"What? Is your Pokémon League really this 'snobbish'?"
Ariana let out a mocking snort, then turned her head and looked at Red charmingly, her right hand continuously caressing her alluring face.
"Are you really willing to become enemies with me?"
After speaking, Ariana even slightly bent forward and tugged at the cotton coat wrapped around her chest, wanting this inexperienced little guy Red to witness what a big sister's exclusive benefits looked like.
"I'm not Brock… ugh—"
"Ahem!"
Before Red could react, Lorelei grabbed his collar and dragged him behind her, blocking his view without caring about his confused expression.
(Do I look as lecherous as that guy Brock?)
"Hehe~ it seems Miss Lorelei isn't that confident in her own beauty," Ariana teased, slowly tossing out the Poké Ball at her waist.
As the white light faded, a Pokémon resembling a massive purple cobra appeared. Its body had black stripes, triangular eyes, and a mouth full of venomous fangs with its tongue flicking out. The pattern on its neck resembled an angry human face—this Pokémon was Arbok.
"Red, don't let this woman charm your mind. Many high-ranking men in the Pokémon League have fallen to her seductive tricks. I didn't expect she wouldn't even spare a 10-year-old child like you—absolutely shameless!"
After speaking, Lorelei shot Ariana a disgusted glare. As old rivals, Lorelei knew many of Ariana's inhumane and cruel methods.
The more enchanting the woman, the more terrifying she is!
"Red, please hurry and heal Articuno's injuries. As for Ariana, just leave her to me."
Seeing that Lorelei had no intention of letting him participate in the battle, Red could only instruct Kadabra and Snorlax to stand by, then turned around and continued using the Power of Viridian to heal Articuno's still unrecovered body.
"Slowbro, use Water Pulse!"
"Arbok, use Ice Fang!"
Water gathered in Slowbro's mouth and surged toward Arbok.
Arbok slowly opened its frost-emitting fangs and bit down on the Water Pulse. The chilling aura instantly froze it into an ice sphere, which Arbok then crushed effortlessly.
"Articuno won't be handed over to you so easily!" Ariana said coldly, commanding the Murkrow on her shoulder to attack.
Two sharp air blades crossed together and swiftly struck toward Red's unguarded back.
Seeing this, Kadabra's eyes glowed blue as it waved its spoon, using Psychic to control the incoming blades and reflect them back at Murkrow.
Ariana and Murkrow immediately dodged. Murkrow then left Ariana's shoulder and, using its small size, hid deep within the surrounding ice caverns.
Dark rings rapidly emitted from Murkrow's body—its Dark Pulse reached Kadabra in an instant.
Kadabra's eyes glowed blue again, attempting to stop the rings with Psychic, but it discovered that its proud psychic power had no effect at all.
Seeing this, Snorlax quickly rushed in front of Kadabra and blocked the Dark Pulse.
'Didn't you notice your psychic power doesn't work on this guy?' Snorlax said irritably.
'This is my responsibility!'
Kadabra lowered its head sincerely, admitting its mistake.
Kadabra's honest attitude improved Snorlax's impression of this "boy."
(Seems he's not impossible to communicate with after all…)
At first, Snorlax thought Kadabra would be difficult to get along with, but now it seemed he had worried too much.
'Go help the master protect Articuno. Leave this one to me!' Snorlax said, sending Kadabra away first.
Snorlax understood that Kadabra's attacks mainly relied on psychic power, which had no effect on Dark-type Murkrow.
Moreover, Snorlax could vaguely sense Murkrow's unusual aura—this seemingly flawed dark Pokémon could not be underestimated.
"Arbok, use Poison Sting!"
Arbok opened its mouth, firing a barrage of toxic needles so quickly that Slowbro couldn't react in time.
"Psychic!" Lorelei ordered coldly, staring at Ariana.
"Ariana, don't forget—Arbok is doubly weak to my Slowbro's psychic power."
"Lorelei, you're really troublesome!"
Ariana returned Lorelei's gaze coldly, completely unfazed.
"Snor—"
Snorlax pounded the surrounding ice walls with its fists, picking up chunks of ice and throwing them at the airborne Murkrow.
Murkrow clearly looked down on Snorlax, believing its bulky body could never reach its agile form.
Two air blades were released again from Murkrow's wings, forming a cross-shaped slash that flew toward Snorlax, even slicing apart icicles above along the way—showing their sharpness.
Just as the air blades were about to hit Snorlax, a Poké Ball suddenly appeared in the center of the field. A burst of white light followed, releasing a massive figure whose steel-like glowing tail struck the air blades, completely neutralizing them.
'If you want to hurt my companion, ask for my permission first, lackeys of Team Rocket!'
As the words fell, the Crimson Gyarados let out a ferocious roar that echoed throughout the icy cavern. Its Intimidate ability instantly lowered the attack power of Murkrow and Arbok.
While Murkrow was stunned, Snorlax immediately threw an ice chunk, hitting Murkrow accurately. It followed up with a Fire Punch that slammed into Murkrow's chest, causing it to scream in pain.
Arbok, who was battling Slowbro, was also slightly affected by the Intimidate. During its brief daze, it was struck by Slowbro's Zen Headbutt, the super-effective damage overwhelming it.
"If you're trying to stall for time so the drug inside Articuno can take effect, I suggest you give up now," Red said calmly, holding up the frozen black liquid encased in ice.
Articuno spread its beautiful blue wings, its red eyes glaring angrily at Ariana.
Having recovered its strength, Articuno affectionately nuzzled Red's cheek, astonishing Lorelei. This was one of the few times she had seen Articuno take the initiative to approach a human—clearly, Red's Power of Viridian had earned its full recognition.
"As expected of the boy the boss calls his 'only rival.' Looks like I'm just unlucky today~"
Seeing her plan easily exposed, Ariana's charming eyes briefly revealed killing intent before she concealed it. This was not only due to rational restraint but also because of Giovanni's orders.
Giovanni had explicitly instructed that Team Rocket's high-ranking members should avoid appearing before Red whenever possible, and absolutely must not attack him personally.
While some knew of Red's terrifying strength, many high-ranking members like Ariana still harbored doubts, curious about his relationship with Giovanni.
Could it really just be mutual respect between rivals?!