Of course, there was still one option left.
He could take the fragment to a black market or an auction house and sell it anonymously.
However, even though those places claimed to guarantee absolute confidentiality, could that really be trusted?
After all, dead men tell no tales.
Because of that, Icarus had always been skeptical of black markets and auction houses.
The black market was essentially a cooperative venture between local underground forces and the League. As for whether an auction house could withstand pressure from the Wu Neng Family, that was another matter entirely.
Of course, organizations with that level of influence definitely existed, but as an ordinary civilian Trainer, Icarus had no way of reaching them.
"Wait…"
A thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
"If fragments of the Giant Lunatone are here, doesn't that mean Natsume might be nearby too?"
As soon as the thought appeared, his eyes lit up.
Someone of Natsume's status would definitely have channels to deal with a fragment like this.
Of course, he would need to persuade her first.
He had only been struck by the aftershock and had ended up in such a miserable state. Natsume had directly faced the self-destruction of an Elite Four-level Golem. Even with her greater strength, her injuries had to be even worse than his.
This was an opportunity to earn a favor.
A life-saving favor.
Surely asking her to help deal with an extra Giant Lunatone fragment wouldn't be a problem.
After all, she would already have to deal with her own fragments. Handling one more would be little more than a minor inconvenience.
As for the possibility that Natsume was already dead, Icarus wasn't too worried.
As a Gym Leader, there was no way she lacked life-saving measures.
She shouldn't have died.
What worried him more was whether these fragments had simply been scattered here by the explosion and Natsume herself had ended up somewhere else.
He also hadn't seen Airi or Stone.
Neither of them had appeared after the explosion.
Still, they should be alive.
After all, he had shielded them during the blast. If he survived, then the two behind him should have survived as well.
The only question was whether they were as fortunate as he had been—having a Pokémon escape from a broken Poké Ball and help save them.
Thinking of this, Icarus immediately issued a new command.
"Everyone, help me search the area. Look for any other humans."
"Squirtle!"
"Woof!"
"Pidgeotto!"
"Bellsprout!"
The four Pokémon responded and immediately began searching.
Earlier, they had focused solely on locating valuable materials and energy-rich resources, so they hadn't paid attention to anything else.
It didn't take long before Houndoom found something.
"Woof! Woof! Woof!"
It barked loudly.
A human.
And a woman.
"Squirtle? Squirtle?"
Squirtle immediately became excited.
"Is it Sister Airi?"
After all, Airi had spent time teaching and caring for it.
Hearing Squirtle's question, Houndoom took another careful look before shaking its head.
It recognized Airi.
The person lying there had long, pale-blue hair.
It wasn't her.
Seeing Houndoom's response, Icarus couldn't help feeling conflicted.
To be honest, his first hope had also been that it was Airi.
But after hearing Houndoom's answer, he immediately understood who it must be.
Part of him felt disappointed.
Another part felt relieved.
Quickly, he followed Houndoom to another section of the riverbank.
There, lying face down on the rocky shore, was a woman.
Her clothes were torn to shreds.
Blood covered almost every inch of her body.
The black-and-white Team Rocket uniform she wore had become little more than rags.
Her waist-length blue hair spread across the ground like a waterfall.
Apart from her face, nearly every part of her body was covered in wounds.
Some injuries were so severe that bone was visible.
As for her Poké Balls, not a single one remained.
They had likely been blown away by the explosion.
"She's really beautiful."
"No wonder she protected her face so desperately."
Looking at Natsume's pale yet flawless face, Icarus couldn't help muttering to himself.
It was obvious.
Her entire body had suffered horrific injuries, yet her face remained completely unharmed.
At the final moment, she must have used every last bit of her strength to protect it.
No matter how powerful she was, she was still a woman who cared about her appearance.
"She should still be alive."
After checking her breathing, Icarus arrived at his conclusion.
However, he didn't immediately begin treatment.
Instead, he stood there silently, looking at the critically injured Natsume.
A fierce struggle was taking place inside his heart.
"Should I use the Mental Contract Scroll on her?"
The same thought that had once appeared when dealing with Aoi resurfaced.
At some point, the scroll had already appeared in his hand.
His expression shifted repeatedly.
The situation was simply too similar.
Back at Team Rocket Headquarters, Natsume's beautiful, domineering, and untouchable image had left a deep impression on him.
The thought of turning such a proud and powerful woman into his servant with a single contract was undeniably tempting.
Not only because of her appearance.
Having Natsume on his side would mean having a Gym Leader-level backer within Team Rocket.
Countless problems would become easier to solve.
His path as a Trainer would become much smoother.
Yet after a long silence, he finally sighed.
"Forget it…"
In the end, he gave up.
The reason was simple.
The Mental Contract Scroll he possessed was only the lowest grade.
Its effects only remained reliable up to the middle Elite level.
While Natsume was currently gravely injured and could probably be contracted successfully, what then?
Once she recovered…
He would likely be reduced to minced meat.
Or perhaps subjected to a fate worse than death.
As someone completely ignorant of Psychic abilities, he had no way of predicting how quickly a Psychic like Natsume would recover.
The risk was simply too great.
Furthermore, after calming down, he remembered something else.
Mental Contract Scrolls were rumored to have originated from Natsume's family in Saffron City.
As their creators, how could they possibly lack methods to remove such contracts?
Not to mention that Natsume herself was the most talented Psychic in the region.
Using a Mental Contract Scroll on her was basically like teaching a fish how to swim.
Still…
"I'll keep something as insurance."
The idea of controlling her was abandoned.
But that didn't mean he couldn't leave himself a safeguard.
Icarus pulled out his phone.
Click.
He took a picture of the unconscious Natsume.
Then he instructed Squirtle and the others to remove her damaged clothing and begin treating her injuries, just as they had treated him earlier.
Throughout the entire process, he recorded video footage.
He even deliberately zoomed in on several important areas, taking additional photos and close-up videos.
Icarus was not a saint.
Since such an opportunity had fallen into his lap, he wasn't about to waste it.
Perhaps those recordings would never be useful.
Perhaps circumstances would change in the future.
More importantly, he needed protection.
He couldn't guarantee that Natsume would spare him after waking up.
After all, she would immediately realize that someone had seen her naked.
Especially considering the condition she was in.
Every inch of her body had been exposed during treatment.
Would Natsume kill her savior to preserve her dignity?
Icarus didn't know.
But he wasn't willing to gamble his life on her kindness.
During the mission, Natsume had shown considerable consideration toward her subordinates.
However, when it came to a woman's privacy and dignity, that consideration might no longer matter.
So he needed a backup plan.
-------------Author---------------
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