"We meet again." Luo Yuan greeted Giratina with a cheerful smile, despite the Legendary Pokémon glaring at him in fury.
Giratina: "......"
It looked at Luo Yuan, then at the Rayquaza beside him, and had the sudden, overwhelming urge to turn around and retreat back into the Distortion World—never to come out again.
The last battle with Luo Yuan had left a deep, unforgettable impression on it.
Even now, its wounds hadn't fully healed. If it had to fight Rayquaza again… it wouldn't just end in serious injury. It might cost half its life.
With that thought, a deep, swirling black hole began to open beneath Giratina's feet as it prepared to make a swift escape.
I might not be able to win, but that doesn't mean I can't run.
Giratina had no idea why Luo Yuan was bothering it again after letting it off the hook last time, but that didn't matter—it was more than ready to bolt.
Unfortunately, Giratina's reflexes were still no match for Luo Yuan, who had clearly come prepared.
With a snap of his fingers, Mewtwo and Deoxys appeared from either side behind Giratina, locking onto its aura. Along with Rayquaza, they formed a triangular formation—trapping Giratina in the center.
"..."
Surrounded by three Legendaries, Giratina had a grim premonition—if it so much as twitched, it would be bombarded from all sides.
The pressure this time was far greater than during their previous encounter.
A chill ran through Giratina's body, and it trembled slightly. Is there no justice left in the world?
Wasn't getting beaten up once enough? Now you want to do it again?
But Luo Yuan hadn't called Giratina here just to beat it up again. Sure, he could if he wanted to—but Giratina was still a Legendary Pokémon. As a self-proclaimed "friend of Legendaries," Luo Yuan at least had to pretend to show it some respect.
"Relax," Luo Yuan said, turning to Giratina. "I didn't come with bad intentions this time. Of course, last time wasn't malicious either. That was just… a little misunderstanding."
Giratina glanced at Mewtwo and Deoxys, then at Rayquaza.
I believe you, my ass…
It couldn't speak, but the look in its eyes said exactly that.
You surround me like this and dare say you mean no harm?
"Don't sweat the small details." Luo Yuan waved his hand, signaling Mewtwo, Deoxys, and Rayquaza to lower their guard. "This is just to make sure our conversation goes smoothly."
It hadn't been easy getting Giratina to come out—if it ran off, that'd be a real pain.
But despite Luo Yuan's explanation, Giratina wasn't buying it.
Still… what could it do? It had already accepted the reality that no matter how on guard it was, it stood no chance against the three surrounding it.
So it gave up.
Staring at Luo Yuan, it put on a resigned expression that all but said, Go ahead. Let's see what kind of nonsense you've got this time.
And then Luo Yuan said, "The reason I called you out today… is to fulfill a promise I made before."
As he spoke, he dragged over a person who had been tied up like a dumpling—none other than Cyrus.
At this point, Cyrus's spirit had been completely crushed by the shattering of his ideals. He looked utterly dejected, completely broken.
Luo Yuan didn't seem to care. He gestured at him and said to Giratina, "This is Cyrus—the mastermind behind the events at Mt. Coronet. I'm handing him over to you now."
With a wave of his hand, he used psychic power to float Cyrus toward Giratina.
Giratina's eyes narrowed with suspicion. It clearly didn't believe Luo Yuan was being so generous out of the goodness of his heart.
Yes, Luo Yuan had mentioned this before, but Giratina had never really considered Cyrus to be the true culprit. And it certainly hadn't taken Luo Yuan's words seriously at the time.
But now, being summoned in this way, Giratina—already on high alert—couldn't help but grow even more suspicious.
A trap. This is definitely a trap!
Convinced that it was being set up, Giratina extended a wing and promptly shoved Cyrus back.
The meaning was clear: Nope. You keep him. I'm not taking this.
Luo Yuan raised an eyebrow. "I said I'd do it, so I'll keep my word. You're taking him."
He sent Cyrus floating toward Giratina again.
The more Luo Yuan insisted, the more convinced Giratina became that this was part of a nefarious plot. So it stubbornly shook its head and rejected Cyrus once more.
And so, at the ruined summit of Mt. Coronet, a bizarre tug-of-war unfolded between a human and a Legendary Pokémon—both pushing Cyrus back and forth like unwanted baggage.
Nearby, Matori watched the whole exchange with a twitching mouth, struggling not to laugh.
Meanwhile, Cyrus—being treated like a hot potato—was completely numb inside.
He was Cyrus, dammit! The former leader of Team Galactic, once in control of the entire Sinnoh region! How had he ended up being tossed around like no one wanted him?
But after several rounds of this, Luo Yuan finally lost his patience.
He used his psychic power to smack Cyrus forcefully onto the ground in front of Giratina and said, "Let me ask you this just once—are you taking him or not?!"
Faced with Luo Yuan's pressure—not to mention the three Legendaries watching from the sidelines—Giratina's mouth moved silently for a moment. In the end, unable to resist Luo Yuan's overwhelming force of will, it reluctantly accepted Cyrus in humiliation.
"See? That wasn't so hard," Luo Yuan said with a satisfied smile.
Giratina hoisted Cyrus up with a wing, then shot Luo Yuan a questioning look.
Can I go now?
Luo Yuan didn't stop it. He waved his hand, signaling the others to disperse.
"You can take him. I don't care what you do with him—just don't let him starve, and don't let him escape. The rest is up to you."
To Team Rocket, Cyrus was now a useless asset.
Out of humanitarian principle, Luo Yuan wouldn't have him killed. As long as Cyrus didn't come looking for trouble again, Luo Yuan had no interest in his fate.
Giratina looked from Cyrus to Luo Yuan, second-guessing itself. Was I wrong? Was this really not a trap?
Trap or not, Giratina had no desire to stick around.
The black vortex beneath it widened, swallowing both itself and Cyrus, vanishing from this world.
"With that, the whole Team Galactic mess is officially wrapped up," Luo Yuan said, clapping his hands.
He turned and saw Matori staring at him, completely speechless.
"You just handed Cyrus over to Giratina like that?" Matori asked.
"What else was I supposed to do? Our Team Rocket prisons are already overcrowded."
Matori couldn't deny that—it was true. The prisons were packed with trainers from other dark organizations who refused to surrender. Space really was tight.
Then she heard Luo Yuan mutter thoughtfully:
"Y'know… I just had a great idea. If we throw people into the Distortion World, and Giratina doesn't lead them out, they'll be stuck there for life. Maybe someday we can capture Giratina and turn the Distortion World into Team Rocket's free prison?"