Chapter 183: Mammon, Is It? Let Me Show You Your Limits!
The Unova region was, in its own way, a genuinely interesting place.
The current Champion was Diantha — no, wait, Alder. Years ago, his ace Pokémon had died, and the loss had left a deep crack in him. The grief had stripped away his appetite for competitive battling entirely, and to fill the emptiness, he'd taken to wandering Unova continuously, focusing instead on the emotional bond between trainer and Pokémon.
Worth noting: in all the years since, Alder had barely battled at all. Which was precisely why, in the Black/White storyline, even his last-stand Champion battle against N — staked on everything he believed in — had ended in a decisive loss.
Mammon's personal read on it was that even a fully-prepared Alder, at the absolute peak of his career, probably couldn't have beaten N as he existed at that point in the story regardless.
And below the nearly-broken Champion, Unova's Elite Four wasn't especially strong either, partly because Caitlin herself had defected to Mammon's side. The current lineup was Marshal, Shauntal, Grimsley, and a hastily-promoted stand-in named Drayden.
Solid, unremarkable. Not weak, not strong.
But pair a roster like that with a Champion who'd checked out emotionally years ago, and could anyone honestly call Unova's League formidable?
Unova's relative weakness wasn't without cause. It couldn't hold a candle to Kanto, Hoenn, Galar, or Paldea — and honestly, it couldn't even compete with Kalos at this point. Kalos's Champion, Diantha, wasn't an especially powerful Champion-tier herself, but at least her head was screwed on straight.
Alder, by contrast, simply couldn't summon the conviction to fight unless the fate of the entire region was directly on the line.
That said — Mammon was well aware Unova's underlying talent was anything but weak. There was no shortage of Champion-tier individuals here, if you actually counted them.
N, born inherently extraordinary. Colress, the dark-science genius. Iris, the girl who'd grasped the "Heart of Dragons." And Alder himself, broken as he currently was. That was already four.
N in particular was a special case — he was, by narrative inevitability, destined to be chosen by the Dragon of Ideals (or Truth, depending on the version).
And Mammon strongly suspected something else. Kanto had Red and Leaf. Johto had Gold and Silver. Alola had Mitsuki. Hoenn had May. There was no reason Unova wouldn't have its own designated "protagonists" running around somewhere.
He just didn't know if it was Touko, or Touya, or — possibly both, simultaneously.
So really, doing the math, Unova as a whole wasn't weak at all. The problem was structural.
The ones with real potential hadn't matured into it yet. The ones who had power had their priorities scrambled. Nobody here was pulling in the same direction.
None of which was Mammon's problem, really. If anything, it made things more interesting.
Driftveil City — one of Unova's port towns.
Driftveil was sometimes called Unova's "front door" — a hub for cargo and freight, distinct from passenger-heavy Castelia. Its harbor existed primarily for cargo ships and fishing vessels, not tourists.
Mammon had brought Caitlin and Kagura here because Gladion's intelligence had placed Ghetsis somewhere in the area recently.
"The sea air's a bit much," Mammon said, walking near the docks, "but bearable."
The fish-and-salt smell here was a lot heavier than the kind you got at a proper resort beach.
"Mammon, what's the plan? Just walk around?" Kagura was scanning the unfamiliar city with obvious curiosity — new places always interested her.
"Sure. If you get bored, go explore."
"Yeah, I think I will." Kagura nodded easily — she wasn't built for standing still. Once she left the house, she had trouble stopping. "I'll go find some local trainers, see what Unova's got. Could be interesting."
"Go for it." Mammon smiled.
"You coming, Caitlin?" Kagura called over her shoulder.
"I'll stay with Mammon." Caitlin pressed her lips together in a faint smile.
"You really can't go one day without him, can you." Kagura rolled her eyes, half-teasing.
Caitlin's smile didn't waver in the slightest. She had absolutely no intention of denying it — staying glued to Mammon was the whole point.
"Alright, I'll go entertain myself. If I run into this Ghetsis guy, I'll let you know."
Kagura waved and headed off toward the busier end of the street.
Watching her go, Caitlin remarked, "Kagura seems a lot more open these days."
She'd always smiled before, technically — but there was something different now. A genuine ease that came from somewhere deeper than performance.
"She was carrying too much before," Mammon said, noncommittal. "Now she's actually happy. That's good."
"Mm~ thanks to you, who took on the weight of her whole life for her." Caitlin looked over at him, eyes gone soft.
"Hah — that woman tells you everything, doesn't she."
Mammon couldn't help laughing. Kagura had clearly repeated something he'd said to her, word for word.
"Because what you said to her was full of conviction and charm." Caitlin's eyes curved into a soft crescent, lovely.
"Okay, okay, enough — you'll make me cocky."
Mammon was thoroughly entertained. Caitlin really was something else — gorgeous, and her words just landed perfectly every time. He was a lucky man.
The two of them wandered without any particular destination, eventually ending up near the Driftveil Gym.
Mammon's expression shifted when he spotted two figures up ahead.
"Dad, seriously, I finally come back for a visit and you're still acting like this!"
A girl with striking pink hair stood with her hands on her hips, cheeks puffed out in irritation, glaring at the middle-aged man in front of her.
The man wore a white hat and brown clothing, his face stern and somewhat menacing — Clay, the Driftveil Gym Leader.
