He wasn't angry—because Nathan had already written Will's name into his little notebook.
Not long after, Will arrived at the bar and was led to a more secluded private room.
"Hammer, where's the Pokéball? I can't wait to make Volcarona into a specimen and show it off to that genius Trainer!"
As soon as he entered, Will wore a twisted smile of excitement.
Once a person's material needs are satisfied, there's no telling what kind of perverse hobbies they'll indulge in.
In response, Nathan, sitting quietly in the corner, offered a gentle smile.
"If you're that eager to see Volcarona, then why don't you experience its power firsthand?"
White flames coiled around him as Nathan spoke softly with a smile.
If Lily were here, she would have noticed immediately—Nathan was radiating murderous intent.
Will's schemes had officially landed him on Nathan's "must-kill" list.
"You?! Nathan?! What the hell are you doing here?!"
Will screamed as though he had seen a ghost.
Wasn't this guy supposed to be in the hospital, unable to even participate in the national tournament?!
"Hammer, what the hell is going on?!"
Only now did Will realize that Hammer's face was pale, his eyes filled with despair.
Just a minute before Will's arrival, Hammer had panicked and made a desperate move—
He had tried to ambush and kill Nathan.
But the outcome was predictable: firearms are useless in the face of powerful Pokémon.
The attempt failed miserably, leaving Hammer terrified, hopeless, and still clinging to a shred of wishful thinking—
As long as he didn't die, there was still a chance…
However…
The white flames surrounding Nathan didn't first incinerate Will, but Hammer!
Without even a scream, Hammer vanished from existence.
Only then did Will snap back to reality. The previous excitement and smile were gone without a trace. His not-so-ugly face turned completely pale.
[Don't kill him… not yet…]
Just as Nathan was about to end this scumbag's life, Kroxus's mental voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
[He… has a seed of my power… and a trace of… a legendary artificial Pokémon…]
The vague mental message sent a jolt through Nathan.
Power aside—a legendary artificial Pokémon?
That could only mean Mewtwo!
His Charmander was already training with a Mewtwo-style suppression armor. Nathan had been preparing for this.
"Wait a minute… the first time the Dark Organization showed up, it was to obtain Pokéblocks to provide some kind of unique nutrients…"
Nathan's eyes narrowed as a terrifying thought formed in his mind.
If this guess was true, then the Dark Organization's madness couldn't possibly be just about the secrets of Mega Evolution!
…
"Then… let me read your memories. Metagross, assist me."
Staring at Will, Nathan made a decision.
The reason his psychic power and Viridian Power had synchronized was rooted in the dreams he had about Kroxus's memories.
In other words—
Through synchronization, Nathan could possibly read someone's memories!
It was just a hypothesis, but with Metagross's help, even failure wouldn't be disastrous.
"Meta—gross!"
Upon hearing Nathan's call, Metagross appeared at his side.
The wave of psychic power radiating from its body gradually merged with Nathan's, syncing their frequencies.
At the same time, Metagross's computer-like brains began operating at full capacity, calculating and predicting every possible risk scenario.
Reading a person's memories… no one in human history had ever done such a thing.
Extreme caution was essential.
"You… What are you trying to do…?! You monster! You're not even human…"
Sensing what Nathan was about to do, Will's eyes widened in horror.
He had never imagined that his pursuit of sadistic pleasure would lead to this.
He was so close to success—
From a spoiled rich kid that everyone looked down on, he was about to become a world-renowned genius Trainer!
But it didn't matter what Will thought.
Soon, his eyes dimmed—
His soul, mind, and memories were invaded by Nathan and Metagross.
Even his deepest secrets were laid bare.
…
Nathan had succeeded—and failed.
He successfully synchronized with Will's mind and began reading his memories.
But he also failed—
Even with Metagross's extraordinary processing power, it was impossible to comb through a person's entire life's worth of memories.
This wasn't a movie or a TV series.
Even so, Nathan managed to extract a few key fragments and, through them, uncovered several truths.
For example—
Will's public image as a sadistic Trainer wasn't purely due to psychological issues.
It stemmed from an "accidental" discovery in his childhood—a purple-black rhomboid crystal chip.
Through extensive research, Will found that if he abused Pokémon and let the chip absorb their negative emotions, he could become a Trainer like no other in history.
Powerful Pokémon would kneel before him!
…Or so he believed.
From Nathan's third-party perspective, it was clear there had been deliberate manipulation at every stage.
If he was right, this crystal was something the Dark Organization had intentionally planted on Will.
This was classic "raising someone else's pig to slaughter for bacon."
And the Organization didn't hesitate to use people like Will—especially scumbags like him.
"No wonder… the Dark Organization 'Chiyou' set up their headquarters in the capital!"
In an instant, Nathan connected many dots.
The reason they risked exposure to root themselves in the capital wasn't just to force the Pokémon League to tread lightly.
It was to exploit resources and connections through people like Will!
It was unclear whether that purple-black chip was one of a kind or mass-produced.
But beyond that deeply hidden secret, Nathan uncovered another:
Will had once visited a laboratory where he saw a severely injured, yet immensely powerful Pokémon.
Will had been obsessed ever since, believing that if he could master the purple chip, he could command that Pokémon.
The memory was hazy—especially the image of the Pokémon, which had been blurred like it was censored.
But even so, Nathan recognized it instantly:
Mewtwo.
Its restraint armor was shattered, and it appeared juvenile and weakened—
But without a doubt, it was Mewtwo.
"So… the Dark Organization needed the pokeblocks to feed Mewtwo?"
"All along, their ultimate goal wasn't Mega Evolution or Bond Evolution…"
"Or rather, those evolutions were just side objectives."
Ending the synchronization, Nathan stared at the unconscious Will with a troubled expression.
He had originally thought this had something to do with Kroxus.
But by sheer coincidence, he had uncovered the greatest secret of Chiyou, the core of the Dark Organization.
"They really hid it deep… But during the national tournament, they'll definitely make another move on me. That'll be my chance."
Throwing Will onto the sofa, Nathan's eyes sparkled as he muttered to himself.
He hadn't found Mewtwo's exact location in Will's memories.
But as long as he traced it through Chiyou, he'd definitely find it!
Not to mention—he had already unknowingly planted a chess piece.
Tina.
That woman knew nothing about Mewtwo and wouldn't for a long time.
Even if she joined Chiyou, she wouldn't get near the inner circle for at least three to five years.
In fact, it was questionable how many in Chiyou even knew of Mewtwo's existence.
Which meant—Nathan had a lot of room to maneuver.
"But this guy… forget it. I won't kill him. I'll let the League deal with him."
Looking at Will, Nathan shook his head.
The memories he had read from Will would be erased—
Not just suppressed. Erased. Permanently.
Given that, there was no point in killing him.
All Nathan had to do was give the League some evidence of Will's collusion with the Dark Organization.
And what awaited him would be a fate worse than death.
Of course, Will didn't knowingly work with the Dark Organization.
But did that matter?
Anyone even remotely associated with the Dark Organization…
Even if you were the richest man in the country—you'd still lose everything.
And that was just from association.
Leaving Hammer's bar behind, Nathan headed for Will's private villa.
(End of Chapter)