Alex sat at the head of the command center, reviewing the usual monthly mountain of paperwork awaiting his approval. Mission reports, material acquisitions, tax records, contribution point logs, Pokédollar revenue, credit flow, and every manner of progress report that demanded his attention.

While capable managers like Celise, Maris, Nyx, Rhea, Metagross, and even his Rotom handled the day-to-day operations, not every matter could be delegated. As the head of the Silver Network, there were still countless decisions that required his personal judgment and final approval.

“Everything looks good,” Alex said as he finished signing the last document and setting it aside, prompting Celise to roll her eyes.

“You didn't read any of it again,” she pointed out.

“That doesn't mean it doesn't look good,” Alex replied with a sly smile. “Besides, I trust you to do what's best on your end of the business. Now, has anything interesting happened over the past month?”

“Jonah Rooke, the head of Team Bones, I mean, Bones Conglomerate, sent over another batch of delinquents,” Nyx replied. “He was wondering if this batch could receive bounty hunter training after they finish rehabilitation. He wants to hire them as bodyguards.”

Over 15 years ago, Alex had forced 145 members of Team Bones into his impromptu rehabilitation program. The results had exceeded everyone's expectations.

Roughly 90% abandoned crime for good and went on to build honest civilian lives. The remaining 10% eventually slipped back into their old habits after getting drawn into conflicts with rival gangs. Even then, the program had left its mark. They deliberately kept civilians out of their operations, limiting their illegal activities to conflicts within the Underworld itself.

Over time, Team Bones gradually evolved from a full-fledged criminal organization into a largely legitimate business network. Those results convinced Jonah Rooke to beg Alex to expand the program, regularly sending troublesome youths and new recruits to the Silver Network for rehabilitation. Alex agreed, turning it into a formal redemption initiative.

The data gathered from the project was eventually published to the scientific community, where the method drew heavy criticism for their brutality. Even so, compared to alternatives like complete memory wipes, costly imprisonment, or ineffective rehabilitation institutions, the program was ultimately judged the lesser evil and gained cautious acceptance.

“Sure,” Alex said. “It shouldn’t be a problem to have them join. Just charge him more for the program than what we spend. Since this is a third party training program, it should cost like one.”

“Got it.”

“Anything else?”

“We're being hounded by Professor Cozmo again,” Nyx replied with a sigh. “He wants to head back to the asteroid belt for another survey. This time, they've discovered a new metal that might be capable of being refined into a Master rank material.”

Professor Cozmo had been trying to convince Alex to return to the asteroid belt with every new discovery made from the samples they'd collected. Each time, Alex turned him down, but that never stopped the professor from trying again after the next breakthrough.

“They still haven't managed to begin mass-producing the gravity engines?”

“Rhea would know more about that than I do. You can ask her when she gets here.”

Of everyone in the room, Rhea had benefited the most from the spoils of the last asteroid belt expedition. Thanks to Tink, her Tinkaton, and Magnezone steadily consuming her share of the Master ranked meat, she'd reached Champion rank despite putting remarkably little effort into training them. The results were proof of just how much a Pokémon's diet could influence its growth.

Alex's own Pokémon, on the other hand, were still some distance from reaching the peak of Champion rank, even after consuming nearly a hundred Master ranked corpses. Even so, they'd all grown considerably stronger, with the greatest improvement being their mastery of Master ranked moves.

As if summoned by the conversation, the glass door to the command center slid open.

“Hey, y'all,” Rhea greeted with a lazy, contented sigh as she ambled her way inside.

“You're late,” Maris scolded.

“Blame Mira,” Rhea replied, dropping into her seat, completely unbothered. “She wanted to try poking a new acupoint, so here we are.”

Ever since Alex taught her how to channel Aura through massage, Mira had devoted herself to mastering the technique. She meditated, refined her Aura control, and practiced until exhaustion every day, eventually reaching the pinnacle her Aura was capable of.

She soon realized that finer Aura control came with higher rank, so she set her sights on reaching Champion as quickly as possible. Through relentless training and a fortune spent raising her Arboliva and Hypno, she eventually succeeded.

Her control had become so refined that her massages were in a league of their own, making her especially popular with the girls, who often melted and moaned beneath her gentle touch. Even Alex couldn't deny its effects on him, as Mira had long since surpassed his own expertise when it came to relieving the body of stress.

Hence, Rhea's laziness was completely understandable and excusable. Anyone would have a hard time going to a meeting after spending an hour with Mira using Aura-infused massages to work muscles and pressure points that were normally impossible to reach.

“Anyway, Alex wanted to know about the gravity engine situation at Mossdeep Space Center,” Nyx said.

“They've been churning out airships practically every month,” Rhea replied.

