This really wasn't something Grey was just saying to sound nice. At the moment he only had a Kirlia, sure, but Sabrina actually had a Gardevoir of her own.
It wasn't exactly overwhelmingly strong, but it still counted as "someone who's been through it."
Once his Kirlia evolved into Gallade later, having two seniors to use as case studies would more or less let him give "Ralts Little Angel" some genuinely helpful advice.
[Ralts Little Angel: Mm-hm! Thanks, streamer! I'll be counting on your Pokémon to talk things over with my Ralts later, then!]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: No problem. We're all hxd here—helping out a bit is OK.]
After wrapping that up, Grey wandered around his DMs and comment section for a while, replying to a few funny messages before finally shifting the battlefield over to LINE.
["Giovanni of the Land" wants to add you as a friend.]
[Accept][Decline]
Giovanni's friend request popped up, and Grey hit "Accept" without a second thought.
[DojoDeadbeatApe: Articuno-scratching-head.jpg]
[Giovanni of the Land: drinking-tea.jpg]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: Gym Leader Giovanni, why'd you suddenly buy two whole months of Governor-tier sub, huh? That's not exactly pocket change.]
[Giovanni of the Land: It's nothing. That kind of money doesn't really mean much to me.]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: As expected of the top Gym Leader in Kanto—so generous with your words! applause.jpg]
[Giovanni of the Land: Hahaha, hardly, hardly. You're the one who's still young and fiery, Grey. The way you talk really suits my taste.]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: Sounds like we're pretty fated, then. I hope we'll get to sit down and talk properly about the future someday, if there's a chance.]
[Giovanni of the Land: That chance will come. As it happens, I've been thinking about coming to Saffron City soon. Grey, are you familiar with Silph Co.?]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: Of course. It's a major company here in Saffron City, and they're in the Poké Ball manufacturing business. What they do ties right into our everyday lives.]
After firing that off, Grey fell silent for a moment on his side of the screen.
Silph Co…
So, what was bound to come was finally coming.
In Kanto, every city had its own "home turf" industry.
Celadon City had the Game Corner, Lavender Town had Pokémon Tower…
And Saffron City's home turf industry wasn't just any old business.
It was the kind of big-name company famous not just in Kanto, but across the entire world.
There was even a saying online: as long as you got hired by Silph Co., one foot was already through the door to a million-a-year salary.
Work there three or four years and you could buy an apartment right in Saffron's city center.
He didn't even have to say much about Saffron City's housing prices—expensive went without saying.
And if employee benefits were that good, it went to show just how powerful Silph Co. really was.
[Giovanni of the Land: This Sunday, the president of Silph Co. invited me to visit their headquarters. But I don't really know my way around Saffron City. I wonder if, when the time comes, you might be able to show me around a bit, Grey. smiling-handshake.jpg]
"?"
Seeing Giovanni's message, Grey scratched his head, feeling more than a little weird about it.
The president of Silph Co. had invited Giovanni to Saffron. Normally, the company should be sending someone to take care of Giovanni's every need along the way.
And yet Giovanni wanted him to show him around?
Buddy, your little scheme is so loud I can hear the abacus from all the way across Saffron.
[DojoDeadbeatApe: Of course, no problem. Since Gym Leader Giovanni is coming, I absolutely have to do my part as the local host.]
[Giovanni of the Land: Then I'll be in your care, Grey.]
[DojoDeadbeatApe: It's no trouble at all. Just show me around a bit if I ever swing by Viridian City. toothy-grin.jpg]
[Giovanni of the Land: No problem. I need to deal with some things at Viridian Gym now. We'll chat again when we have the chance.]
They kept the conversation brief, never diving too deep.
Before closing the app, Grey also asked whether Giovanni would like a few photos of the dojo's Pokémon.
Giovanni went silent for a whole three minutes.
In the end, he sent a single "OK" hand emoji.
Seeing that, Grey picked out a few good angles and snapped shots of Blaziken, Breloom, and Riolu.
In every single picture, you could see Silver at the edge of the frame—half-hidden, half-exposed, like he'd accidentally wandered into view.
After finishing the mini photo shoot, Grey sent the pictures over to Giovanni.
As for what kind of expression Giovanni made when he saw them… that, Grey had no way of knowing.
——
Viridian City, Viridian Gym.
Giovanni had just set his phone down when the notification chime sounded again, and he picked it back up for a look.
One glance was all it took: with his sharp eyes he immediately spotted Silver at the edge of the frame.
"Silver…"
Giovanni's fingers tightened around the phone before he realized it. Staring at the images of Silver on the screen, even his breathing grew quicker.
"The Fighting Dojo in Saffron City… I'll let you be for now…"
Grey's dojo could stay standing a bit longer. He'd sweep it aside with the final wave, when the time came.
Just thinking of the fact that Silver was currently apprenticing at the dojo made Giovanni feel unexpectedly "merciful."
Click.
At that moment, the overhead monitor flicked on, Lance's face projected onto the screen above.
"Boss, we've located Moltres's habitat. There are two locations."
Onscreen, Lance lifted a tablet, holding a map of Kanto and Johto up to Giovanni.
Two circles had been drawn on either side of Indigo Plateau.
"The first is Victory Road in the Kanto region. The second is Mt. Silver in Johto. Not long ago, Moltres flew out from Mt. Silver and settled at Kanto's Victory Road."
Lance's tone was respectful as he waited for Giovanni's response.
"Victory Road, huh?"
Giovanni frowned.
That place was a little too sensitive.
Compared to the Seafoam Islands or the Power Plant, Victory Road had been heavily guarded ever since the League was founded.
The Elite Four's headquarters were there; whenever they didn't have anything better to do, that was where they stayed.
If they wanted to capture Moltres, they'd have to be very careful not to let the League catch so much as a whiff of what they were doing.
"Boss, what are your orders now?"
Standing straight as a Rapidash at attention, Lance was like a loyal Arcanine in front of Giovanni—what Giovanni said, went.
Giovanni lowered his gaze slightly and shook his head. "Forget it. Articuno and Zapdos have already been captured by Grey. Getting Moltres on top of that wouldn't be of much use."
"Then what are your plans, Boss?"
Lance asked, a note of confusion in his voice.
"Find a time to go to the Orange Islands. There, the three Legendary birds are worshiped—and they're even stronger. We'll take all three in one stroke when we move. If we can awaken that one in the process… that'd count as an unexpected bonus."
It sounded like Giovanni had already made up his mind. He said to Lance, "Pull our forces back for now and focus everything on preparing to capture the three Legendary birds. For this operation, I'll be leading the team personally."
"Yes, Boss!"
Lance brought a hand to his chest, voice ringing with iron resolve.
——
Saffron City, Fighting Dojo.
After sending those pictures out to his good bros, Grey finally had time to check his DMs.
Pinned at the top, Boss "Sleeping Beauty" had sent him two messages…
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