Jacob hadn't expected Dawson's employer to be Professor Jorge and Professor Holden's research team.
Then again, when he thought about it, it made sense. Stealing soone else's results was always going to be faster than grinding through the experintal process yourself. Everyone looked for shortcuts — and apparently, even respected senior researchers like Jorge and Holden were no different.
The following day, Dawson kept his word. He filed an official report with the Pokémon Association, and the fallout was imdiate.
Professor Jorge and Professor Holden's team responded quickly — a public statent, damage control, and a lawsuit against Dawson for defamation, all within hours. Online, it beca a full argunt, both sides loud and neither giving ground.
Jacob watched it from a distance and felt no urgency.
He already knew how it would end. Jorge and Holden were careful people — the kind who never left anything behind that could be used against them. Whatever Dawson had reported, there wouldn't be enough concrete evidence to bring any real consequences. The Association would look into it, find nothing solid, and the whole affair would fade out quietly. A serious matter quietly becoming a minor one, and a minor one quietly disappearing.
That was fine. It had never been the point.
The point was the noise. The public attention. The visible damage to their reputation while the real work — the acquisition of Dawson's agency — moved forward out of sight.
With Dawson fully cooperative, the acquisition went smoothly. Jacob also placed two people he trusted inside the company to ensure things stayed that way.
The first was Caleb. His battle strength wasn't exceptional yet, but Jacob trusted his judgnt.
The second was Layne, recomnded by Raya, whose assessnt of people Jacob had learned to take seriously.
Two days passed.
News of the match had spread steadily across online channels. On its own, a near-king-level Pokémon defeating a king-level Pokémon wasn't unheard of — it happened occasionally, when the gap was close enough and conditions were right. But stack that against Jacob's age — nineteen — and his reputation as the researcher behind ga Evolution, and the story beca sothing else entirely.
People were calling him a once-in-a-generation talent. Comntators were writing that his future floor was an Heavenly King position, and his ceiling might be a regional Champion.
Jacob read a few of those pieces with a quiet smile.
Champion. Sure.
Outside, the late autumn rain ca down in a fine drizzle, the kind that didn't feel like much but left everything damp. The chill in it was the first real hint of winter.
Inside, Charizard was sprawled across the floor near the window, the fla on its tail burning low and steady, eyes half-closed in the warmth.
Jacob's phone rang.
He glanced at the screen and paused.
June.
They hadn't spoken properly since the last mission wrapped up — the occasional ssage here and there, nothing more. This was the first ti she'd called directly in months.
New mission?
He picked up. "June. What's going on?"
"When are we battling again?" she said without preamble. "Use Dragapult next ti."
Jacob coughed. "I've got a lot on right now. When things settle down."
"When will that be?" A pause. "You pick the ti. I'm free whenever."
The directness in her tone made it clear this wasn't really a question. Jacob gave in. "I can't give you a specific date yet. I'll reach out when I can."
"Fine." A beat. "Next ti, go all out. ga Evolution, Z-Move — everything."
"Noted," Jacob said, with a wry smile he was glad she couldn't see.
She's still annoyed I sent out Sceptile last ti.
He briefly entertained the thought of opening with Iron Valiant the next ti around, then set it aside.
"If that's everything, I'll—"
"That wasn't the main point," June said.
Jacob blinked. "Go ahead."
"The last mission — the Underground World. Do you rember?"
"Black Dragon City. Yes."
"After we left, I went back twice." Her voice was calm, carrying its usual quiet certainty. "I found so useful information and gathered evidence on the Daun Family brothers' activities. There's an annual auction coming up in Black Dragon City soon. I'm planning to attend. Do you want to co?"
Jacob sat up slightly. He hadn't expected her to have gone back at all — let alone twice, on her own.
"You've been investigating alone this whole ti?"
"Yes."
"Does your family know?"
"They do," she said. "They support it. I joined Team Zero because I want to do real work — not symbolic gestures. And my family agrees that the Underground World has gotten out of hand in recent years. Soone has to push back." She paused briefly. "I won't be reckless about it. I know my limits. The investigation stays scoped — I'm not going further than what concerns the Qi Family."
Another pause, then: "So. Are you in? Take your ti to think it over — report to Champion Colby if you need to. My flight is booked for the day after tomorrow. You have until tomorrow to decide."
"I'll think it over. Thank you."
After the call ended, Jacob sat watching the rain streak down the glass.
He turned her words over carefully.
What June had said wasn't just an invitation. It was a signal. The Tao Family intended to move against the Qi Family — to push them out of the Underground World entirely — and they were asking whether Jacob, and by extension Champion Colby behind him, wanted a seat at the table.
The Qi Family's position had collapsed faster than anyone could have predicted. In the past two months, the Qi Family patriarch and his son had both died at the hands of the one who called himself Giovanni. Several Champion-level Pokémon had been lost alongside them. What remained of the Qi Family was a shadow of what it had been — and the vast wealth accumulated across generations would draw predators like blood in water.
The Tao Family could likely handle what was left. But they hadn't moved alone. They'd reached out first.
Because Colby was the Champion of the South-Western region. Any family looking to restructure influence in the Underground World couldn't ignore that. Moving without his knowledge — or worse, against his interests — would be far more trouble than the prize was worth.
And the timing wasn't coincidental either. Jacob was almost certain that June's decision to reach out had been shaped, at least in part, by watching him defeat Dawson Braddock. The Tao Family had seen sothing worth investing in.
Strength opened doors. That was true everywhere.
Jacob frowned, thinking it through — and reached his answer before long.
He had to go. There was no real question.
He had his own reason, separate from the Tao Family's politics. Sothing that had been sitting at the back of his mind since Black Dragon City.
The Qi Family had known about the Dark Stone. That much was clear. What Jacob needed to understand was how much they actually knew. Did they know what lay dormant inside it — that the legendary Pokémon Zekrom slept within? And if they did, did they know the location of the Dragon Spiral Tower?
He needed those answers.
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