“Then why does Professor Cozmo keep pushing us to head back?”

“So far, they've been focused on producing transport ships to replace rocket-fuel propulsion. Gravity engines are far more sustainable and much cheaper to operate in the long run, so that's been the priority. I'm sure they've already developed engines more powerful than the ones Team Dominion built, but an engine alone doesn't make a warship. They still haven't replicated my defensive systems. Without those, no one's willing to risk another expedition into the asteroid belt. Besides, we would've lost that battle without Alex's Guzzlord, so they need you specifically, not just the airship.”

Alex nodded, accepting the explanation. Even so, he still wasn't going back. Guzzlord hadn't woken up yet, remaining in a food coma as it digested everything it'd consumed during the battle at an accelerated rate. Vera estimated it'd wake soon, having already burned through over 20% of its stored energy. Once it reached whatever threshold ended the coma, it likely wouldn't need to eat again for at least a century.

At least, that was Alex's hope. It was just as possible that Guzzlord wouldn't wake until it had exhausted all of its stored energy. If that happened, the moment it opened its eyes, they'd be forced to mount another expedition to the asteroid belt less than 25 years after the last one. That wasn't a prospect Alex relished, especially when he'd been counting on its energy reserves lasting at least a century.

“Anything new on your end to report, Rhea?” Alex asked.

“I think I've hit a wall with the airship,” Rhea replied, scratching her head. “There's only so much I can improve without completely overhauling it and replacing everything with Master ranked materials. Other than that, the software's up to date. At this point, any further improvements will have to come from live combat testing.”

That wasn't to say the airship hadn't changed. It had undergone extensive upgrades since the last expedition. Beyond being fully repaired, its hull defenses had been strengthened, the exterior corridors reinforced, and its drone complement expanded with improved programming. Rhea had also redesigned the drones' firing patterns to better counter swarms of Mega Metagross should they ever find themselves in a similar situation again.

“Does anyone else have anything to report?” Alex asked.

When no one answered, he suddenly remembered Emma and Lily.

“How are our branches in Sinnoh and Unova doing?”

“They're still alive,” Nyx replied with a wry smile. “I'd say that's a pretty good sign they're doing well.”

Emma and Lily had established Silver Network branches in both regions. Rather than confronting the Underworld head-on, they focused almost exclusively on combating petty crime and hunting for low hanging criminals. That was especially true in Sinnoh, where the region's criminal organizations operated on such a terrifying scale that not even Cynthia, despite having Arceus at her side, had been able to eliminate them.

“They're doing well,” Maris confirmed. “The depots haven't had any trouble with the locals, the bounty hunters aren't dying any more than usual, and the supply chain remains stable. Honestly, considering the regions they're operating in, I'd say they're doing better than well.”

“That's good,” Alex said with an appreciative nod. “I suppose Kalos and Alola are next. Do we have anyone interested in running those branches?”

“Jonah might be interested in heading the Alola branch, especially since Marlo and Leilani don't seem interested,” Nyx suggested. “I'm not sure about Kalos, though. We have plenty of Champions to spare, but none we trust enough to leave in charge. Maybe Lyra and Mika would be interested.”

Lyra and Mika still weren't back from their journey, happily exploring the regions at their own pace. Aside from Alex visiting them once a month for sex, he rarely saw them. They were simply content to wander the world.

“I guess we'll table this discussion for now,” Alex said, glancing out the window before ending the meeting.

Nyx and Rhea, being Champions, looked outside as well, detecting something heading straight for the base at high speed.

Alex stood and made his way to the balcony, watching as an orange object streaked toward the base at a speed far beyond what Champion ranked Pokémon were capable of. As it drew closer, he could make out a silhouette and a head of distinctive long, windswept red hair.

With a thunderous crash, the orange figure landed in the training grounds behind the base. A heartbeat later, the delayed sonic boom rolled across the area, whipping through the surrounding forest and sending startled Pokémon fleeing in every direction. Master ranked aura poured from the newcomer, its overwhelming pressure alone enough to drive away the Elite ranked Pokémon that hadn't escaped.

Moments later, the figure took off again, this time at a far more reasonable speed, before coming to a stop in front of Alex's balcony.

“Alex!!!” Clarissa shouted as she leaped from her Master ranked Charizard's back and straight into his arms, where he caught her in a princess carry. “I finally did it! I reached Master rank!”

“Congratulations,” Alex said with a smile, tightening his hold on her seemingly delicate, lightweight body. “Tell me how it went.”

“Before that,” Clarissa said, her smile slowly turning into a seductive, hungry grin. “I need your cock to stir my insides. It’s been way too long, Alex… way too fucking long.”

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R-18 chapter available.