Lorelei was caught off guard by the sudden appearance of Snorlax and Kadabra. Acting on instinct, she reached for the Poké Ball at her waist, preparing to battle, but Kadabra used Disable to immobilize her body, leaving her unable to move for a short time, frozen in place.
Seeing its trainer about to "meet with misfortune," Slowbro could no longer focus on helping Articuno regain its sanity. It used Confusion to knock Articuno back, then immediately turned and launched Water Pulse at Kadabra.
Seeing this, Kadabra swung the silver spoon in its right hand, using Confusion to redirect the Water Pulse elsewhere, casting an annoyed glance at Slowbro for attacking it.
If Red hadn't instructed Kadabra and Snorlax not to attack Slowbro, Kadabra might have already engaged it in battle.
Fortunately, Kadabra strictly followed Red's orders. Otherwise, it might have been taught a harsh lesson by Slowbro. Despite its dopey appearance, Slowbro was far stronger than Kadabra, which had only recently evolved.
Because Kadabra was held up by Slowbro, Snorlax had no choice but to face the berserk Articuno alone.
Unfortunately, most of Snorlax's moves were close-range attacks rather than long-range ones. For a moment, it was frozen solid by Articuno, but thankfully, Snorlax quickly used Fire Punch to melt the ice covering its body.
"Miss Lorelei, we mean no harm. Please make Slowbro calm down."
Red hurried to Lorelei's side, gently placing his hand on her arm, removing the effect of Disable from her body.
To prevent Lorelei from sending out more Pokémon to interfere, Kadabra had no choice but to act that way.
"You are?"
Seeing that Red meant no harm, Lorelei looked curiously at the boy before her who seemed "unafraid of the cold." Though he looked familiar, her mind was too disturbed by Articuno's rampage to recognize him immediately.
"Red from Pallet Town. That guy Lance probably mentions me to you from time to time, right?" Red explained.
"So it's Professor Red—pleased to meet you!"
(From time to time? That guy Lance talks about your deeds every time he returns to the Indigo Plateau…)
After recognizing Red, Lorelei immediately ordered Slowbro to stop attacking to avoid hurting Kadabra.
After casting an annoyed glance at the seemingly foolish Slowbro, Kadabra turned and used Teleport to reach Snorlax, assisting it in subduing the rampaging Articuno.
Kadabra swung its silver spoon, its eyes glowing with a deep blue light as it used Psychic to briefly restrain Articuno.
Seeing the opportunity, Snorlax excitedly charged forward, its right fist blazing with flames, and slammed a powerful Fire Punch into Articuno's chest.
The searing flames instantly spread across Articuno's body. The pain of the burns made it struggle, but Kadabra stood nearby, continuously using Psychic to control its body, leaving it unable to move at all.
In its berserk state, Articuno had been wasting its stamina. After its earlier battle with Slowbro, it was already exhausted—now it was merely hanging on by a thread.
"Sir Red, Articuno just suddenly went berserk. Please don't hurt it any further!"
Lorelei, standing beside Red, spoke anxiously, unable to bear seeing Articuno continue to suffer.
"Don't worry, Miss Lorelei. Before Articuno fully recovers, I won't go all out," Red explained, then looked at Snorlax. "Snorlax, use Body Slam to calm it down!"
Kadabra lowered its spoon, and the controlled Articuno suddenly felt a crushing force pinning its entire body to the ground. Snorlax grinned happily, leaped high, and slammed its entire body down onto Articuno, nearly finishing it off on the spot.
"Although wild legendary Pokémon may show hostility toward humans, they don't attack on sight—especially one like Articuno, which helps travelers who collapse from the cold in snowy mountains. If it attacked proactively, it can only mean that a human came here earlier and attacked it first."
Red explained his speculation to Lorelei while walking to Articuno's side. Ignoring the freezing aura instinctively emitted by its body, he used Power of Viridian to heal its injuries.
A green light enveloped Articuno, gradually healing its wounds and soothing its restless mind.
Feeling the healing effects, Articuno let out a relieved sigh and looked at Red with gratitude.
If only Snorlax would get off it, Articuno might have been even happier.
Under Lorelei's astonished gaze, drops of pitch-black liquid seeped out of Articuno's body. Red then used psychic power to condense them into a sphere of liquid.
"This substance… seems similar to Gyarados genes?" Red muttered.
Suddenly sensing an approaching aura filled with killing intent, Red turned and launched an Aura Sphere forward. However, two sharp, crossing Air Slashes collided with the Aura Sphere, resulting in an explosion that neutralized both attacks.
"I planned to drive Articuno into a berserk state to capture it, but I didn't expect to run into two 'important figures' of the League here at the Seafoam Islands."
A cold, alluring voice echoed from the cave ahead. A woman of similar age to Lorelei, wearing heavy makeup and exuding a seductive aura, stepped into view.
Her figure was even more alluring than Lorelei's—perhaps even surpassing it. She radiated a captivating charm that seemed to steal one's soul, and the scent of her perfume made it difficult to remain calm at first encounter. Even other women might struggle to resist her allure. Her vivid red hair further accentuated her enchanting presence.
When Red and Lorelei saw the "R" emblem on the left chest of her winter uniform, both became alert.
"I didn't expect to encounter Team Rocket here," Red said with a frown.
"It's an honor to meet you both. I am one of Team Rocket's Four Executives—Ariana."
Ariana introduced herself. Noticing Red staring at her, she mistakenly thought he was captivated by her presence. Playfully, she blew him a seductive kiss, trying to disrupt his focus.
Unfortunately, such a clumsy act had no effect at all. Red wasn't like Brock, who had no resistance to mature women.
Instead, Ariana's poor performance only made Red more cautious. His attention shifted to the Murkrow on her shoulder—the one that had just countered his Aura Sphere with Air Slash.
Although Murkrow appeared full of openings, Red knew it was merely a feint. After all, a Pokémon capable of easily neutralizing his Aura Sphere could not possibly be as weak as it seemed.
"The Seafoam Islands do not welcome intruders from Team Rocket—especially someone of your rank," Lorelei said coldly, glaring at Ariana and Murkrow. If not for Ariana's intrusion, her relationship with Articuno might not have deteriorated like this.
After all, Lorelei had often visited the Seafoam Islands to meet Articuno before, and they had formed a deep bond. Otherwise, she wouldn't have risked her life and refrained from battling it all this time.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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