Since he couldn't kill them, Aoki simply stunned the two Team Magma members and tied them up.
Given the physical endurance of humans in this world, the two woke up not long after.
When they saw Aoki and Steven standing in front of Butler, ready to battle him, they didn't show any signs of nervousness.
Not killing them—that was the weakness of League members. As long as Mr. Butler could defeat these two, they would be free again.
After all, out of all the Team Magma members who came on this mission, they were the only two still alive, and they were Butler's closest confidants.
No one understood Butler's strength better than them.
Under the guidance of Team Magma's higher-ups and the watchful eye of Maxie, Butler had risen from a low-ranking grunt to the peak of the Elite level in record time.
Then, in order to reach pseudo-Champion strength and secure his place within Team Magma, he orchestrated this entire operation.
This mission was completely Butler's own initiative—it had nothing to do with Team Magma's leadership.
Of course, Maxie's willingness to turn a blind eye was crucial.
After all, if Butler succeeded in reaching pseudo-Champion level, he would still be under Maxie's control, and his newfound strength would only benefit Team Magma. If he failed, it wouldn't be a huge loss either.
For Team Magma, Elite-level subordinates were plentiful. One more or one less didn't make much of a difference.
This was the dilemma Butler faced—desperate to break past the Elite threshold and become a more valuable piece on the board.
And in that sense, this mission had been a complete success. Even though he had only brought a handful of Team Magma operatives with him, if he could trade a few disposable grunts for a pseudo-Champion-level Pokémon, the choice was obvious.
In the end, Butler successfully advanced by using that item.
Although only his Camerupt had crossed that threshold and reached pseudo-Champion level, that single step was the hardest to take.
Right now, Butler wasn't truly at pseudo-Champion level himself, but he had one foot through the door. If Camerupt's strength improved just a little more, or if another of his Pokémon reached the same level, he would officially be a pseudo-Champion Trainer.
People only cared about results—no one paid attention to the process.
But ever since Camerupt's breakthrough, Butler had been acting arrogant.
He wasn't just satisfied with becoming a high-ranking officer like Maxie—he wanted to take over Team Magma entirely.
This was the side effect of power getting to his head.
Even so, a pseudo-Champion-level Pokémon was still far stronger than an Elite-level one.
The two captured Team Magma members still had unwavering faith in Butler.
"Lord Butler will win!"
Even though the two Trainers facing him were strong, they weren't Butler's match. There was no doubt about it!
And in this environment, where Fire-type energy filled the air, Camerupt could unleash its full power without restraint.
They would follow Butler to even greater heights.
A bright future lay ahead of them.
They weren't worried in the slightest that they were tied up and thrown to the ground.
Meanwhile, Butler himself was caught up in his own delusions of grandeur.
"Two pseudo-legendary Metang, and a rare shiny Slowking—is this a gift just for me?!" Butler laughed wildly.
"As long as I take these Pokémon for myself and lay low for a while, Team Magma will be mine in the future! Hahaha!"
The ambition he had kept suppressed for so long was finally spilling out.
Two pseudo-legendary Pokémon and a rare Slowking—no matter who these Trainers were, just capturing their Pokémon was worth the risk.
These Pokémon weren't just strong now—they represented unlimited potential for the future!
Even though Camerupt was powerful, its potential and natural limits were nothing compared to a pseudo-legendary Pokémon or even Slowking.
As for the Skorupi, he ignored it completely.
It was just a Bug-type Pokémon—easily countered by Fire-types!
Taking advantage of a brief pause, Steven took out Aoki's specially made Pokeblock from his storage space and fed them to his two Metang to help restore their stamina.
In such a scorching environment, it was hard for Steel-types like Metang to fight at their best.
At the same time, Aoki had a thought.
Using telepathy, he established a mental link between Slowking and Steven's Metang. Normally, Aoki would handle the communication, but this time, the three Psychic-types supported the channel themselves.
Maintaining telepathy didn't consume much energy. With Aoki's junior-level Psychic abilities, he could sustain it for over half an hour. With three powerful Psychic Pokémon, it was effortless.
But this time, the telepathy was different from usual—Aoki also pulled Steven into the mental link.
(A group chat?!!)
Steven was momentarily startled, but after a brief pause, he quickly adapted.
For the first time, he was experiencing this form of command.
He could give orders to Metang or communicate with Aoki without speaking aloud—just thinking the command was enough.
"Skorupi, Toxic Spikes!"
"Slowking, use Heal Pulse on the Metang!"
Aoki gave simple, precise orders.
Butler had been preparing to attack Steven's Metang again when he noticed the two Trainers weren't reacting at all.
He hesitated for a moment.
But Skorupi and Slowking didn't hesitate at all.
Skorupi immediately scattered a dense layer of Toxic Spikes on the ground in front of Camerupt, surrounding Butler as well.
At the same time, Slowking used Heal Pulse to restore the Metang's stamina.
Although Slowking wasn't highly proficient in Heal Pulse, it was enough to help them recover.
Butler's expression darkened.
He had exhausted Metang's stamina earlier, and now, just like that, they were back in fighting shape?!
He felt like he had been played.
A cold killing intent flashed in his eyes.
If he wanted their Pokémon, no matter who they were, both of these Trainers had to die!
"Camerupt! Earthquake!" Butler ordered coldly, suppressing his ambition for now.