heh

"Dude, where are we…?"

"Don't worry, this is my revolutionary base."

The group walked through a dark alley corner, where not a single streetlight was present.

Gradually, they noticed a guard at the door, accompanied by a Pokémon they had never seen before.

"There it is."

The man walked up, exchanged a few words, and the guard opened the door.

The three players stepped inside and widened their eyes.

"W-WHAT?! HOW CAN SUCH A TINY ENTRANCE LEAD TO A PLACE THIS HUGE?!"

"Shh, keep it down!"

"Okay…"

The place was filled with people, young and old—there were even children.

It seemed like many lost children had wandered into this underground city, making it their refuge.

Of course, the Pokémon here were treated far better as well.

"I like this place."

"Thanks. Oh, this is where we'll be talking."

They entered a house where an old man was forging something.

The four of them sat at the table, glancing at each other.

"To be honest, I have some doubts about you guys. Who exactly are you?" The man looked at me.

Even though they had saved him, he didn't know if they were an actual group or just a bunch of random kids trying to play hero.

"Says the guy who hasn't even told us his name, other than the fact that he's a revolutionary."

"Oh? I haven't introduced myself? Alright then. My name is Luvian, leader of the revolution."

"So, do you not have any Pokémon?"

"I do, but mostly for delivering letters or carrying messages."

The conversation dragged on until Rey couldn't hold it in any longer.

"ALRIGHT! STOP WASTING TIME—I WANT TO WORK TOGETHER!"

"Yo, chill. If you're gonna be in politics, yelling at people is a bad move."

"This isn't even about politics! What's the goal of your revolution?!"

Straight to the point, huh?

"To destroy this godforsaken place. I hate it more than anything."

"Wow, then your goal is different from mine."

"So what the hell are we even cooperating for?"

Rey's goal was to take over the Underground City, while Luvian wanted to destroy it.

After some thought, Rey made a decision.

"How about this—I do want to take control of the Underground City, but I don't want to keep it. You know… I'm a Trainer."

"...Trainer? You're a Trainer?" Luvian was surprised.

"Yeah," all three players pulled out their Trainer IDs.

Luvian was even more shocked.

"You guys are Trainers… Then why the hell are you in this godforsaken place? And using fake names too?"

Huh? Was being a Trainer really that special?

Seeing their confused faces, Luvian explained.

"Do you know why I hate the Underground City?"

"No?"

"Because this is where we were born. Orphans and kidnapped people all start here, and the survival rate… isn't great. Without Pokémon, this revolution wouldn't even exist."

"That's why having Trainer IDs makes you special. If a Trainer gets kidnapped, major organizations—or even a Champion—would come to rescue you no matter what."

…Wow. Who knew Trainer IDs had that much power?

"Yeah, society is unfair, and I hate it. But hey, if they come to save you, they'll save us too. So that's the only upside, I guess?"

Then, Luvian extended his hand to Rey.

"A temporary alliance. I'll set aside my original goal for now and focus on a new one."

"And that is?"

"Finding a way to expose the Underground City to the outside world."

***

Rey and Lukas wandered around, scanning new Pokémon with their Pokédexes.

"Some of them show up, but the rest don't. What region is this place even in?"

"Johto, maybe?"

Meanwhile, Rin bought a bag of Pokémon food and fed her three Pokémon.

As she did, something glowing in the sewer caught her attention.

"..."

She glanced around to make sure no one was watching.

Once she was sure, she reached in and pulled it out.

Holding it in her hand, she had to admit—the design was impressive.

"This marble looks nice. It'd make a great wedding ring."

It had a transparent outer layer, with a black (?) and golden center. It was beautiful.

She wiped it clean, pocketed it, and walked back to the others.

3 minutes later.

"Here, take whatever you want," Luvian gestured at the supplies.

"HOLY SHEET! THAT—THAT'S?!!"

"Shut up, it's just a spider suit."

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW?!! WITH THIS, I CAN BE SPIDERMAN!!"

Seeing Lukas lose his mind over the suit, Luvian just gave it to him.

Rey sighed and kept looking around.

"Hm?"

He spotted a bracelet with a rainbow-colored marble in the center.

"Whoa, this looks nice. What is it?"

Luvian looked at it, confused.

"...No idea. What is that?"

"Huh? You don't know either?"

"I always check the stuff here, but that's the first time I've seen this."

Hearing that, Rey examined the marble closely. It felt… familiar.

It looked like… Lukas' marble.

"Hey Lukas, check this out."

"Huh? Oh, nice."

"Look familiar?"

"Nope."

"..."

Whatever. He put it on.

After discussing things for a while, the three left.

"Senpai, here."

Rin handed Rey a marble.

"..."

Alright, what the hell? Why did it feel like this chapter was just handing out gifts?

Like, seriously, this marble… it looked just like Lukas' marble.

It felt like… someone was helping them from the shadows.

"Something wrong, Senpai?"

"Huh? Oh… it's nothing."

Setting his suspicions aside, Rey continued walking with the others.