They believe that if they had such an excellent Pokémon, they too could take Skye's place.
Items cover a broad range, from various berries and potions to rare moves and exotic treasures.
Regarding Cain's promises, since Skye received 1,000 points, no one doubted the truth of his words.
Thus, Cain has ford his own small faction on the Trial Island—or rather, a large faction among the participants.
This is a characteristic style of Team Rocket; under Giovanni, there are many factions, with smaller factions within the larger ones, competing and growing together.
Giovanni transford Team Rocket from a third-rate gang into the colossus that can now rival the League, and the factional rivalries have been a major reason for that.
As long as the balance between factions is maintained, this vast power can be effectively managed.
Moreover, Giovanni is an extrely confident person with a charisma that makes his subordinates compete only with each other, without any hint of rebellion.
Of course, Giovanni's imnse strength and the control of his powerful trump card, wtwo, are also key factors.
After teaching them a lesson and offering rewards and temptations, Cain had likewise ensured that this group would follow him without question. As long as his power was strong enough, all the small plots would be easily dealt with.
"Let's go and prepare for when the trial begins," Cain said.
"Yes, Lord Cain, we now have our own eting place. The brothers in the dormitories have built a large hall as our base," Skye responded, bowing.
"Oh?" Cain's eyes lit up; Skye's ability to get things done was truly comndable.
With Cain leading and Skye guiding them, the group headed toward the dormitories.
"By the way, why are there so many people in the plaza? What are they doing?" As they walked, Cain suddenly recalled that the plaza, which was usually empty, was now filled with participants and Team Rocket soldiers bustling about.
"This is because..." Skye hurriedly began to answer, but was interrupted midway.
"This is because the trial rules have changed."
Skye, who was about to get angry at being interrupted, imdiately shut his mouth upon seeing who had approached.
The person who interrupted Skye was Xander, who walked up with a group of people.
With his white Team Rocket uniform, short light brown hair, and sharp eyes, Xander stared intensely at Cain.
Xander stopped in front of Cain and continued, "The attack trial is just one part. If soone ranked lower believes they are stronger, they can challenge those ranked above them. If they win, they take their place; if they lose, they drop ten ranks. Life or death won't be considered!"
When he ntioned "life or death won't be considered," an intense murderous intent flashed in his eyes. Xander viewed Cain as his only rival and didn't hide his desire to kill him.
Cain rely smiled, paying no attention to Xander's murderous intent. At this point, unless Xander had a fortuitous encounter, he wouldn't be a match for Cain.
"So, do you want to face now?" Cain asked.
Xander ca with such montum that even Skye thought he had co to fight, though Cain didn't think so; his words were just a joke.
Cain knew a bit about Xander. Though he was soone who easily showed his emotions and had a strong desire to compete, he wasn't foolish. If they fought here, wouldn't it turn into a group battle?
In that case, it would be hard to predict who would win, as in such chaotic situations, unexpected events were more likely to occur.
"Hmph!" Xander let out a cold snort; what irritated him the most about Cain was his carefree attitude.
"Don't think you're already number one. If you want to challenge you, you'll have to be number one first. Perhaps it'll be you challenging !"
Cain smiled and replied, "Oh? Then I'll look forward to it."
Cain's smile instantly ignited the anger in Xander's heart.
Every ti Xander approached with great montum, he was t with Cain's indifference, like hitting empty air, which frustrated him deeply.
"Move!"
Seeing that Xander wasn't speaking or moving, just standing there with a red face, blocking his path, Cain spoke.
Xander's face alternated between green and red, and his fists cracked. If it weren't for the trial happening today, he wouldn't have held back.
A glance at the Ekans next to Xander said it all; the snake was coiled, its cold, narrow eyes fixed on Cain, awaiting Xander's command.
However, while Xander had an Ekans, Cain had a Murkrow.
Murkrow was also watching Ekans closely, ready to take it down at any mont.
Murkrow was confident that if Ekans attacked, he would react faster and stop it.
Unable to find words, Xander let out a roar of rage and stord off with his Ekans and his followers.
He realized that every ti he confronted Cain, he only ended up humiliating himself.
Cain completely ignored him, while he, ti and again, desperately approached.
As they left, Xander's face was grim, and none of his subordinates dared to speak.
Xander, normally arrogant, had once again lost to Cain, and they didn't dare make a sound for fear of becoming the target of his wrath.
Though Xander had to think twice before acting against Cain, he wouldn't be as lenient with them.
Besides, they hoped Xander would lead them out of Trial Island. With his brother's power, they could have a good start in Team Rocket.
But what they didn't know was that Xander had no intention of relying on his brother; he wanted to prove his worth on his own, and even if he left Trial Island, he would continue to depend on his own strength.
Watching Xander's figure fade into the distance, Cain couldn't help but laugh. In truth, he didn't dislike Xander; although he was arrogant and extrely proud, as Cain always said, an honest villain is always better than a hypocrite.
Of course, if Xander decided to be his enemy, Cain wouldn't show rcy.
The distance from the plaza to the dormitory was just over a thousand ters, but for the twenty people who had just joined, it felt like an entire day. The pressure of being around the number one was overwhelming.
Moreover, they had encountered Xander along the way, and for a mont, they thought there would be a fight. They were even considering whether they should get involved if one broke out.
Fortunately, it was just a scare.
When they arrived at the hall Skye had ntioned, Cain was a little surprised.
Although it was made of wood and looked rather rustic, its size exceeded Cain's expectations.
(End of Chapter)
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