Rota City? It’s Cameran Palace!

Saturday.

The sun bathed the courtyard in warm light as Johan sat beneath a tree, organizing some papers.

Before he knew it, the semester was nearing its end. As a teacher with few formal classes to teach, he couldn't help but marvel at how quickly time had passed.

Nearby, Gengar was leading the little ones in a light warm-up session.

Whenever it came to training, Gengar always got serious.

Meanwhile, Team Rocket's trio—still in their café uniforms—were huddled by the window, whispering among themselves.

"Gengar the President is as diligent as ever," James remarked.

"Speaking of which, I haven't seen Johan train Gengar or the others very often," Jessie said with a tinge of confusion.

"The hardest part is creating a training plan, nya," Meowth said with crossed arms, wearing a knowing look.

"Have you ever seen Boss Giovanni train? Real powerhouses know how to craft perfect training regimens, nya."

As someone who'd spent time as Giovanni's pet, Meowth considered himself an authority on the subject.

From his spot, Johan raised an eyebrow.

"Next time you three whisper, could you try lowering your volume a little?" he called out dryly.

That said, Meowth had a point.

For Pokémon, the focus was on training. But for trainers, there was much more to consider.

Take Giovanni, for instance.

He had to create training plans, manage Team Rocket, search for his son, and wonder if his son would ever accept him as a villainous father.

And Johan?

He needed to figure out how to earn enough to fill four massive financial holes—while keeping an eye on his Pokémon's ever-changing conditions.

Recently, he'd noticed Gengar sneaking out late at night.

At first, Johan had been concerned.

Then he thought, Gengar can't exactly drop dead, right?

Since nothing bad had happened, he let it slide.

"You three don't look very busy," Johan said, turning toward the trio with an unimpressed look.

"Busted!" x3

To the trio, Johan—a top Rocket executive trusted directly by Giovanni, with connections to the Jenny family—radiated an intimidating aura.

"B-Breakfast rush is over!" James stammered.

Johan nodded thoughtfully.

The café currently only sold coffee, albeit in many variations, which made the menu a bit limited. Still, the trio's business acumen had impressed him; the café's profits were remarkable.

"Did you clean the floors? Wash the tools? If you're free, go hand out flyers. Do I need to spell it out for you?"

The trio stiffened, standing at attention.

"Yes, sir!" x3

"Minus 500 Pokédollars," Johan added nonchalantly.

They blinked in shock.

500 Pokédollars? Gone? Just like that?

This was a new rule: calling Johan "Boss" or "Executive" resulted in a 500 Pokédollar penalty.

From their perspective, Gengar was much more approachable. Johan, though? His aura was overwhelming!

Checking his phone for the time, Johan closed his heart-shaped notebook and stood up.

"I'll be heading out for a while. The shop is in your—"

Hearing this, the trio perked up.

If Johan was leaving, that meant they'd be temporarily in charge of the entire Hoenn branch!

"What an amazing feeling!" they thought in unison.

"—care, Wobbuffet," Johan said, turning to the blue Pokémon by the window.

"Wobba?" Wobbuffet tilted its head, confused.

"Eh?!"

Johan stepped forward, patting Wobbuffet's smooth, slippery head. Then, he took out a Stufful-themed cap and placed it on Wobbuffet.

"You've got this. Believe in yourself," Johan said softly.

"Wobba! Wobbuffet!"

Blushing, Wobbuffet snapped to attention, saluting.

It turned to the trio, pointing proudly at the cap on its head—a symbol of its new temporary leadership.

Johan smiled faintly and called out, "Let's go, little ones."

"Oowu~~"

Vulpix leapt gracefully onto Johan's shoulder, licking his cheek affectionately.

Tinkatuff and Dratini returned to their Luxury Balls for a nap.

"Ka-kah!"

Grinning mischievously, Gengar bounced over. At the last moment, it pushed off with its short legs and dove headfirst into Johan's shadow in a perfect entry.

Johan shivered as the temperature around him dropped sharply.

Sighing, he popped a Lum Berry into his mouth.

"This winter... I'm not sure I'll survive it."

