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After seeing Arbok lying on the ground, barely clinging to life, Sato ordered his Shiny Pelipper to stop attacking. Then, he shifted his gaze to Rondo.
Although there was a hint of killing intent in his eyes, there was even more confusion.
When the battle was already decided, Sato had specifically taken a look at Rondo, the owner of Arbok, only to find the man laughing heartily, looking extremely pleased.
Seeing Rondo act this way, Sato, who had calmed down slightly, immediately realized that Arbok's attack on him hadn't been Rondo's command.
In fact, while commanding his Shiny Pelipper in battle, Sato had already found it odd—if Rondo had sent out Arbok to kill him, why didn't he give it any commands? And why didn't he send out any other Pokémon to assist?
These questions puzzled Sato. Now, seeing Rondo's delighted expression only deepened his confusion. However, one thing was certain—Rondo had no intention of attacking him.
"I need an explanation. Why did your Arbok attack me?"
Sato's face remained cold as he questioned the grinning Rondo, his eyes flashing with a deep, murderous intent.
Even though Sato had already guessed that Rondo hadn't ordered Arbok to attack him, the fact remained that Arbok was Rondo's Pokémon.
Since it had launched an unprovoked assault on him, Sato now had a legitimate excuse to eliminate his long-time enemy.
The thought alone intensified the killing intent within him.
"To be honest, I have no idea why Arbok attacked you," Rondo replied, his smile stiffening as a chill ran down his spine. His eyes darted quickly before he suddenly dropped to his knees in front of Sato, his face filled with fear.
"This Arbok has always been difficult to control. Lately, it hasn't even been listening to me. I have no idea what got into it today, attacking you like that. I swear on my life—I had absolutely no intention of harming you. After all, this is a Rocket base. I'm just an ordinary member. How could I possibly be so reckless as to attack a fellow comrade?"
As soon as Rondo knelt, his three subordinates immediately followed suit, pleading on his behalf.
Sato watched Rondo groveling in such a shameless manner and narrowed his eyes. His killing impulse only grew stronger. This man truly knew when to submit and when to rise.
However, after a quick glance at a nearby surveillance camera, Sato suppressed his urge to kill.
The fight between Arbok and his Shiny Pelipper had taken place in the mission hall—it had undoubtedly drawn the attention of higher-ups.
Now that Rondo had distanced himself from the incident and was showing such extreme deference, if Sato were to kill him here, he would surely face retaliation from the people backing Rondo.
Sato knew well that the reason Rondo's Black Serpent Gang had grown so quickly was due to powerful support behind him.
If he wanted to deal with this properly, he had to be careful—otherwise, the consequences could outweigh the benefits.
"I don't care. Since it was your Pokémon, you must take responsibility. Tell me, how do you plan to compensate me? If I weren't strong enough, I would've been killed by your Pokémon. Do you think a few words are enough to settle this?"
Sato's face remained expressionless as he coldly glared at Rondo, his desire to kill unconcealed.
"Of course not! I'll definitely offer a satisfactory compensation. Here—this is that damned Arbok's PokéBall. Its fate is now entirely in your hands. And this—" Rondo gritted his teeth, his expression pained, as he pulled out a Rocket League Silver Card.
"This card has 10 million PokéDollars on it. No password required. Please accept it."
Hearing Sato's words had made Rondo's heart clench, but he knew there was no avoiding compensation. Without hesitation, he handed over Arbok's PokéBall and the Silver Card, even though it pained him immensely.
This was nearly all the profits he had accumulated since founding the Black Serpent Gang. It was practically his entire fortune.
But when he thought about how he was essentially buying his life for 10 million PokéDollars—while also getting rid of a treacherous Arbok that had been trying to overthrow him—he felt somewhat at peace with the loss.
"Only 10 million? What a cheapskate. But I didn't expect him to hand over a Gold-tier Arbok… now, that's an unexpected gain."
Sato wasn't particularly impressed by the money—his net worth was already substantial. What truly caught his interest was Arbok.
Even though it had tried to kill him, and Sato had been tempted to kill it in return, if there was a way to make use of such a powerful Pokémon, then things would be different.
Sato had personally experienced just how terrifying this Arbok was. Among his current team, it would easily rank in the top four in terms of strength—possibly even the top three, given its type advantage.
His Team Rocket team currently only consisted of Golbat, Nidorino, and a Meowth that had yet to fully develop. If he could tame this Arbok, it would be a valuable addition.
"Hmph. At least you know your place."
After a brief hesitation, Sato accepted both the PokéBall and the Silver Card.
Without another word, he turned and walked toward the supply station on the left side of the mission hall. Along the way, he casually tossed Arbok's battered form into the PokéBall.
"What a twist of fate… I never expected to obtain a Gold-tier Pokémon in such a way. But this Arbok is vicious to the core—I'll have to handle it carefully. Ah, whatever. Swampert can just beat it into submission."
Sato glanced at the Great Ball containing Arbok, his expression unreadable.
Watching Sato accept the items, Rondo finally felt a huge weight lift from his chest. He kept his head down, not daring to look at Sato, but the moment Sato walked away, his eyes flickered with deep hatred.
As for the other Rocket members in the area, once they saw that the matter had been settled, they lost interest and began to leave the mission hall one after another.
Afterward, Sato successfully accepted a rookie battle mission at the supply station before leaving the mission hall.
Just as he stepped outside, his Rocket-issued wristwatch beeped. A simple message appeared on the screen.
Sato frowned slightly upon reading it—the sender was a complete stranger named Sakata Ryoichi.
However, after thinking it over, he decided to follow the instructions in the message. The name "Lord Caesar" had been mentioned, and because of that, he changed his plans.
Instead of heading straight for the teleportation room, he turned toward the public marketplace.