Known throughout the region as the "underground boss," Clay was, in addition to running the gym, the owner of a mining development company and the proprietor of Mistralton Cave — well, more accurately, an entire mountain.
That's right. Clay owned a literal mountain. The man's name fit him perfectly — he was genuinely a "mining boss," not just figuratively.
But right now Clay looked entirely helpless, because the person currently "venting" at him was none other than his beloved daughter, Skyla.
"That's not what I meant, Skyla. You should be focused on school right now, and Driftveil's sea smell is pretty strong, so—"
"Same old argument, Dad. Honestly, this is really not okay!"
Skyla raised both arms and crossed them in front of her chest, a dramatic, severe X.
"I'm not made of glass, you know! And anyway, I came back with good news — I'm ranked third in the Blueberry League right now!"
She couldn't quite hide her pride as she said it. This was, after all, her chance to deliver good news to her own father.
"That's my girl." Clay's stern face softened considerably, breaking into a warm smile despite himself.
He hadn't wanted Skyla growing up in Driftveil — so her actual hometown had become Mistralton City, where Clay had ensured she'd have a better living environment and better schooling. He'd later enrolled her in Blueberry Academy, the sister institution to the Citrus Academy over in Paldea.
Blueberry's educational resources were considered the best in all of Unova, and Skyla had more than lived up to expectations — already one of the top students at the academy, before even graduating.
Clay genuinely believed his daughter's future achievements would outshine his own.
"Hmph~" Skyla folded her arms and made a satisfied little noise, about to say something modest — when she turned and noticed two people watching them from a short distance away.
Immediate embarrassment. She had an open, earnest personality, but being caught fussing at her father in public was still mortifying.
A moment later she blinked, studying the young man in the long black coat with her head tilted.
Something about him felt familiar.
"Oh — wait! I know you! You're Mammon! Last year's Indigo Conference champion, right?!"
Skyla snapped her fist into her palm, delighted.
She'd known there was something — she followed regional tournaments closely, hoping to become an excellent trainer herself someday, and Kanto, as the strongest region, naturally got most of her attention.
And last year's Mammon, who'd mowed through the entire field practically untouched, had made a lasting impression on her.
"That's right. Didn't expect to be recognized all the way out in Unova." Mammon, mildly surprised, offered a warm smile in response.
"Your Annihilape was unreal! I've never seen anyone single-Pokémon-sweep a whole tournament like that!"
Skyla had gotten visibly excited — meeting someone she'd literally watched on TV.
Behind her, Clay's eyes narrowed slightly watching his precious daughter look at this stranger with that kind of starstruck admiration.
She's never once looked at me like that!!
"Thanks. Honestly, the field that year was a bit weak too," Mammon said, modest, with a small laugh.
"Was it? The other competitors didn't look that weak to me." Skyla tilted her head, unconvinced. "Oh, right — Mr. Mammon, I'm Skyla. Currently a student at Blueberry Academy. This is my dad, Clay — he's a very responsible Gym Leader!"
She suddenly remembered her manners and made a proper introduction.
"Pleasure to meet you both. I'm Mammon, from Kanto. This is my good friend Caitlin." Mammon returned the introduction smoothly.
"Hello there." Clay had calmed down somewhat. "My daughter says you won the Indigo Conference last year?"
He looked Mammon over curiously. A talented kid, winning a regional tournament that young.
"That's right."
"Care to challenge my gym, then? I respect young trainers like you. I'll go all out — let me show you exactly where your limits are!"
There was a touch of pride in Clay's voice. He knew, somewhere, that he'd eventually get surpassed by the next generation. But that day hadn't come yet.
"Huh? Dad, Mr. Mammon's actually really strong, don't say that—" Skyla blinked, then hurried to interject.
"You little—" Clay's mouth twitched.
Excuse me?
He's strong, and that means I'm not? Your old man's a name people know around these parts, thank you very much!
"So, kid — feel like giving it a shot?" Clay decided to set aside the traitor currently undermining him from the sidelines.
"I'll have to pass, actually. We have some business to take care of." Mammon declined as politely as he could manage.
"Don't worry, it won't take long."
"...Fine."
Mammon found himself agreeing.
Conveniently enough, the Driftveil Gym was right behind them, which at least saved everyone the trouble of finding a venue.
"Alright, kid! Fair warning — I'm not going to hold back!"
Clay crossed his arms, exuding confidence.
"You bring everything you've got too. Let's see exactly where your limits are!"
"Understood."
Mammon raised an eyebrow, quietly returning Mismagius's Poké Ball to his belt and pulling out Dark Mewtwo's instead.
"Good! Here I come!"
Clay swung his arm down with real force, full of bravado.
The Gym Leader of Driftveil — challenge issued!
And then—
Three minutes later.
"Dad!"
Skyla sprinted onto the field and caught her father before he hit the ground.
"This... how is he this strong?!"
Clay stared, disbelieving, at the armored Pokémon he didn't recognize standing across the field. All three of his aces hadn't survived a single exchange between them.
What the hell?! This kid's just a regional tournament champion? You're kidding me.
Clay's mind had gone completely, thoroughly blank.
As for whatever "limit" he'd been hoping to find in his opponent — he hadn't even gotten a glimpse of it.
His own limit, though?
Three minutes, apparently.
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