"Good job, Icarus!" Hearing Icarus's report, Ashu became visibly excited. He hadn't expected that earning 100 merit points would be so easy!
"Then we'll move farther away and take a photo. This camera will hang around Pidgey's neck. It's very simple—just let Pidgey press the switch with its beak and the photo will be taken!
Of course, the flash will definitely alert Team Rocket, but that's fine. I'll have Butterfree stay farther away and go with Pidgey. Once we escape back, we can just run!"
As expected of a trainer who had been active in the wild for years, Ashu immediately came up with a workable plan.
"If Aze hadn't betrayed us, this plan might actually succeed."
After hearing Ashu's plan, Icarus had to admit that Ashu, as the captain of their three-person team, was surprisingly capable.
"Unfortunately, this plan will never be carried out."
The thought flashed through Icarus's mind.
Sure enough, before he could respond, Aze, standing beside them, impatiently refused.
"No. I mean, since the other side is just a Team Rocket grunt, we can completely imitate the way we hunted that Arbok before. Use powder tactics to weaken them first, then the three of us work together to capture the Rocket grunt and force him to reveal the location of their base!
That's 200 merit points, Ashu!"
Perhaps realizing he sounded too eager, Aze quickly added an explanation and finished with the tempting mention of double merit points.
"Hmm… Aze, what you said makes sense too. What about you, Icarus? Want to give it a try?"
Ashu rubbed his chin. He was clearly tempted but still turned to ask the team's second member.
At the same time, Aze also looked toward Icarus and began persuading him.
"Alright, let's give it a try." Icarus nodded, pretending to be convinced.
"Good! Then let's move out and capture that Team Rocket grunt!"
Seeing Icarus agree, both of them looked pleased. But in Icarus's eyes, Ashu was happy about the merit points, while Aze was happy that his prey had walked into the trap.
The three of them began approaching according to the plan. Meanwhile, Icarus deliberately moved closer to Ashu, preparing to help him immediately—
If Aze made a move.
"It really is collecting materials! And there's only Koffing nearby! Don't miss this chance—start the powder tactic!"
Completely unaware of everything, Ashu became extremely excited after spotting the black-clad figure through the binoculars.
He immediately released Butterfree and began scattering powder.
"Weepinbell, you also use Stun Spore.
Pidgey, control the wind like before and spread the powder."
Seeing this, Icarus had no choice but to let Weepinbell and Pidgey cooperate.
"Shu-sha… shu-sha…"
What surprised Icarus was that the strengthened Stun Spore actually enveloped the Team Rocket grunt and Koffing.
"Koffing!!"
In the eyes of the three trainers, Koffing froze in place with a painful expression.
The Team Rocket grunt beside it also sat down with a pained look.
"I didn't expect it to be this easy! Butterfree, use all your Confusion to control Koffing and that Rocket grunt!
Raticate! Flash attack—go straight for the grunt! Leave him alive!"
Seeing the powder seemingly work, Ashu decisively gave further orders. Butterfree would restrain them with psychic power while Raticate rushed forward with a lightning-fast Hyper Fang, aiming to subdue the enemy in one strike.
In Ashu's mind, the mission had already been completely secured by him, so the reward obviously couldn't be divided 4-3-3 anymore.
"I'll take 70% of the 200 merit points. Icarus acted as a scout and still contributed something—he can get 20%. As for my friend… 10% is enough."
Just as he smugly imagined what he would exchange his merit points for—
A sudden roar and a massive shove from behind sent him straight into the abyss.
"Koffing, Self-Destruct!"
"I'm sorry… my friend Ashu!"
"Graveler, grab them! Self-Destruct!"
Those were the last words Ashu heard before the scorching explosion swallowed him completely.
---
From Icarus's perspective, the moment Raticate rushed forward, the Team Rocket grunt and Koffing, who had been pretending to be affected, immediately stopped acting.
The grunt retreated rapidly—far faster than any normal human.
At the same time, Koffing's eyes turned blood-red as it burned its life force and detonated.
Beside them, Aze instantly ordered Graveler to grab Ashu and Butterfree, then rushed straight toward the blast center—
And detonated as well.
However, Graveler's Self-Destruct only burned its internal energy. The power and range were far smaller than Koffing's explosion.
As Icarus sprinted away in panic, the terrifying scene of the double explosion replayed again and again in his mind.
It was like high-yield explosives going off.
Originally, when Aze ordered Graveler to grab Ashu, Icarus had already pulled out two other Poké Balls, planning to release Beedrill and Arbok.
Fortunately, he had stayed alert.
The moment the Rocket grunt spoke, Weepinbell and Pidgey immediately attacked Aze, while Icarus threw a knife he hadn't used for a long time.
He struck first.
Before Aze could release Beedrill properly and give it orders, Icarus had already killed him.
At the same time, Weepinbell bound the stunned Beedrill and threw it directly into the Self-Destruct blast zone.
Although the sneak attack succeeded, it also reminded Icarus of something important:
Until he reached the Elite level, he had to prioritize protecting himself in every battle.
He had only succeeded because when the three of them approached earlier to observe carefully, they had removed their helmets and masks.
Before they could put them back on, Ashu had already launched the attack.
Icarus guessed Aze had originally planned to release Beedrill and Arbok at close range to attack them directly.
Otherwise, with their mid-grade protective suits, killing the trainers themselves would not have been so easy.
"Damn, that speed is too fast!"
Icarus glanced back at the rapidly approaching figure behind him. He knew he couldn't outrun the modified Team Rocket soldier.
"If I had known, I wouldn't have been greedy for those two backpacks…"
Right now he was carrying three backpacks—his own, plus those belonging to Aze and Ashu.
Ashu's bag had been left behind earlier. When Aze ordered Graveler to grab him, the backpack had been torn off and thrown aside, giving Icarus the chance to pick it up.
Unfortunately, the extra time he spent collectin
g those two bags exposed his escape direction after the blinding explosion.
And now the Team Rocket soldier was relentlessly chasing him.
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