Chapters 174
Just as she closed her eyes, steeling herself to resist the interrogation, Asahi casually dropped a bombshell:
"...I heard Giovanni has a son who went missing when he was young."
The moment those words left his mouth, Matori's calm expression shattered.
Her head snapped toward Asahi, eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
Only a select few within Team Rocket — including Matori, Giovanni's personal secretary — knew about Giovanni's missing son.
How did Asahi know?
Matori quickly tried to recover. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
But Asahi's smirk only deepened. "Oh? Funny — you just responded to it, though. And are you sure you don't know?"
Matori's heart pounded, though she kept her face neutral.
Meanwhile, Green looked surprised but relatively calm — she assumed Asahi had gathered the information through one of his usual, mysterious channels.
Sabrina, however, was visibly stunned.
Giovanni... had a son?
She had worked for Team Rocket for years as an executive — how had she never heard about this?
Under the table, Sabrina's hand poked Asahi's arm.
Sabrina: Where did you get that intel? Judging by Matori's reaction... is it true?
Asahi: Wanna know? … Heh, not telling.
Sabrina: …
Her fists clenched.
—---
Turning his attention back to Matori, Asahi leaned forward.
"I'm just a concerned citizen trying to help a father find his lost child... In fact, I already have a lead on Giovanni's son. Want to hear it?"
Matori's wariness grew.
She didn't believe for a second that Asahi was doing this out of the kindness of his heart. His reputation as the "Demon Ranger" — the one who dealt with poachers in... creative ways — made it clear that altruism wasn't in his vocabulary.
Sure enough, Asahi's next words proved her right.
"In exchange, tell me the names of the Team Rocket spies planted within the Pokémon League... Don't tell me you don't know."
Asahi wasn't just here to sow chaos by revealing Silver's whereabouts to Giovanni — if he could also uncover the identities of Team Rocket's infiltrators, it would be a double win.
"Never." Matori didn't hesitate for a second.
Asahi chuckled. "Matori... you wouldn't want Giovanni to lose his only son again, would you?"
Green flinched at Asahi's words.
We're with the International Police now — the good guys!
Did he really have to sound so... shady?
"You're despicable... Is this how the International Police operate?" Matori glared at Asahi, hoping to guilt him into backing off.
But Asahi simply looked... proud of himself.
Clearly, guilt-tripping him wasn't going to work.
Matori knew how much Giovanni had sacrificed searching for his son. If she ignored this and Giovanni later discovered she had withheld information, he wouldn't forgive her.
This wasn't just about Giovanni's son versus Team Rocket's interests — it was about her own survival.
After a long silence, Matori finally spoke.
"How do I know you're telling the truth?"
Asahi looked offended. "I'm not Team Rocket — my reputation is flawless."
Matori's scoff was practically audible.
Asahi, seeing she wasn't convinced, decided to up the ante.
"Giovanni's son disappeared when he was two years old. He has reddish-brown hair... and a Sneasel."
Green, who had been quietly recording the interrogation, suddenly froze.
Her pen clattered to the floor.
Her mind raced.
Reddish-brown hair... a Sneasel...
That was... Silver.
Giovanni's son was Silver?!
Sabrina noticed Green's extreme reaction and raised an eyebrow.
Meanwhile, Matori fell into a stunned silence.
Asahi wasn't bluffing — the details matched perfectly.
She remembered seeing Giovanni alone in his office once, holding a photo of a red-haired boy clutching a Sneasel.
Asahi pressed on. "Give me the names of Team Rocket's spies in the League, and I'll tell you exactly where Giovanni's son is — you can even relay the information to him yourself."
Before Matori could answer, Asahi felt Green's hand grip his tightly.
Her worry was clear.
He gave her a reassuring pat.
Finally, after a long pause, Matori spoke:
"The names are..."
Seeing Green so distracted, Sabrina used her psychic powers to lift the pen and took over recording the interrogation notes.
Once everything was noted down, Asahi pulled out the list of suspects he had previously obtained from Lance. After comparing the names, he found a significant overlap.
"Good," Asahi nodded. "The list checks out — no funny business."
Of course, there was no way this list included all of Team Rocket's spies within the Pokémon League, but it was more than enough.
Asahi hadn't expected Matori to give up the entire roster anyway.
"...About Young Master Silver," Matori said cautiously, fearing Asahi might go back on his word.
"Twelve years ago, the leader of the Masked Army, the Masked Man, kidnapped six exceptionally talented children from around the world, raising them under his control…" Asahi trailed off, letting the weight of his words settle.
Matori's face darkened.
Team Rocket was currently at war with the Masked Army — if Silver was truly in their hands… it was a dangerous situation.
Realizing the urgency, Matori grabbed the tablet Asahi handed her and quickly typed out a message, sending it to a secure email used solely for relaying confidential information to Giovanni.
Once the message was sent, she exhaled deeply.
Now that the panic had faded, Matori began to piece things together.
"You want Team Rocket and the Masked Army to go to war, don't you?" Matori said coldly.
If the two criminal organizations went into an all-out conflict, the Pokémon League would be the biggest beneficiary — swooping in to clean up the aftermath.
This man… his schemes ran far deeper than Matori had imagined.