At the Devon Corporation's private airport in Rustboro City, Steven, Roxanne, and Flannery were already waiting.

This was Johan's first work-funded trip, and the destination was the "Rota City" Cynthia had mentioned earlier.

The city was hosting a major festival, which included battles and even team competitions. As part of the invitation, Johan was tasked with leading three students from Rustboro Pokémon Academy.

Although a standard flight could have sufficed, Steven's private jet offered the convenience of flying directly to the destination.

Once all four boarded, the plane took off smoothly.

"Teacher, here's the move tutor device you asked for," Steven said, handing Johan a small machine.

It contained the move Iron Tail, but it wasn't meant for Tinkatuff—it was for Vulpix.

The idea had come to Johan one evening after work.

While playing at home, Tinkatuff had accidentally flung its hammer.

Johan had expected it to cause massive property damage, but Vulpix had nimbly leapt from the cat tower, intercepting the hammer with its six tails just before it hit the wall.

Though Vulpix had struggled to catch it, the maneuver slowed the hammer enough for Tinkatuff to retrieve it. Disaster averted.

It was then Johan realized Vulpix's tails had untapped potential.

Most Pokémon only had one tail to utilize for Iron Tail.

Vulpix had six—and once it evolved into Alolan Ninetales, it would have nine!

Training them all to perfection could unleash incredible power.

"Thanks," Johan said, accepting the device. "How much?"

Steven, knowing Johan disliked handouts, gave a fair response after some thought.

"With the included materials, one million Pokédollars."

Johan's eye twitched.

"Fine."

The 3.5 million Pokédollars he'd saved had just taken a one-million-Pokédollar hit.

"Why does it feel like I'll never afford a high-quality Ice Stone?" Johan sighed inwardly.

Dratini's skyrocketing expenses weren't helping, either.

Hours later, Gengar pressed itself against the plane's window, staring outside.

"Ka-kah~~"

Come to think of it, Gengar spent 95% of its time during flights glued to the window.

Johan gave it a sideways glance.

Are you reminiscing about soaring through the skies?

He leaned over to check the view.

Wait a second.

From above, the familiar landscape left Johan momentarily speechless.

Rota City...?

This isn't Rota City—it's Cameran Palace!

The setting of Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew!

He hadn't paid much attention when "Rota City" was first mentioned. Who memorized the name of a random city?

But if they'd just said Cameran Palace...

"Teacher, where are you going? We haven't landed yet," Flannery asked as Johan abruptly stood.

Johan's lips twitched.

"Just checking... where the exit is."

Sunlight bathed the expansive landscape. Amid lush green forests tinged with traces of snow, a long stone bridge stretched over a vast lake.

At the bridge's end stood a majestic castle of white stone, surrounded by a sea of gold.

It was unmistakably Cameran Palace.

From Johan's vantage point, the castle bore a striking resemblance to Mondstadt from Genshin Impact.

"Teacher?" Steven's voice broke Johan's reverie.

Clearing his throat, Johan muttered, "Let's go."

As they crossed the bridge toward the castle, they admired the surrounding natural beauty.

Gengar stood on the railing, arms outstretched, as though embracing the world.

"Ka-kah~~"

Turning to Johan with a mischievous grin, it suddenly fell backward off the bridge.

"Teacher, is Gengar okay?" Roxanne asked worriedly.

Johan shook his head.

Before long, Gengar reappeared, floating back up.

It darted to and fro, gleefully playing by the water's edge.

"Ka-kah!"

Returning to Johan, Gengar beckoned to Vulpix, who hesitated briefly before leaping off the bridge.

Moments later...

Vulpix was riding on Gengar, skimming just above the lake's surface.

In the water's reflection, they spotted a tiny pink figure grinning mischievously at them, its long tail swaying gently.

"Mew~~"

Startled, both Gengar and Vulpix rubbed their eyes.

The reflection flashed white, and the pink figure vanished—replaced by a Goldeen swimming lazily below.

"Oowu?"

"Ka-kah?"

The two Pokémon exchanged bewildered looks.

Did the flight mess with their heads?

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Powerstones?

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