The Genius Scientist Who Crosses Over Twice

On the outskirts of Ecruteak City. 

"Hey cousin, can't you stay a bit longer?" 

A blue-haired girl, roughly the same age as Victor, followed closely behind a flamboyantly dressed boy, who appeared to be around 15 years old, with a bright red spiky hairstyle and a dramatic black cape. 

They had just exited the so-called "Dragon's Den," a place regarded as the Holy Land of Dragons by the Dragon Clan of Ecruteak City, where a large number of Dragon-type Pokémon resided. 

Family members of the Dragon Clan, along with some trainers recognized by them, often trained here.

"I'm only back to train; I'm not interested in anything else." 

Facing the cousin who loved to stick close to him, Lance's attitude was lukewarm. 

His mother left the family when she was young, meeting and falling in love with his father in Viridian Forest, eventually settling there and giving birth to him.

That's how Lance received the forest's blessing, granting him the special power of Viridian Force.

Over time, as he gradually rose to prominence in Kanto, the Dragon Clan sought to summon him back. 

It felt a little like an overdue welcome for the Dragon King's return.

Wasn't that just reminiscent of the writing style from over a decade ago? 

Initially, Lance brushed off the summons from the Dragon Clan with indifference. 

But alas... the offer was simply too great. 

As the number one Dragon type enthusiast as well as a portly collector, he couldn't refuse the dragons in the Dragon's Den. 

Wild Dragonites were extremely rare.

When he was younger, finding a Dratini in the sewage river was already a once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck. 

But since then, he had never seen another member of the Dragon family in the wild. 

So, when the Dragon Clan members waved two Poké Balls containing Dratini in front of him, the proud Dragon Tamer... bowed his head to reality.

...

After that, Lance reached an unspoken agreement with the Dragon Clan. 

Usually, neither side interfered with each other. 

Lance maintained the title of "Dragon Tamer," acting almost like a human billboard for the Dragon Clan as he traveled through Kanto and Johto. 

The Dragon Clan provided him with the best logistical support and training grounds. 

The Dragon's Den was one of the conditions for winning him over. 

"But every time you come back, you just stay in the Dragon's Den to train, then leave without playing with me..." 

Clair, not much older than Victor, pouted slightly, expressing her complaints.

Seeing his cousin like this, though he hadn't changed his mind, he softened his heart and patiently explained, "I'm not accustomed to the atmosphere here." 

After all, the Dragon Clan was the foremost family in Johto. 

They interacted frequently with other prominent families in Johto and Kanto.

Among them were certainly some uncleanly capitalists. 

Lance, who despises evil like the plague, genuinely disliked mingling with such people. 

Bam! Bam! Bam! 

Just after Lance finished explaining, a series of crashing sounds echoed ahead, accompanied by frantic screams from wild Pokémon fleeing. 

Lance and Kojiro instinctively looked up. 

Before them in the forest, one large tree after another was being cut down and crashing to the ground. 

The ground continued to vibrate with each sound. 

Living in the thickets of the forest, weaker Pokémon such as Oddish, Caterpie, and Paras were frightened and hastily fleeing in the opposite direction.

"What's going on?" 

Lance hurried towards the source of the commotion. 

Cousin Clair followed closely behind. 

"Damn Team Rocket! If they don't want to let me have a peaceful time, they shouldn't expect to have one either!" 

As Lance sped closer, he suddenly heard roaring from the battle site. 

At that moment, his expression darkened like Whitebeard facing Akainu, or Naruto looking at Danzo. 

His face turned grave. 

As the Elite Four member and chief inspector of the Indigo League, he had crossed paths with Team Rocket too many times. 

He had personally captured and sent many of them to jail!

This wicked organization that utilized Pokémon for criminal activities didn't deserve to live in Lance's eyes; they deserved to die a thousand deaths!

"Where is Team Rocket?!" 

Lance quickened his steps, bursting out of the forest. 

Boom!

A deafening crash resounded. 

Before him, on a lawn where numerous trees stood as mere stumps, a Excadrill from the Unova region clashed with a canine Pokémon he had never seen before using Iron Tail mid-air. 

The two held their ground for half a second before Excadrill was completely suppressed, sent flying directly into its trainer. 

Both trainer and Pokémon staggered, seeing stars. 

"You are... the A-Class wanted criminal, Anders?!" 

As an inspector, Lance recognized the figure. 

Who was that masked brat, roughly the same age as his cousin?

Clearly, that previous line came from Anders, which meant... 

"Are you pulling a black market deal?" 

Lance said coldly. 

After seeing the scene before him, in under half a minute, he had pieced together the general idea. 

That masked kid in black was from Team Rocket. 

The reason he was fighting against the wanted criminal Anders was due to illicit dealings between Team Rocket and Anders. 

Since the news already revealed Anders was being hunted down by Officer Jenny in Johto. 

Team Rocket worried that their nefarious dealings would be exposed if he was caught, thus they sent someone to take him out. 

It must be said, Lance guessed quite accurately. 

At least, it aligned perfectly with Anders's thoughts. 

"Oh my, you've brought Dragon Master Lance here, and it's buy one, get one free." 

Victor blinked in astonishment behind his mask. 

When Anders wreaked havoc in the forest, making a scene, Victor had realized he was trying to attract the attention of the people living in Blackthorn City and then escape amidst the chaos. 

And indeed, Blackthorn City was the Dragon Clan's territory. 

It was entirely plausible to lure over those who were there with the dragons. 

But Victor hadn't expected to draw out two major gifts at once. 

Lance and Clair!

"Perfect. You two are going to prison for life." 

Lance sneered, revealing a Poké Ball. 

"Hey, hey, hey~ don't attack without distinguishing good from evil." 

Victor spread his hands and responded, "This guy is the wanted criminal of the league. By taking him down, I'm saving you a lot of trouble, right? Think of me as a bounty hunter." 

Just like early in the pirate world, bounty hunters, like Roronoa Zoro, made ends meet by capturing wanted criminals for rewards. 

Though in the Pokémon world, there weren't as many as in the pirate world, they certainly existed. 

Lance held a generally neutral attitude towards them. 

However... he clearly didn't trust Victor's claim. 

"Heh~ a bounty hunter? Then take off your mask and let me see." 

What kind of bounty hunter would go around hiding their face? 

He was clearly a naturally evil member of Team Rocket! 

Victor: …

Well, now he really couldn't explain himself. 

After all, the things he was currently doing certainly couldn't be shown openly.

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