Chapter 159: Entering the Fifth Floor

It wasn't clear how the League had caused so much commotion earlier, but the solid wall of the office now had fine cracks.

Cain returned to the place, finding the office empty.

With his Slowpoke by his side, Cain left the office. In his previous life, he had cleared both the fourth and fifth floors several times, so he knew the area well. This familiarity was one of the reasons he dared to take advantage of the confusion.

The place was completely deserted; the Team Rocket researchers had evacuated long ago, and the fighters were on the upper floors, battling the League.

He encountered no obstacles along his way. The doors that usually required authorization opened easily before him. All Cain needed to do was place his hand on the small computer next to the door, and his system would hack it, opening the door without leaving a trace.

In less than five minutes, Cain reached the entrance leading from the fourth to the fifth floor.

Meanwhile, the League members, advancing while fighting Team Rocket members, had only reached the second floor. At this rate, Cain could be miles away before they reached the fifth floor.

However, Cain hesitated in front of the fifth-floor entrance.

He recalled the words of the Team Rocket Senior Officer: he already had access to the fifth floor and was there to copy and destroy the database. If Cain entered now, he would most likely encounter him, and given that Senior Officer's strength, Cain would stand no chance.

He withdrew the hand that was about to activate the door lock, quickly assessing the situation.

Just as he was considering whether the risk was too high and if he should abandon the mission, sounds of battle came from the third floor.

It turned out that some League leaders had decided to take a risk: they knew that if they continued fighting like that, by the time they reached the fifth floor, Team Rocket would have already destroyed most of the data. So, a small group decided to force their way in, sending a few to investigate the situation.

Two elite-level League trainers, the first to break in, were on the second floor, trying to open the door to the third.

It was clear that Team Rocket had put a lot of effort into constructing these key doors. Even with the combined strength of two elite-level trainers, they couldn't open it immediately.

Only someone like Cain, who carried a portable system capable of hacking any technology, could advance without obstacles.

After a moment of hesitation, Cain decided not to enter the fifth floor. Instead, he quickly struck the alarm switch at the entrance, breaking it instantly.

Immediately, alarms sounded on the fourth and fifth floors.

After destroying the switch, Cain quickly hid in a small room near the fourth-floor entrance, keeping his hand firmly on Slowpoke. If someone tried to enter, he was ready to order Slowpoke to teleport them out of there.

With his ear to the door, Cain reduced his breathing to a minimum, a skill he had perfected during his missions with Team Rocket in his previous life.

Soon, he heard the sound of an automatic door opening and hurried footsteps, followed by curses. "Damn it! Damn it!..."

The footsteps faded away.

Cain exhaled slowly but didn't move. He decided to wait.

After three minutes, the footsteps returned, this time calmer, and stopped in front of the fifth-floor entrance.

"No one? Then who broke the alarm switch here?"

Cain's heart pounded. He used his psychic ability, forming a thin thread of energy between himself and Slowpoke. This thread would ensure that if they needed to teleport, they would do so in half the usual time.

"Boom!"

A loud noise resounded from above; the two trainers had managed to break the door connecting the second and third floors, and they were starting to attack the fourth.

"Damn League!"

With more curses and hurried footsteps, the intruder moved away again.

"Phew..." Cain let out a long sigh.

Finally, the intruder had been distracted. Otherwise, escaping that situation would have been complicated.

Without further hesitation, Cain and Slowpoke entered the fifth floor.

The place was filled with computers, many with operational keyboards, and there were stands that had once held various items, but everything was gone.

Cain quickly approached the main computer and placed his hand on it.

"System, analyze the database and collect the information," he ordered mentally.

"Beep! Task initiated, analyzing database. Due to the large volume of information, this may take some time. Current progress: 0.1%."

Cain knew the database was large, but he hadn't expected it to be this extensive. Even with his system's speed, the progress was extremely slow.

Though he was anxious, Cain could do nothing but wait and look around for anything of value.

However, he had to admit that Ariana's subordinate had done a thorough job of cleaning the place. Besides the computers, everything else had been removed.

The only thing left were some scattered papers on the tables.

Finding nothing else useful, Cain focused on the system's progress.

Ten minutes later, the system showed 5% progress.

Don't underestimate that 5%; it represented a massive amount of data.

Another ten minutes passed, and finally, sounds of battle could be heard outside. The voice of the Team Rocket Senior Officer who had gone out earlier resonated, trying to coordinate his defense against the two League trainers.

From his voice, it was clear he was struggling, fighting two opponents at his same level.

At lower levels, Rocket members could outmatch League trainers, but as the level increased, the League proved to be stronger. In regular battles, elite League trainers could already outclass Rocket members.

At this point, Cain knew he couldn't wait any longer. If he didn't leave now, he wouldn't have a chance to escape once the other trainers entered the fifth floor.

Fortunately, the system had reached 15% progress. Although it wasn't much, this data was valuable. Cain could only hope that most of it would be useful.

"Slowpoke, Teleport... Huh?"

(End of chapter)